VetChugger

Talking about BMC 1.5's, mine has a very "primitive" apparently homemade arrangement for the air filter. So primitive that we could not get the damn thing to stay on. In the end we could only cable tie it on while seeking some alternative form of installation. Anyone done any sort of mod on this please? Trevor www.normanboats.co.uk

Should be great gravy for the Yorkies then!

Just to make it clear, I have no membership status with Cormorant at all. I found that link by simply searching on Yahoo for EVM. Misleading indeed if its a "public" page! Trevor www.normanboats.co.uk

£45 for 5 litres? Just found this ..... http://shop.cormoranttrading.co.uk/inde ... cts_id=513 And Brian Ward at Brundall stocks it, wonder what price though! Trevor www.normanboats.co.uk

Yes, Swancraft said as much to us as well. This arose after I asked them what they were charging per litre when we took over the boat. I think they thought we might fill it up with cheaper fuel before taking it back and making a profit on the refund! Perish the thought ...... Trevor www.normanboats.co.uk

How many recall their first Broads trip and encountering rhond anchors for the first time? A case of " bruised foot" as you tried to kick them in? What is your opinion of rhond anchors versus mooring pins? By mooring pins I mean the pins that come in lengths of around 24" and 30" with a closed eye. Pros and cons of each? I know that a well set rhond anchor is fairly strong but can't help feeling that a pin and a lump hammer are better? Trevor www.normanboats.co.uk

We hired Alpha's "Rapide" a few years ago and I have to echo all Senator's comments. Worst boat we have ever hired with all the problems mentioned. The worst of which was the backache from the topside steering. We just did not feel we had enough of a view to use the interior helm safely. As Dan said, its set quite a long way back, While we were out on "Rapide" we had to have an engineer out a couple of times and he was a long time employee of Alphacraft, said with out hesitation that its the worst design Alpha ever built. Having said all that, just being on the Broads ensures that we are strangely forgiving at the time! Trevor www.normanboats.co.uk

I take it you have tried some form of cutting agent such as "T Cut"? Or is it the remnants of adhesive? Some form of spirit will usually shift this. I have seen examples where stickers or decals have left a sort of "shadow" on the surface which really does take some shifting short of painting over it! Trevor www.normanboats.co.uk

Me, circa 1973, at the helm of Aston Pelican (I think) although, for years I was convinced we had hired Puffin! And this is my mate Ian trying to fill up with water at Reedham. I say trying because "Spitfire" from Alphacraft had a water tank that was forever blowing back so you couldn't just leave the hose in. So in an earlier life this was Aston Chrystal, Fairy or Pixie! Trevor http://www.normanboats.co.uk

Might this be another of Bill M's boats brought back to life? Trevor www.normanboats.co.uk

Someone was bound to ask so it might as well be me! What happened to "Vivacious Vera"? Still dispensing vivaciousness? Then I realised it was the name of the aircraft ........ Trevor www.normanboats.co.uk

Any idea what sort of money is needed for the 34's Dan? Trevor www.normanboats.co.uk

Unless you want to do something really fancy with pictures, Irfanview takes some beating. It will resize and convert pictures to various formats. Will also link to a scanner. Has a few "effects" to play with. Easy to use and free. What more can we say? Trevor www.normanboats.co.uk

As already suggested in another place, try the Seamaster Club. Sure you would find help there. http://www.seamasterclub.org/index.html Trevor www.normanboats.co.uk

Don't ever mention the word "boring" on threads like this Carol. This sort of posting makes forums like this solid gold! Thanks! Trevor www.normanboats.co.uk

Before I moved to a Canon I was using the Fuji with very good results. I don't recall a Fuji with interchangable lenses! I suspect the one you may be thinking about looks a feels very much like an SLR but is what is termed as a "bridge" camera. It has a fixed lense. My first one had a 6x optical zoom and the last had a 12x optical zoom which made it quite an all rounder. The resolution was around 10 million pixels. These cameras are still available and are within your budget, especially a good used one. I also think you would find the picture quality suprisingly good. Its worth a thought as a stepping stone to the more expensive SLR's. Trevor www.normanboats.co.uk

Talking of Craig's database, have you any more photo's of Maffett's "Osprey"? I see that Craig does not have a registration number for the boat and is short on the history. Trevor www.normanboats.co.uk

Technically this is a photo of The Broads! Wonder if this was an EOS? Must have been a heck of a zoom! Trevor www.normanboats.co.uk

I've fished many times from the staithe and from boats at the staithe. had good catches of roach and perch mainly on sweetcorn and worms. Sad thing is that I'm not keen about mooring there anymore after being cast off in the early hours. Trevor www.normanboats.co.uk

Back in the mid 70's these units were "self contained" things and you had to depress a flap then manually pump away. The sign used to say something along the lines of "when the content reaches the flap there is still room for 50 emergency sh.......... s" We wondered when was the day that a sh ........ wasn't an emergency? Trevor www.normanboats.co.uk

Success comes from the most unexpected sources sometimes. A mate I had not seen for some years suddenly appears on the scene and when I mention I am looking for a Canon ....... ah my other half has an EOS 1000d with standard lens and a 75 - 300 zoom, hardly used, 6 moths old, wants about £350 for the lot. I got it for £320. The standard lens is the 18 - 55 IS but the zoom is not IS. I can live with that I think. Next question, do you have to use dedicated flash with DSLR's? If not, will ancient guns work? Reason I ask is that I have a Hanimex Pro 550 hammer head flash and, although its not hugely spec'd, it produces good results and makes holding the camera steady a doddle! It also manages to minimise any chance of the dreaded "red eye". Any comments? Trevor www.normanboats.co.uk

Thanks for your patience and advice chaps! I have only ever bought Praktica's and Zenit's, oh yes, and a Zorki rangefinder once. So its a beg leap to this sort of budget so I'm trying to get this as right as I can. Trevor http://www.normanboats.co.uk

I am looking at a 450D priced at £410 with the EF-S 18-55mm IS lens as standard. It is a UK model. Is this a "pants" lens??? I know this on has the image stabilisation gizmo. Seems a reasonable price when comparing. I have handled all three and that didn't really convince me in terms of one being leaps and bounds ahead of the others. Anyone else have low light problems with the 450D? Especially interior apparently? Trevor www.normanboats.co.uk

After all this time I still cannot make my mind up! Yes, I want a Canon digital SLR but that's as far as I've got and am now "hovering" between three! The three are actually consequential upgrades. The 350D, 400D and 450D. The reason for my hesitation? Reading various reviews. For instance, "Which" say the 400D is the best of the bunch still and puts the 350D in second place. The 450D lingering because of price mainly but also low level light performance. Any thoughts?? Trevor http://www.normanboats.co.uk

Must admit i was under the impression that most of the fresh water flushing bogs used water from the river rather than the onboard supply? Trevor www.normanboats.co.uk