One legged milking stools (long)
Jack-of-all-trades
me thinking about milking stools. And I got to wondering how many
people here even know what a milking stool is, let alone seen one. And
I don't mean those new ones that will never see the inside of a barn or
come within a mile of a cow except maybe when it goes from the store to
someone's house. When I was a kid I used to visit my great uncle and
great grandfather on their farm. They used a milking machine but
"stripped" the cows after using it. "Stripping" a cow is when you milk
it by hand to get the last of the milk, that the machine didn't get.
You sat on a three legged stool (most milk stools were three legged, I
never saw a four legged milking stool), held a stainless steel bucket
between your legs and stripped out or milked the last of the milk, often
several quarts. You didn't want to try to get all the milk with the
machine, it would probably not be good for the cow at all. You ALWAYS
tucked your head down and into the cow's side if you were smart. The
cow's tail was normally moving, and it often was coated with a wad of
manure. Unpleasant to get whapped in the face with the end of the cow's
tail, but in winter when it froze up it could be actually dangerous.
Sometimes the cow would be restless and kick the bucket over, and
somtimes the milker too, so you had to be ready to move fast (and if you
think it a joke about milking a cow with cold hand, just try it once).
You would have to (try) stand and move back at the same time because you
not only didn't want to land on the floor, but you might go back and
startle the cow behind you and get stepped on. This meant you had to
avoid the milking stool at the same time. All of the stools I saw were
homemade and wood except one, it was a small metal stool, and I believe
that it was three legged, so was probably a factory made milking stool.
One was made of a section of tree, cut off just below the crotch where
three limbs sprouted, making the legs. There were one or two more
homemade three legged stools too. And then there was a one-legged
milking stool. Now I know there is so much BS on the group that you
think I am trying to spread some too, but I am not. Oh, all of the
stools had cloth patdding on the top also, again homemade. The
one-legged stool was a short section of 2X4 with a round top nailed on,
and the padding. You slid it under you as you squatted down and then
balanced on it. Much easier to do than it sounds. Actually I believe
this was a purpose made stool. Any cow will move and knock over the
pail or occassionally kick, because of a fly or whatever. But some cows
are kickers. For these they put on cow hobbles, so they could not kick.
But while they couldn't kick they would often shift and knock you over.
So for the cows that were known to cause trouble they used the one
legged milking stool. Because with this one they had to be more alert,
to keep from falling over, and if they had to jump back, the stool
immediately fell over, and was much easier to kick out of the way, to
keep from tripping on it. Now that is the only one legged milking stool
I have ever seen or even heard of. I don't really consider myself that
old, but I knew people that were born in the 1800s (grandparents, great
grandparents) and now here I am in the year 2000, and that spans over a
century. Besides learning to milk a cow, I have helped shoe horses,
driven a team while haying (they forked the hay onto the wagon using hay
forks - the hay had previously raked into rows, with a hay rake). I
have also helped hay where they had a machine beween the tractor and the
wagon (don't recall the name) that picked up the hay (again, the had had
been raked into rows) and dumped it on the wagon, and the hay then had
to be distirbuted using hay forks. I helped harvest corn with an old
horse corn binder towed by a doodle bug (anyone rember what those
were?), it shocked the corn. Later we chucked the corn by hand. Have
also shelled corn with a hand cranked sheller. I remember helping
cutting fire wood with a large circular saw, powered by a belt driven by
a wheel on the side of a tractor. I remember chopping silage in a
machine powerd the same way. I remember when we would get up at 4:00 in
the morning to go the northern part of the lower peninsula of Michigan
to go deer hunting, and the trip took 8 hours, if we were lucky. Now
the same trip takes 2 hours or so. One winter we took along a trailer
load of pallets my grandfather had cut like a puzzle. We put up a cabin
from them in one day and slept in it that night. The next day covered
the outside with tarpaper. It remained in use for 20+ years just like
that. A few years after that was built my grandfather got a bunch of
logs to build a log cabin. They had air dried in what was supposedly
the largest barn in the world (believe me, that thing was huge), and all
were like cork screws. He just sawed them into about 2-3 foot lengths,
put them between rough sawn 2X12 joists and put up a cabin. As far as I
know it is still in use. Anyway, here is some stuff on milking stools,
etc., for those of you who are not familiar with them and a "milking
stool" you can make.
This is a picture of what is supposedly a milking stool.
http://www.homeessential.com/mlkstool.htm This is more like a real
milking stool, not sure what the handle is for though because I never
saw a milking stool with one, a lot fancier than a real one too.
http://www.milkingstool.com/ This is a bit more realistic.
http://www.baraboo.com/Bus/twoguys/default.htm Scroll down to hobbles
and you will see there actually is such a thing. Not sure what the cow
kick stop is though. http://www.wigginsinc.com/milking%20supplies.html
Some varieties of cows (a lot).
http://www.siue.edu/~rbinnin/home/funny/cow.html Scroll down to cow
hobbles for a picture. http://www.ritcheytagg.co.uk/fprstock.html And
a little story on milking. http://www.bourbon.org/aol/misc/tractor.htm
For those unfamiliar with them, this is one type of butter churn.
http://www.engelmannantiques.com/p748.htm Sroll down to milking stool
to see a real one. A lot of other neat stuff here too.
http://www.engelmannantiques.com/sold.htm And now, scroll down to a
couple of antique ones for sale.
http://www.tias.com/stores/tt/prim-1.html
And at long last, the Lund Viking stool and how to make one. This is
how many milking stools were made. Probably in the old days they were
taken back in the house and used their too.
http://www.geocities.com/svenskildbiter/Viking/vikstool.html
JOAT ___I specialze in non-specializing.___
We used to get much better history in the old days.
Clinton/Gore jokes http://www.hex.net/humor24.html
Read the FAQ http://www.robson.org/woodfaq/
Check the archives http://www.deja.com/home_ps.shtml
ANDYP
Because the cow's got the udder.
Dave Bennett
>
> You sat on a three legged stool (most milk stools were three legged, I
> never saw a four legged milking stool), held a stainless steel bucket
> between your legs and stripped out or milked the last of the milk, often
> several quarts.
They are three legged because they will sit fairly well on any sort of
uneven surface. Or at least, more so than a four legged seat would.
I've made several dollies for my shop to put trashcans and anything else
I don't want to lug around in triangular shape with three wheels. I
actually got the idea from the three legged milking stool. They roll
over rough surfaces very well.
Norm had a show once about a cricket table that was with three legs and
he mentioned that it had three legs to sit well on uneven surfaces.
Three legs; not a new concept; just a concept with very little purpose
in our flat/square/plumb world.
--
Dave Bennett
ScratchAnkleWood
were too poor to afford a three legged one. We envied them greatly and could
only dream of the day we could afford a one legged stool.
Good reason for 3 legged stools over 4 legged ones. There is lots of stuff
around the stalls. Most of it is pretty squishy (when relatively fresh) but
when you add some hay and straw, it starts to clump up. You can get a 3 legged
stool to sit steady in this environment but very difficult for a 4 legged
stool. Same reason a camera uses a tripod rather than a "quadpod".
John Huffman
relative. It's definitely a memorable experience. I think a little
farm time would be good experience for everybody to gain a real
appreciation for what's done for us by farmers every day for centuries
on end.
BTW, coincidentally, one of the DIY TV shows did a segment on making a 1
legged stool recently (forget which show). They used a cut section of
an old porch post and lag screwed a round plywood seat. They
recommended it for gardening to help reduce back fatigue.
Lee Barker
You can get a 3 legged
> stool to sit steady in this environment but very difficult for a 4 legged
> stool. Same reason a camera uses a tripod rather than a "quadpod".
Johnny Hart's comic strip BC addressed this very thing. One of the
characters introduced his "new, improved wheel" which was triangular in
shape rather than the square ones that everyone else was using.
"What's better about it?" he was asked.
"One less bump," he responded.
Lee Barker
John Wiley
strap it on. No hands to use.
John
Hoff Stuart
>>> other good stuff snipped <<<
> You ALWAYS
> tucked your head down and into the cow's side if you were smart. The
> cow's tail was normally moving, and it often was coated with a wad of
> manure. Unpleasant to get whapped in the face with the end of the cow's
> tail, but in winter when it froze up it could be actually dangerous.
>
Not as bad as ice, but in Oklahoma the problem was cockleburrs (insect
seeds about the size of an olive). Getting whapped up the side of the
head with a tail full of spiky cockleburrs will get your attention.
We only had one milk cow for our own use and I only milked a few times
(our milking stool was three legged) before I moved from the farm. I
still remember my dad squirting the cats with milk fresh from the teat.
They hated it and loved it at the same time - trying to drink the milk
as it came at them.
Hoff Stuart
>>> other good stuff snipped <<<
Ken Rentz
factories. The machine used to make the sticks was mad of a lot of wood
(obj reference) and needed to be watched constantly to prevent bad things
from happening, so they would put a kid in there to keep an eye on
things. To prevent him from getting too comfortable, they gave him a one
legged stool. you can rest your legs with it, but if you try to doze
off, you'll fall over.
Don't know if the story is %100 true, but is sounds good.
In article <20000208073300...@nso-cb.aol.com>,
scratcha...@aol.comkdsflk says...
> I, too, have seen a one legged milking stool. Our neighbors had one. They
> were too poor to afford a three legged one. We envied them greatly and could
> only dream of the day we could afford a one legged stool.
>
> Good reason for 3 legged stools over 4 legged ones. There is lots of stuff
> around the stalls. Most of it is pretty squishy (when relatively fresh) but
> when you add some hay and straw, it starts to clump up. You can get a 3 legged
drve...@my-deja.com
Jakofal...@webtv.net (Jack-of-all-trades) wrote:
> The thread on the Duke got me thinking about learning here and that
got
Of course I have seen, and used a one legged milking stool. Those of us
on the cutting edge of technology actually used a piece of baling twine
(the hemp stuff, not wire) to tie the stool to back of our belts. So
when Bessey started to kick you could pick up the pail and skeedadle
outta da way real fast. And naturally the stool was hanging off your
butt and not under foot during the skeedadle. I was born in 1961 so
some of us still did things the old fashioned way.
OBWW, I have cut lumber trees for loggers that used horses, and one guy
that used Oxen. Man those oxen were dumb. The horses thrived on
pulling those logs. 20 Below zero and pulling logs made them the
happiest campers in the world. They would get bummed at the end of the
day.
Brook
Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Before you buy.
CRS
----
Some Things You Just Can't Explain
A farmer was sitting in the neighborhood bar getting hammered. A man came
in and asked the farmer, "Hey, why are you sitting here on this beautiful
day, getting drunk?"
The farmer shook his head and replied, "Some things you just can't
explain."
"So what happened that's so horrible?" the man asked as he sat down next to
the farmer.
"Well," the farmer said, "today I was sitting by my cow, milking her. Just
as I got the bucket 'bout full, she lifted her left leg and kicked over the
bucket."
"Okay," said the man, "but that's not so bad."
"Some things you just can't explain," the farmer replied.
"So what happened then?" the man asked.
The farmer said, "I took her left leg and tied it to the post on the left."
"And then?"
"Well, I sat back down and continued to milk her. Just as I got the bucket
'bout full, she took her right leg and kicked over the bucket."
Man laughed and said, "Again?"
The farmer replied, "Some things you just can't explain."
"So, what did you do then?" the man asked.
"I took her right leg this time and tied it to the post on the right."
"And then?" "Well, I sat back down and began milking her again. Just as I
got the bucket about full, the stupid cow knocked over the bucket with her
tail."
"Hmmm..." the man said and nodded his head.
"Some things you just can't explain," the farmer said.
"So, what did you do?" the man asked.
"Well," the farmer said, "I didn't have anymore rope, so I took off my belt
and tied her tail to the rafter. In that moment, my pants fell down and my
wife walked in....Some things you just can't explain."
----------------------------------
Hoff Stuart <hhst...@ma.ultranet.com> wrote in message
news:38A02655...@ma.ultranet.com...
> Jack-of-all-trades wrote:
>
> >>> other good stuff snipped <<<
>
Mike Lazzari
hands wore the one legged stools attached to their belts in back so the
stool was always handy, no hands needed.
Mike
Jack-of-all-trades
I knew that and really meant to say it, just lost it somewhere in the
shuffle.
Either more people have seen one-legged milking stools that I thought,
or some of you are lying. I always figured the idea came from seeing
them before, but of course, never thought to ask back then. Those were
the days when a chicken dinner for company meant going out, picking out
a live chicken, hanging it from the clothes line and cutting its head
off so it would bleed out. Or if there were a lot of company, just
picking out the chickens you wanted and wringing their heads off. Then
had to scald and pluck them.
And squirting milk for the cats, about forgot that. They were barn cats
and normally wouldn't allow people within about 6 feet of them. But
come milking time they knew they would get a big pan of fresh milk and
they would be tromping all over your feet when you carried the pan over
to set it down. And squirt milk at them and watch them catch it in
their mouths. They would stand right up on their hind legs and it was
great fun to see if how many you could make fall over backwards.
Never did any logging but remember the neighbors firewood logs were
downed by ax, some close to 4 feet through. Have used crosscut saws any
number of times. Not a bad way to cut firewood, with two people who
know what they are doing, a lot quieter than a chainsaw too, and not
that much slower.
And I read at least 5 different versions of that milking story while I
was looking for URLs - and posted one.
Better history in those days, no doubt about it.
JOAT ___I specialze in non-specializing.___
Most people don't set foot outside their own heads much.
Dane
No, nevermind, even I have heard about cows tipping over
(with help - and no, I wouldnt take part in that).
BTW, one legged milking stools are indeed 3 legged.
Think about it......
The other two are your own legs which is why they work at all.
Dane
Dave Bennett wrote:
> Jack-of-all-trades wrote:
> >
>
> > You sat on a three legged stool (most milk stools were three legged, I
> > never saw a four legged milking stool), held a stainless steel bucket
> > between your legs and stripped out or milked the last of the milk, often
> > several quarts.
>
> They are three legged because they will sit fairly well on any sort of
> uneven surface. Or at least, more so than a four legged seat would.
>
> I've made several dollies for my shop to put trashcans and anything else
> I don't want to lug around in triangular shape with three wheels. I
> actually got the idea from the three legged milking stool. They roll
> over rough surfaces very well.
>
> Norm had a show once about a cricket table that was with three legs and
> he mentioned that it had three legs to sit well on uneven surfaces.
>
> Three legs; not a new concept; just a concept with very little purpose
> in our flat/square/plumb world.
>
> --
>
> Dave Bennett
--
"Reality can be beaten with enough imagination."
-Anon
____
To e-mail, the "nospamx" does not belong in
my address. Sorry - an anti-spam measure.
P. Fishbein
equipment. It was not just used for kids to rest on. The day shift workers
had to use it as well. The safety issue was not that the reactors were made
of wood but the entire process back then was less well understood. As a
result, it could exceed safe operating limits and go off.
"Ken Rentz" <ren...@teleport.REMOVE.com> wrote in message
news:MPG.1309dac72...@news.teleport.com...
Gene Byron
>
> The thread on the Duke got me thinking about learning here and that got
> me thinking about milking stools. And I got to wondering how many
> people here even know what a milking stool is, let alone seen one.
Yes I know what a one legged milk stool is. I am an old man and milked
many a cow as a kid. If anyone tells you they milked cows as a kid ask
to see their hands . If their fingers are not crooked they never milked
many cows. You used a one legged milk stool as these allowed you to rock
forward or back ward to ease the tension on your back and legs. The
three legged milk [ metal ] stools were a government requirement when
we started to sell class A milk. We had two and they were hung up
for the milk inspectors to see . When we milked we used the one legged
wooden stools.
The cats learned to catch the milk. It did not matter where you sprayed
the milk.
You milked and kept your head pressed into the cows flank. This kept her
from kicking , mostly , but if she did you felt the leg coming forward
before it got to you.
God-- what an awful life. I got off the farm at 17 , walking on crutches
and worked my way through college. [ on crutches and a cane ].
And never went back.
To those of you who did not grow up on a farm during the depression--
you did not miss a darn thing.
tonga
Charles Self
>God-- what an awful life. I got off the farm at 17 , walking on crutches
>and worked my way through college. [ on crutches and a cane ].
>And never went back.
My father left a Kentucky farm when he was 17, heading for Detroit, after which
he went to the Oklahoma oilfields (he blazed his trail in '17, so the fields
were ripe and ready)
Ended up as an auto mechanic in and around Westchester County, NY by the early
'30s.
And he did go back, but only to visit, and he did have badly twisted
hands--probably from both kinds of work.
Charlie Self
Word Worker
Kubwa
so I Lied and changed my Birth certificate so I
could join the Navy to get away from twenty head
of cows that thrived on beating you with a sh___ tail
in the summer and then you would freeze in the winter
trying to milk with chaffed and sore hands
I never went back either
Richard
Charles Self wrote in message
<20000209030747...@ng-fe1.aol.com>...
bhoudek
not really sure of the original messurements. My recollection tells me that
it probably had been a 4x4 and made into a T. The leg and cross piece were
about 10" each. The advantage was as the cow moved, he could follow her
on the stool without having to move it arround. That would also mean he did
not get his hand dirty and certain "foriegn objects" in the milk. I used it
also
when working for him during summers. Bill Houdek
Dave Bennett <dben...@micoks.net> wrote in message
news:38A00903...@micoks.net...
> Jack-of-all-trades wrote:
> >
>
> > You sat on a three legged stool (most milk stools were three legged, I
> > never saw a four legged milking stool), held a stainless steel bucket
> > between your legs and stripped out or milked the last of the milk, often
> > several quarts.
>
Larry Jaques
(Jack-of-all-trades) presented this prose:
>Either more people have seen one-legged milking stools that I thought,
>or some of you are lying. I always figured the idea came from seeing
>them before, but of course, never thought to ask back then. Those were
>the days when a chicken dinner for company meant going out, picking out
>a live chicken, hanging it from the clothes line and cutting its head
>off so it would bleed out. Or if there were a lot of company, just
>picking out the chickens you wanted and wringing their heads off. Then
>had to scald and pluck them.
I didn't grow up on a farm [I spent my formative years 5-13 on LRAFB,
a high-tech mecca in a low-tech state (sorry, Doug)] but I've learned
a lot from a few visits to farms, helping friends raise barnyard
animals, personal stories, movies, and the Antique Gas and Steam
Engine Museum here in Vista. Oh, I shouldn't leave out TV. I saw the
one-legged milking/gardening stool you mentioned built on HGTV a
couple weeks ago. He used a discarded staircase newel for the peg leg
and bolted on a round top before tacking on a leather strap handle.
P.S: I'll never forget my one scalding/plucking session. Store-bought
clucks never seemed so valuable before.
>And I read at least 5 different versions of that milking story while I
>was looking for URLs - and posted one.
>
>Better history in those days, no doubt about it.
You'll surely want to read all of both Roy Underhill's and Eric
Sloane's books, Jack. They've got a LOT of good country history
in them.
>JOAT ___I specialze in non-specializing.___
Me, too. Like Ray said, Specialization is for insects.
>Most people don't set foot outside their own heads much.
Au contraire, mon ami. Most people spend far too much time
out-of-body. Watch the blank stares on the streets, in the
cars on the freeway, and in the offices. It's amazing what
the body can do when nobody's home.
-------------------------------------------------
- Boldly going - * Wondrous Website Design
- nowhere. - * http://www.diversify.com
-------------------------------------------------
Jack-of-all-trades
<snip> Au contraire, mon ami. Most people spend far too much time
out-of-body. Watch the blank stares on the streets, in the cars on the
freeway, and in the offices. It's amazing what the body can do when
nobody's home.
I think it is more like asleep at the switch.
JOAT ___I specialze in non-specializing.___
For many people, their body gets around a lot, but their mind never gets
past the inside of their own head.
Michael Edelman
>
> My Uncle milked Holstines and used a one legged stool..... The advantage was as the cow moved, he could follow her
> on the stool without having to move it arround.
And it was easier to get away if the cow kicked. No lie.
Jim Czech
of my own memories following, if anyone cares.
On Tue, 8 Feb 2000 03:07:20 -0500 (EST), Jakofal...@webtv.net
(Jack-of-all-trades) wrote:
> When I was a kid I used to visit my great uncle and
>great grandfather on their farm. They used a milking machine but
Me pa milked by hand - used the old metal milk cans. Pa had good aim,
too. Could grab a teat and hit me with a stream 19-12 feet away...
>"stripped" the cows after using it. "Stripping" a cow is when you milk
>it by hand to get the last of the milk, that the machine didn't get.
>You sat on a three legged stool (most milk stools were three legged, I
>never saw a four legged milking stool), held a stainless steel bucket
>between your legs and stripped out or milked the last of the milk, often
>several quarts.
If there were several quarts after the machine was done, ol' Bessy
must have been and udderly AMAZING producer :)
>You didn't want to try to get all the milk with the
>machine, it would probably not be good for the cow at all. You ALWAYS
>tucked your head down and into the cow's side if you were smart. The
>cow's tail was normally moving, and it often was coated with a wad of
>manure. Unpleasant to get whapped in the face with the end of the cow's
>tail, but in winter when it froze up it could be actually dangerous.
By placing yer head against the cow's side, you could sense a cows
movement without taking your eyes off the job to see whether a manure
laden tail was about to whap you upside the head, or, more
importantly, whether a hoof was about to leave a black-and-blue
impression on your leg!
>Sometimes the cow would be restless and kick the bucket over, and
>somtimes the milker too, so you had to be ready to move fast (and if you
>think it a joke about milking a cow with cold hand, just try it once).
He's right... you generally only try it once. Next time, you warm up
the hand :)
>You would have to (try) stand and move back at the same time because you
>not only didn't want to land on the floor, but you might go back and
>startle the cow behind you and get stepped on.
Or have the crap kicked outta you...
>This meant you had to
>avoid the milking stool at the same time. All of the stools I saw were
>homemade and wood except one, it was a small metal stool, and I believe
>that it was three legged, so was probably a factory made milking stool.
>One was made of a section of tree, cut off just below the crotch where
>three limbs sprouted, making the legs. There were one or two more
>homemade three legged stools too. And then there was a one-legged
>milking stool.
Never saw one of those, but I wouldn't want to sit on one of 'em and
try thy cold hand trick at the same time :)
>Now I know there is so much BS on the group that you
>think I am trying to spread some too, but I am not. Oh, all of the
>stools had cloth patdding on the top also, again homemade. The
>one-legged stool was a short section of 2X4 with a round top nailed on,
>and the padding. You slid it under you as you squatted down and then
>balanced on it. Much easier to do than it sounds. Actually I believe
We never used one with a cloth padding. I would imagine they'd tend
to absorb some of that cow crap, spilled milk, urine, and anything
else it fell in when you tried to milk with that cold hand!>this was a
purpose made stool.
>Any cow will move and knock over the
>pail or occassionally kick, because of a fly or whatever. But some cows
>are kickers.
Yea, and some just plain held grudges!
>For these they put on cow hobbles, so they could not kick.
>But while they couldn't kick they would often shift and knock you over.
>So for the cows that were known to cause trouble they used the one
>legged milking stool. Because with this one they had to be more alert,
>to keep from falling over, and if they had to jump back, the stool
>immediately fell over, and was much easier to kick out of the way, to
>keep from tripping on it. Now that is the only one legged milking stool
>I have ever seen or even heard of. I don't really consider myself that
>old, but I knew people that were born in the 1800s (grandparents, great
>grandparents) and now here I am in the year 2000, and that spans over a
>century. Besides learning to milk a cow, I have helped shoe horses,
>driven a team while haying (they forked the hay onto the wagon using hay
>forks - the hay had previously raked into rows, with a hay rake). I
>have also helped hay where they had a machine beween the tractor and the
>wagon (don't recall the name) that picked up the hay (again, the had had
>been raked into rows) and dumped it on the wagon, and the hay then had
>to be distirbuted using hay forks. I helped harvest corn with an old
>horse corn binder towed by a doodle bug (anyone rember what those
>were?),
Got me there!
>it shocked the corn.
No, the corn was NOT frightened, just tied up in knots...
>Later we chucked
shucked :)
>the corn by hand. Have
>also shelled corn with a hand cranked sheller. I remember helping
>cutting fire wood with a large circular saw, powered by a belt driven by
>a wheel on the side of a tractor.
Yup. Made quite a racket. Back before OSHA would 've required
hearing protection. And once in a while, if the saw rake (that's what
we called 'em) wasn't mounted perfectly square, or a hunk of wood
jammed on the saw blade, that belt would go flyin'. Not a good idea
to be in the way!
>I remember chopping silage in a
>machine powerd the same way.
Silo or silage blower. Chopped the corn (into silage), and blew it up
into the top of a silo. Some were a good 80 feet up. Some folks had
a corn chopper they pulled behind a tractor in the field when
harvesting. Had a couple neighbors who tried unclogging 'em without
shutting down the equipment. They still have two thumbs - but only
eight fingers between the two of 'em.
>I remember when we would get up at 4:00 in
>the morning to go the northern part of the lower peninsula of Michigan
>to go deer hunting, and the trip took 8 hours, if we were lucky. Now
>the same trip takes 2 hours or so. One winter we took along a trailer
>load of pallets my grandfather had cut like a puzzle. We put up a cabin
>from them in one day and slept in it that night. The next day covered
>the outside with tarpaper. It remained in use for 20+ years just like
>that. A few years after that was built my grandfather got a bunch of
>logs to build a log cabin. They had air dried in what was supposedly
>the largest barn in the world (believe me, that thing was huge), and all
>were like cork screws. He just sawed them into about 2-3 foot lengths,
>put them between rough sawn 2X12 joists and put up a cabin. As far as I
>know it is still in use. Anyway, here is some stuff on milking stools,
>etc., for those of you who are not familiar with them and a "milking
>stool" you can make.
>snip<
Thanks for bringin' back a lot of memories, JOAT.
My grandpa was born in 1889, and cleared the farmland I grew up on
with oxen. He lived until 1985. He saw the invention of the
automobile, TV (which he refused to watch), and heard and read about
us landing on the moon. I spent many hours talking about the "old
days" with him, and though he could in no way conceive the notion of
what a computer was, he'd always ask me about 'em, and he'd always
want me to explain even knowing it was futile for him to understand.
The things he had seen during his lifetime were incredible. His folk
immigrated from Poland, so he had grown up to despise Germany, and
after the world war and the iron curtain, it only intensified his
feelings about Germany and Russia. It would have been a treasure to
see him live to the day the Soviet Union collapsed, and see Germany
reunited - the talks we could have had! And I recall the first time
he watch TV on a little black-and-white set I got him - he watched in
total amazement.
Sorry for the off-topic, but that's what happens when you tug at my
heartstrings, JOAT!
--Jim
"You can't warm yourself in front of a picture of a fireplace."
--Polish proverb
Rob Weaver
because> >I helped harvest corn with an old horse corn binder towed by a doodle bug (anyone > >remember what those were?)
> Got me there!
IIRC, a *doodle bug* was what was left of an old Model B Ford (or any
other car of that era - plus or minus several years) after you took off
all of the sheet metal.
obww: Model B Fords (1932 Ford with the four cylinder engine instead of
the V-8 - which would have made it a Model 18) had oak frames on their
doors and roofs.
All the best,
Rob Weaver
p.s. - I'm recalling conversations - I am NOT old enough to remember
1932 Fords - I just seem like it
hirenpa...@gmail.com
--
Hiren
Markem
wrote:
>I know It's 16 years old post and most of the links you have provided are expired ! my quick question is - I wanna make one legged milking stool! help me :)
prefered search engine on) would probably be more fruitful.
hub...@ccanoemail.com
wrote:
--- news://freenews.netfront.net/ - complaints: ne...@netfront.net ---
Eli the Bearded
> On Tuesday, February 8, 2000 at 1:30:00 PM UTC+5:30, Jack-of-all-trades wrote:
> > The thread on the Duke got me thinking about learning here and that got
> > me thinking about milking stools. And I got to wondering how many
> > people here even know what a milking stool is, let alone seen one.
> > So for the cows that were known to cause trouble they used the one
> > legged milking stool. Because with this one they had to be more alert,
> > to keep from falling over, and if they had to jump back, the stool
> > immediately fell over, and was much easier to kick out of the way, to
> > keep from tripping on it.
> expired ! my quick question is - I wanna make one legged milking stool!
http://lateralscience.blogspot.com/2014/10/scottish-nitroglycerin-one-legged-stools.html
1870. Alfred Nobel chose Ardeer, in Ayreshire, as the location of
what was to become the largest explosives factory in the world. It
primarily manufactured nitroglycerin, for the production of
dynamite. Absolutely essential to the process was the one legged
stool. This innovation of Nobel's prevented the operator of the
nitroglycerin reaction vat from falling asleep on the job. His job
was to ensure an exothermic runaway of the reaction didn't take
place.
There's a photo of the man at the vat with his one legged-stool. Looks a
little high for milking, though.
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uACa6VoaO8A/VD_SLtBmgTI/AAAAAAAAJ2Q/9lcrcNWq1OY/s1600/one-legged-stool.jpg
(Why does a milking stool have only three legs?
Because the cow has the udder.)
Elijah
------
falling asleep by the nitroglycerin is probably worse than getting kicked
MOP CAP
had many friends on ranches
which we frequented. I saw many one leg stools. They were made from
what was at hand and a spike or two.No padding. Usually a rough cut 2X4
on top with either an other 2X4 for the leg or a cut off from a pine
pole. CP
JerryOsage
could move around without having to carry the stool from cow to cow.
Here is a simple one without a harness. OK for looks, but not easy to use if
you are actually going to be milking cows.
https://www.lehmans.com/p-3359-one-leg-milking-stool.aspx
Jerry O.
tortugato
This chair--how off topic--has 2 visible legs, and looks to be some kind of
male nudist's stool.
--
for full context, visit http://www.homeownershub.com/woodworking/re-one-legged-milking-stools-long-795441-.htm
dez...@gmail.com
> The thread on the Duke got me thinking about learning here and that got
> me thinking about milking stools. And I got to wondering how many
> So for the cows that were known to cause trouble they used the one
> legged milking stool. Because with this one they had to be more alert,
> to keep from falling over, and if they had to jump back, the stool
> immediately fell over, and was much easier to kick out of the way, to
Leon
>>
>> JOAT ___I specialze in non-specializing.___
>> We used to get much better history in the old days.
>>
>> Clinton/Gore jokes http://www.hex.net/humor24.html
>> Read the FAQ http://www.robson.org/woodfaq/
>> Check the archives http://www.deja.com/home_ps.shtml
>
> I used a one legged stool when I was a kid, a 2x4 leg and a 2x6 top - NO padding. You stick your head firmly into the cows flank to help keep the cow from kicking! We had two milk cows, one gave 5 gallons at a milking! We sold a few gallons every day to neighbors and used the rest for ourselves. Sometimes for an extra calf, butter and ice cream. Both the butter churn and the ice cream maker were hand operated.
>
Ed Pawlowski
Unknown
>
> But JOAT lives on. I miss him, an interesting character.
Puckdropper
--
http://www.puckdroppersplace.us/rec.woodworking
A mini archive of some of rec.woodworking's best and worst!
Leon
Leon
> Ed Pawlowski <e...@snet.net> wrote in news:jKwYB.21$8s5...@fx42.iad:
>
>>
>> But JOAT lives on. I miss him, an interesting character.
>
> I wonder how he's doing?
>
> Puckdropper
>