The Night Mail

[Tony_S]

44 minutes ago, SM42 said:

Letting the land dry out too much will allow the wooden piles that many buildings are constructed upon to rot. 

I think one of the bits of knowledge we had to retain for 0 level woodwork theory was about elm and how it was used for docks and buildings that got wet and dried out as it was  rot resistant . 

[Dave Hunt]

5 hours ago, bbishop said:

All I know about guns is that when I put the sight thing to my eye, there is a bloody great bolt in front of my face.  In the CCF, the other cadets got the Lee-Enfields, I was given the map.

 

4 hours ago, Happy Hippo said:

 They obviously saw potential Naval officer material.

 

Aren't most of the maps the Navy use just all blue?

 

Dave

[Dave Hunt]

52 minutes ago, Tony_S said:

I think one of the bits of knowledge we had to retain for 0 level woodwork theory was about elm and how it was used for docks and buildings that got wet and dried out as it was  rot resistant . 

 

I only did woodwork at school for one year aged 11-12 and all we did was make a load of different joints in bits of 2x4 IIRC. Not exactly fascinating stuff really. For the second year I had to choose one of art, woodwork or music and chose art.

 

Dave

 

And before HH intervenes, I refute the suggestion that I then became a p!ss artist.

Edited April 19 by Dave Hunt

[Happy Hippo]

1 minute ago, Dave Hunt said:

 

 

Aren't most of the maps the Navy use just all blue?

 

Dave

No, they are actually black, yellow,  green, blue  grey and white.

 

[Dave Hunt]

And some attempts at humour fell on stony ground 😕

 

Dave

[Tony_S]

Just now, Dave Hunt said:

 

I only did woodwork at school for one year aged 11-12 and all we did was make a load of different joints in bits of 2x4 IIRC. Not exactly fascinating stuff really. For the second year I had to choose one of art, woodwork or music and chose art.

 

Dave

Music was compulsory but not examined (only one lesson a week) until 5th year (year 11 for younger readers). At the beginning of 4th year you had to choose between art or woodwork. I chose woodwork, the woodwork teacher (not a very nice man really) rejected me. So the did the art teacher. I did ask if I were supposed to sit on the stairs but the art teacher got his way and I was sent back to woodwork. I passed the o level but my theory paper results  must have very good because my practical was awful. 

[Winslow Boy]

14 minutes ago, Happy Hippo said:

No, they are actually black, yellow,  green, blue  grey and white.

 

Can the brylcreem boys tell the difference.

[Hroth]

5 hours ago, Tony_S said:

I think one of the bits of knowledge we had to retain for 0 level woodwork theory was about elm and how it was used for docks and buildings that got wet and dried out as it was  rot resistant . 

 

I learned all I needed to know about elm in History, and was nothing to do with rot, but more in HH territory*...

 

Mea culpa...  I confused yew with elm**, yew is indeed used to perforate distant naughty people, but I did know about elm and its rotproof qualities in a historical context, it was used as the bottom boards of narrowboats.

 

* its use in 6ft poles to shoot sharp pointy sticks at other people with extreme rapidity.

** "Tree, three letters, contains the letter 'e'...

 

 

 

Edited April 19 by Hroth

[Winslow Boy]

12 minutes ago, Tony_S said:

Music was compulsory but not examined (only one lesson a week) until 5th year (year 11 for younger readers). At the beginning of 4th year you had to choose between art or woodwork. I chose woodwork, the woodwork teacher (not a very nice man really) rejected me. So the did the art teacher. I did ask if I were supposed to sit on the stairs but the art teacher got his way and I was sent back to woodwork. I passed the o level but my theory paper results  must have very good because my practical was awful. 

Do you think he took pity on you.

[Winslow Boy]

1 minute ago, Hroth said:

 

I learned all I needed to know about elm in History, and was nothing to do with rot, but more in HH territory*...

 

* its use in 6ft poles to shoot sharp pointy sticks at other people with extreme rapidity.

 

 

Those are big chop sticks.

[DaveF]

I only did one year of woodwork and metalwork at grammar school, after that I was told I was doing Latin.  To be honest Latin has been useful as a biologist because I can understand how scientific names work!

 

I learnt useful things about working with wood and metal from Mum and Dad and much later for more specialist things from staff at schools where I taught.

 

I was taught to solder by Mum, she knew how as her dad was a plumber and she learnt from him, then Dad added how to use soldering irons to do delicate work in modelmaking.  Both of them could use woodworking tools and showed me as the need arose.

 

David

[New Haven Neil]

20 minutes ago, Hroth said:

 

I learned all I needed to know about elm in History, and was nothing to do with rot, but more in HH territory*...

 

* its use in 6ft poles to shoot sharp pointy sticks at other people with extreme rapidity.

 

 

 

Ash is popular for arrows too, but we use terribly modern carbon fibre ones.  Our mate Geoff shoots wooden arrows, but with a very powerful bow, you need a more powerful bow as the wood arrows heavy, he is a: a man mountain so can pull a 50lb bow, and b: the best archer in the club.  Oh and an all round nice bloke, but you don't want to stand in front of him when he's shooting!

Edited April 19 by New Haven Neil

[rockershovel]

1 hour ago, Hroth said:

 

I learned all I needed to know about elm in History, and was nothing to do with rot, but more in HH territory*...

 

* its use in 6ft poles to shoot sharp pointy sticks at other people with extreme rapidity.

 

 

Weren't the traditional Welsh longbow made of yew? 

[SM42]

7 hours ago, bbishop said:

All I know about guns is that when I put the sight thing to my eye, there is a bloody great bolt in front of my face.  In the CCF, the other cadets got the Lee-Enfields, I was given the map.

 

If you thought that was scary, try using a shotgun in fading light. 

 

The cloud of sparks from the muzzle is quite impressive  

 

The bright flash at the breach end,  between the stock and barrel, next to your cheek is more eye opening ( or eye closing  if you've got any sense)

 

Andy

Edited April 19 by SM42

[Tony_S]

1 hour ago, Winslow Boy said:

Do you think he took pity on you.

Highly unlikely. There was a bench available and my prescence didn’t exceed the half class size limit craft teachers had in those days. 

[jamie92208]

8 hours ago, SM42 said:

AUUI  great pains ate taken in The Netherlands to keep water levels down, but also keep them up. 

 

Letting the land dry out too much will allow the wooden piles that many buildings are constructed upon to rot. 

 

When we stayed near Sneek, there was a very  nice little house for sale near the farm we stayed at. 

 

Unfortunately the underpinning piles had got too dry and it had a distinct gradient from the middle down to each end

 

Andy

In 1916 the Southern Pacific built a wooden trestle right across the Great Salt Lake.  This was eventually replaced by an embankment with a couple of bridges in it.  The trestle had to be dismantled and the wood was in excellent condition and IIRC the demolition company made a lot of money selling the wood. 

 

Jamie

Edited April 19 by jamie92208

[Tony_S]

1 hour ago, DaveF said:

grammar school, after that I was told I was doing Latin.

I went to a grammar school that had a Latin motto but Latin wasn’t taught. Aditi went to a school where Latin replaced any craft or art. The only science at her school was biology and any girl who wanted to study chemistry or physics had to go for lessons at  a nearby independent school.  

[polybear]

2 hours ago, Dave Hunt said:

And some attempts at humour fell on stony ground 😕

 

Dave

 

Rumour has it you need to make allowances for Pongos....

 

 

 

 

[Flanged Wheel]

7 hours ago, Happy Hippo said:

 They obviously saw potential Naval officer material.

 

You jest but in eighteen years in the Royal Navy, I conducted small arms training on just one occasion (and that was when I was a cadet). To be fair, if the lawyer has a gun then everyone is probably doomed anyway…

[Happy Hippo]

2 hours ago, Hroth said:

 

I learned all I needed to know about elm in History, and was nothing to do with rot, but more in HH territory*...

 

* its use in 6ft poles to shoot sharp pointy sticks at other people with extreme rapidity.

 

 

Yew is the best wood for traditional long bows.

 

Edit to admit missing Rockershovel's reply.

 

I was still reeling a bit after using some hand tools to make a pair of finials for the new shed.

 

We wouldn't want the Devil perching on the roof this evening.

Edited April 19 by Happy Hippo

[Happy Hippo]

Seen on a friend's Facebook page:

 

[AndyID]

37 minutes ago, Tony_S said:

I went to a grammar school that had a Latin motto but Latin wasn’t taught. Aditi went to a school where Latin replaced any craft or art. The only science at her school was biology and any girl who wanted to study chemistry or physics had to go for lessons at  a nearby independent school.  

 

My spelling was always very poor but one word I always had a lot of difficulty was "grammar". That wasn't helped by the fact that it was spelled "Gramar" on the badges on my cap and blazer.

[New Haven Neil]

28 minutes ago, Happy Hippo said:

Yew is the best wood for traditional long bows.

 

We don't shoot traditional, we shoot barebow field, so don't know, but the modern wooden bows are all laminated, no idea what the woods are in them either as we use modern materials.  Cheap and last longer!  A couple of the guys use modern wood bows, they are exquisite to look at but one v expensive one failed.

[Winslow Boy]

54 minutes ago, Happy Hippo said:

Yew is the best wood for traditional long bows.

 

Edit to admit missing Rockershovel's reply.

 

I was still reeling a bit after using some hand tools to make a pair of finials for the new shed.

 

We wouldn't want the Devil perching on the roof this evening.

No no far better that your inside rather than sat on the roof. It's very painful so I've been told.

[polybear]

22 minutes ago, New Haven Neil said:

A couple of the guys use modern wood bows, they are exquisite to look at but one v expensive one failed.

 

I'd hazard a guess that's got real scope for stinging in the morning