- Slater
A slater, or slate mason [cite book|title=Quantities; a Text-book for Surveyors, in Tabulated Form|author=Sir BanisterFletcher, Herbert Phillips Fletcher|pages=p. 23|date=1888|publisher=B.T. Batsford|id=ISBN 1561582115] is a
tradesman who covers buildings withslate . [cite encyclopedia|encyclopedia=Cyclopædia of useful arts & manufactures|editor=C. Tomlinson|date=1852|pages=p. 636|article=SLATE]Tools of the trade
There are various tools of the slater's trade. They are all drop-forged.cite book|pages=p. 289|title=Roofing Handbook|author=Robert Scharff and Terry Kennedy|date=2000|publisher=McGraw-Hill Professional|id=ISBN 0071360581]
The slater's hammer is forged in one single piece, from crucible cast steel, and has a 12-inch leather handle. It comprises a claw, for drawing nails, a sheer edge for cutting slate, and a head with a sharp point at one end for punching holes in slate and with a hammer head at the other.cite book|title=Roofing|author=Taunton Press Staff|pages=p. 48|date=1997|publisher=Taunton Press|id=ISBN 1561582115]
The ripper is also forged from crucible cast steel and is 24 inches long. It comprises a blade and a hook, and is used for removing broken slate. The hook can be used to cut and remove slating nails.cite book | last = Kennedy | first = Terry | title = Roofing Instant Answers | publisher = McGraw-Hill | location = New York | year = 2002 | pages=p.332| isbn = 0071387129 ]
The slater's stake is T-shaped. The vertical bar of the "T" is pointed in order to allow it to be driven into a rafter or other woodworking surface. The horizontal bar of the "T" is used to support slates whilst working on them (cutting, punching, or smoothing) with other tools. The long bar of the stake can also be used as a straight edge for marking.
The zaxfn|1 (also called a sack or sax [cite encyclopedia|encyclopedia=The New American Cyclopaedia: a popular dictionary of general knowledge|date=1862|auhor=George Ripley and Charles Anderson Dana|location=New York|publisher=D. Appleton and Company|pages=p. 695|article=SLATE] ) is a hand tool for cutting, trimming, and punching nail holes in slate. It comprises a heavy rectangular knife blade with a large point, of square cross section, protruding from the "poll" (or butt). The blade edge is used to split slate, while the point is used to pierce square holes for mounting the slate on the roof (with square copper nails) or making a series of small holes marking a line where the slate is broken over a slater's iron. The tool is mounted to a laterally offset handle to protect the user's hand from sharp slate chips.Fact|date=March 2007
Notes
* "Z-A-X" is the highest-scoring three-letter word in the popular board game
Scrabble .Fact|date=March 2007
* Can also mean of or pertaining to England; Born in England.Fact|date=June 2007References
Further reading
* — further information about slater's tools
External links
* [http://www.canadianhomeworkshop.com/contest/mystery_tool03.shtml Canadian Home Workshop, Mystery Tool 2003]
* [http://www.mjdtools.com/auction/graphics/a194922.htm Auction lot of four slater's tools]Slater is also a second name
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