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booooooooooooooo hissssssssssss
Rule Britannia (just kidding!)
Another day another WSI?
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sometimes working in the middle east I have found marshalltwon trowels sometimes quite useful if working in sandy or quite loose soils.
but, still prefer the good old whs...
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I still prefer a team of Beluch with shovels
[8D] oh... and a G & T
Another day another WSI?
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A nicely worn Marshalltown is a joy to use in sandy soil, and unlike WHS they don't break or need the re-application of Araldite.
Plus they cut a section sharper than anything else. I've probably lent mine out a hundred times when colleagues claimed they couldn't see anything in a section. As far as I'm concerned you might as well clean a section with a brick if you don't have a Marshalltown.
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So a WHS and a Marshaltown...
(ps... I have just recieved a new bit of kit - the mini detector.... bloody marvelous!! ) fits in the hand, rugged, detects a pin at 2" depth... larger objects up to about 5" (in my tests!) Think of burial excavation...no more surprises!
Have a look at BAJR Buy it section.
Another day another WSI?
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Quote:quote:Originally posted by mercenary
A nicely worn Marshalltown is a joy to use in sandy soil, and unlike WHS they don't break or need the re-application of Araldite
Err.. I'm afraid they don't survive vigorous use on the sticky gravelly clays of Essex without the use of Araldite, nor do the blade's cope particularly well with levering out bricks either.
In my experience, I should add.
Unlike the good versions of the WHS
(Mind you I'm talking about the
OLD, old WHS's with the crown emblem on them from yonks back)
Marshalltowns are good for sandy, loose stuff, true, but then so is the cheapo £2.50 welded one I got from Robert Dyas, five years ago[:p]
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I'm impressed if you managed to break one! You are of course correct in that they don't work well in that lovely gravel and clay combo. My preferred tool for that is a mattock.
As for purposes for which trowels were not designed like levering out bricks, the WHS does indeed outperform the Marshalltown, but its a bit like comparing a tank and a Ferrari. Blunt force over precision. Each has its place.
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I love Marshalltown trowels - I only ever use the old WHS for rooting out stones or cleaning particularly stoney clay - even the stiffest clay is cut through like butter to a grat flat finish by the wonderful Marshalltown!
Fantastic on sections too, as mercenary says.
On second thoughts, they're not the best for actualy excavating features with - still prefer the feel of the WHS when digging in awkward tight holes.
hmmm, definitely a place for them though!
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i love it when people get serious about trowels (:
Ian
http://www.getatrowel.co.uk - trowels for archaeological excavators