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WHAT IS SCALE ? & DETERMINING SCALE
Scale can be thought of as a Ratio or a Relationship. When we say that a model is 1/48th Scale, we are implying a Ratio between the Model and the Full Size Ship. So in the case of 1/48th Scale, the Ratio is 1 to 48. In other words: The “1” in the Ratio is representing the Full Size Ship and is 48 times larger than the Model. The “48” in the Ratio is representing the Model and is 48 times smaller than the Full Size Ship.
To determine the Scale in which you are working if the Ratio is listed as ¼” Inch to the Foot, you have encountered an alternate method of representing the Scale of an object. To better understand this, you must first understand what ¼” Inch to the Foot means. By it’s very nature, Scale is a Ratio and for the Ratio to make any sense, both terms need to be in the same unit of measure. A Scale of 1/48 simply means that 1 measure is 48 times larger than the other. It does not matter if you are measuring in feet, inches or meters. Therefore, to determine what scale ¼” Inch to the foot” is we need to choose a common unit of measure for both halves of the Ratio. The easiest way to do this is to convert the “to the foot” part to 12 inches, (12 inches to the foot). You now have ¼” Inch to 12 inches. It is now a simple matter to divide the ¼” Inch into the 12 Inches, the result being 48. Now you have determined that ¼” Inch to the foot is the same as 1/48th Scale.
There are several different ways to represent Scale and finding which ones are equivalent is the key. There are three (3) common ways to represent Scale, they are: 1/48, 1:48 and ¼” Inch to the Foot. To help you in determining Scale, below is a chart in which to refer:
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1 - INCH TO THE FOOT |
1/12th Scale |
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½ - INCH TO THE FOOT |
1/24th Scale |
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3/8 - INCH TO THE FOOT |
1/32nd Scale |
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¼ - INCH TO THE FOOT |
1/48th Scale |
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.166 -INCH TO THE FOOT |
1/72nd Scale |
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1/8 - INCH TO THE FOOT |
1/96th Scale |
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3/32 -INCH TO THE FOOT |
1/128th Scale |
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.083 -INCH TO THE FOOT |
1/144th Scale |
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1/16 -INCH TO THE FOOT |
1/192nd Scale |
To find the Scale of your Model:
Take the length of the Full Size Ship in Feet, multiply (x) by 12 to get the Length in Inches.
Take that number and Divide it by the Length of your model (also in Inches), and you will have determined the Scale.
Examples:
A Ship with a Hull Length of 378’ (Feet), Multiplied by 12 Equals 4536 Inches.
Your Model is 47.25” (Inches), Divide 4536 by 47.25 and you will get 96. Your Scale is 1/96th.
To find the size of the Actual Ship, use this formula: (Using 1/48th Scale)-48 x length of your model (in inches) then divide this number by 12.
This is the length of the Actual Hull in feet. Ex: 48 x (40”) divided by 12 equals (=) 160’ (feet).