Window age

[HOJ]

This is a curious one, I have made and fitted a replacement for this window, but "we" were trying to estimate it's age, given the style and condition, any body hazard a guess?



There was an interesting method of fixing which narrowed it down, not visible until we pulled it out :eusa-think:

 

[Trevanion]

If it's made from Scots Pine, I would estimate about 2015 or so, I can see the gun foam and frame fixers :lol:

In all seriousness, it can be very difficult to date old work. A reasonable way to have a broad range to guess from is by looking closely at the glass and seeing if there are any subtle differences to link it to the technology of the time it was made. Of course, it's not a sure thing as often glass is salvaged and reused, much like ironmongery is often replaced when worn out so you might have a relatively modern hinge or handle on a 200-year-old window.

18th-century glass is typically very thin, this is because of the glass tax where glass was taxed by weight, and wasn't abolished until the mid-19th century, so you'll often see very small panes around 2-3mm thick.

Early hand-blown Cylinder glass is a very early type of glazing, produced by blowing a glass tube and then cutting and flattening the tube into sheets, this created very uneven glass that almost looked like waves in the sea. This process was industrialised later on and a more uniform product was produced.

Crown/spun glass is an indicator of work anywhere up to the late 19th century when it fell out of fashion, when looked at in certain raking light the glass will have circular arcs and imperfections through it and is inconsistent in thickness, it's thick in the middle where the bullseye is produced, but gets gradually thinner towards the edge of the spun piece of glass.

Drawn glass was a more industrial method of producing sheet glass of uniform thickness by drawing the molten glass from a big vat and pulling up up into a tall tower between rollers, typically seen in work from the mid-19th to early 20th century this still has imperfections in as well which appear as short indents in the glass where the roller has "scarred" the glass surface with a piece of debris or the surface of the roller itself. Drawn glass can look quite wavy in raking light.

Plate glass you almost never see, it was hideously expensive and really only reserved for fine furniture, it's perfectly flat without imperfections, and very difficult to tell apart from modern float glass.

If I had to guess, I would say it's from the late Georgian or early Victorian period but it's impossible to have a more accurate guess without looking in person.

 

[HOJ]

If it's made from Scots Pine, I would estimate about 2015 or so, I can see the gun foam and frame fixers

You may jest, (but that's what the new ones have :eusa-whistle: ) I was led to believe they may well be "historic" but once up close and personnel, and thinking on the same lines with your glass overview, thank you, the glass being a good indicator, was without any character or tell tale signs of age, so we started to be more sceptical with ageing, first few bits were the joints and the glue with galv nails used to hold the M & Ts and finally the fixing method:



Slotted screws mind but with Brown plastic wall plugs, we did think they may have been removed and refitted at some time but no evidence of that.

So when did we start using these plugs, I can't recall when I did.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Early '70s or thereabouts? I saw only fibre plugs in the late '60s

 

[Trevanion]

Sometimes you just hit a nail on the head without even trying :lol:

So when did we start using these plugs, I can't recall when I did.

I just looked it up and interestingly whilst Fischer in Germany invented plastic plugs in 1958, it wasn't until 1968 that Rawlplug started producing plastic plugs in Glasgow to replace their old jute fibre ones. So in theory the window could be over 50 years old, slotted screws to fix it would suggest it possibly being over 25-30 years old because they were still used commonly along with Yankee Screwdrivers back then.

 

[HOJ]

Early '70s or thereabouts? I saw only fibre plugs in the late '60s

I just cant remember, perhaps we just accepted them as a matter of course, i do recall we had long straws of plastic that went with the "Rawlplug" tool.

slotted screws to fix it would suggest it possibly being over 25-30 years old because they were still used commonly along with Yankee Screwdrivers back then

Still use mine, occasionally, bought when I started my apprenticeship in mid 1970's, blimey, may be time time to think about retiring, I am knackered..

Did another window today, same brown plugs and screw fixings, bonus was Philips screws on the hinges.

I really should take more notice when I go and measure up!

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Mmm ............ fibre Rawlplugs, lump hammers, star drills and granite lintels. Things of dread to a fourteen year old. :lol:

 

[Phil Pascoe]

I just cant remember, perhaps we just accepted them as a matter of course, i do recall we had long straws of plastic that went with the "Rawlplug" tool.

You can still buy strip wall plugs, very handy they are occasionally when a hole for one reason or another is too deep.

 

[HOJ]

fibre Rawlplugs, lump hammers, star drills and granite lintels. Things of dread to a fourteen year old

Those were the days.. :eusa-liar: