Do you know of the word 'fettle'?

[Guest]

In the metal casting industry they employ people as fettlers. They basically work on the moulds by hand. I have seen them working on wax with scalpels. Later the wax part is made into alloy.

Interesting. The dad of an old boyfriend in Sheffield worked in that industry and used 'fettling' to describe any sort of activity that involved working closely and intently at something. It's just reminded me that he also used to refer to picking your nose as fettling. It must be a good ten years or so since I've heard the word in that context.

[the_rudeboy]

We regularly use the word in our house. In the context of cleaning or sorting out.

[mort]

Interesting. The dad of an old boyfriend in Sheffield worked in that industry and used 'fettling' to describe any sort of activity that involved working closely and intently at something. It's just reminded me that he also used to refer to picking your nose as fettling. It must be a good ten years or so since I've heard the word in that context.

 

I've heard of fossicking and furtling in connection with nose picking but never fettling.

[Plain Talker]

when i worked my very first job after leaving school, I worked in a foundry, and we would "fettle" the metal castings after they came out of the moulds. we'd take the sharp edges off before grinding the things smooth with a linisher.

 

I'd also describe as "fettling", the action of a farrier, on a horse's hoof, when using a rasp, in the act of shoe-ing a horse, to get rid of overgrowth of hoof, and bits of the shoe which are outside the circumference of the hoof, or the bits of nail from the horseshoe that would stick out, through the hoof.

 

(in my family it also was used in the sense of a thorough cleaning)

[Salome]

fettle the house (a really good indepth clean)

 

 

Yes...give the house a good fettling!! More in depth than a Spring Clean!! :hihi:

[neil memmott]

Fettle is a nautical term for how the cargo lay in the holds of the old wooden ships. A daily inspection of the cargo to check if anything had slipped it's moorings would be taken and if everything was normal and secure it would be classed "as in fine fettle"

Honest.

[shoeshine]

we use it in our house usually when she bends down to remove the hoover bag

 

:hihi:

 

In the steelmaking industry, "fettling" was the act of shovelling dolomite chippings into the hearth of a Basic Open Hearth Furnace to maintain and protect it's lining/base-bed from catastophic failure during the Steelmaking/Melting Process.

 

In domestic and common parlance, "fettling" means a thorough "scrub down".

 

Which reminds me, it's time to take my longjohns off!

[cressida]

a good state of mind, or in good order, or repair

[fluffystuff]

Which reminds me, it's time to take my longjohns off!

Do you mind, some of us are eating:gag:

[mollie]

its what I do for a living, fettle peoples houses for them.