The Night Mail

[Dave Hunt]

5 minutes ago, Happy Hippo said:

 

Istr that  at 500 feet in a Hawker Hunter, if all the lights go red on the dashboard, it is time to vacate the premises. Pronto!

 

There was one red light on the Hunter's instrument panel that had no caption to it and for some reason in the late 60s when I did the conversion course wasn't referred to in the pilot's notes. It wasn't fitted in the two seat T7s or in the simulator so the first time you would see it was on the first trip in a single seater and every now and then it would come on but since we didn't know what it meant (and the staff were careful not to reveal its presence or meaning to the students) and invariably it went out again, apart from being a bit worrying intermittently and us being young and invulnerable, people would just mentally shrug and get on with what they were supposed to be doing. At the debrief by one of the staff pilots mention of warning lights would casually be thrown into the conversation and eventually the student would sheepishly confess that there had indeed been an intermittent warning but hadn't appeared to be serious - with the expectation that a bo**ocking was due for being ignorant of the light's meaning and not taking any action over it (amazingly enough, no-one ever seems to have abandoned the sortie over it). Instead, there was usually a broad grin followed by the information that it came on whenever you were at a low power setting below a set height and with the gear up; in other words it was intended to prevent wheels up approaches but its chief value was one of entertainment for the staff pilots. I think that the same sort of thing would be highly unlikely in today's service. As the saying goes, the past is another country; they do things differently there.

 

 

[Northroader]

Reference the GOG chat, I’m a member, but the politics of how the Guild is run tends to wash over me. I retired early, fancied trying out O gauge, and went to a Telford show something twenty plus years ago. I liked the set up and the gauge, and it went on from there. I needed the show to pick up useful bits from, and a lot of my buying is from the bring and buy,  or the executor and trustee. Then you got a discount from Slaters, until there was some politics over stand charges, and we ended up with the creation of the ALSRM, which I joined, following my Slaters discount.

Its a surprise to hear that the area groups aren’t pukka GOG, I always viewed them as such, and found the shows they did very good, the Bristol GOG, the Guildford Trade Fair at Reading, and the Winchester Am & Con. I stick with the GOG, mainly for news of events and trade products, although even before covid came along, I was missing quite a few of the favourite shows, either health or family getting in the way.

Edited July 14, 2020 by Northroader

[Happy Hippo]

I hope the readers of 'Non members view and thought of the G0G' don't think I was making an inference rather than just using an example.

[polybear]

11 hours ago, bbishop said:

We try to keep our group low key.  And yes, we have a member who unwraps his stock whist we put up the test track, sets it out whist we do the electrics,  and will happily run it all evening to the exclusion of everyone else.

 

Bill 

 

Sounds like a quiet word in his shell-like would not go amiss.  And if he doesn't take the hint then make him a non-member....

[bbishop]

1 hour ago, polybear said:

 

Sounds like a quiet word in his shell-like would not go amiss.  And if he doesn't take the hint then make him a non-member....

 

Water off a duck's back .....

[Happy Hippo]

6 hours ago, bbishop said:

 

Water off a duck's back .....

When a duck becomes troublesome, you can always eat it.  (Although summary execution prior to plucking and gutting is somewhat preferable.)

[Happy Hippo]

As we move into the evening I can report that there was much work carried out in the grounds of the Hippodrome today.

 

The last sections of the hedge were trimmed and a small tree stump was removed from the edge of the front lawn.

 

This was more time consuming than first thought, and also cost me a garden fork handle.  The fork was not as good a lever as I hoped.

 

A bit of work was done in the garage creating some space to set up the wood lathe.

 

The rush to get this sorted out was because this morning's parcel delivery included  a very nice 3" scroll chuck for the wood lathe complete with additional sets of jaws that enable a wide variety of timber sizes to be clamped safely, without having to screw anything to backplates. 

 

I also demolished some ancient garden timber chairs, the remains of which will be converted into very nice hardwood strips and blocks.  It's too good to throw away!

 

The day was capped with the lady from next door but one, arriving with a box of canapes.  They were a gift for sorting out her daughter's car yesterday which had a flat battery. Her daughter, Georgie, usually works as a pastry chef at the Savoy, and the quality of her cooking is outstanding.

 

Needless to say, they were enjoyed almost immediately.

 

It would appear that tomorrow afternoon, I am to accompany the Obergrumpenfuhrer to Blist's Hill.

 

I had better start preparing for the ordeal.

 

 

 

[Northroader]

Period dress for Blists Hill?

[Happy Hippo]

1 minute ago, Northroader said:

Period dress for Blists Hill?

I shall wear a hat

[Northroader]

Er, yes?

[Happy Hippo]

A gentleman could never be seen out in the company of a lady unless he wore a hat.

 

I quite fancied a pair of spats as well, but they don't really go with the plus fours and brogues.

[AndyB]

Late to the phobia-dome, but....

 

Getting stuck in an upside down helicopter underwater.

Niche, or what!

 

Woke up the other night with that one, swearing at a former colleague who used to get me to try and escape from those things for real.  

Then a day later after not touching on the subject for 20+years he posted a video of this on fb. 

Spooky.

 

Anyway. Did someone mention pannier tanks?

This one is a recent acquisition on my layout.

 

[jamie92208]

1 hour ago, Happy Hippo said:

I shall wear a hat

Is that all. I hope not.

 

Jamie

[polybear]

51 minutes ago, AndyB said:

Late to the phobia-dome, but....

 

Getting stuck in an upside down helicopter underwater.

Niche, or what!

 

Woke up the other night with that one, swearing at a former colleague who used to get me to try and escape from those things for real.  

 

 

 

Been there, done that....the dreaded "Dunker Course"

The fun really starts when they turn all the lights out and it's like swimming in black paint.....

[AndyB]

1 minute ago, polybear said:

 

Been there, done that....the dreaded "Dunker Course"

The fun really starts when they turn all the lights out and it's like swimming in black paint.....

You have my sympathy, indeed.

Ours was an "experimental" one used to test escape kit out. Bentonite to make the water very murky, water chilled to 5 deg C to get the hyperventilation going.

Wild horses....

[newbryford]

10 hours ago, polybear said:

 

Sounds like a quiet word in his shell-like would not go amiss.  And if he doesn't take the hint then make him a non-member....

 

9 hours ago, bbishop said:

 

Water off a duck's back .....

 

Next time - don't set up the test track.

 

And have the resolve to not set it up unless he pulls his weight.

 

 

[Stubby47]

2 minutes ago, newbryford said:

 

 

Next time - don't set up the test track.

 

And have the resolve to not set it up unless he pulls his weight.

 

 

It seems a bit harsh to deny the rest of the group a track due to one individual. It might be he cannot bend to help with electrics or does not feel strong enough to help with the boards - so get him making the teas !! 

 

[bbishop]

The duck is an ancient decrepit, but who can still build surprisingly good models.  

The tea maker is, well he is the tea maker.  Anything else is beyond his capabilities.

My mantra is "it takes all sorts ....."

Bill

[Dave Hunt]

I see from some posts here that I'm not the only poor s*d on NM who has been put through the hideous experience of the  Dilbert Dunker. In my case it was at the insistence of the US Navy before they would let me fly from North Island or Miramar. I'm sure that the people who ran the damn thing were specially employed after being thrown out of the gestapo for unnecessary cruelty. Like Polybear stated, the fun really started when they turned the lights out. I tried promising only to fly in daylight but they wouldn't listen. Ba****ds.

 

Dave

[Happy Hippo]

2 hours ago, newbryford said:

 

 

Next time - don't set up the test track.

 

And have the resolve to not set it up unless he pulls his weight.

 

 

You could always change the night of the meeting and not tell him!

[Happy Hippo]

1 hour ago, bbishop said:

The duck is an ancient decrepit, but who can still build surprisingly good models.  

The tea maker is, well he is the tea maker.  Anything else is beyond his capabilities.

My mantra is "it takes all sorts ....."

Bill

Forget my earlier comments.  

 

There's nothing worse than a tough old duck

[BR60103]

If you want to leave the G0G,

You could remember that in America the convention is that O Gauge refers to 3-rail trains while 2-rail is called O Scale. 

 

 

[polybear]

5 hours ago, Dave Hunt said:

I see from some posts here that I'm not the only poor s*d on NM who has been put through the hideous experience of the  Dilbert Dunker. In my case it was at the insistence of the US Navy before they would let me fly from North Island or Miramar. I'm sure that the people who ran the damn thing were specially employed after being thrown out of the gestapo for unnecessary cruelty. Like Polybear stated, the fun really started when they turned the lights out. I tried promising only to fly in daylight but they wouldn't listen. Ba****ds.

 

Dave

 

One one memorable occasion there was a group of six of us in a Lynx mock-up.  On Run 2 one of these people manipulated me into a middle seat, and him next to the window; on Run 3 he played the same trick - however the divers then said that all escape routes would be blocked except one.  I went out as number 3 (which was plenty long enough....), manipulating matey went out as number 6.  The safety divers are no dummies, and they'd clocked this guy's little game early on.....

 

Apparently, when the WHL EH101 (Merlin) was being developed, the contract said that WHL were responsible for demonstrating that the a/c could be safely exited when submerged.  *Apparently* WHL got some window and door frames and demonstrated that a person would fit thru' them, therefore meeting the requirements of the contract.  MoD were having none of it, and a Merlin dunker fuselage was required.  WHL Flight Test were put thru' it, and by all accounts became so disorientated that some of them refused to repeat the run.  Numerous mods. were required, such as (I believe) emergency underwater lighting.

[AndyB]

1 hour ago, polybear said:

.

Apparently, when the WHL EH101 (Merlin) was being developed, the contract said that WHL were responsible for demonstrating that the a/c could be safely exited when submerged.  *Apparently* WHL got some window and door frames and demonstrated that a person would fit thru' them, therefore meeting the requirements of the contract.  MoD were having none of it, and a Merlin dunker fuselage was required.  

 

The Merlin dunker was a bit of a challenge. Previously the experimental dunker rotated along the long axis and came to rest against the wall of the pool. Don't think of a large modern pool; we're talking a 1950s building.

When the Merlin dunker was built it was so large in comparison to the pool we could only do a x-section which nearly filled the building. You'd literally go flying through the air missing the ceiling by inches. 

This is why over the years I stuck to volunteering for other stuff. 

[Happy Hippo]

All this talk of dunkers is giving me an idea about turning the muddy hollow into a form of amusement park.

 

A Lynx dunker, in the requisite muddy slurry could be quite entertaining, especially for those of whom one is not so friendly with.

 

I have been somewhat captivated by the talk over on the Midland Railway thread as there is some very interesting information of a technical nature that has been coming to light.

 

Of course, my first encounter with proper red engines, apart from James in my story books, was at my godfather's home at Peterston -Super-Ely on the SWML between Cardiff and Bridgend.  Alf was the stationmaster, so much time was spent sitting on the garden fence watching a succession of trains pass by.  since Alf's brothers were all footplate men, then we sometimes got  a toot and a wave as they steamed pass.  In fact quite a few train crews did likewise as the viewing point was close to the signal post where the up goods loop started. 

 

Western diesel hydraulics were the red engines involved, and were rapidly displacing the Castles on the top link working west of Cardiff.  I had to wait until 1963 to see a red Warship, when my father took me to Swindon to the GWR museum. If I am truthful, the museum was a bit of a disappointment to a seven year old, and I found Swindon station far more exiting.

 

What I failed to realise at the time was the extent to which the wholesale scrapping of locos was under way, and rows of unfortunate locos lay in the yard awaiting their fate.  Yet outside the works itself locos were still being overhauled, and sitting there bright and gleaming, having just emerged from the paint shop was 4082 Windsor Castle.  Less than two years later, she would also succumb to the cutters torch.

 

The loco I saw however was really 'Bristol Castle'.  the story behind this goes back to 1952.  When King George VI died the funeral train was to have been hauled by the the 'Royal engine' 4082;  but 4082 was in Swindon, undergoing an overhaul.  The name and number plates of 4082 were exchanged with 7013, Bristol Castle.

 

They were never changed back.

 

Having travelled  directly from Cardiff to Swindon behind a Castle, the return journey was behind a red Warship to Briton TM, and then a Cross country DMU (Class 120) for the remainder of the trip to Cardiff.

 

During this return trip I also saw, for the first time, Bulleid Q1 locos.  These were also in the scrap lines, but my memory as to where they were is a bit hazy.  I have the impression that I saw them on the return journey at Ebbw Junction, which would make sense, as a lot of locos went to scrap in various scrap yards in the Newport area.  But I'm quite happy to be corrected.  Somewhere there will be all the disposal details, but I've never really bothered to look hard to find them.

 

A job for the future perhaps?

Edited July 15, 2020 by Happy Hippo