Geoff S

Incredible weather today at Ashbourne. Sunshine all day, very light wind and about 5 deg. I suffer from cold hands usually, but I didn't wear gloves at all and my hands remained warm. Why? I have an exWD padded one-piece suit I bought a few years ago from Anchor Surplus in Ripley. It's called a Technician's suit IIRC. It's got zips all over and is quite a peculiar design, but it keeps me warm (it helps that it's a few sizes too big so will take a few extra layers). I think keeping my core warm improves circulation to my hands, thus keeping them warm, too. I flew my trusty Multiplex Fun Cub and had another 2 flights with my new Gloster Gladiator - this time with a pilot in the office. I also did a range check and taxi trials with my Sopwith Pup but I'd already decided to wait for the maiden in the warmer weather. I'm a bit concerned about the weight (circa 5.5 kg/12lb) with 1.5kg of lead needed to get the CoG right. On a fairly fast taxi, drawing 20 amps, the tail lifted even in the light wind and I'm sure it would have flown had I both opened the throttle a bit more and the courage to do so. Call me a wimp! I was amazed how few people were there - a total of 6 but never more than 4 at the same time and I was a Billy no mates for quite some time.

It's not a really new model because I've been working on it for several years, but it's yet to fly. DBSS 60" Sopwith Pup taken in glorious winter sunshine on 12th night (day?) (6th January). Electrically powered with a 4Max PO 5055–495 motor on 6S LiPo through a Frsky Neuron 60 amp esc and turning a 13x6.5 propeller.

I agree. That's what most of my so-called career was about, from valve radios as a teenager to software and programmable logic devices when I retired 🙂

The Post Office Horizon software supplied by Fujitsu cost a billion pounds according to the ITV programme 'Mr Bates versus the Post Office' and no-one has disputed the cost so I assume it's correct. That caused a lot more problems than the one we're complaining about.

Every time you change to a different page on the forum there's a pop-up asking about cookies.

I know now. That was written before we got cut off last night 🙂

We had copies of Horowitz and Hill at work that were regularly replaced because they were 'acquired' by undergrad trainees. When I retired, I bought a copy for myself. I admire anyone who's read it from cover to cover - it's a reference book; I doubt if I've even looked at every page.

Well, when I was a pre-schooler I spent many hours watching my grandfather at his watch repair bench 🙂

Indeed. It's just that it could be a useful and attractive nose weight often needed in models of full-size aircraft that use such engines.

Having done a fair bit of low level (assembler/ 'C' etc) programming myself some years back, I agree with Red Baron. However, we've still got the annoying Cookie reminder every time we change a page view. I often found that when I deleted code I'd written but couldn't see why I'd done it in the first place that I discovered its purpose and quickly reinstated it 🙂

I get a load of Pinterest emails, usually about motorcycles, sailing, flying etc and there's usually a few adverts scattered through each post. This one for a 1/6 scale model 5 cylinder radial engine caught my eye. Has anyone bought one? PS Why do I keep getting a pop-up asking if I'm happy for cookies on this site every time I change to a different topic? It gets very irritating.

The originals are probably 1/8" x 1/2" aluminium (dural? - I have no idea of light alloy grades). So perhaps 3mm x 12mm now - the model predates the common use now of metric units. IIRC I drilled and tapped mine rather than use a nut and bolt because the nuts would be inaccessible once the model was complete. I probably tapped it 4BA - I'd use 4mm now. I also made the top wing attachment with bolts in the wing going through holes in the top of the cabane struts and used nuts (4BA again) rather than try to locate holes in the wing from below. I was a very novice builder at the time - it was my 3rd or 4th build. It's still flying but electrically powered.

Something else I noticed was Anthony Armstrong Jones (Princess Margaret's husband at the time, I think) taking stills with a 35mm SLR camera. Everybody looks so young! Including Caine, himself.

Do you mean the cabanes (the top wing support)? The interplane struts are hardwood IIRC.

Excellent video. An amazing insight into the complications of making that film in particular and probably all films. It couldn't be made now without extensive use of CGI.

Many chargers do but most (all?) do it very slowly. If you only have one to get to storage, it's not a problem, but if you have several it may be. The storage function on my icharger will charge or discharge as needed. However, I do have a discharger that will draw up to 35 amps if required and I find it useful. If I want to discharge a faulty battery for safe disposal, I have a car headlight bulb. Not tried it with anything bigger than a 4S pack; I suspect 2 bulbs in series might be advisable for higher voltage packs to avoid damaging a nominal 12v bulb.

I bet the UHU Por would work there, too. Try a little test piece. Having discovered that with Por left to dry for 15 minutes or so, contact means what it implies - ie no wiggle time. I usually use it when it'still fluid.

Just another example of the well known 'not invented here syndrome (I've been occasionally guilty myself before I retired). Another egregious example is the word that can't be spoken here 🙂

I'm just hoping to survive another year and be in a position to celebrate the start of 2025 🙂

I think there are 16 types of people in the world, those who use hexadecimal and those who don't 🙂 The first computers I worked on in the early 60s had data stored as binary coded decimal and had hardware sterling (LSD) multiply and divide by 10 instructions. They were huge and used germanium transistors throughout (GET103s mostly) I still use paper maps, especially the beautiful OS 1:25,000 and 1:50,000 which reveal far more than Google maps which, whilst having their uses, seem like travel with blinkers. I also still use the 4 figure tables (trig and log) I've had for 60 years as well as the slide rules I've had for the same period. Happy New Year - let's hope for better flying weather in 2024 than its predecessor 👍

You really think there aren't men that are just as clueless? I once had a trainee on a yacht when I was 1st mate who didn't understand that pulling on one end of a rope had an effect at the other end - and he had a very good 1st class degree in maths - I was told. OTOH one of the best engineers working for me was a woman.

Yes, it was navy prices. We shouldn't have been sold them as cadets, but no-one bothered. IIRC Park Drive and Woodbines were 1/5 (7P) for 10 and Senior Service etc were 1/10. I used to buy 200 Churchman's No1 every Saturday for my father - a lot of them were given to customers or burnt out in the ashtray as he served someone. In the 1950s it was rare to be a non-smoker and many paid the price. Happily, I gave up early enough. I can remember shops having handwritten notices on the door saying "Sorry, no cigs".

Unfortunately, the only model boat I have that's sailable needs deep water as it has a 350mm bulb keel - a flooded patch would be too shallow. As an RNLI supporter of many years standing I admire your choice of vessel. It looks stunning. Anyway, there's nothing in the title of either the mag or the forum that says - model aircraft -, so it's a legitimate subject if it's radio-controlled and a model.

Well I've had friends who had several similar motorcycles who swapped registration numbers to suit which was taxed 🙂 In fact one guy had 2 Ariel trials sidecar outfits parked in his yard with the same number plate and was queried by a passing police officer - he just said as neither of them was on the public highway "So what?" . Nothing came of it. You're right. The whole thing is total nonsense.

Well, I've filled in the survey and pretty mind numbing it was. At my age it probably won't affect me - I'll be long gone before it comes into effect - but it seemed the right thing to do. Without the guidance offered by the BMFA (for which I'm grateful) it would have been even harder - I had no real idea what a lot of the jargon and acronyms meant, and I have successfully completed and passed the online exam. Of course, I forgot most of it afterwards but continue simply to be careful and fly safely, which isn't difficult. I fly mostly at official club sites but occasionally fly small electric models in a local field from the footpath when there's no live stock (sheep). I'm sure it wouldn't bother them but out of consideration for the farmer.