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266866 Ed Minch <ruby1638@a...> 2018‑10‑24 Re: Wooden Shipbuilding: "The Shipbuilders of Essex" circa 1950 United State...
I had this discussion with the man who headed the caulking team on the USS
Constitution for her late 90’s rebuild.  He said the traditional mallet shape is
very easy on the wrist and elbow, the head is longer than the handle is long
allowing you to get into hollow areas near the keel and the stern (back-end,
Jeff), the slot makes the mallet into a sort of dead-blow tool where more of the
energy gets into the iron with less bounce back, and the sound of the ring
changes as you drive so you can be consistent with how tightly you have set the
oakum.  But really he said that the slot down the length produces a ringing
noise, each mallet being a little different, so the foreman could lean out the
window and hear who was working.


Ed Minch

Recent Bios FAQ