For example, the scale of 1:50 means that 1 mm on the drawing represents 50 mm on the object. This means that the object is 50 times larger than the drawing of it. An object 450 mm long would be represented by a line 9 mm long (450 mm/50).

So, if a drawing is at 1:50 in cm, 1cm in the drawing will be equal to 50cm in real life.

The scale factor is the ratio of corresponding sides on two similar figures. Model cars, maps, and blueprints are all ways to use scale factors. The scale factor can be found by dividing the new, scaled copy by the original to see how many times larger or smaller the new figure is compared to the original.

To convert between ratio scales, you need to multiply or divide both sides of the ratio by the same number. For example, to convert 1:100 to 1:50, you need to multiply both sides by 2. To convert 1:50 to 1:100, you need to divide both sides by 2.