PupCam

Evening All! Bob's back! Jolly good 😀 As in "where to keep the frame" 🤔😉 Not as long as the smoked code that we had for dinner on Sunday .... Not another improvement for us customers. Their generosity knows no bounds. ION Well I was up and out relatively early (8:45 ish) this morning as I had to disappear up the M1 to the frozen North (well, Hinckley actually). A friend had invited me to join him on a Triumph Motorcycle factory tour. It would have been rude to refuse! And what an excellent day it was too. I won't pollute ERs with a whole load of old motorcycle photos (I'll do that later on the appropriate thread) but I thought this machine was so way-out and has an appropriate name for a model railway forum (that is technically banned from this thread) that I'd chuck these in as they may be of interest to a wider audience. All I can say is Guy Martin must have very, very large spheroids ........ Other than that not a lot to report. TTFN

That's interesting. No mention of that that I have seen. I didn't even have to go through a "prove you need one" on the website when I booked it, I entered my NHS number & DoB and it took me straight to the appointments. Perhaps I'd better take my medication with me just in case? 🤔

Morning! Damp and wet out there so a bit of mo'sickle fettling in the garage I fancy this morning 😀 Back later! TTFN

Seen at Jordans Mill and Shuttleworth recently .... The chrome on that beautiful Honda 550 had to be seen to be believed - it looked like the wheels were solid chrome. Whether it was original or a restoration job I don't know but no matter, it was rather fabulous. I understand @polybear finds the Vincent to be a particularly attractive motorcycle! 🤣 Our departure from Shuttleworth was recorded yesterday. What an assortment they make or may be a "Motley bunch" might be a better description. It will be interesting to see how long the Black Prince lasts in my mate's ownership. I give it 3 or 4 weeks. The Norton of course isn't quite pure Norton with that great big Yamaha V twin lump shoehorned in. Mind you, it has been done very nicely indeed. Alan

Thanks Tony, yes, so was mine it turns out. Jab booked for Friday morning. When I visited the Google offices at Kings Cross c/o Junior Puppers a few years back i saw the famous Routmaster Bus converted into a "breakout area". I think it was on the 3rd floor IIRC. The tropical beach breakout area was amusing too. Still, a full English breakfast, sat on the roof terrace of the building enjoying the fine view (including down into the Kings Cross train shed & station throat albeit with not a lot of interest therein these days) was most enjoyable. Sadly, such opportunities have disappeared so I'll have to make do with Jordans Mill et al for breakfasts in the future. (No, that isn't Junior Puppers before anyone asks) Anyway, no doubt @polybear will recall enjoying the similarly luxurious working environment we experienced at the GE 😆 ION I actually managed to get the telescope out last night and made a reasonable job of getting it polar aligned. As we are pretty much out of planets at the moment I thought I'd have a go at some star/deep sky stuff using the astro camera. Never had much success previously and guess what? I didn't have any success last night either! I think my low cost astro camera suffers from a lack of sensitivity. It also suffers form a lack of operator experience and "having a clue" but never mind. By ~11:00pm the moon had popped up from behind the house so at least I had fall back target that was hard to miss. I managed to get some reasonable videos and a quick process of one this morning shows some potential however I did struggle once again with slop in the mount, the clock drive jumping out of engagement etc etc so perhaps a good thing to do this afternoon would be to give the mount a good coat of "looking at" and come up with a plan for bearing and locking improvements for the various axes. The bracket that holds the worm shaft certainly needs seem decent bearings if I'm to get shot of the the jumping out of engagement problem once and for all. Or should I just blow £5-10K or so and buy a proper job (plus another £8-10K for the telescope to go with it)*? The real problem is though that this astronomy lark does require you to be up, about and active late at night. I didn't get to bed till gone 1:00 this morning and whilst I used to do that regularly years ago my body has very strict views on such behaviour these days and pays me back handsomely the next day. Consequently today could not be said to be a particularly active or productive day 🤣 * You know me that is, of course, a rhetorical question! TTFN

Morning! You can have too much of a good joke ..... 🤣 ION Manx Norton kit dispatched. As I said to the nice lady in the post office; it was very good of her to wrap it and return from whence it came and ironic that if they'd have wrapped it themselves, she'd have been out of something to do. Searching for the communication from the NHS telling me to go and book a Covid booster. I'm blowed if I can remember what form it was in, I thought it was a text but no sign. Perhaps I dreamt it? TTFN

Don't know. Same scale so maybe? Many years ago when I was on my RD125 (that puts in the late 70s!) two deer were standing on the bank a long a country road. The RD music scared them and they jumped down and ran across the road. The first passed in front, the second passed behind. I think I dodged a bullet there or, perhaps more accurately, a pair of deer. And in Puppers garden. We put it down to abuse by Mrs Puppers and/or the weather. ION Seems like our departure from OLd Warden this morning was recorded for posterity 🤣 NXOQ7795.MP4 Ssssh, don't mention this to anyone. The sky is clear, the wind has dropped and there's almost a full moon. I might get the scope out. I wonder if I can remember what to do? TTFN

The beers are on Phil then! 🍺 What time should we call round? ION Update I've staggered my round the Amazon (Not much) Help pages and thought blow it, they can just have it back and I'll do without. If I send it back and re-order no doubt it will be a repeat match. Another "amusing" (I use the term in a sarcastic manner) one of the return options was words to the effect of "The product was damaged but the packing was intact". Nowhere was there a "We forgot to put it any packaging" option. At one point I got to a page that provided a "Call me" option. I thought Hurrah! I can speak to a human. Silly old me ....... no, it was an opportunity to talk to a stupid computer albeit no doubt equipped allegedly with artificial intelligence. Anyway, I've gone for the give the item as-is to the local post office, show them the QR code and wait for the refund option. Apparently, the Post Office will wrap it (well, there's a first) and return it all for nothing. Looks like if I want a model of a Manx Norton I'll have to scratch build it. Now where did I put that brass tube? TTFNQ

Afternoon! A quick chug over to Shuttleworth this morning. There was some form of classic car meeting being held there today so we thought it might be worth a look. The expectation was probably slightly better than the experience although no matter; we'd had a ride, had a (surprisingly good) breakfast in the cafe, had a gawp at the classic cars and a wander around the many and various bikes that were present. A friends new acquisition, a Vincent Black Prince was probably the rarest and most valuable there. Mind you, the price of such things is rapidly heading in a downward direction as those that typically lust after such beasts shuffle off this mortal coil (and you can't take them with you). Their use as a solid gold investment opportunity is drawing to a close I suspect. I think the Beeza won the oldest motorcycle accolade today by a country mile. It was the only pre-war bike I saw. Rather amazingly on my return the engine was mostly free of external oil contamination. I'd had another go yesterday at providing a better seal for the blanking plug in the rocker box for the non-existent decompessor. Maybe I was, at last, successful? Talking of pre-war, one of the Cambridge Flying Group's lovely Tiger Moths was basking in the sunshine overcast, cold and windy dullness - lovely. Must wangle another go in a Tiggy soon! ION I saw the Italeri kit for a Manx Norton the other day whilst in Hobby Craft. I've seen them many times and I was severely tempted but it was ~£57 IIRC and I managed to resist. When I got home I thought I'll just have a look on the Big River where the same kit was being offered for £44 and I was unable to resist "Adding to Basket". It turned up yesterday .......... This is "Handed to resident". I think @polybear has a descriptive term that he uses to describe such situations. I believe it starts with a "T" and ends with an "s" and is applicable here. This is the suitable protective packaging in which it came .... You might notice the damage to the box at both ends and the nice way the box artwork has been defaced by the application of the delivery labels. I think @polybear has a descriptive term that he uses to describe such situations. I believe it starts with a "T" and ends with an "s" and is applicable here. Fortunately the contents appear to be undamaged and all present. More by luck than judgement! I'd send a snottogram but I haven't spotted a suitable Email address. The customer complaint / feedback in "My Account" does not appear to have a suitably relevant grump along the lines of "Put the goods in some protective packaging that's up to the job!" but I'll have another look if ICBA. I might have to tap the Bear up for that Email address. It can't do anything but help for the Managing Director to receive hundreds of Emails from disgruntled customers to keep him busy up to the morning coffee. TTFN

Evening The mill is a Senior (Built in deepest Yorkshire), don't know about the lathes one of which has been CNC'd. Amazing what you can do with some stepper motors and some G Code. Which is why modern society really gets my goat! The total reliance on something that either isn't there all of the time or is completely inaccessible to a significant chunk of society (mostly but not exclusively the most senior members of our society). There used to be a really useful online calculator for calculating your property re-building costs (in the UK) but unfortunately it seems to have disappeared. It was most useful at insurance renewal times. Maybe it's been taken down so that we (the great unwashed in the world of building) haven't got a clue, state a ridiculous amount (high or low) in our applications and then, should we need to claim, have any claims rejected as totally unrealistic re-building costs were quoted. No, surely not! Puppers aka "an old cynic" In the usual context that's actually reverse-ageist and sounds like you've been indulging in positive discrimination! I never did agree with positive discrimination in any field; people (and dogs as appropriate) should be selected on their merits for the role whatever that maybe and not because they help "even-up a distribution" or put a tick in a particular box. As an example, as a short-a**e, I would have had no problem with being rejected should I have applied to join the police force as a constable all those years ago. I can appreciate that I would have been (still am) deficient in both the altitude and (at any likely time of application) the mass departments and you could probably add to that list, bravery. For me some key characteristics for a police officer include being tall and built like a brick outhouse (a bit like one of my neighbours who just happens to be a policeman who is built like a brick outhouse). Why? Because size and mass provide an automatic air of authority and, if push came to literal shove, a most useful physical attribute of enhanced inertia in a tussle that someone my size simply does not have. I'm reminded of this more amusing and light-hearted example. Positive discrimination appears to be part of the, if I maybe so bold and IMVHO, rather pathetic "Everyone can do anything they want and every one is a winner" culture that seems to prevail these days. Well, life isn't like that and despite as much valid smoothing of whichever playing field it happens to be it will never be truly level and no, everyone is not and cannot be a winner. Discrimination of any form based on characteristics that are irrelevant to the role (we all know what they are so no point in enumerating them here) are of course completely unjust and unacceptable. Deselection because someone does not possess some essential characteristic or experience for the role is perfectly valid and is not discrimination. Similarly, selection just because someone has a specific characteristic or experience that is irrelevant to the role over someone who has the relevant characteristics and experience is just plain wrong again IMVHO. Making things as accessible as possible to as many as possible is entirely laudable and I was reminded of an interesting example of something going full-circle over a period of many years the other day. The example in "Secrets of the London Underground" was the efforts by London Underground (or is it TFL?) to increase accessibility to stations by the removal of escalators and their replacement by lifts, some of which will go in the lift shafts of the old lifts taken out of service 70 or 80 years ago when the new fangled fancy escalators were introduced! Although in some cases that I can think of, not only are different teams used but different technologies are used too which usually forces different approaches so although the designers may have come out of the same general mould the mistakes they potentially make in each case are likely to be very different by virtue of the technology used. I'd rather have two different systems design teams designing a duplex safety critical system than one by a systems design team and one by a bunch of florists. I do like a nice Wisteria. I was going to comment on the strange giant snake running through your garden but others have beaten me to it so I won't! 🤔🤣 ION A nice thrash over to Woburn this morning on the RD but boy was it busy over there! Probably 80 - 90 bikes at the peak and about 20 cars many of them classics. The only trouble is the cafe is very small and as it says on the window "We don't do fast food just high quality* food ....". Another problem is there is only one unisex loo and a lot of, shall we say, older males. Billy Connelly has got a very good rule about men over 50 to which I subscribe (often). * It's all relative and may not pass the iD test! On my return there was some ladder stowage operations to be perform following the completion of the recent aerial activities around the roof and gutter. This was followed by a little routine maintenance on the Beeza in readiness for another run out tomorrow which may well feature a change of two wheeled horse. That's it. Night all!

Evening! Puppers went to see the widow of my good mate (and ex-work colleague) and to collect the foam cutter this morning. Try as I might, the two inverted U shaped main frames would not fit in Monty even after removing all of the mechanism parts. I had hoped to keep them intact for the time being (even though it is unlikely that it will be used as a foam cutter again) but it was not to be and they had to be cut-up to get them in the car. It was a strange, uneasy feeling fiddling about in his garage, using his tools to dismantle something that we'd discussed and worked on many* years ago. More than once I asked him where I'd find a screwdriver or Allen Key! At some point there's a vertical mill and two lathes to dispose of and that's going to be interesting. I do hope that his widow doesn't end up calling in the "We'll get rid of them for free Madam" merchants and that we can find recipients who want and will appreciate them and also won't mind giving at least a token amount in return. Those recipients will of course have to be "strong old boys" though because they'll have to remove them from their lair! * Hard for me to believe it's very nearly 20 years since we built our first foam cutter On my return this afternoon the stack of bits that is the scaffold tower was moved to a more appropriate position. Its owner is away walking for a couple of weeks so I've got to hang on to it for a bit. We don't want to be tripping over it every 5 minutes🤣 Now, I wonder what the weather is going to be like in the morning? There's talk of a run over to Woburn to Pure Triumph tomorrow which reminds me, a friend has two tickets for a trip around the Triumph factory. Looks like I'll be driving up the M1 next week! 😀 TTFN

Afternoon! Bluebells were spotted in Hitch Wood and very nice they were too. On the way back we detoured via St Evenage as shopping had to be shopped; "a few bits" aka ~£100 from Sainsbugs and some wool from Hobby Craft. Like many things it appears wool is becoming a difficult item to source. All of the traditional local retailers, whether independents or chains, seem to have disappeared in a puff of smoke. This is not good when Mrs Puppers has just been commissioned by Junior Junior Puppers to knit yet more toy snakes! Still, we found some in the end but how much! This afternoon I have been engaged in the death defying feat of dismantling the scaffold tower with the assistance of Mrs Puppers and a neighbour (who reported that this mornings VMCC ride was extremely pleasant - that's right, rub it in 🤣). Anyway, I'm very pleased to say that the entire activity is now complete without any physical damage to my body including that that would be created by the sudden stop at the end of a long drop! I'm getting way too old to be scrabbling around at the top of a braced but still wobbly scaffold tower. On disassembly I tried one of the frames for size in the back of Monty. It looks like I'll be able to return it to it's owner without troubling him to come over with his trailer. Good old Monty who, incidently, clocked up 198,000 miles on the way home this morning. Whilst engaged in this activity I noticed a glider thermal soaring nearby. It's only a phone shot and it was a way away so it is included for interest rather than photographic merit. The other day we were visited by a couple of Wildcat helicopters that clearly used the local church (stuck on a hill) as a turning point. Reminds me of the days years ago when we used to get A10 Warthogs doing the same thing at about 800' Fortunately we never heard the very distinctive sound of the "Gatling Gun"* * Actually the GAU-8/A Avenger auto-cannon This evening it's downt'pub with the ex GE Biker mates. I wonder if the world will have been to rights in the morning? Probably not ..... TTFN

Morning! Me neither. I think we can detect a theme here ..... ION Had very few interviews during my career. One to get my first position. One 10 years later for a position with the then opposition. I passed but declined the "kind" offer. History shows another bullet dodged as I probably would have ended up where I ended up anyway but on different terms. Looks like I failed my last informal interview. It's a beautiful day! I had an invitation to go on the first local VMCC "Summer Saunter". I think they are heading out over Saffron Walden way. No doubt it will be a nice run but I declined the offer as I'm out with another group (ex GE bikers) this evening and this morning Mrs Puppers and I are out to visit the Bluebells. TTFN

Evening! Which reminds me, I have to go and collect a foam cutter gifted to me that was built by a late, good friend and colleague in the next couple of days. We first built a fairly substantial foam cutter together for a project about 20 years ago. Essentially 2 giant XY plotters with a hot wire stretched between them it would cut objects up to just over 2m long by 1m by 1m - it was a bit of a beast! It used some really cheap (and extremely poor) commercial software to convert the 2D template drawings into sequential cut paths. We had no knowledge of G Code at the time and persevered with "FlakeySoft" once I'd identified workarounds to its software "features". It did the job rather well in the end even if we did have to invent some devious cut-paths to produce the required, rather complex 3D objects. When my friend retired sometime later he used his collection money to buy the necessary components (bearings, leadscrews, stepper motors, drivers etc etc) to build a better albeit more modestly sized one for home use rather than the standard clock. Why did people always get clocks or watches when they retired? 🤔 Anyway, unfortunately he succumbed to the big C last year and his wife has asked me if I'd like it. Even though I'm now unlikely to make use of it as a foam cutter (for model aircraft wing cores most likely) the components may well have a number of other potential uses particularly for the astronomy department so, yes I would. Great photos Rick! Although I don't ever recall going to St Ives I feel I know the place fairly well now as I pay a virtual visit using a roving webcam sometimes when taking my blood pressure (it's a nice scene that distracts the mind). The second photograph has answered a question I had. I've often wondered if the arches in the quay were blind. Apparently not! Anyway, we really must pay it a proper not virtual visit sometime. ION I've been up and down the scaffold tower a few times this morning tidying up and fine tuning the work I've done up there. Just got to take it down now and return it to its owner. I'm definitely getting too old to be shinning up and down such things and me with a heart condition! This afternoon may have involved an extended eye lid inspection. Other than that. not a lot .... Night All

Yes .... 🤣 Whoops, I've just thought. When Puppers was a young Pup (circa 1970) his father had a model shop. We used to sell MiniTrix N Gauge stuff. The small radius curve part number was 4912, the larger radius curve was 4922 and short straights were 4916. The registration number of father's Triumph Herald in 1964 was GMG***B ...... On second thoughts, no Bear that's not sad at all it just show's you have* a very good memory. * In my case it shows I had a very good memory albeit it's shot to pieces now! 🤣

And in some cases all of those things simultaneously! You can't beat multi-tasking.

No the bloke on the HD took some of the weight of the Duke as he was actually sitting on it about to leave. Richard's mate rushed to his aid to lift the bike off of the HD. I presume the HD was not actually damaged as there appeared to be no swapping of particulars and he drove off. His body language clearly suggested that he was less than chuffed!

Perhaps different rather than necessarily better? Once is more than enough and worthy of applause as mentioned 😀

Monty did the Hardknott Pass a few years ago. What fun! I always find it ironic that the off-road vehicles are (usually) the ones to force you off of the road ... Maybe I'm just unlucky? Wasn't certain how to rate your post but in the end I think anyone who can do the pass without an engine thingy deserves a might big round of applause!

Gel batteries are lead acid, it's just that the acid has been turned into gel form to provide maintenance and spill proof characteristics so should be fine with the original system. Do not go for Lithium batteries which generally require different and carefully monitored and controlled charging regimes. As you know, Lithium batteries also have a secondary use as incendiary devices if physically abused (mechanical damage, incorrect charging etc .....)

Afternoon! A mitre is cut at half the angle so (usually) 45° - that's diagonal for a square chess board so just about spot-on 😉 They do round here! BEAR STOP RIGHT NOW! Puppers does not have room in his garage for another bike, he probably couldn't reach the ground and he certainly couldn't pick it up unaided if he dropped it! Does look nice though and very shiny indeed considering it's been living in shedland for 30 years. Is the fully enclosed chain standard or a Beary add-on? A note of caution or, as the boss at the Great Empire used to say, "expectation management"; It's a buyer's market out there at the moment with prices of second hand bikes generally depressed and going down. I've no idea what it is worth other than "whatever someone will pay for it" (which reminds me, I'll mention it to my mate (Note 1) in the VJMC to see if he knows of anyone likely to be interested. ION Went for a wee thrash this morning with a couple of mates (See Note 1) first to Jordans Mill for brekkie and then on to Shuttleworth. The Cambridge Classic Car group were meant to be having a meet there today. Saw a few interesting cars but not enough to constitute a "Meet". As we were sitting in the sunshine enjoying coffee and putting the world to rights a couple Ducatis arrived and (attempted) to park up. The first one slotted in between a Harley with Ape bars (but we won't hold that against him and I think you get counselling now) and another bike. The second which looked like a race replica complete with a rider in IIRC racing leathers (I think his name may have been Richard Head) attempted to fit in the non-existent gap between his mate and the Harley. He got off and as there was no room between him and Mr HD (who had just started up with difficulty due to lack of space) over-balanced, dropped it and it fell against the HD. Mr HD was, quite rightly, "a bit p*ss*d off! There was plenty of space elsewhere to park. As I say, I think his name must have been Richard Head. On my return I collected some tools and ascended the scaffolding tower to attend to the needs of the gutter/soffit/facie/tiles. I'm definitely getting too old to be at roof level at the top of a wobbly scaffold tower. Nevertheless the mission appeared to be successful. I will leave the tower in place for a couple of days just in case I need to do any "fine tuning" and then I'll grab the neighbour and get him to give me a hand getting it down again. Apparently dinner is almost served. TTFN

I rest my case ...

Green, blue or black* is the correct colour for locomotives but each colour MUST be of the correct shade and red (of the correct "Indian" shade) should of course be reserved for the wheels of blue locomotives 😀 * Three contrasting shades of grey (emulating "silver") are of course eminently suitably alternatives for certain locomotives. Simple really .....

Evening! You have to ask! 🤣 ION Today I have been erecting (up to house gutter level) the scaffolding tower that a mate has lent me. That' an interesting exercise and one designed to wear a Pup out! I took the precaution of buying a couple of ground anchors so that I could tie it down to the ground and provide a bit of triangulation for stability purposes. Also arranged so that there's a slight bias of tension towards the house rather than away from it. Unfortunately it was just too tall to fit nicely under the soffit right up hard against the wall so I think a couple of spacer blocks may well be added between the tower and the wall to provide additional stability. I used to quite like heights and going up ladders .... After today's and the remnants of yesterday's exertions I feel another early night is in order. Night Awl!

Evening! Well it's been a long and busy day today. Up at the crack of sparrows, set-off to drive to St Evenage before 8:00 in order to get parked and to the station in very good time for the 9:30 Thameslink service. The train started well departing at 9:31 but was parked at Welwyn Garden City for more than 30 minutes due to signalling problems between St Pancras and Blackfriars. My first appointment time "up the smoke" came and went, phone calls to the hospital to advise them that we'd been delayed but were on our way and would arrive ASAP. When the train did finally get going again it turned into a non-stop express to Brighton at London Bridge but that was OK, we were off of it by then! Anyway, when we did finally arrive at the hospital two consultations and a number of standard procedures later plus a longish wait (as usual) at the pharmacy for a specific medication I was finally free to leave ~3:00pm. Unfortunately the signalling problems were still ongoing so our return was slightly delayed but we made it in the end. Nevertheless, the news on the important matters of the day were all good and agreement on the way forward over the next few months so a big smile and even bigger tick from Puppers 😀 Completely bushed now so a very early night is on the cards. Night All.