Todays Boating

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Kimmo, ,yes it says no jumping., I was going to put somewhere near a sign saying "in case of emergencies..jump"..as a larf. Look forward to seeing you somewhere in Surrey!

Oversize portholes are Tarpaulin eyes, the last of my garden mesh was used to make the handrails and really a fun item for little more than a new paint job, new deck-house and the purchase of a few plastic people.

Annoyed about the signs, but easy enough to re-do. Just waiting on a few life-belts and a ships wheel for the driver.

One unfortunate side effect has been the raising of the C of G and making it a bit wobbly even with extra ballast, I almost regret putting those portholes on the side now.. or I might have to glaze them….

Trevor, I have a few surplus standing people if you want them for yours, whenever. I will just "put them in the hold" so they are there at the pond.

Ashley

[Trevor HollowayParticipant @trevorholloway99134]

Nice little ferry, I'll leave some standing room in mine.

Thanks

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

I have take delivery of the 10m telescopic fishing pole wot i ordered on tues. Fast delivery!

Megga long wow. The ultimate in boat recovery…

Ashley

nb ferry life rafts and ships wheel also arrived so if I pull my finger out and get the labels re-done it will be finished.

nnb. All MEX show items for display now completed despite leaving one out last sat eve in the garden but luckily enough it didnt rain.

nnbb Anyone else who is likely to sail this week feel free to add to this thread.

nnnbbb Paul, I looked it up.

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Tomorrow will be the Nelson, Argus (converted to 2.4g control and also I have fitted a 480 motor instead of the 400 for more oomph) the ferry, now resplendent with a few new signs and some life-belts),and the LC(F).

I have fitted a wire double hook on the end of my 10m pole and also painted this white so I can see it at a distance because the hook is SO FAR AWAY! The 10m pole is however now 9.9m long as I had to cut a bit off in order to fit the wire hook…the wire being thicker than the eye wire it comes with.

I am purchasing a Kaiser baritone from Wessex tubas in December, but they have a new build Ophicleide in Bb on their website and I am more than sorely tempted. It is pitched similar to my Euph and what a fabulous instrument!!! I want one. Big case of course, would challenge my carrying it on the cycle (train and cycle to band on Tuesdays)

Ashley

[Paul TParticipant @pault84577]

Ash

I thought that you were a jazz playing sax blower but now it seem that you are in a umpah band. Ophicleide….a perfect example of more money than sense.

Paul

[shipwrightParticipant @shipwright]

Ashley,

I had never heard of Ophicleide until you mentioned it – I looked at the Wessex website – rather expensive ! Does it sound like any of the more conventional brass instruments ?

Ian

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Expensive has to be considered against the cost of modern day new instruments. A Sovereign Euph to replace the one I currently play costs something over £5000. One can get cheaper of course, but..

The Kaiser wotsit is specially made and jolly cheap, a decent German instrument would be much more, but I will not be playing it that much so it doesnt warrant the extra,

HOWEVER the Ophicleide is something of a bargain at £2200 or thereabouts. They cant sell that many of them, and second hand ones (originals) go for as much or more..to produce them for that price is very good. A Baritone Sax, which is on a par, size wise, comes in also at about £5000 for something decent. It sounds a bit like a Euphonium, and is piched the same which is odd, as it was the bass instrument in orchestras up until the Tuba took over.

######## BUT ##############

Todays boating washed out. It was quite nice when I loaded the car up..got to the pond a it started to rain very lightly then stopped so I got the Argus out, as I was keen to try it with not only the 2.4Gig Rx, but also with an 8.4V battery and a 480 motor. Gosh doesnt it go well now!!! Nose out the water easy. Then it started to rain, and then it poured so I decamped to the car.

This afternoons task is to sort out the ballast for the Argus and also make a new battery tray to hold both the stick and "compact" Nimh`s, as the boat was designed to hold a 6V SLA. I have loads of BITS of lead in there and I need to harmonise them a bit as they shift about..I may just glue them all together or I may weigh the items and replace them with single lumps.

Ashley

[shipwrightParticipant @shipwright]

Ashley,

Thanks for taking the time to explain about the brass instruments – I had absolutely no idea that a decent euphonium could cost £5000.

I reckon that the model boating hobby is cheap when compared with playing in a brass band (assuming that you need/want a good quality instrument).

Ian

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Tomorrow is of course remembrance Sunday and I shall be attending our local war memorial to pay my respects, as usual. THUS I shall not not be boating.

I now have some really spiffing posters for my MEX stand in glorious fully glossy technicolor with "discreet MB logo`s" on, and I spent a little while last night laying them out to get the best from them, and indeed to display as many as poss. They are A2 size and one or two are actually boat life-size!! Thankfully, due to the simple designs and crisp paintwork, none of the pictures show up any defects…which is what normally happens when you focus in on things."

Salvaged a very large corrugated cardboard box from outside Molesey Refrigeration today in order to make a tray to carry the A90 Ecranoplan in to the show..the flying boats will have their wings off, bubble wrapped alongside the main body and popped in more custom made cardboard boxes. Also today spend some time tidying and touching up the paint on the BHA, although to be honest all the boats are a bit playworn and I think it will be best to display them as such, rather than works of art that never see any water even assuming I could restore them to prime condition except by completely repainting them.

Sold a few shares yesterday and will splash out to purchase sufficient R6m 2.4gig receivers and a few more ESC to completely re-equip my fleet thus ending a decades worth of 27M operation. All except 5 or 6 boats for which the 2.4g sets will not work with.

New battery tray made for the Argus, incorporating extra deep sides to put lead under the battery and also a few divisions either side to hold lead and stop it moving about. Looks quite neat and should stop me constantly fiddling with it. Unfortunately the model is a bit WOBBLY (it is an aircraft carrier) despite largish bilge-keels. Perhaps I should not go so fast and chuck it into turns>??? NAH, dont think so !!!

Ashley

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

LArge damp boxes now all cut up, glued , dried and painted to fit A90 in one and the two flying boats in the other (both simply trays with bubble wrap inside!)

Spening today tarting up Toyboats, Herald, Hovervan and Sunderland..not quite a full repaint but just some small attention.

Good wash followed by touching up all those little chips and so on. Sunderland needed so superglue work around the cabin and gun turrets followed by touching up with white, Grey, Green and black paint…its amazing once you start just how many little dinks the boats collect. Sunderland needs some glass tissue and Eze-cote underneath before next season.

Saving the Lotus for last, as it is a bit greasy (from the hatch gasket) and thinking about it, vasalene may have been a better choice as it is at least clear.

Alvis already re-touched, as I had those cracks to contend with under the load area. These were superglued, filled and then the whole lot was given two coats of Eze-cote and then a couple of layers of matt green (No 105). Found some really good props for the Alvis for the show on something I was going to chuck. Not sure whether to taker the Alvis to the pond to roll it in some mud to make it look "authentic" or not??? undecided.

Ashley

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Was great…how was yours??

[Kev.WParticipant @kev-w]

Superb day down the lake, nice gentle N.N.E. breeze got my little rag carrier up to ramming speed with some nice long reaches.

Good turn out by the clubs membership, even if the skies did look a bit like soaking us.

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Kip. Good man. You are obviously the only chap to boat this weekend!

I had the supercharged Argus, HMS Devastation and the ferry..for light relief.

5 of us down with in total 12 boats(!) and great weather if a touch nippy. No wind, and a dead flat water. Full of leaves now of course.

A N other chaps (2) turned up with wives and older kids and a selection of fast boats, two of which didnt work, one of which worked well and the last one was…so so.

Unfortunately one of the non-workers was a hydro…which refused to get a move on…was set in reverse to start with (a bit of clever transmitter trouble at first), and then a marked tendency for the nose to dive…even at really really slow speeds…and it just did not want to go fast. Eventually to liven things up a bit I zoomed past in the ferry just to show him what a FAST boat looked like.

Edited By ashley needham on 17/11/2014 19:57:49

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

whoops keyboard malfunction cured by new batts..

Couldnt see anything wrong with the HYDRO per se, but we have no hydro experience. The nose down thing may be par for the course at very low speeds. My KM Ecranoplan has its nose underwater until 1/4 throttle, the wings are awash until 1/2 throttle and then it takes off (well, almost) just to give a for instance of changing dynamics. Even then, there didnt seem to be much push at the rear. Lack of confidence stopped the "max revs and chuck it in" approach which I know is required for some things.

This was an E-Bay purchase, so……

Have tidied up the innards of HMS Midge over the week end as well. Made a new Nimh batt tray as per the Argus, and fitted a 2.5 gig reciever, this latter has required a bit of faffing about to get in the right place…I did put at at the bows but this is liable to get wet, so a removable …rod? bar? plank? has been made to suspend the receiver on, in the centre of the boat.

Another surreal push back in for Pete`s tramp steamer (his first effort, rescued from 15 years i the loft) by the Hippo. Conked out..looked like ESc fail..despite two toddy motors..certainly wasnt burnt out! A nice simple model, as befits a first effort, and now benefitting from age induced patina of the paintwork.

Ashley

[Kev.WParticipant @kev-w]

I'm lucky, we have quite a good club here with a large lake & use of a boathouse to house our rescue dingy.

On Wdnesday mornings, there are half a dozen stalwart older members who prefer to sail with sticks & rags, then on designated Saturdays we have the 'Micro Magic' regattas for those who like to compete in races, Sundays are our day for competitions such as 'Tug Towing' – 'Steering' – 'Snooker on the Water' etc. plus general come all types whatever your preference.

Here is info on our club the 'H.E.M.B.C.' **LINK**

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

MEX show; Card trays made for flying boats, and all parts wrapped and stacked. Very large.. It is going to take me a dozen trips to unload two car journeys worth of stuff.

I am breaking with what I suspect is established tradition and am going to pin the blurb notices regarding the boats on the spot lamp poles either side of the table, rather than have them by the side of the boats. These notes will be eminently visible for those NOT wanting the long verbal version wot i will be dispensing, and MORE IMPORTANTLY will leave the table and shiny cloth clean and free of any clutter other than the boats themselves which will be spaced out as much as poss. There will be not be any notices ON the boats either.

Less is more will be my watchword (S).

I am especially looking forward to hopefully a bit of free space around the Ecranoplan to show off the "flying just above the surface" and wing contrails look. It is a shame I will not be able to test these theories before the event and can only hope they look like I want them to….

Ashley

[Trevor HollowayParticipant @trevorholloway99134]

Sounds like it will be interesting and different to the usual offerings – I'm surprised you will not have a paddling pool with actual demonstrations !

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Ah Trevor…now you mention it….

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Up early today. I can never sleep Sunday mornings. All that excitement..I mean…its boating day!! I have to get up early in my jimmy jams and just squeeze that last bit of charge into the old accumulators and dust the valves off a bit before getting the trusty Raleigh three speed (yes, three speeds..I know your jealous there!) and pedaling down to the brook to meet my chums and spend a super morning dashing about collecting boats from either bank and setting them off again before refreshing ourselves with Lemonade and jam sandwiches!

BUT its really grey out and peeing down with rain now so I think not.

Ashley

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Sunday; likely HMS Midge, Hornet and Ferry. Not feeling adventurous, and in any case most of the adventurous stuff is packed up and cleaned for the MEX show! Charging suitable batts up.

Have a gig tonight so back late, may make getting up Sunday difficult, but I will make the effort. Will prep the gear so it is an easy out and away.

Ashley

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Tomorrow not sure of boat line up yet. We have a toy fair at Kempton to go to after (prompt away) so i MAY BE small boating and bringing the lad along!

OO er. MEX next week. Have wed thu fri off…gig wed eve..gig stuff prep am, Lotus clean and prep pm…charge 12v batt up so i can have the lights on for the show. Stack of AA`s need charging so I can have the Herald lights on.

Ashley

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Bah humbug SPITTING WITH RAIN. Staying in.

IF any of the pond chaps would like to assist me at the MEX (on friday particularly) plse pm me or mail me as I have a couple of badges available for assistants. Trevor has kindly volunteered for Sat and poss Sunday, but be nice to have some more bods to bore witless whilst dispensing fabulous boating know-how across the table, particularly Friday. Cheers men.

Ashley

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Ah well the MEX has come and gone. 3 hrs to set up, 40 mins to pack.

Very special vote of thanks to Trevor who assisted on Saturday and also his cousin Geoff who came along on Sunday and Colin for info and assistance setting up/packing away. Breaks up the monotiny of the day and also allowed us to roam a bit and and poo-poo other stands or marvel at the jet engines, some wicked looking Stirling engine aero-engines and of course Alex`s fabulous battleships.

Three sorts of persons at the show. Those who didnt know what top gear was and walked past, those who DID recognise the Top-Gear vehicles and smiled or even stopped, and not a few who recognised the Ecranoplan for what it was and got caught if I was quick enough and trapped with witty banter. A few people who take the mag made themselves known (after intense questioning) and I asked them, as they had seen the models in the mag…how did they compare in the flesh??

Despite taking a chair, spent most of the time standing as sitting down I was a bit low to engage the public properly and sitting whilst chatting is a bit off.

Almost anyone who slowed down for the stand peered inside the hovervan top, despite the fact that there is nowt in there! Good interest in the non-flying boats for their novelty.

Posters were good and I was against a wall so could put them all up. I was of course the del-facto MB official representative at the show (from the public perspective, there being no publishers official presence ) and could have sold a pile of mags and plans if only I WAS the official representative, seeing as the mag logo was splashed all over the place!! Again more than a few persons asking me where they could buy ME mags and MB mags from, and several persons dissapointed regarding lack of trade stands. Thanks to Paul F for organising the posters, without which the stand would have lost its focus.

Enjoyed the show. You have to do these things now and again, all part of the experience. I have done other show things in the past with my bikes and cars. Pictures not as good as hoped for, tricky lighting, shiny table…headlights on Lotus quite bright. Side upstands for the LED spots worked well, other than the bunching up of my table covering…something I should have thought about. Dont think I will be doing another one though.

##### please note these are my personal comments on the show and no one elses and do not represent any official pronunciation ###########

Nice to see you Kimmo and also a few of the usual lads down there.

Ashley

[Bob Abell 2Participant @bobabell2]

Wot no pictures?

Sounds a bit like hard work, Ashley, but still, something to look back on

Bob

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Bob. Not really hard work. Some thought went into the display, rather than plonking boats on stands on the supplied cloth, but setting up was no more than I usually experience when doing a band job. All shows require standing around so thats to be expected. Not being a club we were on my/our own so thats also to be expected. Colin will be presenting pictures of the show in a mag report later on.

Snap of my stand in the MEX thread.

Ashley

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