In the last report, we broke-up the centre of the old floor at Hotchley Hill, and covered the locking room floor below with sawdust and splinters.
This week, we turned the process around, and made good headway with putting-together the replacement. At the back of the building, a new course of bricks was laid to support the short joists behind the frame. The original construction here (illustrated previously) didn't fit well at all, and made poor use of materials. Perhaps not the work of the original builders?
Meanwhile, some of our newer volunteers dropped-in the corresponding joists at the front of the building, and nailed them into the joist hangers with the regulation fasteners.
The exciting part, then was to start laying the run of short boards that go directly in front of the frame. These might look a bit odd, being perpendicular to the rest of the floor - but will make it possible to reach the mechanical locking trays from above, if necessary during installation. This also avoids moving the large trimmer from its position on the 1946 plans.
All that takes longer to do than say, of course, but we did have time for a fun addition to our new battery room door: A historically-accurate no-smoking sign, matched to the original in a private collection. From a distance, you'd never know it's a sticker!
