OldTools Archive

Recent Bios FAQ

264161 "yorkshireman@y..." <yorkshireman@y...> 2017‑12‑09 I've finally got one bowl. or is it ball?
Yes, after years and years, We’ve just been up in the Borders  (Reiver country,
Paddy)   and came across an antique place which had some forlorn wooden bowls -
3 of them. and I gave up the search.

SWMBO was buying a bit of cut glass, and I managed to tack one bowl onto the
deal.

So now I have a lignum vitae bowl  -  For our American members, bowls does not
have lanes, ten pins, any pins in fact.  It is played on a grassy square, one
with a camber, using wooden bowls which are weighted to not run true.  You are
given 2 or 4 bowls, and have to judge the camber of the green and the bias of
your bowl and the degree of friction of the grass be it wet or dry.
 A game of skill, relaxation, sunshine, good ale, and fine talk.   Too important
to be interrupted for approaching Armadas bent on invasion and all that sort of
thing.

Anyway, the point is that a redundant, wooden bowl, is almost a mallet head.
Not many of them about these days, as they are made of a composition material
these days.   Way back when I lived in Suffolk, and set up shop in the one room
of our cottage (Can’t think why she married me)  I worked at a place which had
been a pub.  It still had its bowling green, and a greenkeeprs shed, and the
locals kept and used the green.  In the shed were a number (lots) of ancient
redundant wooden bowls.  We used them at lunchtimes in summer.  I didn’t know
then that they were of value, a dying breed, and I could have been given them
for nothing.

Fast forward a half century - no, less - my Mother in Law was a county bowls
player, and asked her, as she went around so many bowling greens to keep an eye
out for old wooden bowls “Yes, they often have some.” she said - but bowls never
came to visit with her.

but now I have a one of my own.  And I have a question for the porch.

Does anyone have any knowledge or advice about making a dead bowl into a fine
and living again mallet?


Richard Wilson
Northumbrian Galoot
from Yorkshire.
264164 "John M Johnston (jmjhnstn)" <jmjhnstn@m...> 2017‑12‑10 Re: I've finally got one bowl. or is it ball?
Richard,
There is an amazing machinist and tool maker named Abilene Rios Wong who made
bunch of lignum vitae mallets from bowls a couple of years ago. I imagine some
Googling about will come up with more information and images.

Cheers,
John (who plays bowls in his 18th Century living history gentleman's
impression.)

“P.S. If you do not receive this, of course it must have been miscarried;
therefore I beg you to write and let me know.” - Sir Boyle Roche, M.P.

but now I have a one of my own.  And I have a question for the porch.

Does anyone have any knowledge or advice about making a dead bowl into a fine
and living again mallet?
264165 Ed Minch <ruby1638@a...> 2017‑12‑10 Re: I've finally got one bowl. or is it ball?
> On Dec 10, 2017, at 7:24 AM, John M Johnston (jmjhnstn)  wrote:
> 
> 
> Does anyone have any knowledge or advice about making a dead bowl into a fine
and living again mallet

A few months ago I was in a shop that had a couple of larger LV bowls - priced
at $50 each.  They would not come down, so I passed.  Are these things solid, or
are they weighted some on the inside?  At one end it had about a 1-1/4”
circular stamp that looked like it had slightly different grain in it - could
have been just coincidence.


Ed Minch
264172 Don Schwartz <dks@t...> 2017‑12‑10 Re: I've finally got one bowl. or is it ball?
On 2017-12-10 5:50 AM, Ed Minch wrote:
> A few months ago I was in a shop that had a couple of larger LV bowls - priced
at $50 each.  They would not come down, so I passed.

A dealer in a local anteek mall has had several small ones on offer for 
 >3 yrs at C$75. She will not budge either. By contrast, Jim Bode has a 
bunch currently marked down to US$25 each. Supply & demand, I suppose.

Don

-- 
"You can tell a man that boozes by the company he chooses"
The Famous Pig Song, Clarke Van Ness
264178 "Maddex, Peter" <peter.maddex@n...> 2017‑12‑11 Re: I've finally got one bowl. or is it ball?
I have made a couple myself.

Drill a through hole (25mm, around an inch), I used a pillar drill, then turn a
handle with an over long shaft to fit the hole in the bowl hole.
Push it through the hole and turn the bowl between centres, remove the handle
cut to near the required length, cut a wedge slot reassemble with glue and a
wedge.

https://flic.kr/p/WBMXmk

They have a good weight and seem to be very resistant to damage and kind to
chisel handles, beats my previous favourite end grain Hawthorn mallet.

Pete

-----Original Message-----
From: OldTools [mailto:oldtools-bounces@s...] On Behalf Of yorkshireman@y...
Sent: 09 December 2017 21:53
To: Old TOOLS 
Subject: [OldTools] I've finally got one bowl. or is it ball?

Yes, after years and years, We’ve just been up in the Borders  (Reiver country,
Paddy)   and came across an antique place which had some forlorn wooden bowls -
3 of them. and I gave up the search.

SWMBO was buying a bit of cut glass, and I managed to tack one bowl onto the
deal.

So now I have a lignum vitae bowl  -  For our American members, bowls does not
have lanes, ten pins, any pins in fact.  It is played on a grassy square, one
with a camber, using wooden bowls which are weighted to not run true.  You are
given 2 or 4 bowls, and have to judge the camber of the green and the bias of
your bowl and the degree of friction of the grass be it wet or dry.
 A game of skill, relaxation, sunshine, good ale, and fine talk.   Too important
to be interrupted for approaching Armadas bent on invasion and all that sort of
thing.

Anyway, the point is that a redundant, wooden bowl, is almost a mallet head.
Not many of them about these days, as they are made of a composition material
these days.   Way back when I lived in Suffolk, and set up shop in the one room
of our cottage (Can’t think why she married me)  I worked at a place which had
been a pub.  It still had its bowling green, and a greenkeeprs shed, and the
locals kept and used the green.  In the shed were a number (lots) of ancient
redundant wooden bowls.  We used them at lunchtimes in summer.  I didn’t know
then that they were of value, a dying breed, and I could have been given them
for nothing.

Fast forward a half century - no, less - my Mother in Law was a county bowls
player, and asked her, as she went around so many bowling greens to keep an eye
out for old wooden bowls “Yes, they often have some.” she said - but bowls never
came to visit with her.

but now I have a one of my own.  And I have a question for the porch.

Does anyone have any knowledge or advice about making a dead bowl into a fine
and living again mallet?


Richard Wilson
Northumbrian Galoot
from Yorkshire.


------------------------------------------------------------------------
OldTools is a mailing list catering to the interests of hand tool aficionados,
both collectors and users, to discuss the history, usage, value, location,
availability, collectibility, and restoration of traditional handtools,
especially woodworking tools.

To change your subscription options:
https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Foldt
ools.swingleydev.com%2Fmailman%2Flistinfo%2Foldtools&data=01%7C01%7Cpeter.maddex
%40ntu.ac.uk%7C9659738cad8e458eec6008d53f4f5b35%7C8acbc2c5c8ed42c78169ba438a0dbe
2f%7C1&sdata=yJGMYNxX7ilAr85Wx1Xx99TMG3puhh0Jk6jbCJkO8%2Fg%3D&reserved=0">https:
//emea01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Foldtools.swingleyde
v.com%2Fmailman%2Flistinfo%2Foldtools&data=01%7C01%7Cpeter.maddex%40ntu.ac.uk%7C
9659738cad8e458eec6008d53f4f5b35%7C8acbc2c5c8ed42c78169ba438a0dbe2f%7C1&sdata=yJ
GMYNxX7ilAr85Wx1Xx99TMG3puhh0Jk6jbCJkO8%2Fg%3D&reserved=0

To read the FAQ:
https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fswin
gleydev.com%2Farchive%2Ffaq.html&data=01%7C01%7Cpeter.maddex%40ntu.ac.uk%7C96597
38cad8e458eec6008d53f4f5b35%7C8acbc2c5c8ed42c78169ba438a0dbe2f%7C1&sdata=dSEuuOB
H%2FBG7DzcEozGZwVq8gpeLzbec8vowcJw0LZs%3D&reserved=0">https://emea01.safelinks.p
rotection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fswingleydev.com%2Farchive%2Ffaq.html&da
ta=01%7C01%7Cpeter.maddex%40ntu.ac.uk%7C9659738cad8e458eec6008d53f4f5b35%7C8acbc
2c5c8ed42c78169ba438a0dbe2f%7C1&sdata=dSEuuOBH%2FBG7DzcEozGZwVq8gpeLzbec8vowcJw0
LZs%3D&reserved=0

OldTools archive: https://emea01.sa
felinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fswingleydev.com%2Fot%2F&data=0
1%7C01%7Cpeter.maddex%40ntu.ac.uk%7C9659738cad8e458eec6008d53f4f5b35%7C8acbc2c5c
8ed42c78169ba438a0dbe2f%7C1&sdata=V%2FcvaRl45BoQvdroQ%2F7v33t3GjxpgKfbr1vmp8VEr%
2Fc%3D&reserved=0

OldTools@s...
DISCLAIMER: This email is intended solely for the addressee. It may contain
private and confidential information. If you are not the intended addressee,
please take no action based on it nor show a copy to anyone. In this case,
please reply to this email to highlight the error. Opinions and information in
this email that do not relate to the official business of Nottingham Trent
University shall be understood as neither given nor endorsed by the University.
Nottingham Trent University has taken steps to ensure that this email and any
attachments are virus-free, but we do advise that the recipient should check
that the email and its attachments are actually virus free. This is in keeping
with good computing practice.
264179 Ed Minch <ruby1638@a...> 2017‑12‑11 Re: I've finally got one bowl. or is it ball?
Pete

What do they weigh, give or take, when done - nice tools

Ed Minch
264181 Brian Welch <brian.w.welch@g...> 2017‑12‑11 Re: I've finally got one bowl. or is it ball?
Am I the only one who finds it ironic that in the same week we are
attacking saw painters but then also bragging about taking antique LV bowls
and turning them into mallets? There is probably a group of crazy people
out there who dress in period clothes and re-enact 18th century lawn
bowling using period lignum vitae bowls, but they can't find any because
they have probably all been turned into mallets.

In all seriousness, "A game of skill, relaxation, sunshine, good ale, and
fine talk." Actually sounds like something I could get into.

Brian
ducking and running
264182 "Maddex, Peter" <peter.maddex@n...> 2017‑12‑11 Re: I've finally got one bowl. or is it ball?
Loads still about, even though I turned lots into door stops by cutting a slice
off the bottom using the Ball-O-Matic 2000.


https://flic.kr/p/VxhCDU

Pete



-----Original Message-----
From: OldTools [mailto:oldtools-bounces@s...] On Behalf Of Brian Welch
Sent: 11 December 2017 16:21
To: Old TOOLS 
Subject: Re: [OldTools] I've finally got one bowl. or is it ball?

Am I the only one who finds it ironic that in the same week we are attacking saw
painters but then also bragging about taking antique LV bowls and turning them
into mallets? There is probably a group of crazy people out there who dress in
period clothes and re-enact 18th century lawn bowling using period lignum vitae
bowls, but they can't find any because they have probably all been turned into
mallets.

In all seriousness, "A game of skill, relaxation, sunshine, good ale, and fine
talk." Actually sounds like something I could get into.

Brian
ducking and running
------------------------------------------------------------------------
OldTools is a mailing list catering to the interests of hand tool aficionados,
both collectors and users, to discuss the history, usage, value, location,
availability, collectibility, and restoration of traditional handtools,
especially woodworking tools.

To change your subscription options:
https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Foldt
ools.swingleydev.com%2Fmailman%2Flistinfo%2Foldtools&data=01%7C01%7Cpeter.maddex
%40ntu.ac.uk%7Cb9747bcb70ae4f08a3af08d540b3375b%7C8acbc2c5c8ed42c78169ba438a0dbe
2f%7C1&sdata=BYk3NEZzKKWMaG3q0joCksSzeCfnt%2F6TBcEPJrEI4r0%3D&reserved=0">https:
//emea01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Foldtools.swingleyde
v.com%2Fmailman%2Flistinfo%2Foldtools&data=01%7C01%7Cpeter.maddex%40ntu.ac.uk%7C
b9747bcb70ae4f08a3af08d540b3375b%7C8acbc2c5c8ed42c78169ba438a0dbe2f%7C1&sdata=BY
k3NEZzKKWMaG3q0joCksSzeCfnt%2F6TBcEPJrEI4r0%3D&reserved=0

To read the FAQ:
https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fswin
gleydev.com%2Farchive%2Ffaq.html&data=01%7C01%7Cpeter.maddex%40ntu.ac.uk%7Cb9747
bcb70ae4f08a3af08d540b3375b%7C8acbc2c5c8ed42c78169ba438a0dbe2f%7C1&sdata=WFRvhGa
f%2FFeCJ3f1I1zCqD%2B1qJY5aDFGoMbD%2BVQrBNg%3D&reserved=0">https://emea01.safelin
ks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fswingleydev.com%2Farchive%2Ffaq.htm
l&data=01%7C01%7Cpeter.maddex%40ntu.ac.uk%7Cb9747bcb70ae4f08a3af08d540b3375b%7C8
acbc2c5c8ed42c78169ba438a0dbe2f%7C1&sdata=WFRvhGaf%2FFeCJ3f1I1zCqD%2B1qJY5aDFGoM
bD%2BVQrBNg%3D&reserved=0

OldTools archive: https://emea01.safeli
nks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fswingleydev.com%2Fot%2F&data=01%7C
01%7Cpeter.maddex%40ntu.ac.uk%7Cb9747bcb70ae4f08a3af08d540b3375b%7C8acbc2c5c8ed4
2c78169ba438a0dbe2f%7C1&sdata=36NfnUffGjWW64EAzEV4N4QTrPWxu4cZf%2FGtsBkUNoM%3D&r
eserved=0

OldTools@s...
DISCLAIMER: This email is intended solely for the addressee. It may contain
private and confidential information. If you are not the intended addressee,
please take no action based on it nor show a copy to anyone. In this case,
please reply to this email to highlight the error. Opinions and information in
this email that do not relate to the official business of Nottingham Trent
University shall be understood as neither given nor endorsed by the University.
Nottingham Trent University has taken steps to ensure that this email and any
attachments are virus-free, but we do advise that the recipient should check
that the email and its attachments are actually virus free. This is in keeping
with good computing practice.
264183 paul womack <pwomack@p...> 2017‑12‑11 Re: I've finally got one bowl. or is it ball?
Brian Welch wrote:
> Am I the only one who finds it ironic that in the same week we are
> attacking saw painters but then also bragging about taking antique LV bowls
> and turning them into mallets? There is probably a group of crazy people
> out there who dress in period clothes and re-enact 18th century lawn
> bowling using period lignum vitae bowls, but they can't find any because
> they have probably all been turned into mallets.
>
> In all seriousness, "A game of skill, relaxation, sunshine, good ale, and
> fine talk." Actually sounds like something I could get into.

Fair point.

  BugBear
264212 "yorkshireman@y..." <yorkshireman@y...> 2017‑12‑12 Re: I've finally got one bowl. or is it ball?
Ironic indeed.  

In my defence though - for I’d never contemplate [painting a usable saw - this
bowl was one of a set of 3, and bowls is a game with 2 or 4 bowls to a player,
and I did pick the one with an ancient blemish.

So there are a couple of sets still there. the LV ones, and at least one more
made of ‘composition'.


R

Recent Bios FAQ