Gaff vs. Gaffers
- Thread startertechno89
- Start date
The way I learned this is that when it was invented in ww2 it was "duck" tape because it was waterproof, it came back after the war and got into the hvac world and. Became "duct" tape, and then the company and brand "duck" formed making them both fairly interchangeable. Who knows of that's accurate though, now I'm going to look it up
You forgot:
Gaffers' tape = The Gaff tape that belongs to all the Gaffers.
I've said before: I think the "gaff" term was coined so that people didn't have to worry about where to put the apostrophe.
As for gaffa,
its use seems to be frowned upon by educated Brits. One wonders why the term persists at all.
Forums like this. And those who heard it, and haven't bothered to find out if there is a better name.
shiben
Well-Known Member
except we dont accept people who use gaffa here...
In a similar vein-
While recently visiting the Polyken tape manufacturing facility in Franklin KY, I had the pleasure of hearing a 72 inch wide roll of gaffer tape being quickly unwound for slitting and re-rolling onto Apollo cores. You know what? It was REALLY LOUD!
Imagine 36 gaffers, elbow to elbow, each unwinding a two inch roll of gaffer tape as quickly as possible. Whoa....
Now, back to our regularly scheduled thread-
While recently visiting the Polyken tape manufacturing facility in Franklin KY, I had the pleasure of hearing a 72 inch wide roll of gaffer tape being quickly unwound for slitting and re-rolling onto Apollo cores. You know what? It was REALLY LOUD!
Imagine 36 gaffers, elbow to elbow, each unwinding a two inch roll of gaffer tape as quickly as possible. Whoa....Now, back to our regularly scheduled thread-
jstandfast
Active Member
Question to those of you keeping track of this thread-
How many rolls of 2 inch gaffer tape do you purchase with each order?
(Yes I realize it depends upon the needs of the particular show, but on average- how many?)
How many rolls of 2 inch gaffer tape do you purchase with each order?
(Yes I realize it depends upon the needs of the particular show, but on average- how many?)
WooferHound
Well-Known Member
And thanks to woofer hound for backing up my story and providing the proof I'd been to lazy to find haha.
Ok, now I'm off on a semantics/etymology bent. Where does the term Gaffer come from ? Was it a position on a ship like so many other words in the theater world ?
Does a Gaffer ever use a Gaff ? < a long pole with a hook and spike on the end used for hauling in fish and or capturing errant ropes on a ship>
One might be accused of committing a 'Gaff' on stage if one were to trip and fall, but is that because Gaffers are traditionally clumsy ? or because you have to use a gaff to retrieve bodies after someone falls overboard ? These are the things that keep me awake at night.
Does a Gaffer ever use a Gaff ? < a long pole with a hook and spike on the end used for hauling in fish and or capturing errant ropes on a ship>
One might be accused of committing a 'Gaff' on stage if one were to trip and fall, but is that because Gaffers are traditionally clumsy ? or because you have to use a gaff to retrieve bodies after someone falls overboard ? These are the things that keep me awake at night.
I prefer the other definition - "a means of climbing utility poles" - I believe this makes a bit more sense considering it refers to theatrical work
On Wikkipedia, I discovered another, rather disturbing, definition: "6.A garment worn to hide the genitals by male transvestites."
Well, I guess that would explain the desire for the tape to be " Non-Stick".
JD
Well-Known Member
My money would be on this one:
Old terms have a way of being reused. "errant ropes on a ship" becomes "errant cables on a stage." Maybe tape instead of a hook?
"Long pole with a hook" used for hauling actors off the stage
I guess you would use the spike if they were really bad!
This might actually be the correct answer from:
http://www.media-match.com/usa/jobtypes/gaffer-jobs-402722.php
"A Gaffer in the motion picture industry is the head of the electrical department, responsible for the execution (and sometimes the design) of the lighting plan for a production. In British English the term Gaffer is long established as meaning an old man, or the foreman of a squad of workmen. The term was also used to describe men who adjusted lighting in English theater and men who tended street lamps, after the "gaff" they used, a pole with a hook on its end. "
Old terms have a way of being reused. "errant ropes on a ship" becomes "errant cables on a stage." Maybe tape instead of a hook?
"Long pole with a hook" used for hauling actors off the stage
I guess you would use the spike if they were really bad!
This might actually be the correct answer from:
http://www.media-match.com/usa/jobtypes/gaffer-jobs-402722.php
"A Gaffer in the motion picture industry is the head of the electrical department, responsible for the execution (and sometimes the design) of the lighting plan for a production. In British English the term Gaffer is long established as meaning an old man, or the foreman of a squad of workmen. The term was also used to describe men who adjusted lighting in English theater and men who tended street lamps, after the "gaff" they used, a pole with a hook on its end. "
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