Great thread, genuine LOL moment 🙂

I’ve heard of issues concerning P51 stuff & Boeing who now hold the intellectual rights to NAA through Rockwell or somesuch BS, but I can’t tell you what the issues are.

When doing this to ally, get a bar of household soap and rub it all over the area being done, when heated the soap will turn black, remove the heat, this is the temp that anneals alluminium (softened sufficently) and the blackened soap tells you you have it at the correct temp.

or run the oxy/acet carburizing flame over it to turn it black, then add Oxy & burn off the soot. Same result.

The soap trick works quite well for bent castings.. motorcycle levers spring to mind.

Also:
Lots of useful info at allmetalshaping.com, tinmantech & metalmeet etc.

Hang on a sec, people in the UK still think TIGHAR actually does something other than raise funds for Gillespie to go swanning about the Pacific on vacation? He’s the biggest con artist going, I can’t believe people actually wasted time watching that asshat.

Actually the dies for flanging round holes aren’t really expensive at all in the grand scheme of things.. & are really cheap if you have a lathe 🙂

http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=815221&highlight=dimple+dies

and:

http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=871560

On the topic of stretcher/shrinkers, they work so much better with stippled die faces instead of the way they come from the supplier.
https://www.tinmantech.com/html/lancaster_modified.php

http://allmetalshaping.com/showthread.php?t=1054&highlight=stippled+dies

Did the RN have carriers earmarked for a Pacific (as opposed to a SEA) war?
I’m not aware of any RN ships or aircraft used in the “island hopping” campaign towards Japan.
Please correct me if I’m wrong..

RN had ships attached to the big US fleets. I read something recently that listed some of them, but I can’t tell you which ships right now.

Edit, here ya go:
http://www.ww2pacific.com/britships.html

The fleet included 17 aircraft carriers (with 300 aircraft), four battleships, 10 cruisers, 40 destroyers, 18 sloops, 13 frigates, 29 submarines, 35 minesweepers, other kinds of fighting ships, and many support vessels.

Once more visitors to the Show enjoyed considerable heat, which was alright for those who did not have to sit in a Shogun on the runway being flour-bombed by the Jackeroos, Queen Bee and a Tiger. With hindsight, we could have left the windows open, as they weren’t very good shots !

Could be worse…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k4f3vJjvR9c