Shingling (metallurgy)

Shingling was a stage in the production of bar iron or steel, in the finery and puddling processes. As with many ironmaking terms, this is derived from the French - cinglage

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The product of the finery was a bloom or loop (French loup); that of the puddling furnace was a puddled ball. In each case, this needed to be consolidated to a more regular shape. This was done using a power hammer, worked either by a waterwheel or steam. In the finery, this was part of the work of the finer; in puddling, it was done by a special workman called the shingler. The iron (or steel) then had to be drawn out under the hammer or rolled in a rolling mill to produce a bar. In more recent times, the process has been carried out using mechanical jaws to squeeze the puddled ball into shape.

Further reading

• H. R. Schubert, History of the British iron and steel industry (1957), 285-6
• W. K. V. Gale, The iron and steel industry: a dictionary of terms (Newton Abbot, 1971), 184.