So this morning, much to my surprise, the roofing contractor used a lead flashing to the house outside wall, rather than using the roofing felt to create flashing, this for longevity: and he didn't use mortar, but 'Lead Sheet Sealant' from 'Soudal' to grout it into the mortar course, as this silicone formulation remains elastic and copes much better with expansion and contraction of the lead, especially when exposed to direct sunlight, as at this location. (We also have a lead roofed extension where some of this problem has occurred in the past, so you can guess what I will be doing this autumn, after reading the next paragraph: laugh a minute, he named the business that did that job, first guess from the likely candidates, because he 'could see his hand in it'. Traditional skills eh?)
Naturally I had scavenged all the useful code 4 lead offcuts from the job, and the contractor asked what for: and he's an enthusiast for model railway, since last year seeing a client's layout and blown away by what's now available in RTR OO. Naturally enough we had a little time with some models and I tried out the sealant for attaching lead to a couple of plastic kits, perfect. Now this is an advance, as polystyrene/ABS can deform if a petroleum solvent based adhesive (evostick) or curing resin (araldite) is used, caused by it softening the moulding, combined with the weight of the lead. No such effect with the sealant, and I was given the last inch and a half of the tube of sealant to play with.
