Wonwings Diary-a blog with a difference.

[wonwinglo]

Yes Richard,we are all big kids at heart really ! why do you think that adults buy train sets for their youngsters,why to play with the trains themselves.

Its these memories of happy balmy sunny warm days of yesteryear that keep us all going,and why not ? there are so many serious aspects to humdrum life today that it is good to have an hobby to occupy our minds.

Have a good day on the ocean waves there.

[Guest]

Barry,This reminds me of a time about 35-40 years ago when my father made a rubber powered model for my brother and myself. We took it to a field and had a thoroughly enjoyable afternoon flying it but couldn't work out why the plane did a beautiful circle round the circumference of the field and came back to us every time. We even got the hang of how many turns on the motor was required to get the plane to almost land at our feet and the challenge became to get it to return as close as possible to us on the ground.

It wasn't until we broke it down to put it back in the car that we realised we had counted the wing frames incorrectly and offset the wing, held on by elastic, by a half a frame width. This taught us an invaluable lesson that we used after that to determine the radius of the arc the plane would fly to best suit the field we were in at the time.

It is remembering little gems like that that make me sad that I havent got any kids to pass them on to.

If anyone has any spare kids they can lend me for Sunday mornings I'm your man!!

Maybe that is why I enjoy the forum so much!

just ask and i can send them frree of charge

[wonwinglo]

LOL Nigel that is so funny !! I can just imagine a consignment load of kids arriving on Richards doorstep.

[Guest]

Its only in the spirit of the forum to help out a fellow modeller that i make the offer (by the way its non returnable) lol

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Political correctness or trying to change the history books ?



Like many others, I was disgusted to see that film producers were under pressure to change the history books once again,a re-make of the 'Dambusters' film is on the books but they have been told that they must change the name of Guy Gibsons dog called 'Nigger' not content with banning the very same name on boot polish tins we now get this hypocrisy,when will all of this nonsense end ? how can you rename a dog just because certain people feel offended by it,everyone knows that his dog was called by that name and if they did change it then that would be sacrilage,the story would not be accurate and would certainly get distorted for future generations.

There are millions of people who would not care a dam about this,but many others prepared to speak their minds about the decision,we are dealing with events which changed the course of history,so what right has anyone to rename Guy Gibsons loveable creature ? there are many other aspects to this that could be gone into here,suffice to say that we all know of the superb work done by the Tuskagee airmen who fought for their country,how would people feel if changes were made to their own exploits,no matter how small or insignificant they are.

So please for the sake of history,will those small minded people who instigate such changes not forget that if it was not for such great people as Guy Gibson they would not be here today to moan about it today !

Keep the name 'Nigger' nothing else will be acceptable.

[Guest]

I totally agree this is pc gone mad yet again how i despair with my countrys political leaders when they rewrite history in order to not offend people who are not offended

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Inspirational challenges.



Part of any model building is the challenge to produce something that seems impossible at first,everyone who has had a succes with any type of model knows full well the amount of failures he has had along the way,you just cannot expect to get straight in and suceed first time,the whole process is one of learning how to handle the materials,how best to work with them economically and how to get the best within your own personal limitations.

To this end today we have all the resources in the world to fall back upon,at one time it was waiting for the favourite monthly model magazine and scan it from cover to cover,now we have numerous specialised forums just like this one where people of like minds can get together and assist each other in a fun way,that challenge to do something can probably be answered by a like minded person,and save you hours of research and flustration.

A lot of our modelling expertise comes down to our past skills that we learned about at school,those fortunate enough to have someone skilled in making things will be grateful for those experiences watching dad or uncle whittling wood or fileing a piece of metal,a lot of our ability reflects in our past inspirations or aspirations,one day we wanted to build a model galleon just like that but lacked the knowledge or resources to do so,there are kindly people in this world prepared to share their knowledge,here is one example that happened to myself-Whilst at school I was building up a collection of aviation magazines,they did mean a lot to me as they formed the nucleus of my research and plans for building,not being a member of a bookbinding class I decided to ask the respective teacher to assist me in binding these together,this was a bold thing to do as the said teacher was prepared to assist me in his free time,he taught me how to bind the issues together,trim the edges,add the boards and finally the gilding on the spine,in other words he was not only prepared to devote some time to me even though I did not take book binding,but inspired me to have a go myself,years later I bound some similar books at home using the same ideas that he was prepared to teach me all of those years ago,you see what I am getting at ? he gave something back in such a generous way to another human being in terms of passing on a skill.

And this is something we must all strive to do for our hobby,whether it be our own children,grand children or friends or neighbours,the very lifeblood of any hobby are the newcomers,without them things will just vanish into oblivion,think about it ? lets all try and inspire others and accept that tricky challenge.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary- Techniques and applications.



We all work in different ways in our model building, but there are one or two things that are worth noting that apply to us all to make life easier,and above all to ensure that our projects go smoothly.

No matter how you hate planning this is vital if things are to work out,modelling is all about making small sub assemblies which eventually one day fuse together to make that one beautiful functional object,recently I spoke to someone who was restoring a vintage car,the task in hand looked insurmountable,there were parts everywhere some in a dreadful state,the owner assured me that by concentrating on one thing at a time everything would be all right on the night,on one bench he had the radiator being fitted with new cores,laid out on the floor were the large wing panels receiving attention,the answer he said was to concentrate on one item at a time,attempt the lot in one go and the job will never get finished and end in disaster,treat every single item as a small model in itself,which it rightly is,self discipline in getting the sub assemblies done was the answer.Shoud there be a problem then just move on to a new area while perhaps materials are sourced,or advice is sought,and one day everything will pull together,the problem areas can be tackled later.

The picture above demonstrates this to good effect,the model was broken down into convenient sub assemblies,only one thing at a time was tackled,this really helps to maintain your interest instead of just loosing heart early on and the project failing.

With a bit of pre-planning even the most complex of models can be tackled,it is all about technique and application in what you are attempting to do.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-The price of progress ?



No doubt like myself you have been baffled by a recent television advertisement by AOL ? the ad runs as if it is condemming the internet and leaves you a bit confused,especially as it comes from one of the first large internet service providers,intrigued I decided to investigate a bit further and was quite amazed at their new web site called 'AOL Discuss'.

The site is part of an open discussion on the pros and cons of the internet and how it has affected everyones lives since it started,it goes into a lot of detail and is broken down into groups of 'for' and 'against' different aspects,there are some very good points raised by people from all walks of life and well worth looking at.

Perhaps AOL are trying to change their image to a more caring part of the internet that they helped create ?

There certainly is plenty of food for thought for everyone interested in the immense progress that has and is being made,the opening comments that say 'Who could have imagined the growth rate and success of the internet,and above all how it affected the way we live,shop and work' really make you think.

[Guest]

Hi Barry

Silly question.

There is a "Go Advanced" click on at the message box what does that do and I see some of us use Smilyes .How can I get them on this site as there on the message box onther sites.

Have you all recovered from the holidays ???

[John]

Hi BarrySilly question.

There is a "Go Advanced" click on at the message box what does that do and I see some of us use Smilyes .How can I get them on this site as there on the message box onther sites.

Have you all recovered from the holidays ???

It's like using the post reply button or quote it brings up another box for you to type your message in

If you use post reply



You will have loads more formating options as well as some quick pick smillies, if there isn't enough there then click on the [more] link

Hope that answers your question

:regards:

[Guest]

cheers for now

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-My biggest ever model.



Someone asked me what my largest model was,well it certainly was not the Avro Lancaster but this little low wing monoplane seen here with my son sitting in the cockpit ! sorry it is not a better picture but this was before the days of digital photography and taken with a primitive camera,anyway let me tell you how this project started,around 1970 I was approached by the Midland Air Museum to build a small aeroplane that could demonstrate an aeroplanes controls,I built this 25 foot span single seater and decided to go one step further,having collected a load of 49 cc moped engines I decided to power her with one so that she would taxy along,I carved the biggest prop that I had ever made and made up an adaptor to bolt it onto the moped engine,a blacksmith friend fabricated a really nice undercarriage for me,she was built entirely outside as I did not even have a shed big enough to keep her in but thankfully we had a good summer that year,months of sawing and shaping saw this little aeroplane called the 'Clay Cherub' she was even officially recognised by the British aircraft preservation council and given the marks 'BAPC 125' she also wore the un-official marks G-BDGP standing for 'Dammed good pilot' to make people think that she really would taxy at least !!

The first public appearance of the Cherub was at a school garden fete,we wheeled her up through the back gardens,up and over a main road stopping the traffic,and pushed her into the playground and eventually assembling her in the main hall,needless to say we dare not run the engine through fear of slicing off someones arm,so settled for a static display that day,she served well to advertise the museums work.

As the aircraft was not big enough for myself to even sit in ( very upset over this ) my son had to be the pilot and set the throttle after a lengthy briefing and I swung the prop,she burst into life with the usual po-popping made by a moped,but alas there was just not enough power to move her along the ground,what she needed was a Scooter engine,but she did look good.

Anyway eventually she was positioned within the aforementioned museum as an exhibit,she was painted in U.S.Army drab fuselage with yellow wings and really looked quite cute.

What happened to her ? well quite sad really,one night vandals jumped the fence into the museum and decided to go on a rampage,she was torn to pieces and looked a very sorry state the next day with the wings torn off and everything trampled,she was beyond repair,I salvaged the undercarriage for building another Cherub some time,but we moved shortly afterwards to set up a model shop and with pressure of work the Cherub Mk.2 never got built.

But at least I have some record of her.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Research and Sleuthing.



My good wife always says that I should have been a detective ? well perhaps that is not such a bad idea after all and lots of money to be made from it too,the fact is that if I need to find an old friend or deeply research something then I am in my element,only this week we made contact with an old friend from yesteryear who vanished without leaving their address,the number was ex-directory and everything led to zilch,then I thought why not try these on-line search thingies to see if they work ? they cost money but we decided to give it a try,sure enough within 48 hours the address was in my mail box.

But searching for people is boring compared with research into aircraft histories,looking for drawings or whatever,the information is all out there it just needs finding.

Researching local aviation history led me to the local archives,I spent six months of every Friday on that research and it was really fascinating stuff,these days you can get the research done for you if you do not have the time,most of the larger museums have archivists who will do the job on your behalf for a respective fee,but the real fun lies in doing it yourself,I cannot express the joy of finding something out yourself that you wanted to know from the past.

So if you need to know something whether it is simple family history or a colourscheme for your latest model,go for it,you will be pleasently surprised at what you can achieve.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Further ideas for Freds memorial.



There have been further ideas put forward by Sheila Dibnah,Freds widow to place some sort of permanent memorial to this erstwhile true English character.

Freds exploits with his beloved steam engines has prompted Sheila to suggest perhaps a large stationery steam engine 'The Fred Dibnah Memorial Engine' what a fabulous idea as opposed to a statue figure,after all he was a totally practical hands on man,and a suitable steam engine run forever in his name would be just ideal.

Not that there is anything finalised but take a look at his brand new web site dedicated in his name www.dibnahs.com here there is a full explanation of the project,lots of pictures of him and some great write-ups.

We wish the project well,to remember forever one of Britains greatest characters.