grendel

this morning two more pairs of ribs steamed up, another couple of side deck supports added.

quick,all through potter bridge.

so far today, just a little work ribs steamed and deck supports fitted.

Today was more ribs shaped, the two pairs done yesterday have been put to one side ready to fit. nearly there with the side decks too, maybe 3 pairs left to fit. my next job will be to create some 3d models for parts in CAD, my annual bonus has bought me a 3d printer, which I can use to make parts, I can even scan small parts in and scale them down. just got to wait for it to be delivered now so I can start playing.

7 mainsail

5 fore gallant topsail? or is this classed as a skysail Please note I am just guessing based on various films and stories read. 1 mizzen? 9 bobstay? 8 bowsprit?

my only problem is the lack of a decent 3d CAD in linux, CAD doesnt seem to like working under Wine (windows emulator) either

All I can say is in the back garden where the wall can be climbed we have a pyrocanthus bush, we used to have another under the window at the front of the house, yet still (in the middle of peaceful Canterbury) we once had our front door kicked in by an oik. unfortunately for him we had the sitting room door open and I was looking right at him - did you know its possible to do an olympic 100m race start from sitting in a chair? while the wife called the police I was in hot pursuit, strangely the police were there within 60 seconds. he was apprehended later, but had apparently just come from his own house having kicked his mums back door down. we knew him as he was a regular visitor to the neighbours kids. next day his mum knocked on our door and asked if we were going to prosecute - we were a bit hem ha until she said please do he needs to be taught a lesson. Fortunately for him he was still in custody 2 days later when the local drugs mafia called round the neighbours trying to locate him (2 cars full) apparently he had waylaid one of their couriers before he kicked his mums and our door down. Other than that once we havent had too many problems.

in our first house (grade 2 listed council house) we had this problem and they came and fitted a sausage down the chimney and lined it with cement - we then lit a fire and the floor under the grate exploded (damp in the concrete under the grate)

All I can say was my dad was in charge of acquiring the mess stores- never for the cooking of, his bookkeeping was so good that he always had plenty of funds left for christmas parties, he had everything down to a fine art including how many slices of toast a pot of jam would cover. his bookkeeping has always been faultless, I think they gave him that task to avoid suffering his cooking.

tonight the first 2 pairs of ribs for the front section were steamed , also another 2 side deck supports were added

I run linux where none of the software costs a penny (ok I do have some old windows machines, but once again I dont believe I have ever had to buy software (came with the machine). you can still get office, if your company uses it at work there is usually a deal where you can get it for home dirt cheap (and not the stupid subscription version either.)

actually my crown had come off, seems like I need a new crown, who needs bridges when you have lost a crown.

many years ago in the 70's my mother had to spend a few days in hospital. thus my father took over the cooking for the duration. being an ex naval type he had been around the world and knew about foreign food. He cooked us a curry one night, it consisted of a tin of minced beef, a tin of mixed veg, and a tin of rice pudding. all mixed in a saucepan and heated up. It didnt contain any spices, or curry powder. To this day my sister and I remember this meal, and to this day we constantly remind my dad of his culinary expertise.

back home as I have a dentist appointment, bridge closed at Dartford, diverting via east tunnel, so minimum 1 hour delays getting back across the river.

stopped again now here.

about 10 minutes ago, the wind rose here near Basildon, and it is raining so hard you can see sheets of water bouncing off the vertical walls of adjacent buildings, take care everyone. Just heading in from the south west - with attendant rumbles of thunder.

tonight after adding a couple of side deck supports, it was just adding faux planks and marking out for the front set of ribs to be steamed using these to get the shape. Also trying out a waterproof video camera on the camera setting for photos, though the flash seems a little bright.

so on to tonights work, well rib fixed in place, side deck supports fixed, and oh no I hear you cry, there is no steamed rib in the former - no , no steaming done tonight, tomorrow will be setting up the front section to steam the ribs in that section, false planks will be fitted as a template to bend the ribs around.

'its for you - its Rachel' is what it seems to me

another rib fixed, one more steamed, last one for the former as its then different at every rib, last roof beam turned out of the former, 2 more side deck supports added. plus as a bonus, at the bow we need to be able to clamp the planks, so a board is added behind the overlapping stringers, first one of those in place, once that has set there will be room to clamp the one for the other side.

not Lewes, or is it the other hill?

due to being busy on another project most of the day, only a short visit to the model today. As I mentioned the other day, I am getting to the stage of every rib different, the last template only made a few ribs, I have now changed formers and am on the last regular former, maybe 2 of this size, then I will be on the individual ones. deck supports put in, and the last rib from former 2 fixed.

Jangles looks to be a cutie pie, dont forget to ask for a doggie lifejacket, or if they dont have a suitable one make sure you bring one yourself. they are essential to lift a dog back into the boat - make sure it has a decent handle on the back, strong enough to pick Jangles up with.

I was asked a question about astronomy on the broads, so thought I would start this topic. The broads is a good site for astronomy, though you would want to set up on the bank for steadiness. I have attached some photographs to the post, this is just using a standard dslr with standard lens, pointed at the sky with about 15-20 second exposures, the milky way is clearly visible. the one problem I do have on he broads is recognising the constellations, I am just not used to seeing them among so many stars. I was moored at Hardly Cross, you will find that if you try and take pictures near the horizon, you do get light pollution from nearby towns (but nowhere near as much as you suffer living in or near a town. One of the countries best dark sites is in Norfolk (Kelling). I only took a small 50mm telescope (most astronomers see these small telescopes as not much better than a toy) under the great seeing conditions on the broads, this telescope showed me views rivalling those from much larger telescopes, a small telescope can give you good views , plus small size makes for easier transport, and setup on the bank. One trick when looking for quality telescopes, is to look for telescopes made in Japan in the 1960's and 70's as these were generally made to a very good standard and their optical expertise was very good.