Masonry Magazine July 1963 Page. 7
The Book Mart
A new edition of "Brick and Tile Engineering" by Harry C. Plummer has been published by the Structural Clay Products Institute. This definitive handbook has been extensively rewritten to include important developments reported during the past decade by the Structural Clay Products Research Foundation, the National Bureau of Standards, and other organizations. Plummer has devoted this second edition primarily to the presentation of data and recommendations applicable to the engineering design of clay masonry structures and the development of construction specifications to govern them.
An internationally known authority on structural clay masonry construction, Plummer is Director of Engineering and Technology for the Structural Clay Products Institute and Secretary of the Structural Clay Products Research Foundation. He is a Fellow of the American Society of Civil Engineers, Fellow of the Construction Specifications Institute, and Fellow of the American Ceramic Society. He holds the Award of Merit from the American Society for Testing Materials. "Brick and Tile Engineering" is available at $5.00 a copy through the Structural Clay Products Institute, 1520 Eighteenth Street, Washington, D. C. 20036.
MASONRY CUTTING
In a continuing effort to provide more and more items of interest to our readers, we are starting a new feature in this issue, the Masonry Question & Answer Corner where our readers can send in for analysis and answering, questions and problems they encounter in the field of masonry cutting.
We feel that many times Mason Contractors experience the same problems or have the same questions concerning certain facets of our industry. Some contractors have found the solutions to these common problems, but others continue to live with them not knowing where to go for an answer, or not realizing there is, in many cases, a relatively simple solution.
Through the medium of this Question & Answer Corner, we can all share the benefits of our respective experience and knowledge. We shall endeavor to answer all questions received in the issue following receipt of the question.
Send your question or problem to Masonry Magazine, Question & Answer Corner, 208 South La Salle St., Chicago, Illinois 60604.
The first question in our new feature column was posed by Mr. S. A. of Arcadia, Ohio, who wrote concerning the reversing of diamond blades on masonry saws. He wrote as follows:
QUESTION: "I have heard conflicting stories concerning the advisability of reversing diamond blades on masonry saws. One fellow has told me to reverse the blade each day while a second fellow has told me that continual reversing of the diamond blade will reduce its life. Will you set me straight on this question once and for all."
ANSWER: Frequent reversing of the blade will tend to make the blade cut more freely, but this practice will also reduce its life.
Here's what happens: The rim of a diamond blade consists of a mixture of crushed diamonds and a metal powder matrix. The object of the matrix is to hold the particles of diamonds in place while they are cutting, until they get dull and are torn out of the band. This will then result in the exposure of fresh layers of sharp diamond particles.
If you were to examine a blade under a magnifying glass, you would see that as the cutting progresses, each diamond sticks out like a little hill. The metal powder matrix is worn away except in the area just behind the diamond which is called a "fishtail." These (Continued on Page 13)
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ONRY July, 1963
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