Rob G wrote:

On 23 Sep, 07:55, "The Medway Handyman"
wrote:
The Natural Philosopher wrote:
The Medway Handyman wrote:
Three poles in a triangle, one longer that the other two, used with
a block & tackle attached to the longer one?
Its on the tip of my tongue!
sheerlegs?
Thats it! Well done that man & thank you!

--
Dave - The Medway Handymanwww.medwayhandyman.co.uk

Well I don't think that's right - sheers are two poles lashed together
for straight lifting from a quay or the likes (like a derrick),
shearlegs according to the HSS link given below and other sources,
have three equal legs and the lift is central, but a gyn has one
longer leg which is how MDH describes his quest, with the pulley on
the end of the longer arm.

FWIW Collins Dictionary has:

"sheerlegs or shearlegs - a device for lifting lifting heavy weights
consisting of 2 or more spars lashed together at the upper ends lashed
together at the upper ends from which a lifting tackle is suspended.
Also called: shears. [C19: variant of shear legs]."

My Shorter Oxford doesn't have the sheer variation:

"Shear-legs. 1860 ... A device consisting of three poles of wood or iron
bolted together at their upper ends and extended below, carrying tackle
for raising heavy weights for machinery."

The Shorter Oxford does have sheer-hulk/shear-hulk (1768) (fitted with
shears) and says "In the pop. fig. use of the word the first element is
often misunderstood as sheer adj. and the compound written as two words."

Buried among the many definitions of shears (large scissors might
suggest the original derivation) is:

"shears - A device used upon ships, and in dockyards and mines, for
raising and fixing masts, boilers and other heavy gear, consisting of
two (or occas. more) poles steadied (in a sloping position) by guys and
fastened together at the top and fastened together at the top, from
which the hoisting tackle depends, and with their lower ends separated
as a base and secured to the deck or platform. Often spelt sheers. 1625."

I can't help thinking that the definition of shear-legs in particular is
more than a little suspect. All in all not exactly the Shorter Oxford's
finest hour. I wonder if they have tidied up in the latest edition.


Having said that, this is the result of doing a bit of searching and I
wouldn't have known this before. As shear legs are more likely to be
still of use nowadays, and gyns is an old fashioned word, I wonder if
shear legs incorrectly describes them both now.

Gyn has passed me and my dictionaries by but the Shorter Oxford does at
least come up with:

"gin - a) An apparatus for hoisting heavy weights; now usually a tripod,
with a winch or drum round which the rope is wound. M.E. b) Mining. A
drum or windlass for hoisting, pumping, etc. 1686."

Among 12 separate senses of the word gin for things mechanical in
addition to mothers ruin and to begin.

So my vote has to be for shear-legs, shears being in common use today
for cutting implements.