[Ansteorra] Period Container Question

[Stefan li Rous]

On Aug 6, 2005, at 11:22 PM, Eddie and Barbara Calhoun wrote:
> You might want to check out the garden centers..they
> sometimes have wooden barrel planters that you could
> put together to make a wooden barrel out of.
> Ldy Arabella

That sounds like a good idea, especially since the two barrel halves  
don't actually have to hold liquid. They are just used to cover the  
modern container. The split between the halves should be disguiseable  
with another metal band or something. Unfortunately, I've never send  
these barrels available without having been sawn in half. These might  
be available directly from the distillers, but since it would be an  
individual shipment and the complete barrel couldn't be set side each  
other for shipping, the shipping would be more than for a pair of  
half barrels.

Townsend's does sell complete wooden barrels aimed at re-enactors. I  
think they are all smaller than the size you are needing for this and  
they are rather expensive. However, I have seen groups and households  
make good use to the smaller barrels to hold drinking water in their  
encampments.

Unfortunately, like most period containers, it will still be heavy.  
That may not be a concern in this situation though.

At one time, I considered learning how to make wooden barrels and  
casks. Then I bought this book, and decided that coopering was way  
beyond my skills, even for dry barrels, much less those for holding  
liquids. The barrel staves end up having to be carved so they curve  
in all three directions. They also need to be made with wood which is  
radially split from the log and not sawn in slices as is done with a  
band or circular saw.

Argh. I just upgraded from Mac OS 10.3 to 10.4 (Tiger) and now Word  
and my book database (Readerware) don't seem to be working. Nor can I  
lay my hands on this book immediately. There are several other books  
on coopering mentioned in the file below and if anyone wants the  
bibliographic info of the book I was trying to give, email me and  
I'll send it to you when I find the book or can get to my database.

You might also be interested in this file in the CRAFTS section of  
the Florilegium:
coopering-msg - Making barrels and kegs.
http://www.florilegium.org/files/CRAFTS/coopering-msg.html

Stefan
--------
THLord Stefan li Rous    Barony of Bryn Gwlad    Kingdom of Ansteorra
    Mark S. Harris           Austin, Texas           
StefanliRous at austin.rr.com
**** See Stefan's Florilegium files at:  http://www.florilegium.org ****