Retiring

[Bob WilsonParticipant @bobwilson59101]

Monday, 28th August, 2023

At 79, I am now beginning to feel my age more and more, with all the restrictions that go with it.

I said some time ago that am now badly affected by glue fumes. After exhaustive tests, including pushing a small camera into my lungs, they could not find anything specific, and I was consequently discharged. After two or three months of no ship modelling, my breathing is much improved!

In view of this, I decided to retire from model shipbuilding.
I hope to replace ship modelling with drawings of merchant ships, and actually find these just as satisfying as building models.

I am also suffering from general feelings of fatigue that I suppose go hand-in-hand with old age. The stress of dealing with a continuous stream of requests for models has been wearing me down for some years now since I stopped taking private commissions.

I am now looking forward to taking it easy in my new direction.

These are my last two major models, 4-masted barque Olivebank an tramp steamer Baron Vernon.

[Bob WilsonParticipant @bobwilson59101]

[Bob WilsonParticipant @bobwilson59101]

Some of my drawings.

[Chris EParticipant @chrise]

Bob

I have greatly enjoyed looking at your models over the years and it is very sad that you are stoping making them. Unfortunately we all get older and things must change to try & maintain our health for that bit longer.

I look forward to more of your inspiratonal drawings in the future.

I very much hope that Colin will make sure that your archive of photos remain viewable in the forum changes.

Chris

 

Edited By Chris E on 28/08/2023 14:17:42

[Bob WilsonParticipant @bobwilson59101]

Thank you –

[Richard SimpsonParticipant @richardsimpson88330]

Time to do all those things that you only want to do! I retired seven years ago and I'm no closer now to that state.

What is the ship in the bottom left hand corner Bob? She has a very similar funnel to a Manchester Liner's funnel but I don't think it's one of theirs.

[Bob WilsonParticipant @bobwilson59101]

Thank you. The ship is the Furness Withy iron ore carrier Sagamore. They were in the same group as Manchester Liners. I spent two years in her – Bob

[Richard SimpsonParticipant @richardsimpson88330]

Interesting, I was with Manchester Liners until they were absorbed into the Furness Withy Group. Then the whole lot was bought by CY Tung.

[Colin BishopModerator @colinbishop34627]

As I've mentioned previously, my first job was with Furness Withy as a clerk in their London office. I used to process 'Nights on Board' (in port) payments for their officers including those of Sagamore. I think I was paid just under £400pa in 1966.

Colin

Edited By Colin Bishop on 28/08/2023 16:40:08

[Richard SimpsonParticipant @richardsimpson88330]

We didn't call them "Nights On Board" though, we called them Nobs! i.e. "Whose Nob tonight?"

Salary is interesting, when I finished my cadetship in September 1979 I went from a cadet on around £1000.00pa to a Fifth Engineer on around £2000.00pa. Not surprisingly I never doubled my salary ever again!

[Richard SimpsonParticipant @richardsimpson88330]

Posted by Colin Bishop on 28/08/2023 16:39:15:

As I've mentioned previously, my first job was with Furness Withy as a clerk in their London office. I used to process 'Nights on Board' (in port) payments for their officers including those of Sagamore. I think I was paid just under £400pa in 1966.

Colin

Edited By Colin Bishop on 28/08/2023 16:40:08

Were they on Leadenhall Street then?

[Colin BishopModerator @colinbishop34627]

Yes, I used to commute up every day from Chessington in Surrey. Real traditional old office with clerks on stools at benches out of Charles Dickens. It did have an excellent staff dining facility though where you were served by waitresses and given a proper meal for one shilling.

It was only a few minutes walk down to the Thames at the Tower and that was pleasant at lunchtime on sunny days.

I only stayed there a year though then got a much better paid job in a bank within a 20 minute bus ride.

Colin

[James Hill 5Participant @jameshill5]

Hope everything goes well in your new direction. Unfortunately it`s a fact of life that things change as we get older. I only joined the forum three years ago and your models and drawings have been a pleasure to study.

Thankyou for the answers to my questions over this period , and I hope your new direction continues to help maintain a good health for you.

Best wishes………Jim.

[geconParticipant @gecon]

Sad to read this Bob, but you've got to take care of yourself and that's that.

I always expand your forum photos to study the detail of your magnificently constructed models. Many thanks for all your great work.

George

[Len Morris 2Participant @lenmorris2]

Dear Bob,

Your models and drawings are inspirational and will remain so for years to come. So are your other works about radio and your maritime life. A much treasured book in my collection is 'RMS St. Helena' signed by yourself. I'm afraid it's a bit dog eared now from being read so many times. Not too sure what retirement means. We all eventually knock off because we have to preserve our bodies. It's very hard to knock off your mind so you just find something else that you can do! Whatever you find Bob, the very best wishes for the future.

Len.

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