--- Leland Torrence <[log in to unmask]> wrote: >
>     "every little stonemason seems to have the
> best solution and all of them involve cement!"
> Why?

The explanations I seem to get most of the time relate
to either (a) controlling shrinkage?!? or (b)
increasing the strength of the pointing so that it
doesn't fall apart or crumble.

I suspect that the main reason for it falling apart
and crumbling is that the pointing dries out too
quickly - so how do we cure it properly - but it might
also have to do with inappropriate use of poor quality
materials in the first place.

As I'm not familiar with the process of preparing and
making lime mortar, I struggle to debate the topic
with the masons.

For background, most stonemasons doing heritage work
in Sydney (at least) have originally come from
somewhere else, whether it is the UK, Canada or Poland
(to name several that I've worked with in recent
times).

Cheers

david

http://my.yahoo.com.au - My Yahoo!
- It's My Yahoo! Get your own!

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