The metric system
Well, I thought it had happened in the UK but sometimes I wonder. In our small town in Suffolk they went metric long long ago! When I wanted to buy curtain fabric in yards they wouldn't do it - I had to specify metres. 'How wide is it ?' I asked - 48" was the reply !!!!
33" is 838.20mm so ' 33" and a bit' is exactly 840mm.
31" is 787.4 mm 31 and a bit = 788.
Easy enough to understand - oh, one of the "bits" is three times as big as the other but wht does it matter - you can wear that off your boots without noticing.
I hesitate to send this - but it is only intended as a bit of light relief!
Now being a little less frivolous, a friend of mine who had the old 100GS had the seat padding thinned down but even after this expensive alteration it was still too tall for him; he decided to sell it and before doing so tidied it up which including fitting a new shcok at the rear - and lo and behold, suddenly it was the right size for him ! He decided to keep it.