Questions you'd like answering, regardless of how trivial they may seem

[Chromatic]

Bolster chisel and lump hammer, although there is probably a machine for it these days as @Punkawallah suggests.

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

WHen we had the garden "done" the brickies used a whizzy thing with a cutting blade to reshape any blocks and bricks they needed to

In "the old days" they used to use experience and talent to weird a special chisel and a hammer to split it in exactly the right way

Same to the flags they were laying
I mentioned it to the boss - he said this way is far easier and more accurate
but he misses the days when it took skill and experience!

 

[SuperGalactian]

There was/is also a brick hammer, which has a long curved bill as well as a short square hammer face, thus combining hammer and chisel in one. I'm only a DIYer, but I found the quality of the brick had a major impact on how effective the brick hammer was. In the end I turned to a disc cutter for my jobs. Makes a lot of red dust in the cutting area, and I found I had to dunk the bricks to wash the dust off, but the brickwork ends up neater.

 

[Mad Doug Biker]

Going to be awkward here, it's not.
There's a death certificate in my medical records, unsigned because I'm still here.

I always knew there was sommat not 'right' about you!

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

There was/is also a brick hammer, which has a long curved bill as well as a short square hammer face, thus combining hammer and chisel in one. I'm only a DIYer, but I found the quality of the brick had a major impact on how effective the brick hammer was. In the end I turned to a disc cutter for my jobs. Makes a lot of red dust in the cutting area, and I found I had to dunk the bricks to wash the dust off, but the brickwork ends up neater.

I saw a programme about brick laying once

The expert was showing 2 different arches made of brick

One was made with every motor segment the same width and the same width from top to bottom
but every brick was trimmed with a proper brick hammer to be slightly angled on each side
He said it was "the proper way" and much stronger

but it was something people only ever did at college when learning

Every arch built with bricks was angled by varying the amount of mortar between the brichs at the top and bottom

apparently

 

[DaveReading]

I saw a programme about brick laying once

The expert was showing 2 different arches made of brick

One was made with every motor segment the same width and the same width from top to bottom
but every brick was trimmed with a proper brick hammer to be slightly angled on each side
He said it was "the proper way" and much stronger

but it was something people only ever did at college when learning

Every arch built with bricks was angled by varying the amount of mortar between the brichs at the top and bottom

apparently

I'm surprised there isn't a market for wedge-shaped bricks specifically designed for bridges.

 

[Punkawallah]

I'm surprised there isn't a market for wedge-shaped bricks specifically designed for bridges.

They will no doubt come in ‘left hand’ and ‘right hand’ versions?