What is a cotton scale?

Regional name for a Scale beam. The typical scale was about three feet long and normally had a weighing capacity of 250 to 300 pounds. However, with a light counterbalance weight, these scales could be used to weigh only a few pounds (e.g., one or two chickens with their feet tied together).

How did cotton scales work?

A sack of cotton would be looped over the “J” shaped end of the bar and then a “P” or small weight was moved along the arm until it was balanced. The weight is read from figures that are etched into the steel. There were figures on each side of the steel bar. The readings on the scale in the museum are 0-40 lbs.

When were cotton scales used?

Cotton growers in the first half of the 20th Century used simple balance-beam scales to weigh their cotton bounty. If you have the chance to weigh cotton or other materials using one of these antique scales, the following steps can help you read the measurements correctly.

What do the lines on a scale mean?

Read a Scale With Lines There are 16 ounces in a pound, so a small scale that weighs in pounds and ounces would have the longest lines at the pound marks, slightly shorter lines to mark quarter pounds (4, 8 and 12 ounces) and the shortest lines to mark ounces between the quarter pounds.

What does a gram weigh out?

1 gram is about the mass of a metal paperclip. The quick and dirty comparison to keep in your head is that 1 gram is about the mass of a metal paperclip. Or, if you prefer, it’s about the mass of a US dollar bill. As these comparisons show, 1 gram isn’t much mass at all—at least by everyday standards.

How much is a quarter gram weigh?

1 quarter = ¼-ounce = 7 grams. 1 half = ½-ounce = 14 grams. 1 ounce = 28 grams.

How do you read lines on a scale?

Most scales with rotating needles have numbers with 15 lines in between, because each pound has 16 oz. in it and the sixteenth line is where the next pound starts. If the needle lands on the fourth line past the number 3, this indicates that your item weighs 3 lbs., 4 oz.

What is 1 pound on a scale?

16 ounces
Exactly 16 ounces is equal to 1 pound. We abbreviate an ounce using the abbreviation ‘oz. ‘ Using abbreviations, we can say that 16 oz. = 1 lb.