Prop Nut

My wife and I make a point of watching Eggheads on BBC2, every weekday evening. The 'Eggs' are always polite, erudite and modest - but some of the challengers could have come from the same shows mentioned above. When they get a single question right, whether by guess or from knowledge, their team mates whoop and clap like morons. In recent times, a team of teachers made an embarrassing spectacle of themselves in this way, but the sad thing is that they don't care. Whatever happened to British reserve, which eschews triumphalism? Is it just another unpleasant American import?

We all used to carry penknives or even sheath knives, as kids, but we used them for what they were intended - cutting branches to make bows and arrows, tent pegs, wooden whistles, etc, not for attacking other people or 'defending' ourselves. Looking at these items, although they have a peaceful and useful purpose, they can also be used as offensive weapons. I know, I know - it doesn't make sense to many of us oldies, but it's the way of an increasingly unpleasant world.

I couldn't agree more, Alejandro. Kings Lynn and JE are first class, in my experience, as are many other suppliers across the UK and the rest of Europe, but some haven't yet got the message that they have to compete on service. I'm very happy to pay a reasonable premium to keep the business here and it often frustrates me that so many suppliers don't seem to give a 'monkey's' (as you so eloquently put it!). Edited By Prop Nut on 23/10/2014 16:49:45

That's a very broad generalisation, Richard, and not my experience. I prefer to use email because I am slightly 'Mutt and Jeff', and send them to suppliers in various parts of the world. In fact, I find UK businesses above average at replying, though emails to German and French suppliers, even in their own language, often fail to elicit a response and I have to follow up by 'phone. Even US companies can be very poor at replying to email, in my experience. Edited By Prop Nut on 22/10/2014 12:11:11

You may need a new engine mount. Get one that will properly fit the engine without distorting the mounting arms, then use bolts and nyloc nuts, as Jon suggests. If the firewall holes don't line up with the new mount you can elongate the holes in the latter, left to right, in a pillar drill, or drill new ones if there's enough spare material. It is possible to remove and refit the firewall tee nuts, but let's not go there yet. I know it's a pain, but it's all part of the learning curve and you will end up with a properly built/assembled model.

You can clearly see that the firewall (the plywood bulkhead that the engine attaches to) is correctly offset to the right, but the engine is pointing left. So, either the engine mount is not attached flat and square to the bulkhead, which it looks like to my (admittedly, old) eyes or you've drilled the holes into the engine mount off-line when it should be square (although they look OK from your photo). It could be that there's a fault with the engine mount. Are the engine mounting arms square to the part that attaches to the firewall?

I use (C), but it sounds like a lot of work in this case. Edited By Prop Nut on 20/10/2014 15:33:07

American artillery never did know whose side it was supposed to be on.

Disappointing that David Ashby takes a cheap dig at accountants in his review of Dynam's DHC Beaver. It is a myth that we make penny-pinching decisions where specifications are concerned, and I doubt very much that he even thinks to extend any plaudits to us when he comes across a top quality model. It is the management of a company who make decisions on price points and their corresponding costs and profit contribution. All we can do is quantify the likely outcome of a given course of action decided on by a team of managers including design, production, sales, marketing and finance, whilst trying to satisfy HMRC, Registrar of Companies, shareholders and banks, amongst others.  Edited By Prop Nut on 17/10/2014 22:41:37

OMG and 'Ahsum'!

I think, Martin, the answer to your question is that 'stoke' is a keyboard error. Perhaps the keys for 't' and 'r' being adjacent make it easier for some to miss the latter when typing. Unfortunately for me, I continually pick up on misspellings in publications, TV sub-titles and message boards, but stroke and stoke are not something that I ever remember noticing as being confused, so maybe I'm not the born proof-reader I thought. Bought and brought, then and than, and their, there and they're, however, are very commonly confused. Also, couldn't of, as a corruption of couldn't've. Edited By Prop Nut on 17/10/2014 09:11:30

Wing tape in kits is sometimes a strip of the same material as the aircraft covering, which needs to be ironed on, or something like Oratrim, which is self adhesive. You don't say what the kit is, or if it's IC or electric, but you can probably use any self-adhesive tape that will stick to the main covering and can be made proof against fuel residue (if IC).

It would make for an interesting Poll to ask who uses the Spell Check on here, or any other forum. Judging by many submissions, very few. It also seems that a lot of people just type and send without re-reading what they've written - which can turn out to be close to gibberish. But a word of caution; be very careful when attempting to correct wrong spelling or English - it brings out the troll in those who resent having the error of their ways pointed out.

Another vote for the Align starter. It's light and powerful and the LiPo in mine seems to last forever between charges. I originally bought a Dynatron but it's very heavy and agricultural and I returned it for the Align.

I find Kings Lynn Model Shop stock most things and their service is excellent. Very helpfully they state if items are in stock or if they are expected - I've lost count of the times I've placed an order with online model shops only to be told (sometimes not until 2-3 days after) that it's out of stock. At least if you know you can choose to wait or try elsewhere. It's worth trawling the net because you can often find big divergences in price and postage and many of the smaller shops can give top class service, but it's a matter of trial and error. I probably use just three suppliers for 80% of my purchases.

It was OK, as such programs go, but not the riveting documentary I'd hoped for. I thought it was pretty superficial and I don't find Guy Martin a great presenter - he repeats everything three or four times and never seems to lose his inane grin. I would have liked to see more of the restoration process and heard more from the engineers. The finished article was great, though, and it's good to hear Geoffrey Stephenson's name made known to the current generation. He was an exceptional pilot.

Hobbyfly, in Germany, are currently selling this model for an incredible €274 shipped to the UK - about £216.

In relation to the Ford Focus, I bought one because so many people told me how good it was, best-selling car in the world, etc. What a turkey it turned out to be! The ECU kept blowing, taking out the throttle body, taking it off the road for weeks at a time, and neither Ford nor the dealer could work out why, nor were they much interested in my problems with it. The windscreen washers never worked properly because the pump is under the nearside wing and gets blocked by mud and water ingress (an hours labour to replace, each time). It gave me less than 30 mpg (petrol) on local driving, and not much more on motorway driving. I'll never buy Ford again, despite my family having had six between us, at one time.

I've used a Wil-Kro razor planer for years. I bought one from eBay for about £2 and found it so much better than the modern alternatives that I bought another two! They generally come up for sale in the US, and prices have rocketed, but they use old-fashioned double-edged razor blades and I've never had a problem with 'biting'.

Wish I could Stevo but, although my kids are somewhat older than yours, I can only remind you that they are a life sentence and you never stop worrying about them. Then you get grand-children and you worry about them too! The one gleam of light is that if you've done your job properly, they will be equipped to find their own way in life and make their own decisions - right or wrong.

This will ring a bell (!) with many drivers. Despite most cyclists also being car-users, they seem to disengage their brains when they get in the saddle. I was using a pelican crossing a week or two back, along with a dozen other people, when a young woman on a bicycle sailed through the red light narrowly missing an old lady walking with the aid of a stick. I saw the cyclist stop and go into a nearby shop, so followed and caught her up - whilst I told her how stupid she was, she just looked at me as though I were speaking Martian. And to answer your point about liability, if the EU have their way it will always be the driver's fault in an accident with a bicycle, no matter how stupid or suicidal the latter's conduct. Edited By Prop Nut on 07/10/2014 17:39:44

Depends which transmitter you have. Some have a 35Mhz plug-in module that can simply be replaced with a 2.4Ghz one costing anything from about £20 to £60, depending on the manufacturer. Most Tx can be converted; by yourself, if you have the necessary skills, or by people like Model Radio Workshop, but I have no idea of the cost. Of course, you will have to replace your receivers with 2.4Ghz ones which, if you have a number of models, can become expensive. Given the cost of transmitters these days, it's probably better to buy a purpose-built 2.4Ghz set. Edited By Prop Nut on 05/10/2014 20:27:14

Rick Tee - I never mentioned publicity, but tell the gay rights movement that publicity or a raised profile don't get you what you want! Professional representative bodies make no attempt to hide their light under a bushel, and neither should we as aero modellers.

Grendon Garage Models, Grendon Underwood, Buckinghamshire. are long gone.

I've used RC Colours and it is fuel proof but it needs to be left to harden for a few days after application. They claim it's a 'perfect' match to Oracover, but it isn't. My emails and letters of complaint to the manufacturer in Belgium have all been ignored.