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The Legend; Phil Hobson RIP

Does anyone remember the floated coat method? This was usually used on Shaws twin tiles. Twin tiles as the name suggests were glazed tiles made back to back, so each tile required a sharp blow with a well aimed gauging trowel to split the two tiles.

The substrate concrete/ brick would be keyed using a scutch hammer to give a rough surface, this was before SBR primers etc. A scratch coat of sand and cement would be applied followed by a top coat, set by dots and screeds as TF Ed has explained many times on TF. this finished render was then marked out using a staff and levels. A grid could be formed using plumb and level lines onto the render.

Using this method you could have one tiler start in the top far right of a wall, and another tiler start at the bottom far left of the same wall, and every thing worked out spot on. The twin tiles had quite a deep key/ frog on the back, this was back skimmed with 1:1 sand and cement.

I had a phone call last week from my old mentor Tommy Milne mastercrafstman now 73yrs old, asking me if I remembered placing a time capsule in a scum channel at Oldham baths 35yrs ago, I told him I did the tiles were fixed using floated coat and are still rock solid. They are talking of demolishing the baths, I want to be there when they do, the time capsule had a record of the front page of the Daily Mirror plus the names of all the fixers on the job, Park Drive *** packet. Kit Kat wrapper sad maybe but It shows the old methods worked.:thumbsup:
 

Brian the Tile

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not to sure Phil but i was in my teens definately, always sticks in my mind as everyone used to be spinning there gauging trowels round ,thought i would give it a go with my bosses trowel and just my luck it dropped to the floor and the handle snapped off,oh my god did i suffer over that trowel,i use to have to polish it and keep all trowels in oily cloths
 
T

The Legend; Phil Hobson RIP

not to sure Phil but i was in my teens definately, always sticks in my mind as everyone used to be spinning there gauging trowels round ,thought i would give it a go with my bosses trowel and just my luck it dropped to the floor and the handle snapped off,oh my god did i suffer over that trowel,i use to have to polish it and keep all trowels in oily cloths

Bloody hell Brian I was the chief trowel spinner, and pin hammer twirler over my middle finger ( miss spent apprenticeship) I remember going fo a job spinning my gauging trowel and twirling my pin hammer, I thought I had impressed the boss with my prowess so I asked him "have I got the job?" he replied " no you mess around to much".

But I would like to know who your boss was, maybe I know him. I will throw a few names at you and see if you remember any of them, foreman was Georgie Wood, pool gang was Tommy Milne, Ronnie Milne, Bobby Taylor, Phil Hobson. Perimeter and changing room gangs were Roger Eastwood, Don gratebanks, Kevin O'Hara, Bobby Heywood, Billy Duggan, Billy smith. Can't remember anymore, but you might recognise some of the names.:thumbsup:
 

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