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dnes Offline OP
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Thanks to all for the replies.

Wwh, to avoid this problem of the object tipping sidewise, I assume there would be two ropes, wrapped near opposite ends of the barrel. The worker would then pull both ropes at the same time, or two workers could each take a rope and hoist the barrel together.


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wow Offline
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Oh, sure and then both ropes could slide of either end - oooppps - and why do you want the darn barrell up the ramp anyway?
Just tap the keg and have the party at ground level.


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Can't think of any particular name, but this is the way beer barrels were lowered into the beer cellar at the local pub when I was a young un. This was done by the draymen, who I imagine were quite skilled. If my memory of physics serves me correctly, I believe it would be a two to one ratio. Two ropes/two men -- four to one. Not too difficult.



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wwh Offline
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Dear davego: you gave me an idea. The way to lower a beer barrel down a ramp into cellar would be to have rope long enough to make several winds around barrel in middle of rope, then tie ends together. Then the top rope could be cautiously paid out hand over hand. And considering the value of a barrel of beer, a pair of men and a pair of such ropes would be a good idea.The rope would have to be long enough to have a distance equal to the length of the ramp between you and the barrel, and you would have to walk forward as barrel went down ramp.


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wow Offline
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Sounds like Dr.Bill has the problem solved ... now when is this going to happen and do we get an invite to the party and directions to the site? Should I bring pretzels?


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dnes Offline OP
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I found it! I was looking up the etymology of "parenthesis" and there it was, a picture of two men pulling a barrel up a ramp. The word is...

parbuckle


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wwh Offline
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Dear dnes: My hat off,and an effort at deep bow (frustrated by my ankylosind spodylitis_) using your clues, I found:
Parbuckle
(Par"buc`kle) n. (a) A kind of purchase for hoisting or lowering a cylindrical burden, as a cask. The middle of a long rope is made fast aloft, and both parts are looped around the object, which rests in the loops, and rolls in them as the ends are hauled up or payed out. (b) A double sling made of a single rope, for slinging a cask, gun, etc.

I never heard of it before.



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wwh Offline
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A nice picture, Alex, but it shows clearly that it is to hoist a barrel vertically, not to roll it up a ramp. Nice word to know just the same.



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Oh I dunno, it looks like a very steep ramp to me, but that is nothing worth arguing about really. I just did a google image search for "parbuckle," and that was the only picture it found.


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