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Today’s Mystery Object Is ?

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H

horsencart

master brummie
Does anyone know what this Red wooden thing is/was https://my.bus.photos.fotopic.net/p64053008.html


There are two in the yard at the former tram shed at Miller St the point I am trying to makes is that if the Red wooden thing is/was to do with the trams or buses then they should be saved?, if they were nothing to do with the trams or buses what were they used as, anyone know, I have no idea bus does look to me like a former? for the rear of rear entrance bus, or am I looking at it wrong?.
 
Bammot said:
Does anyone know what this Red wooden thing is/was https://my.bus.photos.fotopic.net/p64053008.html


There are two in the yard at the former tram shed at Miller St the point I am trying to makes is that if the Red wooden thing is/was to do with the trams or buses then they should be saved?, if they were nothing to do with the trams or buses what were they used as, anyone know, I have no idea bus does look to me like a former? for the rear of rear entrance bus, or am I looking at it wrong?.
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Could well be a wooden mould for the manufacture of a metal part.
 
It is a wooden pattern for making a mould for a casting.If it was turned over to show what is hidden it would be possible to see the shape of the object to be cast.What is really needed is a patternmaker on this forum to see this pic.
 
m.humphreys said:
It is a wooden pattern for making a mould for a casting.If it was turned over to show what is hidden it would be possible to see the shape of the object to be cast.What is really needed is a patternmaker on this forum to see this pic.
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I suspect that it was something to do with the trams ? and should be saved
 
I think that there is a possibility that both objects in the photo are concrete forming molds. if you look at the other object you can see that it has been constructed to disassemble around an object once it has set.

Phil
 
pmc1947 said:
I think that there is a possibility that both objects in the photo are concrete forming molds. if you look at the other object you can see that it has been constructed to disassemble around an object once it has set.

Phil
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This then begs the question what would have been the end object that the moulds surounded
 
The red item is a wooden pattern and the shape and form of it is what the cast iron product would look like.The pattern (male) would be used to make the mould (female) then the molten metal would be poured into the mould.As PMC1947 says the wooden box thingy looks like it could be disassembled, could well be a form of shuttering.
 
m.humphreys said:
The red item is a wooden pattern and the shape and form of it is what the cast iron product would look like.The pattern (male) would be used to make the mould (female) then the molten metal would be poured into the mould.As PMC1947 says the wooden box thingy looks like it could be disassembled, could well be a form of shuttering.
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Here are a two closer views
 
That view on the left shows a half a diameter to carry a shaft or something similar, if that is the case there would have been another pattern for the mating half.It would be interesting to see what is on the side that is face down.What is showing is the outer part of the casting.
 
Bammot said:
This then begs the question what would have been the end object that the moulds surounded
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That I am not able to answer, as my knowledge of trams & public transport is minimal. But the molds are very similar in construction to ones that were used for concrete forming prior to the introduction of plastic and other newer materials.

Phil
 
Dek I have but I still don't get it. Am I that thick?. Answer at your peril. I think it is past my bedtime so will think on it and return in the morning. Jean.
 
:)Jean it,s as plain as the name in front of you face .Dek:D:D P.S.sometimes it,s hard to see the wood from the trees
 
Is it something to do with Lloyd on the forum? cos he ain't that old. He's only a baby compared with us. I must be missing something somewhere. Oh well tomorrow is another day. Jean.
 
LEN I WAS JUST GOING UP THOSE WOODEN HILLS. I HAVE NOT A CLUE BUT MAYBE I LED A SHELTERED UPBRINGING. URRRRG. Jean.
 
I can remember being taken in a party round Miller Street depot in the very early 1950s. The big brick building on the corner of Miller Street and Moorsom Street never had any trams in it. It had a big door on the corner without tram tracks, and inside was used mainly for storing breakdown tenders and perhaps an overhead tower wagon. Going through a doorway on the right I can recall being taken into a fairly big casting shop further along Moorsom Street. As I recall, the main product there at the time was drain gulley gratings - the sort of thing we saw all over Brum. My vague memory is that the gratings and perhaps the deep sump trays underneath were cast in sand held in wooden boxes. The sand was carefully packed in the void between the inside of the box and the outside of a wooden pattern which replicated the finished profile of the casting. When the hot metal was ready the pattern was carefully removed and the metal poured in the space. I'm fairly none of the wooden pieces were brightly coloured in those days, but that was 60 years ago!
Peter
 
Nothing wrong with the old memory Peter. I served my Engineering Apprenticeship at G.E.C. in Witton and the first 2 to 3 years was spent working in all the various departments which included the Foundry. The photograph's do indeed show wooden patterns that where used to create a mould in compacted sand which would then receive the moulton matal as you described. The Pattern Maker would make the finished patterm oversized by a measured amount to allow for shrinkage during the cooling process, the amount of shrinkage would be goverened by the metal being poured. The patterns would also be painted to a specific colour code. Orange for the outside surface of the casting, yellow for the core that was fitted to the completed mould which would then create a hollow inside the casting to a pre-determined shape,black for surfaces to be machined after casting. These processes are still being used but wood has been replaced by plastic and metal compounds which tend to be machined rather than hand crafted. The old Pattern Maker was a highly skilled and intelligent man now sadly confined to the history books. Best wishes, Mike Bond.
 
Mike Bond said:
Nothing wrong with the old memory Peter. I served my Engineering Apprenticeship at G.E.C. in Witton and the first 2 to 3 years was spent working in all the various departments which included the Foundry. The photograph's do indeed show wooden patterns that where used to create a mould in compacted sand which would then receive the moulton matal as you described. The Pattern Maker would make the finished patterm oversized by a measured amount to allow for shrinkage during the cooling process, the amount of shrinkage would be goverened by the metal being poured. The patterns would also be painted to a specific colour code. Orange for the outside surface of the casting, yellow for the core that was fitted to the completed mould which would then create a hollow inside the casting to a pre-determined shape,black for surfaces to be machined after casting. These processes are still being used but wood has been replaced by plastic and metal compounds which tend to be machined rather than hand crafted. The old Pattern Maker was a highly skilled and intelligent man now sadly confined to the history books. Best wishes, Mike Bond.
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Mike has got it right, having had a tour of a large foundry in Rochester, Kent i agree with all of his post. Len.
 
It is common practise to paint wooden patterns red. My guess is this is a pattern from a Foundry but a pattern of what, I have no idea.......ballast weigh for a tram bogie?
 
My uncle was a pattern maker at Stewarts Foundry, Wednesbury and offered to get me an apprenticeship there. The Foundry has now long gone. An IKEA store sits on the site.
 
Dont get me onto the subject of Iron Foundries, I have been associated with large ones and a small jobing foundry. The large ones made small castings and the small one made large castings!! It was the amount of castings that differed!!:D
 
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