Gondor's Grumblings

[Gondor]

Not been doing much of anything. Not comfortable with my eyesight yet to do any serious modelling, although I have been looking at some of the kits I have and also planning what to buy next, mainly accessories such as barrels for tank guns and the like.
The level in my eye is dropping, at least it looks like that to me. Because it's optics, the gas/liquid interface could be inverted compared to what I am seeing of the outside world, as the image that is entering the eye becomes inverted due to the lens, so the gas/liquid interface could be getting inverted as well, but I don't know enough to say that it is definatley is or not. Regardless, I have an appointment on Thursday, so I will find out then. In the meantime, I will just have to put up with what's going on.

[Gondor]

Elsewhere, I have started a new build thread, partly as I was starting to get cabin fever just watching reruns of Time Team episodes, and simply wanting to build something a bit simpler than everything else that I have on the go. As I have stated in the build thread, I was going to glue some parts together, but found that I had not unpacked my glue, and when I did recover it from the model travel boxes, I found that my Three Squadron P.177 has suffered some transport damage and will need to be repaired. The glue is now standing upright on my modelling bench until tomorrow, to give the glue time to settle down to the bottom.

[The Wooksta!]

Might be time to invest in a small tool box specifically for show use.  I've done it for about a decade or so now.  Scalpel, spare blades, glue, superglue, cocktail sticks, few files, clippers and some sanding pads/sticks.  Perhaps a hand drill.  That's all you need.  Pack it right and you can get it in a decent sized ice cream tub.  You'd have to eat the ice cream first, so that's the bonus.

My first one was marked as "Duhkla Prague Away Kit" on the lid.  Those who know will know.

[Gondor]

Might be time to invest in a small tool box specifically for show use.  I've done it for about a decade or so now.  Scalpel, spare blades, glue, superglue, cocktail sticks, few files, clippers and some sanding pads/sticks.  Perhaps a hand drill.  That's all you need.  Pack it right and you can get it in a decent sized ice cream tub.  You'd have to eat the ice cream first, so that's the bonus.

My first one was marked as "Duhkla Prague Away Kit" on the lid.  Those who know will know.

Have one, though I wanted to keep my glues upright, which is why they went in the boxes with the models. Files, cutters, sanding sticks and the like go in the toolbox.

[Gondor]

I have spent most of the daylight part of the day travelling to Glasgow to see the Doctor who operated on my eye. The good news is that all is going well. No more drops, and he did say that I could drive if I wanted to once the gas bubble completely dissipates. He said it was at 40% at the moment, which is good news. At least that's what I think he said. It's also what I am saying to work, as the remaining bubble is distracting to me, so I would not want to drive far or for very long until that is gone. As I have an appointment on the last day of my sick leave, at least that is what work thinks the 19th is, I could always go early and ask about an extra week off from a Doctor if I still have the bubble visible to me.
Modelling-wise, I have decided to work on the MB 3b as well as the MB 4. There are enough differences so that the important bits, like wings, don't get mixed up. Other than removing the supports, the kits are very easy to work with. There should be more progress over the next couple of days.

[The Rat]

Things are looking up! 

[Gondor]

Thought I would do a little update, seeing how I increased the number of bits I have for models today. The armour stuff is going to go with what it was meant for. The Blackbird Highball kit is going to go with one of the Airfix Mosquito B.XVI/B.35/TT.35 kits I have, along with an Ally Cat Sea Mosquito conversion, just to be a little bit different. Hopefully, my build will not clash with anything that Lee is either building or has planned to build.
I am still pottering around with the two Martin Baker aircraft. Alister gives quite a few options in each kit, guns or no guns, plain or chequered tyres and a choice of rudder, one with a hook as well as the normal rudder of the MB.3 So I am going to do the MB.4 with a hook, I will scribe a wing fold just outside of the main undercarriage, which will have the chequered wheels, and I shall look at hanging some rockets under the wings as well. Pacific Fleet markings I think, same goes for the Highball Mosquito. The decals for that are on their way to me as I type, as I ordered them from Hannants at the weekend.

[The Wooksta!]

Blackbird's Highball conversion is a warmed over Paragon one, with the same errors and two omissions.  The tropical filters, if you're going for an Oxtail one, need replacing with the Freightdog ones, and it doesn't include the reinforcement strake for the port side (although that's easily mugged up with plastic card), nor the four blade props.  The plate for the hook is only applicable to the Sea Mosquito prototype, not the hooked 618 Sqn ones - all the reinforcement is inside and the hook actuators bolt directly onto the fuselage. Below is one of the three PR16s hooked postwar, which illustrates what I mean.

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Virtually all of the Mosquitoes I'm doing are real ones, and even if you clash, it's not an issue. 

[Gondor]

Thanks Lee

[Gondor]

Time for a bit of an update. During the week, work said that the sick line is validstarting on the day it is issued, which means that at the moment I am back to work on Monday. However, I have a Community Hospital appointment a little bit before lunch, so with the distance and time that I travel to and from work, I have asked for six hours holiday to go with the two hours I get for the hospital appointment, which means I am off work on Monday as well. Saying that, the gas bubble has not gone yet; it is easily visible in my sight and is very distracting at times. It is much smaller than it was, I can't say how small, as it's a little difficult to measure, but it is much smaller than it was. When I first saw the bubble, it filled half of my vision, now if I hold my thumb in front of my eye so that the knuckle is touching my face, the width is about the same as for the thumbnail. So I might go back to work on Tuesday, I will see how much of the bubble is left on Monday Morning.
Modelling-wise, I have been doing a few little things on the Martin Baker aircraft, and not much else other than planning a few things. A few things are an irritant, a lack of information on the differences between a late Churchill Mk.IV tanks and a Mk.VI other than the version number as a lot of late Mk. IV's were fitted with the same gun as the Mk.VI. Can anyone help?
 

[Gondor]

I'm a bit peeved at the Royal Mail. They delivered a parcel from Hannants today, and the driver thought he was being smart by putting it in a disused storage container near my flat. They obviously didn't notice that there was a large puddle where they put the parcel. The box is soaking wet; some of the contents boxes got damp, thankfully, no actual contents were damaged.
Not a happy bunny at all. Pictures have been taken, and feedback has been left.

[scooter]

My commiserations.  I've had FedEx leave boxes of cat supplies all over the driveway,  despite delivery instructions that say "side porch."  I've even had to porch pirate a box of stuff recently because somehow the driver couldn't figure out that 7 is not 3  .  I've had UPS leave a package on SWMBO's car.  Our usual mail guy is pretty good, usually bundling parcels with our regular junk mail; but other guys will either leave the parcels on the porch, and put the mail in the box, shove everything in the box, or throw the mail on the front porch...as has UPS/FedEx/Amazon.

[PR19_Kit]

They're getting really careless these days. Today I found a parcel left in my 'safe place', a large plastic box near my back door, which was clearly addressed to the house on the opposite side if the road.

It's not as if it's hard to see which house it should have gone to, they have the house name on a board fully 2 FEET high! 

[Rick Lowe]

Ah, the old Soviet model of "If they pretend to pay us, we'll pretend to work." Except they get paid pretty well... It turns out, you get Monkeys anyway...

[frank2056]

Our local mail people seem to be competent. I greet them on my walks and they're always very happy. I looked up how much a USPS mail person makes and it's verygood pay, even for L.A. No wonder they're smiling...