The old steel bucket

[E.Martin]

One of the first things on going to sea was how to use a draw bucket,another thing taught was how to get all the water from a mop
by putting some twine on the mop handle each bit of twine wound on to the handle opposite ways,put the mop handle on the gunnel
and pull the twine opposite ways to spin the mop.

[Jim Brady]

Mops at sea!!!!never heard of it,it was down on the old "chips and peas" with a bucket of water a scrubbing brush and a block of brown soap and do a good scrub out,but never a mop.
Regards.
Jim.B.

[Doc Vernon]

Aye Jim
That was my first taste of going to Sea,the Second Steward guided me towards the Cleaning gear,said grab that Bucket Young Man,some Brown Soap,a Scrubbing Brush and some Cloth,and get down to the First Class Dining Room,start with the Stairs that lead into the Dining Room and after that start cleaning the Patch you have been assigned to! So there i was on my Knees ("chips and peas")scrubbing away,tears some sadness and of Joy mind you streaming down my face,as i had also just seen my dear Mum,and little Sister standing on the Pier waving goodbye to me on my first Voyage!
The happiness i felt after that was so amazing,it just seemed to swell in me,and yes the Tears did flow!
But i of course kept my face down not to show anyone else! haha!
I was now a Merchant Seaman!! Wow!! PROUD AS PUNCH!!
Cheers

[happy daze john in oz]

Oh yes Vernon, UCL were very good at giving scrub outs to the wingers. I got one outside the tourist lounge, there was a very large coconut fibre mat and it shed bits like it was going out of fashion. No broom so with the scrubbing brush each morning I pushed it all under the mat. By the end of the voyage I recon that mat was twice as high. My knees have never recovered!!!!

[alf corbyn]

hi john. remember the blue lino in the bloods alleyways. if you were in a hurry, you just scrubbed the white line down each side and it looked as if it had all been scrubbed.

[Jim Brady]

hi john. remember the blue lino in the bloods alleyways. if you were in a hurry, you just scrubbed the white line down each side and it looked as if it had all been scrubbed.

Now now Alf what ranch did you come off.
Regards.
Jim.B.

[alf corbyn]

hi jim. i always wore the regulation check shirt and wranglers

[leratty]

Neville post 5, man we used to wash our Levies, always wore Levies except the Wrangler white jeans were best in that colour so did wear them by scrubbing in the shower with a deck brush to get that superb light blue colour which we so prized. Oh & you had to wear Chelsea boots too.
Doc post 7, wish I had known that back then would have saved a lot of hard scrubbing (:
Calvin post 8, Lee Cooper were much on the outer when I was at sea it was Levies or Wrangler as they fitted so much better. Must say there was a clear delineation as to what brand you wore. Can't recall if that was aged based or not? Levies were always prized in Sth America, Cuba etc as well I recall in Poland so we stocked up & made a tidy profit.
Still wear Levies to this day have never changed. Does that make you a stick in the mud as to fashion or still as the Who sang; "A Dedicated Follower of Fashion?"
With Levies you to stop your money being stolen when either passed out or in a establishment of disrepute, or worse if being rolled (never happened to me was held up though)
cut the middle stitching of the back waste band & store you money in there, worked a treat. Richard

[alf corbyn]

when visiting a house of ill repute? always roll your money up in your shirt sleeve to save the poor girls from becoming thieves.

[Tom Kirby]

Those very same buckets were good for collecting stale bread to feed the MULES at the Panama Canal. aaah the good old days.