Early Risers.

[Ohmisterporter]

Morning all, raining here for a change. Our village newsletter dropped through the letterbox this morning. Some very sad news in there; our village cricket team Caton CC has folded through "lack of interest". It has been a fixture in the village since before we came here forty five years ago. I remember those early years when they played on a field belonging to a local farmer. There were cows on it during the week, they were moved out before each match but left behind some litter that had to be manually removed. A sweetly hit drive racing along the ground could suddenly slow before it reached the boundary, but there are several grounds like that in village cricket. They moved to a purpose made sports ground behind a pub in around 1972 and the football team still plays there, I hope. What's wrong with the youth of today? Are they no longer prepared to put in the effort? Anyway, don't let me depress you. If you have a village team or a local sports team of any kind please bear in mind they may need support and encouragement before it's too late.

 

Enjoy your day folks.

[trisonic]

We'll be lucky to get TT practice this evening Pete - it just MIGHT clear though, according to local seaweed twirlers.

Neil,

Do you have a favourite spot where you watch, given the chance?

Certain events I prefer to watch on TV.

 

Geoff,

I suppose we are lucky but my old "village" team runs to up to 4 teams each weekend!

I was lucky in that my old man (Grandfather) was a VP of the team (Richard Courage - Pier's father - was Prez).

 

Best, Pete.

Edited May 27, 2013 by trisonic

[edcayton]

My lads tell me that I need to get a cleaner so they don't have to do it next time I go into hospital! What's the best way to go about finding one, or better yet does anyone know of one in Stevenage please?

 

Ed

[Robert]

Which is exactly why we guitarists still prefer to use valve/tube amps! A good guitar amp should be euphonic!

My favourite amp is the Maven Peal "Ganesha". Handcrafted excellence.

 

Very nice too!  What valves have you got in the finals of yours Pete?

[trisonic]

Robert,

Two KT66's and 2 EL34's - I have it set up as two different power amps, sort of, I can instantly switch between the two. The KT 66's are so beautiful........nice "bloom" to the attack; the EL34's are more "in your face".

All the audio lines of the amp are handwired.

 

Best, Pete.

[45156]

Our village newsletter dropped through the letterbox this morning

Oddly enough so did ours, (as we live in the same road)  and the first thing that I noticed was that Heywood House (home of the Littledale Light Railway) is holding open days on June 23rd, and July 7th and 14th.  Anybody planning to visit for the railway, please be aware that this is first and foremost a GARDEN open day with trains, not a railway open day with gardens.  Admission is £3.50 and normally a train ride is an extra £1.00.  Shame about the cricket club folding which was a couple of pages further on.

 

Decided not to stop out as the rain started, as Geoff pointed out, and discretion was the better part of getting soaked.  Lily was quite amazing - not at all worried by the noise, steam or smoke or indeed the people hanging around and proceeding at various speeds up and down the platform.  In case anybody is interested, here is what I managed to get (sorry about the quality, I just had the "toy" camera with me.

 

 

 

 

And now, it appears that the carpet shampooer is not working, so it's a screwdrivers and user guide job.

Edited May 27, 2013 by 45156

[New Haven Neil]

A4 to carpet shampoo machine -- oh how your day went downhill!!

[45156]

Ah yes, that's the way it goes chez 45156, Neil.  I'd have preferred an A4 then a trip on to Skipton, but it wasn't to be.  Anyhows, it's Bank Holiday, so Drake and Macefield would have been shut anyway.

[Robert]

Two KT66's and 2 EL34's - I have it set up as two different power amps, sort of, I can instantly switch between the two. The KT 66's are so beautiful........nice "bloom" to the attack; the EL34's are more "in your face".

All the audio lines of the amp are handwired.

 

Very nice indeed - they are both very nice sounding valves.  Totally different characteristics!

[Ohmisterporter]

And now, it appears that the carpet shampooer is not working, so it's a screwdrivers and user guide job.

 

The user's guide is usually the first thing discarded in our house, then it's down to "intuition". Luckily you are better organized than I.

[trisonic]

Very nice indeed - they are both very nice sounding valves.  Totally different characteristics!

Agree. I prefer the KT 66's with Fender Strats,  the EL 34's with Gibson P90's or Humbuckers plus Telecasters.

 

I also have other tube amps at home: vintage 1967 Fender BF; Mesa Boogie mk IV (hardwood and wicker); THD Univalve (EL37), Allen (6l6's) and have a couple of Marshall's in storage.

 

Best, Pete.

Edited May 27, 2013 by trisonic

[The Stationmaster]

My lads tell me that I need to get a cleaner so they don't have to do it next time I go into hospital! What's the best way to go about finding one, or better yet does anyone know of one in Stevenage please?

 

Ed

Ed you might find that your local Social Services dept have a  list of reliable folk/folk they use for home helps - so I would suggest trying them.

 

As for medical percentage statistics (and many other statistics using percentages) I do wonder if anybody seriously understands them - including the folk who produce them in the first place; years back I was found on X-Ray to have something which allegedly would only be detected about 10% of the time on an X-Ray and the Uk survival rate for those who had it was reckoned to be something like 48%.  I then proceeded to have the same thing twice in 12 months so having had a 48% chance of survival the first time did I have 48% of a 48% chance of surviving the second time, or was it 48% of 100% because I was a new statistic the second time round?

 

Bit like something we had risk assessed at work and the assessment concluded it was likely to happen only twice in 100years.  But it (a pantograph striking a particular structure) happened twice in 18 months but the original figure could well be valid and it might not happen again for 98 year and in fact it will never happen again as the trains now use a different route and procedure.  So in 81 years from now the assessment will be proved to have been absolutely accurate  

[Ashcombe]

My lads tell me that I need to get a cleaner so they don't have to do it next time I go into hospital! What's the best way to go about finding one, or better yet does anyone know of one in Stevenage please?

 

Ed

Ideally, by personal recommendation - do any of your neighbours or local friends have cleaners? Newsagents' windows often carry adverts. I would insist on references and employ on a trial basis. Expect to pay up to £10 per hour. Try to avoid agencies which charge more and give less reliable service in my experience.

 

Hope that's helpful. Good luck!

[Debs.]

...........and most of them left.

.......was it caused by anything 'sinister'?

[BoD]

.......was it caused by anything 'sinister'?

No I think they were just being dexterous.

[45156]

The user's guide is usually the first thing discarded in our house, then it's down to "intuition". Luckily you are better organized than I.

User guide or no, the final result was shampooer 1, 45156, nil - I had hoped it was the belt, but it looks as if the clutch has gone, as the brushes have stopped spinning, the belt is intact, and the drive shaft is not turning when the handle is lowered - a trip to the repairers is in order, as I am reluctant to strip it down too far, then find that it needs a part or worse, a bit more know-how than I've got!

[BoD]

I have just received one of the usual 'your account has been compromised' type emails.

Nothing new there, but the closure made me chuckle......

 

 

Honestly, BARCLAYS Security Department.

[New Haven Neil]

No, honestly.....

 

Stats, yes, they're a load of rubbish.  I should know, I write our annual report!  The politicians love them though,  #sigh#

[Donw]

Very few people understand stats, there reliability and limitations. Most of the rubbish you here on TV and Radio such as this will give you a 10% better chance if you take this are based on an uncontrolled sample with so many uncontrolled variables the answer is meaningless. If you are carrying out trials (as I have done for work) where you change just one factor and control everything else you can get meaningful results. Analysing say causes of death from collected stats is rubbish. For a start at lot of people it is their heart that gives out not due to heart disease but because of other health problems. Often the certificate just says heart failure. In many cases these quoted chances of a recovery are guesstimates. Probably a reasonable one but not based on stats more on the surgeons experience.

 

Regarding speakers I first realised the differences when my Hifi keen uncle built two megaphone style speakers in his high ceiling flat. Later he made us some reverse cone speakers. These gave a lot of noise for a modest power. This was in the days when most Hifi speakers used loads of padding to reduce harmonics and thus a dead wooly sound. I can remember friends being amazed by the volume of my speakers. It did lose me a flat though. While away a flat mate played the rolling stones at full volume. Just too many complaints.

 

Don

[trisonic]

I never understood the use of padding in speaker cabinets. i suspect it was to cover up a lack of quality and research..........

 

Abbey Road used B&W built monitors for Classical and a whole different slew of monitors for Rock. Not the sort of thing you buy off the shelf, though.

 

We used to stick the final mix for a "single" through a Roberts radio to see what it would  sound like over the air.

 

Best, Pete.

[45156]

Abbey Road used B&W built monitors

I still like their offerings, and have a very creditable pair of their DM series speakers on decent stands (make all the difference when spiked through to the floorboards).  They're quite neutral in sound, and complement my Arcam amp and CD player pretty well.  No valves, though, but my mate has a pretty good Burman combo which has a new matched set of output KT66s and also has had most of the electrolytics replaced - sounds quite awesome with his Les Paul, too.

 

I also have managed to get back into the valve sound recently, as I acquired a little Marshall valve combo which also does the trick

[NGT6 1315]

I took a couple of re-routing photos on the occasion of a safety zone being imposed in the west of Frankfurt due to a WWII bomb recovery operation going on this afternoon: http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/blog/74/entry-11738-fmla-revisited-an-oft-overlooked-line/

[trisonic]

Memorial Day! Barbie on the go!

 

Someone just gave me a bottle of (real) Absinthe from  Prague. Going to get loaded!!

 

Best, Pete.

[Barry O]

Memorial Day! Barbie on the go!

 

Someone just gave me a bottle of (real) Absinthe from  Prague. Going to get loaded!!

 

Best, Pete.

Mine's a pint then Pete! (an old Billy Connoly joke.....)

[The Stationmaster]

Memorial Day! Barbie on the go!

 

Someone just gave me a bottle of (real) Absinthe from  Prague. Going to get loaded!!

 

Best, Pete.

Alright for some - this afternoon I have rotvated the final bit of veg patch, and strimmered then mowed (sort of) a fair chunk of the grassland (it would be rude to call it a lawn).  Hot and sunny but the following glass, or two, of white wine was duly quaffed down like a nice cool drop of lemonade or ginger beer.  And the garden does look a bit better for the attention it received and - best of all - the ground preparation work on the veg patch is now ahead of Mrs Stationmaster's seedling breeding programme.