Ah – yes – I recognise that, the vertical violin!! – at some of our local jazz club gigs, one of the guy’s – Johnny Van Derrick, now dead unfortunately, used one of those and on occasions in the middle of a 1920’s jazz number, would even play a hornpipe on it like a guiter. He and his mate Stephen Grappelli?, same age, used to get together on occasions but Johnny went the full jazz route whilst Stephen went more the orchestral route. I have to say though that they never seemed to sweat as much as this Fender lot, must have been tougher in those days.

Cheers

My dear young lady, (and that is said in a polite and courteous, not condecending, way), no, it did not sound rude at all – after all this is humour not PC – god help us all with these PC idiots, scared of using their own language in its proper context for fear of upsetting someone who like them cannot speak or understand it properly in the first place. Now I can really get on a hobby horse, apart from Women only speaking Klingon.

Cheers

Playing Fenders

You can also play a fender.;):D

Yes – but the nuts & bolts ruin my knuckles – and as for keeping it polished !!! well !!!:D

Carefull – paranoia is the easy way out – just ask Jacqui (I think that I’ve spelt that rite) Smith – our phantom Home Secretary (every home should have one).

Hi BB (If I may call you that?) – Yes, I am aware of being a certain age, but I’ve stopped asking about it, it became rather confusing. My Granny had a lovely brass one too, but it was probably because she was born before the turn of the century, 1900 that is, before that yankee bloke Ford (no – not the president, the one making horseless carriages) started all this nonsense. That reminds me, that Aussie guy I referred to previously, used the term ‘bumper’ – now I thought, through my readings of the colony’s newsheets that this was a local term for a glass of beer, obviously they lost the use of the word pint somewhere.

Anyway the state of England and English is terrible, but I must go, the wife needs me – to clean the filter on the washing machine – I knew I was supposed to be doing something ……

Cheers

Great thread everyone but I’ve been thinking – takes a while – that Aussie guy some time ago called a bumper a fender – now thats plain wrong – a fender stops hot coals from falling off the fire and setting light to the carpet – nothing to do with cars? – is that where this started?

Daglings & Co

Two books which give a good background to pre-war gliding in this country and Germany are ‘Happy to Fly’ by Ann Welch, subsequently ATA pilot and post war gliding champion and ‘The Sky My Kingdon’ by Hannah Reitsch who became Hitlers favourite test pilot, including flying the prototype ‘rocket engines’ and jets, including the Me262.

The Dagling was a very crude wooden skid, leather seat and stubby wing attached to a bungee rope, used circa 1933 plus as a very basic hand towed ‘try this’ experience. I would imagine that any attempt at an aero tow would very quickly lead to major surgery!. One is hanging from the ceiling of Dubrovnik airport as of approx 1997.

I learnt to fly with the ATC on a cable launched Slingsby T21 side by side glider in 1956, we solo’ed after about 4 – 5 hours circuits & bumps, then doing two circuits for the ‘A’ licence followed by two cross wind landings for the ‘B’ licence. This was at Hawkinge which was an initial entry camp for WAAF’s, 200 at a time on their initial entry period of 6 weeks, no leave allowed, only a unit of 24 airman on camp and us poor young cadets.

Just in passing, in 2001 I went to Rufforth near York for a large model aircraft flying display, (like 10ft wingspan, 4 turbines, Boeing 747’s, Vulcans, Concordes, Victors, 1/4 scale spitfires, Highspeed models – 350Mph flyby etc., worth going to), Lo & Behold the local flying club had a restored Slingsby T21, so I was able to go up with the owner on an aerotow and have a go again at the age of 60, fantastic, open cockpit etc. first proper flying for about 40 years.

Nice to have fun!! Cheers;)