Comments

  • Pedant’s revolt
    Split pin wins on google 225 million hits versus 7.9 million for cotter pins. I think that you have to be a bit careful that pedantry doesn't overspill into technical snobbism and create the illusion that there is an elite caste that know proper words versus the knuckle draggers who might even use an adjustable spanner!
  • Who maintains the bells that we ring?
    Ely Association we have 4 District Bell Advisers plus an Association Bell Adviser. There are 5 other regular volunteers that we co-ordinate on a WhatsApp group. We have our own insurance through Ecclestiastical and maintain a competency register to determine who can lead which jobs. We will always try and get someone from the tower/local band to work with us to spread the knowledge.

    We can do anything from full rehang down to inspection and rope work. (Last week was advising on bearing problem in CCT church and easing a stay that was rubbing the running board.) We also work as voluntary labour with the bell hangers where possible for skill updating and development.

    Of the core team three are middle aged and 6 recent retirees all are male white. There are two female members in the wider associate group. The retirees tend to have 10 years working life but we are fairly cautious on manual handling - if we are carrying a lot of heavy equipment up a tower we will try and draft in extra help.

    Sent to Workgroup Leader
  • Ash for stays
    For the more technical I plotted Modulus of Rupture versus Modulus of Elasticity in the form of a material selector chart. Birch was 'better' than ash, Walnut, beech and larch were OK but very small samples which is not great for looking at variability. The 'might be better,' 'might be worse' categories included Oak, Maple, Elm and Pine, although pine had a massive variability you would have to be a very good wood selector to use that.
  • Ash for stays
    St Clements Stays are glass fibre. The design was trialled at Great St Mary's and has yet to break and so far so good at St Clements. The ringing centre is being used to teach a lot of Ring for the King learners so the stays are getting a good test.

    There is clearly no magical properties to ash its just a tradition, what matters are the mechanical properties of flexibility, fatigue and fracture resistance. However if you plot the variability of different types of wood (available from US variant of the forestry commission) you find ash is a pretty consistent wood and hence safe to use, other woods, such as some softwoods, have a lot more variability so they may work or they may not,
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