Onsite Training in Manitoba (and Michael Discovers Tyndall Stone)
B&F Masonry, out of Winnipeg, Canada, contacted us about getting their masons trained for an upcoming Jahn project. Founded by brothers Terry and Tony Ferraro, B&F Masonry is one of the premier restoration specialists in the province of Manitoba.
We shipped out a crate of our number one instructional stones and some Jahn, and I hopped on a plane to Winnipeg. The plan was to train and certify all of their experienced masons, who have worked on many iconic Manitoba projects, including the Parliament Building, University of Manitoba, Remand Centre Jail, and the Winnipeg Art Gallery.
University of Manitoba
The best part of my job is traveling around and seeing new things. On this trip, I got to experience Tyndall Stone -- a type of limestone unique to the region and characterized by leopard-stripe patterning throughout the stone. These patterns are the remnants of burrows carved by some ancient marine animal, and they definitely present a challenge in doing any patch repairs.
The first step was to get a close base color with our M70 mortar. This color would be used for the majority of the patch. With the M70 still wet, we cut out small channels in the patch. We then used a darker M70 to refill these channels. This replicated the burrows nicely. Finally, we used our miter rod to screed the patch flush with the stone surface, exposing a matching blend of color to the original Tyndall Stone.
“These patterns are the remnants of burrows carved by some ancient marine animal.”
Firsts are rarer for me when I set out to do an onsite training session, so this was a lot of fun. The B&F Masonry crew was exceptional -- especially Senior Project Manager, Ellison Wilkinson, who was a huge help in facilitating and organizing this training event. It's always a great experience to spend time with skilled craftsmen who have a likewise mindset and enthusiasm for restoring history and preserving it for future generations to enjoy.
Michael Liguori
Technical Sales Manager and Instructor
