Old time spreads

[tapit]

Morning fellow Artisans. i am doing an article for a trade publication and am doing a little research.
In the good old days of Float and Set, wooden beads were used on angles but also they used a hard smooth corner which
looks similar to plaster of Paris. what was this made of and was it pre cast or run in situ? thanks.
@malc @The Hobo @Rigsby @hector

 

[Deleted member 32554]

Keen cement

 

[spread95]

My house was built in the sixties, sand and cement no beads and externals are just normal finish but unless you chop into them you wouldn't know, done very well

 

[spread95]

Keen cement

Never used keen cement but believe it was finished with a wooden float freehand

 

[Deleted member 32554]

Never used keen cement but believe it was finished with a wooden float freehand

Parged on with a straight edge , not used it myself , my dad's waste of time trying to educate me
when I was a teen and used to say , waste of time they'll be dropping finished houses off the back of a lorry

 

[malc]

keens cement was a plaster. it would be used to dose up lime for a harder angle. i have only used keens cement once. skimming out huge cold storage rooms .

by my time as an apprentice 1963 we would dose the sirapite with board finish plaster. this would set quickly about 15 mins, so that you could drop the rules and skim the walls. sirapite, board finish and hydra lime to slow the setting time.
you only fitted rules once. on the floating coat you would place the rules on the reveals. float the reveals freehand. then the reverse on the finish coat.

 

[malc]

Morning fellow Artisans. i am doing an article for a trade publication and am doing a little research.
In the good old days of Float and Set, wooden beads were used on angles but also they used a hard smooth corner which
looks similar to plaster of Paris. what was this made of and was it pre cast or run in situ? thanks.
@malc @The Hobo @Rigsby @hector

we still use wooden angle on work for English heritage. they are a flat piece of wood with a bullnose on 1 edge. skim up to the bead then form a V section either side of the bullnose angle.

 

[BryanJ]

Yes I remember as an apprentice, bedding on timber door stop with sirapite plaster, finish one side, after final set, remove door stop and skim other side. Edge of paddle brush, rubbed up and down to form pencil round corners.
Yes metal beads will never catch on, who would pay for beads when you can reuse the timber?

 

[MakeItSmooth]

keens cement was a plaster. it would be used to dose up lime for a harder angle. i have only used keens cement once. skimming out huge cold storage rooms .

by my time as an apprentice 1963 we would dose the sirapite with board finish plaster. this would set quickly about 15 mins, so that you could drop the rules and skim the walls. sirapite, board finish and hydra lime to slow the setting time.
you only fitted rules once. on the floating coat you would place the rules on the reveals. float the reveals freehand. then the reverse on the finish coat.

Thanks for an educational post

 

[BryanJ]

Thanks for an educational post

Every day is a school day.

 

[pftmonojetman]

You can’t get Keene’s, Parian or Martin’s any more the closest you’ll get to these plasters now is Herculite.

 

[tapit]

Non the f**k**g wiser, going to be a s**t editorial now, cheers lads. Have to try and wing it.

 

[hollybank]

Morning fellow Artisans. i am doing an article for a trade publication and am doing a little research.
In the good old days of Float and Set, wooden beads were used on angles but also they used a hard smooth corner which
looks similar to plaster of Paris. what was this made of and was it pre cast or run in situ? thanks.
@malc @The Hobo @Rigsby @hector

Are you going to invent something for this too?

 

[tapit]

Are you going to invent something for this too?

I am sure something will come to mind.

 

[Rigsby]

All a bit before my time but I do remember seeing the formed hard angles when I was doing refurbishment on 1930’s Council house in the 70’s.
I did use keenes once in 1977, on my local nicks cell ceiling, it was finished with a cross grain float which I still have.

 

[chris hollidge]

Yes I remember as an apprentice, bedding on timber door stop with sirapite plaster, finish one side, after final set, remove door stop and skim other side. Edge of paddle brush, rubbed up and down to form pencil round corners.
Yes metal beads will never catch on, who would pay for beads when you can reuse the timber?

You can also finish external angles with a plastic bag to form the pencil round

 

[BryanJ]

You can also finish external angles with a plastic bag to form the pencil round

Yes, a bit of plastic DPC was good.