Hedge laying film & landgirl 1942

[Stere]

 

Im impressed by how sharp his tools are, billhook one swipe to go though the hazel stakes

 

The bit where he is cutting the hedge at the end with   the slasher looks  nearly as fast as a petrol hegde trimmer...

[Guest Gimlet]

Great film. His stake cutting is probably a technique lost to us now with our reliance on chainsaws. I suspect that hook is quite heavy. It's got a deep blade and a small sharply angled beak. It would have had some cutting power. Would play havoc with my wrist though. I can't quite make out what model it might be.

 

I was struck by the speed of his trimming as well. Faster than a petrol trimmer.. he's faster than a tractor. Wonder if he moved that fast when there were no cameras there.

 

Him smoking his pipe while his helper got stuck in reminds me of the old boy who first taught me about hedge laying when I was 16. After watching him for a bit he'd hand me the hook, point to a stick and say "plash he down you, I be going to have a blow". Then he's sit down on a stump and get his flask and his Woodbines out. 

Edited January 16, 2019 by Gimlet

[woody paul]

There was an old farm worker in my village how cut his privet hedge like that it always looked like it had been cut with shears 

[Darrin Turnbull]

Sharp tools