The Night Mail

[Happy Hippo]

That is like watching fish in a tank!

 

Back and fore, back and fore but I've just got to keep watching.

[Oldddudders]

36 minutes ago, Happy Hippo said:

That is like watching fish in a tank!

 

Back and fore, back and fore but I've just got to keep watching.

When the new signalbox at London Bridge opened in 1976, one of the signalmen decided an aquarium would be a good stress-buster for men who had just coped with one of the busiest rush-hours of any BR location. I had moved back to my substantive post elsewhere by the time it happened, but believe it to have been a great success with the men. 

[Happy Hippo]

The two way zip on my overalls decided to give up the ghost.  

 

The culprit was a bit of the brass zip track that had departed from the cotton backing.

 

So I decided that making the zip one way would be the best option, removed some more teeth and rethreaded the zip.

 

All worked well, so I carried out some stitching to prevent the zip from dropping out of the bottom.

 

Well then I realised I'd stitched another section of the waist line into the zip area.

 

This would probably have worked if I'd been thin and lop sided, but alas my needlepoint all had to come out and I had to restart.

 

This is the first time I've made a sewing error since I stitched a pair of combat trousers to my thigh one very cold January whilst doing some repairs whilst sitting in a trench  somewhere on the Brecon Beacons.

 

In this particular case, I didn't notice until I came to try and remove the trousers sometime later!

Edited March 22, 2021 by Happy Hippo

[Florence Locomotive Works]

15 hours ago, Florence Locomotive Works said:

We arrived safely back in Tulsa last night, to the jubilation of the cats, and myself. This is because I had bought a very well priced Meccano motor off eBay while in Santa Fe and it arrived yesterday, along with some other things. 
 

 

Today after some testing the motor was fitted to “Gerald” the crane. Really it needs the armature removing and cleaning, that should be done tonight. Here’s a video:

 

 

 A few photos:

 

 

 

 

Douglas

The problem ended up being the rope coming off the pulley on the 'ook and jamming, it was easily fixed.

[Tony_S]

1 hour ago, Happy Hippo said:

 

In this particular case, I didn't notice until I came to try and remove the trousers sometime later!

I am it seems going to need my gum stitching after the tooth extraction tomorrow. I trust my dentist not to attach other body parts or items of clothing!

[Florence Locomotive Works]

6 hours ago, Happy Hippo said:

That is like watching fish in a tank!

 

Back and fore, back and fore but I've just got to keep watching.

I'll try to test lifting some uninsured cake this afternoon.

[Tony_S]

Could somebody let me know where the complex signal gantry was? 
Edit

I am so silly, I have just Googled the image and I understand the link with sporting events.

Very clever of the OP.

Tony

Edited March 22, 2021 by Tony_S

[jamie92208]

19 minutes ago, Tony_S said:

Could somebody let me know where the complex signal gantry was? 
Edit

I am so silly, I have just Googled the image and I understand the link with sporting events.

Very clever of the OP.

Tony

It was at Rugby where the GC crossed the LNWR.  The bridge, which Inthink was called the Birdcage bridge was allegedly  going to interfere with signal sighting  sp the GC had to build and then maintain the onebin the picture. I think it was for trains approaching from the south but aren't sure.

 

Jamie

[Happy Hippo]

I dug out the remai s of an old Ash stump this afternoon. The hole was nearly a metre deep! 

[jamie92208]

16 minutes ago, Happy Hippo said:

I dug out the remai s of an old Ash stump this afternoon. The hole was nearly a metre deep! 

Is this the start of another muddy hollow.?

 

Jamie

[Happy Hippo]

19 minutes ago, jamie92208 said:

Is this the start of another muddy hollow.?

 

Jamie

That would be at my mortal peril!

[Adam88]

1 hour ago, Happy Hippo said:

The hole was nearly a metre deep!

 

I hope somebody's been looking into it.

Edited March 22, 2021 by Adam88

[PhilJ W]

2 hours ago, Happy Hippo said:

I dug out the remai s of an old Ash stump this afternoon. The hole was nearly a metre deep! 

I had an ash stump in my garden. I didn't dig it out, a vixen did that to make a maternity earth. It did pong until a few days after she and her cubs had vacated the earth.

 

[PhilJ W]

1 hour ago, Adam88 said:

 

I hope somebody's been looking into it.

[Happy Hippo]

I've just been told, by a reliable source, that the Warrior fleet is getting the chop and will be gone by the mid 20's.  No more upgrading.

 

Going away from tracks and being replaced by the 8 wheel Boxer AFV.

 

Of course the millions spent in getting the workshops sorted for the upgrade and the various jigs and beds for laser cutting will all be scrapped!

 

Let's have statement vessels such as aircraft carriers and submarines at the expense of robust air defence and troops with the ability to physically hold ground, rather than magical mythical cyber warfare  capability which is great until you get into contact with a physical enemy.

 

Call me old fashioned....

 

[Tony_S]

3 hours ago, jamie92208 said:

Is this the start of another muddy hollow.?

 

Jamie

Aditi thought it looked like nice soil. I think she may define nice as anything other than heavy clay. 

[simontaylor484]

51 minutes ago, Happy Hippo said:

I've just been told, by a reliable source, that the Warrior fleet is getting the chop and will be gone by the mid 20's.  No more upgrading.

 

Going away from tracks and being replaced by the 8 wheel Boxer AFV.

 

Of course the millions spent in getting the workshops sorted for the upgrade and the various jigs and beds for laser cutting will all be scrapped!

 

Let's have statement vessels such as aircraft carriers and submarines at the expense of robust air defence and troops with the ability to physically hold ground, rather than magical mythical cyber warfare  capability which is great until you get into contact with a physical enemy.

 

Call me old fashioned....

 

Another terrific waste of money I'm  afraid typical of Governments which ever party is in charge 

[PhilJ W]

[TheQ]

You always knew in the military when something was going to be scrapped, whether buildings, accommodation, or equipment..

 

They'd start spending a fortune on it, after it had been needing the work years before..

[Happy Hippo]

2 hours ago, TheQ said:

You always knew in the military when something was going to be scrapped, whether buildings, accommodation, or equipment..

 

They'd start spending a fortune on it, after it had been needing the work years before..

A lot of railways were like that, worked up and then closed.  (This all happened  prior to Beeching's appointment)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Happy Hippo]

11 hours ago, Tony_S said:

Aditi thought it looked like nice soil. I think she may define nice as anything other than heavy clay. 

The nice soil is the decomposed remnants of the stump.

 

we have very heavy clay around here.

 

We spend a lot of time breaking it up with potatoes and lots of compost.

 

It's one of the reasons I succumbed to buying a tiller/rotivator, as I have better things to be doing with my time than swinging a mattock.

 

(Daydreaming about cakes takes up a lot of my waking hours)

[PhilJ W]

3 hours ago, Happy Hippo said:

The nice soil is the decomposed remnants of the stump.

 

we have very heavy clay around here.

 

We spend a lot of time breaking it up with potatoes and lots of compost.

 

It's one of the reasons I succumbed to buying a tiller/rotivator, as I have better things to be doing with my time than swinging a mattock.

 

(Daydreaming about cakes takes up a lot of my waking hours)

Essex clay is far worse, sets like concrete when its dry and sticks to everything when its wet.

[Winslow Boy]

1 minute ago, PhilJ W said:

Essex clay is far worse, sets like concrete when its dry and sticks to everything when its wet.

Bit like something else then.

 

Alternative to organic matter for breaking up clay is lime. Was going to suggest shingle but that's heavier than s..........

[Tony_S]

1 hour ago, Winslow Boy said:

 

Alternative to organic matter for breaking up clay is lime. Was going to suggest shingle but that's heavier than s..........

Aditi hasn’t added lime to our clay soil as it wouldn’t suit many of her favoured plants. So they get planted in big holes filled with something more appropriate. We have added lots of grit over the years in vegetable and flower beds. That helps here more than just chucking compost alone onto the clay. 
Tony

[Winslow Boy]

2 hours ago, Tony_S said:

Aditi hasn’t added lime to our clay soil as it wouldn’t suit many of her favoured plants. So they get planted in big holes filled with something more appropriate. We have added lots of grit over the years in vegetable and flower beds. That helps here more than just chucking compost alone onto the clay. 
Tony

Hmm you could always build a raised bed. Just out of curiosity do you dig it in or leave on the surface - that's either the grit or the organic matter? Leaving it on the top, no dig, method is supposed to be better as it maintains the soil structure but with clay I think it would simply build up on surface.