The distance from a point on a thread turn to a corresponding point on the next thread turn, measured parallel to the thread axis. Lead tolerances are expressed in terms of "per inch" of threads and "cumulative," and lead errors must be determined accordingly. For interval measurements over lengths other than 1 in. (25,40 mm) the observed errors should be calculated to the per-inch basis. For cumulative measurements, observed errors represent the cumulative errors. (Spec 5B)