Cuban8

Posted by john stones 1 on 02/04/2015 13:43:57: Take a look around you C8 plenty are there already and have zero hour contracts John I know John, and mightily cheesed off about them I could get! Fair enough, casual labour has been around for ages but has tended to be on the margins and quite limited in scope. I fear that it's grown into something that seems to be more generally acceptable, although it's usually those that are benefiting from the cheap labour as and when they need it, who will sing its praises the loudest. Flexible working is a great euphemism, especially when all the 'give' is in the direction of the employer. Where I used to work as a well paid maintenance engineer on the shop floor, I've seen men and women operators (casuals) in tears after they'd been told they weren't needed and should go home. The employer had promised them some hours but had changed their mind over night. Not only did the workers lose their hours, it had cost them bus fares as well - all because some comfortable numpty in the office couldn't be asked to phone around. When I retired a few years back, I thought I I'd do a bit part-time, a regular 8 or 10 hours a week would be enough to keep me in glow fuel and Lipos. What a joke - nothing but ZHCs, where they wanted you in at the drop of a hat for an hour or two as it suited them. I don't need the work so didn't bother, but I feel sorry for those that are trying to get some stability into their life. Fat chance on a ZHC.

Posted by Erfolg on 02/04/2015 11:24:02: Who in the 60s would have predicted, that boiler making would cease to exist as an industry, that coal mining would become less relevant, that the foundry industries would all but disappear. Hindsight provides the clearest picture, although that is often contested. Edited By Erfolg on 02/04/2015 11:24:55 Who in their right mind would have predicted that China, at that time a country of farmers and Red Guards resplendent in their 'pyjamas' and waving 'little red books' would reinvent itself so powerfully. I fear that the pendulum will swing in the opposite direction and we'll be the ones who find ourselves increasingly scratching a living, if not on the land, but in jobs paying subsistence level wages with the accompanying discontent that will follow.

Hi Merco & welcome to the club. As the forum's resident cynic I had to smile when you said your garden machinery supplier scared you into buying ten quid's worth of Ethanol Shield (never heard of it so had to Google it). My wife's 100,000 mile 2002 Fiesta hasn't missed a beat on Asda cheap petrol for 10 years, so although I accept what others say about 'cheap' fuel I can't say we've had any problems with it.

Posted by Andy48 on 30/03/2015 15:15:36: You have a professional background in such tests then? I know I did one much later in life which proved to be remarkably accurate and informative. Funnily enough, I remember taking one of these psychobabble tests years ago at a job interview and was also impressed by how the interviewer appeared to be able to sum up my character fairly well. Later, I mentioned this to a very practically minded friend who said that all that day's horoscopes in the paper will probably apply to me as well - I took his point! Apologies to those that do put a lot of faith in this stuff.

OK thanks again for the replies. I'll just log in regularly and pick up any messages - pity I missed the enquiries first time around as I don't like messing people about.

Psychometric testing......................"Would you rather read a book or go to a party?"........................complete and utter tosh, from which someone is making a tidy sum I'm sure. Do you prefer castor or synthetic, mode 1 or mode 2.............

Just a thought but I bought some JB Weld epoxy putty a while back to repair something and it's brilliant stuff. Would certainly do a strong job on a wire wrapped U/C without all the bother of blow torches and so on. I tried it for strength on a simple butt joint between a bit of scrap 1/2" aluminium tube and a flat bit of ali, with the JB Weld in a small fillet between the two. Broke the tube in testing the joint - the JB Weld after a week was rock hard.

Thanks for the replies. As I was already registered with the site as a club administrator for renewals etc my details for the classifieds was already in place and I do get emails regarding club business etc. Have re-listed the model and will keep a close eye on my classifieds messages.

I usually like to build a model as per the plan or instructions, the thinking being that the designer knows best. I say "usually" as some ARTFs have clearly never been built to the supplied book of words, and with the exception of a few very expert designers, some models from plans do seem to have been rushed out or not properly flight tested. In the end it doesn't really matter, as with experience one gets to know how to spot potential problem areas - in fact when I was building mainly from plans many moons ago, it was an excellent education in solving problems and curing flying faults (no it wasn't my rubbish workmanship either). The worst plans and kits? - you'll have to guess!............However, the very best kits from the point of view of quality drawings and instructions were IMHO, those produced by Goldberg, followed closely by Flair.

I've had some enquiries about some stuff I had for sale on said site, but was unaware of the interest as I never got any notification sent to my normal email account that I regularly monitor. I'm sure the old classifieds site had this facility or am I mistaken/doing something wrong?

I could get rid of my Tivo Box and remove the coax from the TV and then only rely on an internet connection to view catch up. Trouble is via the internet I can still get access to a live broadcast from the BBC's news channel or NASA TV's live feed from the ISS, for which according to the blurb from the BBC I need a licence! I doubt they'd believe you saying "I never watch them", so while I have an internet connection I can still get live TV and need to pay up. In the case of watching on a laptop, I suppose it would be classed as television equipment. Reckon they've got all the angles covered. Edited By Cuban8 on 29/03/2015 21:14:20

As we were wandering off Topic a bit elsewhere (sorry) and there was mention of a way of circumventing the hated TV Licence, here is a paragraph from the reminder email that the Beeb sends out.... What is a Licence needed for? To use any TV equipment to watch or record any TV programmes as they are being shown on television. This includes watching or recording streamed services and satellite TV broadcast from outside the UK. If you only watch on-demand services, then you don't need a licence. Yes, if you could guarantee that none of your TV equipment would even for a moment receive a live broadcast, no matter where it may be sourced from, then I suppose that's true. In reality I doubt that it's easily possible......or is it?

I suppose that under the terms of the BBC's charter, funding is kept independent of the government to prevent meddling in BBC affairs or being seen as a mouthpiece of the government of the day. Needs a root and branch reform - tear up the charter and start again IMHO. Mention of getting round the license (tax) is interesting and reinforces my stance on how the Beeb needs its funding reformed in whatever radical method it takes. Edited By Cuban8 on 29/03/2015 17:16:36

Just got their bill in for £145 license tax. I begrudge the payment more than anything else considering all that's happening at the BBC and wish they were funded fully from general taxation. Either that or sell it off and let them see how they get on in the real world. If it means adverts like all the rest, then so be it.

I left school at 16 with a set of reasonable CSEs and didn't have any clear idea as to what I wanted to do. Careers advice was a joke back then (1973) - just a box ticking exercise for them really. I'd been quite good at the science subjects, also History, Geography and English, but Mathematics passed me by as I wasn't naturally inclined towards the subject, and the teachers that we had never seemed to have the motivation to inspire us towards what I now know is probably, along with English, the most important subject in the school curriculum. I wasn't a fool, as my dad had taught me long division and how to deal with fractions and everyday arithmetic etc but could offer no help much beyond that. I also used to spend a lot of my spare time in the local reference library where I learned something of art and culture outside of my limited experience. Sadly, that library that I spent hundreds of hours in during my younger teens was burnt to the ground during the East London riots of the early 80s. I did get a lucky break. My aunt worked as an assembly operator at a large office equipment manufacturer and managed to get me an interview with them. I remember it as clear as yesterday in that the personnel officer (Mr Les Symonds) said to me "well then lad what do you like to do"? I told him I'd worked on cars and motor bikes and had even built my own AM radio from a published plan, I also liked model aeroplanes. He gave me an item of mechanism and asked me to take it apart and reassemble it - which I managed to do somewhat nervously for a sixteen year old. "Very well then" he said, "I think we'll use you in our R&D workshops, helping out with testing experimental equipment". The whole process took no more than half an hour - no form filling - CVs - psychometric testing- no dozens of other applicants for the job - or any of the other faff that the youngsters have to go through now. I was put in to the charge of a nice bloke who taught me the basics of good engineering practice and within two years had become quite a little expert in the company's products. They sent me to college on day release and I finally encountered an instructor who could actually teach maths without sending the class to sleep (thanks Mr Dennis!) he took me on to the Higher Tech standard, eventually specializing in electronics. All very different today I suspect. Difficult to know if I'd been able to do things differently, I suspect not. I had a few lucky breaks and was in the right place at the right time on a number of occasions. With better school results I might have got a proper engineering apprenticeship, but it's all worked out in the end. I've not been particularly ambitious and have declined supervisory roles when they've been offered to me in the past, preferring to 'stay on the tools' as it were. Retired a few years ago at 55. Might look into some further adult education with the OU, but was surprised at the cost of the courses.

Great photo...........as they used to say on the ads "is it real or is it Memorex"?

One of the many different types of lock washer perhaps?

'Masher' makes a good point about having an engineering background. For my sins, I spent almost 40 years in industry installing and repairing all manner of kit, and even though I gave that all up a few years ago, I just can't get out of the habit of trying to do things right, because at the time, if I didn't do a good job I'd get a recall and a black mark against me - there was also the small matter of having pride in my work as well!. It can drive you to distraction on an ARTF when the designers or perhaps the people who have put the item into production have made a shambles of something and one knows that as sure as 'eggs is eggs' something's going to fail or give trouble. The list of ARTF 'howlers' has been well documented and I suppose we could all list our pet hates.......................do some designers have a mental blank when it comes to connecting up a throttle (IC engine) to the throttle servo and having a fuel tank in the way? What is clear is that most of the ARTFs I've built, couldn't possibly have been put together and flown by the factory using the supplied instruction booklet (my latest Seagull Sea Eagle bares little resemblance to the manual in several areas) so it's not surprising that many less experienced modellers have problems. Sadly this is an area that is often glossed over in some magazine reviews.

Posted by Paul Marsh on 28/03/2015 08:54:54: Others took longer, longest was a YT Spit, which has some issues, being fiberglass and fitting problems - also made the tail dual elevator, as a single pushrod is wrong for a 120 size warbird. Took four years on my YT Spit - admittedly it was an early version, and the quality was appalling so I gave up with it and stored it away. Eventually finished it and got it flying - and to my surprise and delight, it performed very well! Met its demise after a dead stick landing off the patch (caused by broken crank pin in ASP 120 - that's another long story) and the model broke its back. Subsequent investigation revealed the fuz behind the wing TE was nearly all gel coat - not good. Rebuilt the engine (at an extraordinary cost for the spares I might add) and fitted it in a Hanger 9 P47 along with the gear from the Spit. The Spit's wreckage made a spectacular fire in my garden incinerator and the P47 and engine still perform really well

Amazing.............with postage, almost fifty quid at the moment for a heap of rusting, rain soaked junk! Must see what I can garner from a fly-tip for Ebay. ££££££.

Having never been in a position to justify the expense of a top end pumped 4st motor - OS or whatever - I can only say that all the normal 4st motors that I have used (ASP and OS) over getting on for 30 years now, have been utterly reliable and a joy to run. Can't see the need to complicate matters particularly for sport/scale flying.

The Victoria Cross - For Valour. Inventions that changed the World. The Greatest Raid of All Time. PQ17 Arctic Convoy Disaster. I Don't like 'Top Gear' and find JC's antics tiresome..................However, when he's got his 'serious head' on he makes great programmes like the four I've listed above. Rather than being a 'Marmite character' he's actually a 'Curate's egg' . I hope he drops the overgrown schoolboy image that he cultivates far too much but has made him very wealthy over the 'Top Gear' years.

John. Agreed it's not exactly a simple click to comment operation. When logged in from the Home page.... Click National 'Centre Study Update' in the News flash column From the News Page click 'See here for the article' From the article page click Post Comment at top RH side of page Click the comments number (the one in brackets) or the main title. Scroll to bottom of comments already posted and fill in the form - click post     Edited By Cuban8 on 26/03/2015 09:27:28

Static dischargers I think you'll find..................................Hong Kong eh? Hope you get the opportunity to pick up some modelling bargains

Gangster's list of checks is spot on . However, when I've had this sort of 'is it / isn't it' issue in the past on 35 meg gear, I've had the TX drive two sets of RXs, batteries and servos, side by side, in order to really nail the problem area. If both receiver installations exhibit a problem simultaneously, then the issue is external to them - if only one of the two shows the fault, then that lets the TX off the hook. Edited By Cuban8 on 24/03/2015 10:02:50