New Haven Neil

Good news, Simon. As for cars, well we also buy used, 3 year old ex-mobility usually, so again colour isn't a choice as a rule, we buy on condition. Oddly the last two were both silver, the current ones are both black. I did briefly have a metallic brown B-Max which didn't show the dirt, just looked like it......good car with a carpe engine. Had to go as I needed an auto after my accident. Those grey cars currently everywhere look like lacquered primer to me, awful. I do like the candy cherry red Renaults though, look great in the sun.

Morning, and best wishes to Rick & Sharon, and supportive thoughts to those in need. Windy, wet but 15c sur le rock this morning, and a day of domestic servitude beckons. This....! We had a fridge freezer fail in warranty. It was replaced by an identical one......that wasn't. Identical that is. Looked the same, same model number, but the gubbins wasn't though and as a result the kitchen had to be altered to accommodate it! That was marginally cheaper than the alternative.

Divvent knaa wot ya mean?

Final note on the matter! A little research reveals 60's have a Mirlees-Blackstone engine, a type I knew well in my past as ships generators. as an 8 in-line engine, that reveals the different sound to the V12 format 37 and twin-bank 12 cylinder 47 - I'm pretty confident now it was a 60! Thanks all for your input. It was niggling me....I needed to know what made that sound!

I would add that having instructions you can understand is a boon too for a beginner - we used to sell a lot of Elites as the destructions are quite good - as for Dynamis....aaagh! Do you want walk-around style, or panel based? Makes a big difference in choice. I like walk-around, and personally use Lenz plus a Roco Multi Maus because I have had it over 20 years and it was probably the best quality unit available at the time - it has been faultless.

Well, I am more than familiar with 37s and 47's (used to work on Sulzer engines too) they each have distinctive sounds and it wasn't one of those, and a 57 is a SD40 ning-ning in disguise, but the 60 certainly is a strong possibility. It has the deeper sound of larger cylinders, certainly, so will probably give it as win! It was the only loco-hauled train i heard there in 6 nights, so was particularly noticeable, and a sound I had not previously heard. I have never seen a 60, as they were not in use anywhere near where I used to live in the 90's, not that I had any interest at that time in the current scene really and since 2002 have lived outside of the UK.

Thanks for the reply Phil - no, not a 37, I can identify them by sound! Probably bigger, deeper sounding.

Here's a question for followers of the current British railway scene. As I have mentioned before, due to earlier career and training I listen to the sounds of machinery very closely. Whilst in wales recently, on a campsite listening to the nearby railway at night (Swansea - Llanelli line) I identified the sounds of two different types of DMU, but one night in the wee hours a very loud, heavy diesel engine was heard working hard for its living. It wasn't a 66 (ning-ning EMD sound) but a slower revving four stroke, sounded quite big and powerful - would anyone care to speculate what class it may have been please? I am 'somewhat' out of date with UK railway matters!

You're another SSGTSB victim then! I was just talking elsewhere about Jock Thompson..... I genuinely don't recall Mrs Emslie, I just don't recall a computer studies teacher. This is possibly a reflection of how much i didn't enjoy it - or much else in that school bar metalwork. P-Bear, the way the washer sticks out from under the worktop a smidge (a little known metric unit) is the same as ours, it collects every crumb like a crumby magnety thing. Does my head in, why cant they make then a little slimmer so they don;t stick out from a standard worktop.

Computers - I have shown this before, but this is the Ferranti Pegasus in my old Grammar school. Lad on the right was in the year above me, Tommy Turner. We had to submit BASIC programmes on 5 hole tape.....seldom worked! It was crapped after my first year apparently the power consumption was huge, there was another room with a rotary converter in, DC for valve heaters? The pull-out boards each had three little valves on them, there were....a lot.

Morning, a booful sunrise just watched, 10c but a touch breezy. Bike ride with a pal later, just out for a coffee somewhere. Supportive thoughts once more to Simon and his family, and to Brian. Too many 'appointments' of one sort or another today, its a bit of a jigsaw in the planner, my fault, can't say no to folk. Brian, a chat with Oldudders off thread may be of help to you.....

aaaagh!

LP500S is my 'perfect' car. Shame I couldn't get back out if I had one though!

Reset

As a for instance of y relationship with computers, my lappy has now started showing 'an application has blocked this' when I click on thread titles in this forum - second attempt works OK. Suspect its something to do with the video clip thing.

I do draw the line at cassettes! I have a decent record deck (Thorens) and Arcam CD player, which get used a lot. My Musical Fidelity amp died though but I have reasonable Denon and a Kenwood surround amp for films. I use a Sony digital Walkman too, a quality one, but that is mostly in the garage where another Denon amp lives. The price of vinyl surprised me while we were away last week, both new and pre-owned, it seems our modest collection is quite valuable! Computers though, drive me nuts, as the three we have work or react differently with the 'same' software, or won't do the same things, or otherwise annoy and frustrate both of us.....you're welcome to them, Andrew!

I really don't miss being a 'suit' at all. Having worn one form or another (school, Merch, management) of uniform most of my life it was a relief to leave it all behind. Cargo trousers and T shirts now!

I fink that's a Loughtan rather than a Jacob? Colouring? Just like BR or GWR green, there'll be an argument!

Don't get me started on the IAM. Mrs NHN did it a couple of years ago with the idea of sharening up on any bad habits, the instructor was a newbie to motorcycling (Mrs H has ridden for 37 years) and his antics were beyond belief. She had several 'discussions' with him, he wouldn't bunch an inch from some of what she saw as dangerous practices. She gave up and just went for the test. Her examiner was a retired RPU police office (that I used to work with a bit, but she didn't know that) and she rode as she normally does, not what the instructor wanted - she passed well, and was complimented on her riding! I didn't bother going for it after that, I would have ended up in a huge barney if it was the same guy. We're both car qualified IAM BTW.

R V Jones book 'Most Secret War' and another whose author I don't recall 'Instrument of Darkness' tell the stories of these devices, they make incredibly interesting reading. Jones's book does involve some shouting at the politicians involved at the time though.....Churchill saved the day by letting Jones speak at a meeting when really quite junior.

My car talks too, which I didn't know when I got it. (Ex-mobility, like Simon explains - low miles, serviced, bargain). It has several buttons on the steering wheel, I accidentally touched one and it started asking who I wanted to call. Scared the hell out of me! It didn't help me link the phone though, nor does it respond to robust language!

Mrs NHN made laminated cards about how to drive the washer when I retired. Not so much the machine, but sorting what gets done at what programme. Pink or grey undies that started white are not a good thing, apparently. Although I do use CD's in all our 4 wheel vehicles, in my car I do now tend to use the phone bluetoothed to the stereo. Oooh, you modern thing, NHN. Took me bl**dy ages to work out how to do it!

Morning, still dark and it has been very wet. 10c, feels like 7, looks like less. Still radiating supportive thoughts to Simon and his wife. 6 monthly diabetes checks,Q? Ha! My annual-but-haven't-had-one-for-20-months one yesterday was cancelled.....as the nurses were doing flu jabs. Like they didn't know they were going to be doing that when they made my appointment three weeks ago. Thankfully they don't run the brewery. Not sure what the day will bring, bar wind and rain externally. Maybe some garage railway/bike fiddling, maybe not!

@simontaylor484 Bet wishes again for your wife, hope they find the issue and sort it soon. Ah not quite, we left on Tuesday to go to the Lakes. Our friend in Darrington is in good form luckily after surviving a rough divorce, although matters between them are better now the dust has settled. Their Daughter is our 'Not-God-Daughter' (we're atheists but care...) and now in year 4 at Uni in Manchester after riding the unpleasantness of her parents falling out better than they did. Clever girl, doing Bio-Med, she'll be after iD's job.

Just caught up after my hols - great stuff Jamie!