Geoff Copping

Quick update. It was a practice bomb. I'm on the mowing team so not so worried now?

Just had email to say our field at Warboys has been closed for now as a walker has found a suspected unexploded bomb. It's an old second world war pathfinder airfield so, if it is then there may be more. I'll stay at home for now?

I went to Ivinghoe today for some slope soaring. I had arranged to meet a friend there and when I arrived there was some chaps already flying from the car park slope. By coincidence these were chaps from Essex whom we'd met the last time we were at the Beacon. My friend arrived and we had a few flights from the car park slope. I had a recently built NCFM M60 and my buddy had a Wildthing and a Lidl conversion. The lift was a bit variable so we decided to bite the bullet and trek to the top of the Beacon. My ticker doesn't always want to do the same things as me so climbs like that mean I have to stop half-way up to get my breath back. Anyway, the breeze at the top gave us great lift on the north face. I'd only managed to ascertain the right CG and throws the last time I flew the M60 so, having adjusted the CG at home, this was my first opportunity to see what it could do. I was having to learn what I could do with it too. Straight off it flew straight out, gained height and, with just one click of down to trim, I started exploring the envelope. A touch of down had it instantly speeding up and easing off had it climbing like a homesick angel so then I started doing loops, rolls and speed runs. At one point I pushed out from the slope to see how far out the lift was and it climbed steadily in front of me then I saw it just waggle a tiny bit so I started circling and, as I hoped, it thermalled away above and behind me to speck-out point. This gave me good height to do a good series of high speed aerobatics before landing for a cuppa. Brilliant. All the other chaps had great flights too with a good variety of models. We saw a Radian being flown further along the ridge and he came and joined us. I suddenly realised he was keeping it inverted while he sat relaxed on the grass, not bad for a rudder/elevator model. Several day-trippers enjoyed watching and asked quite a few questions. There was plenty of banter and one of the chaps flying was a magician and kept a couple of us amused with a very impressive display of sleight of hand. My buddy and I left and got back to the car park in time to get an ice cream from the van. What a wonderful day with great friends and what a wonderful hobby, I'm still smiling.?

I use Inwood Models own brand, I just built a Multiplex Heron with their thick foamsafe. It can be slow to go off but this can be useful when lining things up.

I've had this DeWalt drill for a few years now and it's a great bit of kit, assuming they haven't changed the build. Along with the multi-bit kit they do it's still going strong. No doubt there's cheaper ones out there but, in answer to your original question, yes, they are worth buying.

That's a new one, models having to avoid anti-aircraft fire as they come in to land. Tough breed the Welsh??

I got to the field this morning and there was two other flyers there, one of whom left because he'd lost a wing joining pin. I had a couple of great flights with my Durafly Tundra and MPX Heron. I was thinking of landing the Heron but found a bit of lift at 50ft and within a few minutes I was specking out, superb. At lunchtime Cliff turned up and myself and the other chap left leaving Cliff on his own again. Nothing personal Cliff, honest??

Hi Cliff, I intended to be there but I got sidetracked by some household admin that I couldn't ignore. It's a shame because it was perfect weather for thermalling my MPX Heron. I certainly intend to be there tomorrow so will maybe see you there, or soon if not. It is a lovely field, must be the great grass cutting team?

When I was in the RAF we went on detachment to Orland, Brekstadt on the Trondheim Fjord twice a year. January and June. In the summer it never got dark and in the winter it was only light about 3 hours. I remember going Cod fishing from the banks of the Fjord at 01.00 in daylight in June, the Sun just kissed the horizon then rose again. Bacon on a bit of string to get crabs then bait the hook with the crab and haul in good size Cod which went straight over a fire we built in the rocks. I did a couple of skydives at the club they had at Orland airfield, fantastic views. Cross-country skiing in the winter. Beware going past the local school at 3pm. The kids came rattling out of the school yard on their plastic ski's and didn't stop for anyone. As for the booze, apart from hotels it was supposed to be a dry country so everyone brewed their own moonshine. It was so prevalent that the supermarkets sold essence of Brandy, essence of Whisky or whatever to flavour your moonshine. We went to a midsummer festival where they were only selling Tea, Coffee, Fanta and CocaCola. I've never seen so many people so drunk in one place in all my life!!! Come midnight the dance floor was covered in people sleeping it off! Another amazing thing about the summer was that I've never seen so many Hedgehogs, they were all over the place. Thanks for the videos. Aaaah! Happy days?

Ah! I see, thank you?

For someone who doesn't know much about football, why does a player lay down behind the wall when a free kick is being taken?

I gave up watching football years ago because all they seemed to do was fall over and pretend they were hurt, slide tackle to take the other player out, spend their time falling about trying to get free kicks and penalties and rarely pass the ball but just keep hoofing the ball down the middle hoping a 'striker' would get to it first which usually lost posession. My wife happened to click on it as the second half was starting and I couldn't believe what I was seeing. They were actually playing football !!!? No falling over, passing the ball like a team to create openings, no dirty tackles and no extra 'injury' time because they weren't pretending they were hurt every two minutes. I quite enjoyed it. I'm even considering watching another game if this is the new normal??

I have Radiolink AT10, both mkI & mkII. If you can run to it I would recommend the AT10II. It comes with a 12ch rx but their 6ch rx's are not too expensive. Very easy to update via laptop and to programme with easy to navigate screen plus 4km range. Although more than your predicted budget it will do everything you want for a very long time. The battery bay will take a Zippy 3s lipo too which means it will run for hours between charges.

Bit of a drive for you I know but Inwood Models at Huntingdon has reasonable stocks of wood.

As I understand it the data is being sold. i.e monetised. Without my express consent my personal information will be appropriated for free and sold for profit. My photo's or writing are sold on a per use or lifetime basis for which I invoice the user. Data is now a comodity so why should I be left out of the loop. It is being sold to private profit making companies so if you want my personal information you are welcome to it providing you agree a mutually beneficial contract with me instead of lobbying the government to appropriate my personal information for free, flog it to an insurance company then use it to badger me with products I don't want. You want my medical history? Sure, that'll be £5,000 for a lifetime license thanks.

I put in an opt-out a long time ago so they're obviously trying to dodge round it. Thanks for the links, I've opted out online and I'll drop letter to my GP later today. Given experiences with DVLA etc. I'd rather eat my wife's cooking than trust the gummint on security of my data.

Love it. I was brought up earning pocket money on farms and small-holdings. At 13 I was driving a little old grey Massey and a Fordson. At 14 my mate and I would spend a Saturday gassing Rabbits. A £1 a day. A 5litre tin of Cymag, a spoon tied to a garden cane, dust masks and a couple of Amyl Nitrate capsules 'just in case'. No mobile phone in those days. A funny episode was just before Christmas. The village women, including my Mum, were in the stables plucking Turkey's while us lads were in the yard doing the killing which consisted of a noose round the Turkey's legs so they could be lowered into a funnel. A pair of bars were clamped round the protruding neck to stretch it then straight into the stable to get the feathers off while they were still warm. We were just about to start killing when the estate shoot arrived and started forming up. When they realised what we were about to do then the head of the shoot came over and told us not to start killing until the shoot had moved off for the first drive because he thought it would upset the wives of the guns to witness it. This annoyed us as we were paid by the bird but we had to stop. The shoot then moved off and the wives accompanied their husbands as they blasted Pheasants out of the sky?

I can recommend the Art Hobby range of gliders from T9 Hobby Sports. I have the 2.7m Odyssey and it goes up on the 3/8" luggage rack bungee perfectly. There's quite a range of gliders and they can be ordered as straight glider or electric. The Odyssey can be built either way. They are built to order so if they are listed as out of stock then they can still be ordered and are usually ready for shipping in a couple of weeks. SpeedsterDen on YT is an afficianado with these gliders and he shows how versatile they can be. Highly recommended.

I'm getting back into it after a long lay-off and I have a Tundra. I love it, just what I need to get the orientation back in my ageing bonce but great fun when I want to add in a few tricks. It handles a bit of breeze surprisingly well for a light foamy and it's very versatile as well as economical on 3s 2200 - 2600. I'll be using it as a tug for lightweight gliders in the near future too.

A brand which is not so common is RadioLink. I have recently Bought an AT10 and an AT10II. I usually use Multiplex, which I love, but the rx's can be a bit pricey to put into something like a Lidl conversion. The RadioLink has all the mixes I need, including full house electric gliders. It is very easy to programme with plenty of aircraft types installed and the pages are set out simply. I too prefer to spend my time flying my models rather than programming them. RadioLink has its own protocol so only RadioLink receivers can be used with it but they're inexpensive. The AT10II is used for a Durafly Tundra. Motor, separate flaps, separate ailerons, rudder and elevator i.e 7 channels with mixes for throthle/elevator and elevator flap. The ailerons and Flaps can be on 'Y' lead of course using only 5 channels. Not saying it's the best but it's certainly good value for money and I'm very happy with it.

I renewed my driving license recently. Just had an email saying there's inconsistencies in my application and I should click the included link to update my details otherwise my license will be suspended. Of course the email trail is ridiculous so I've no intention of doing anything other than deleting it but I do wonder how they get the info?

For those astounded at the length of the new CAA Operator ID numbers My new Rod licence number has now increased from 14 characters to 23, any maths wizards want to have a go at the permutations? 1*110**2-2WC3S**-A**L4*

Welcome Hi-start, bungee launch is a lovely way of flying gliders from a flat field. I've had 6mm and 9mm silicone rubber in the past and it is very good because it can stretch as the glider goes up the line thus gaining some extra height. However, over time these deteriorated and ended up having to be knotted back together on a regular basis. These days I use 8mm cloth-covered luggage-rack bungee. 35m of bungee and 120m of 100lb monofil fishing line. I might not get the same height but, with a "ping" off the top it gives me plenty of altitude and, once a thermal is contacted, then it's away. This is with a "full house" 2.7m Art Hobby Odyssey. In the past I've used 3m Bird of Time and 3m Algebra. Both fantastic thermal gliders. In the video I think his climb was too shallow for two reasons. 1. the towhook was too far forward, I put mine 1cm 1/2" in front of the C0fG and 2. he was launching with very little wind. In about 10mph the glider will kite up. As has been said, use a good size screw-in dog stake to anchor it and an old mig welding reel is ideal for storage. If there's a Chandlery or Yacht Club/Boating supplier near you then they can supply bungee off the reel. As for flight times, if there's no thermal activity then 2 - 4 mins but on nice thermal days then the only reason I've had to land is because my neck ached too much from watching a specked-out glider for an hour and a half. There's a great sense of achievement from hooking thermal lift and, sometimes, I've been preparing to land at about 10' when I've noticed the wings rock so I've put in an extra circle then, little by little, the glider has soared away in a new thermal. Very satisfying. PS. I do also have an electric glider so I can just turn the motor on if it loses altitude?

Posted by Dave S. on 02/02/2021 08:26:26: I'm keeping reasonably busy in my 'workshop' (spare bedroom), changing last year's models from electric to glow. My second attempt to join the modern age (the first was about 20 years ago) and go electric, but it doesn't do it for me. Hopefully, I'll have a good selection of powered models ready to fly once we can get out again. What I do miss is music - I have been playing in bands (bass guitar) for years, and am used to frequent gigs. I miss the company, the playing and the money! Last year I quit my main band as I was fed up with the driving (I live near Oxford, we rehearsed in Leicester, gigs in London, Yorkshire, Devon, etc. - even south Germany in 2019) and joined up with another playing the same music (Grateful Dead covers) locally. We had a good summer playing in fields around the city of Oxford, battery powered amplifiers and all appropriately distanced (one of the band members is a GP), but eventually the weather put a stop to that. Hopefully, we can resume sometime after Easter. At this time of the year, I usually have a full gig diary, at the moment I have two - both on the same weekend in August! One is a festival in Kent, the other is playing with a couple of friends at a wedding in Wiltshire. I hope the latter isn't cancelled as it's my daughter who is getting married! I only play in a purely amateur band, Ukulele and Trumpet but I really miss playing our live gigs, can't beat the roar of the sawdust and the smell of the crowd. Even on a small stage there is a great buzz about seeing people bopping along to the music we're playing. Let's hope it won't be too long. I've assembled a Tundra, just about to order an M60 DS glider and I've got a couple of Lidl's to convert. Plenty of maidens when we're allowed out again.

Stained Glass suppliers will sell lead came too