C Collection Scale Sets

A typical slide rule has a middle, sliding section, called the slide, while the stationary part of the rule is called the stock or the stator or the body of the rule. In the tables that follow, the scales found on a particular rule will be written in order from top to bottom, and the scales found on the slide will be enclosed by square brackets:

top stock [ slide ] bottom stock
example – A [ B CI C ] D K


Some rules, especially older ones, might have scales on their edges. In this case, these scales are shown with the front scales, and separated by parallel lines. The symbols /| or |\ can be used to indicate that an edge (typically the top edge) is slanted rather than square.

top edge || stock [ slide ] stock || bottom edge
or
top edge /| stock [ slide ] stock || bottom edge
example –
front: cm L /| K A [ B CI C ] D P ST || S T
back: [ LL1 LL2 LL3 ]

On some older slide rules the stock was a single piece and one could find scales in the “well” of the stock. In such a case, the scales in the well will be surrounded by < > and listed after the front scales on the slide:

front: cm L /| K A [ B CI C ] D P ST || S T < cm >
back: [ LL1 LL2 LL3 ]

Scales are indicated by consecutive strings of characters that do not contain a “space”. The sequence S T for example would indicate two distinct scales, the S scale and the T scale. On the other hand, ST represents a single completely separate scale.

On some rules, particularly specialty rules but also occasionally on some advanced rules, there may be two or more scales or scale segments on a single line. If scales \(a\) and \(b,\) say, are found on the same line, this is written as “\(a\) _ \(b\)”. Three co-linear scales would be written as “\(a\) _ \(b\) _\(c\)“, and so on. For example, for scales written as

   A [ B CI C _ LL1' ] D

we would find one scale on the top of the stock, three lines on the slide, and one scale on the bottom of the stock; the third line on the slide has two individual scales, side-by-side.

For an interpretation of the typical labels used for the scales, see Common Slide Rule Scales; descriptions of the general uses of the scales can be found in Slide Rule ABC’s and D’s.