The class 3 thanks Mr Preißler for the interesting guidance through the workshop in the school year 2000/2001. We listened very close when Mr Preißler told from his life and his workshop.
Mr Preißler's childhood memories
Mr Erhard Preißler was born in 1934 in the Sudetenland. Today that's a part of the Czech Republic.He has four brothers and sisters. For the whole family it was very sad to hear that two brothers would not come back from war. When he started school in 1940 he "only" got a bunch of flowers and no Zuckertüte (a large conical bag of sweets today given to children on their first day at school in Eastern Germany). The classes 1 and 2 learned together in one room. Pupils wrote on slates and later with quill and ink.
The name of Mr Preißler's teacher was Adolf Hocke. If the pupils didn't pay attention they got their punishment by cane or ruler. Also clips round the ears were given out. After the lessons Mr Preißler had to help at home, e.g. getting wood, taking the eggs from the hens or putting up sheaves.
In 1945, the Preißler family had to emigrate from the Sudetenland. They could take with them only so much things they could carry.
Mr Preißler is showing his journeyman's certificateWhen they arrived in Colmnitz they had to sleep in a farmer's barn. Actually they were allowed to stay only for three weeks. With the farmer Erler they could work and got food ration-cards for that.Now it was possible to move to an own flat. Mr Preißler went to class 6 to 8 in Colmnitz.
Mr Preißler had a rocking horse which was made by his parents. The toys were passed on from one child to the other. They also often played in the forest or skied in winter. Mr Preißler told us that his first ball lasted only one day. While playing it flew on a nail in a fence.
After having finished his school time Mr Preißler started the apprenticeship as an upholsterer under Bruno Jungnickel. The apprenticeship took three years
The handicraft of the upholsterer
In remembrance to his broken ball Mr Preißler decided to manufacture himself balls. They consisted of 32 parts. In former times, the upholsterers worked with the saddler horse. With upholsterer awl and upholsterer needle you got a very firm seam. Tiebacks for horse harnesses were sewn thereby.The upholsterer manufactures for example chairs. At first, belts were clamped for the seat face and springs were set up. The springs were tied together with cords.
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| Flax tow (waste of the flax plant) was fastened over it. After that, horsehair was made on it and the seat face was covered with white cotton. At the end the chair got a beautiful padding off purchase. | |
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The horsehair is twisted as a pigtail. |
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| It was pulled with a hand-operated horse-hair pulling machine. Because of the rotation of the hand wheel the teeth of the machine seize the horse-hair and make it loose. | |
The Preißler Company today
Mr Preißler with a sewing machine The sewing machine is used still today from time to time. For covering chairs ready spring baskets are supplied. The manual workers use also the round measurer machine, the one-needle and the multi-needle sewing machine and the high-speed sewing machine.For grinding the floor, Mr Preissler uses a floor grinding machine. Mr Preissler shows in the picture how to nail with compressed air.
Today the following works are offered:
