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Does each language have "lefty loosey righty tighty"? (lemmy.world)

submitted 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) by vatlark@lemmy.world to c/asklemmy@lemmy.ml

314 comments fedilink hide all child comments

The world has a lot of different standards for a lot of things, but I have never heard of a place with the default screw thread direction being opposite.

So does each language have a fun mnemonic?

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[–] dQw4w9WgXcQ@lemm.ee 45 points 1 month ago (4 children)

I'm Norwegian. I never learned a rule in my language and always just went by instinct. Until ~3rd year of university in physics where someone told me tha the right-hand-rule applies to screws. Now I use that everywhere for screws in strange positions.

[–] bad_alloc@lemmy.dbzer0.com 19 points 1 month ago

Well, this was a life-changing comment.

[–] KrankyKong@lemmy.world 9 points 1 month ago (2 children)

Can you elaborate? I googled the right hand rule, but I'm not seeing how it applies to screws.

[–] dQw4w9WgXcQ@lemm.ee 20 points 1 month ago (2 children)

Grab around a screw with your right hand and extend your thumb (like a thumbs up). Then rotating the screw in the direction which your fingers are pointing will result in the screw moving in the direction your thumb is pointing.

Thumbs up for lifting the screw upwards, thumbs down for screwing the screw downwards. And you can move your hand around to figure out screwing directions for any tricky spots.

[–] mvirts@lemmy.world 5 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Beware the left handed screws, they're around but rare. My last encounter was inside a vacuum cleaner motor assembly.

[–] Debardosbae@leminal.space 5 points 1 month ago

Propane and propane accessories also use left-handed threading. It can be really weird to get used to after a lifetime of righty tighty.

[–] KrankyKong@lemmy.world 3 points 1 month ago

Great explanation, thanks

[–] OminousOrange@lemmy.ca 7 points 1 month ago

Right hand rule applied to torque.

[–] mexicancartel@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 1 month ago

I'm indian and learns right hand screw rule in high school physics

[–] kamen@lemmy.world 1 points 1 month ago

I've heard the right hand rule regarding magnetism and current direction (because it's useful to illustrate correlation between vectors), but never about screws. Now that I think of it, it makes perfect sense there too, only that you have to imagine a thumb pointing down most of the time...