In the article Lives of the Engineers - Mephan Ferguson by Peter S. Evans in TOMM #202, in the section about making steel pipes, there is a drawing of two halves joined together by a flange.  How did the engineers seal the pipes together to make a water-tight fit? Did they seal the two flanges together with just the simple ‘C Section’ joint, by hammering them together or was there something further to this? I do wonder how they actually sealed them. Was it just as simple as tar, as this pipeline lasted for many years? I also would like to know how they bored holes in the steel of the pipes? I personally have a Buffalo forge from New York (with a modern sharpened carbon tip), and to drill a half inch hole through a quarter inch steel plate takes a lot of effort, so this lends to the query of how it was done in those times quickly and efficiently. If you have any further information, I would be very interested to know more. *Frank, Ph: 0428 889 632