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Back cabin step timber?


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1 hour ago, Phoenix_V said:

just match what else is used in that area and put non slip tape on it

Plywood and t&g pine!

 

32 minutes ago, roland elsdon said:

On our butty it was. But I cut it from an old bottom board. 

We did not have ash strips. Could not be bothered to scrub them. We had thin ply on top of the oak.

Oak seems to be the favourite - what was the thin ply for?

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4 minutes ago, Tracy D'arth said:

Hickory for hammer and axe shafts surely. Ash is brittle.

TD'

In America, yes, but in the UK, and the rest of Europe, ash is used for tool handles, and far from it being brittle, it is very flexible.

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12 minutes ago, starman said:

Plywood and t&g pine!

 

Oak seems to be the favourite - what was the thin ply for?

Cant topping apparently. The bit you don't step on when getting on the back despite the fact it has non slip properties. 

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49 minutes ago, Tracy D'arth said:

Hickory for hammer and axe shafts surely. Ash is brittle.

TD'

Not true, ash is used for aircraft tail skids and glider landing skids due to its flexibility and impact resistance.

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2 hours ago, blackrose said:

 

Willow is also very springy which is why is used for making cricket bats. But willow is crap for virtually everything else including burning!

 

Why can't hardwood decking be used as back step timber? Much more easily available, cheaper and more easily replaceable than thick lumps of oak, elm or ash, and it's got a ready made non-slip finish. There's loads of it dumped in piles where I'm moored from old caravan verandas, but I guess the traditionalists wouldn't like it.

It would look hideous and be out of keeping with the look of a back cabin, tradition aside.

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8 hours ago, BWM said:

I'm fairly sure that the one on ours is a big chunk of ash, i'd personally be wary of hardwoods like Iroko as they are likely to become slippery. 

 Ash was used on top of the cants where you step onto the back deck on working narrow boats, i presume for its non slip quality.

 

7 hours ago, BWM said:

Someone not taking the time to appreciate that i was describing the area of the boat in question rather than a preferred method of boarding!

Really? So what purpose does the "non slip quality" serve then?

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8 hours ago, davidg said:

 

Really? So what purpose does the "non slip quality" serve then?

Because at times it is inevitable that you would end up stepping onto it, when loaded it is likely these boats would be some distance from the towpath. 

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17 hours ago, David Schweizer said:

It depends on which Wikipedia page you read  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_longbow

 

I always thought they were Yew even before I knew Wikipedia existed.

 

 

These are replies to two postings not the same one

 

I just realised why I dont slip on ours when its wet, I glued a ribbed rubber mat to the top of it.

Edited by ditchcrawler
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22 hours ago, tree monkey said:

But isn't Ash used for long shafts because it is flexible,  plus long bows were made of Ash

 Arrows were generally made from Ash, the straight growth and ease of setting under heat being just two useful qualities. Early longbows may also have been but as none survive...

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3 hours ago, ditchcrawler said:

I always thought they were Yew even before I knew Wikipedia existed.

 

 

These are replies to two postings not the same one

 

I just realised why I dont slip on ours when its wet, I glued a ribbed rubber mat to the top of it.

Long bows were made from Yew for centuries, but the English managed to deplete almost all the yew growing across Europe by the 1500's. Ash had always been used as a substitute but became the main timber until longbows were gradually superseded by Firearms.

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13 hours ago, BWM said:

 Arrows were generally made from Ash, the straight growth and ease of setting under heat being just two useful qualities. Early longbows may also have been but as none survive...

My understanding of the situation is the same as

10 hours ago, David Schweizer said:

Long bows were made from Yew for centuries, but the English managed to deplete almost all the yew growing across Europe by the 1500's. Ash had always been used as a substitute but became the main timber until longbows were gradually superseded by Firearms.

I have occasionally spoken to a couple of longbow makers and they also suggested this was the case, unsurprisingly actual yew bows are rare nowadays because of difficulty with supply and most of their bows are Ash, or at least are for now

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On 10/07/2020 at 08:02, BWM said:

Because at times it is inevitable that you would end up stepping onto it, when loaded it is likely these boats would be some distance from the towpath. 

Ah, so in extremis then, we've all had to do that, if only you'd said that.

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36 minutes ago, davidg said:

Ah, so in extremis then, we've all had to do that, if only you'd said that.

The blunt instrument that is internet communication. Its often difficult to condense what is intended into words without writing a war and peace length post!

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17 hours ago, David Schweizer said:

Long bows were made from Yew for centuries, but the English managed to deplete almost all the yew growing across Europe by the 1500's. Ash had always been used as a substitute but became the main timber until longbows were gradually superseded by Firearms.

Ta. so I wasn't far out

 

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1 hour ago, ditchcrawler said:

Ta. so I wasn't far out

22 hours ago, ditchcrawler said:

I always thought they were Yew even before I knew Wikipedia existed.

Only by about 500 years !!  ??

Edited by David Schweizer
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