I am having to do a repair to our front door at the moment. A massive Victorian piece of oak (at a guess possibly older) it is not the kind of thing I would want to chuck aside to be replaced by some contemporary, mass-produced rubbish. The trouble is, however, that it has developed area of rot along its lower edge, and the weather-strip needs to be replaced. I can do this, with some effort, and today began the task. The areas of rot are not so extensive that they cannot be treated with a good-quality filler. So, I dug out the rotten wood, bought some filler, and set to work.
Reading the instructions on the can of filler I was struck by the maker’s guidance. It is one of those preparations which need to be activated by the addition of a catalyst to the basic mixture before it will harden. I have used it before, but to be on the safe side read the instructions first. To a piece of the basic mixture about the size of a golf-ball, it is necessary to add a piece of the catalyst about the size of a pea, and then mix. It struck me that, although I have played putting on many occasions, can it be taken for granted that the population is invariably confident about just how big is a golf-ball? Interesting!