Isolation Blues

Isolation Blues
   
                                   Covid 19, it`s place in our lives

As of today, the 25th, my wife and I are entering our 12th day of self –isolation, so far so good, however we are both in the high vulnerability category, me with having to have chemo therapy and Eleanor with a troublesome heart condition and of course our ages.
 With the advantages that technology can provide, contact with family and loved ones is not too problematical, face time, phone calls and emails can maintain that vital connection with the outside world. It did occur to me that through this forum further contacts can be established, not every can maintain a calm state whilst incarcerated at home. So why don`t we use the facility of forum time to keep in touch and report and comment on any manner of general topics as well as Bantam specific, after all, it`s always good to talk. If it helps to get it off your chest then why not.
Above all take on board the advice from senior clinicians to avoid unnecessary body contact and try to help the less fortunate than yourselves, try to stay healthy.

Trevor.

My wife and I are just starting our fifth week of self isolation, so far it has been a reasonably stress free exercise, the weather has been a great bonus with the garden receiving more attention than is usual at this time of year. Some of my locally living children have kept us provisioned and our local butcher will deliver a telephone order for milk, eggs fresh meat and cooked meat etc, so we seem to lack for little at present. In anticipation of a lengthy lock down I ordered a new radio controlled model plane kit and this has kept me occupied and interested in its construction. I don`t normally build from kits preferring to work from a plan and construct from my stock of balsa and ply wood.

The liner from my w/c bantam engine has also received some analysis, or perhaps more accurately, scrutiny. This the first time for perhaps two years that I`ve looked it over and can see where I could get a few more square mm of `B` transfer port area and more favourable direction control. So my forced isolation, I literally haven`t been through the front gates at all, has not been spent in idle boredom down here in sunny Somerset.

So how have all you guys out there been coping, and are you all still virus free, hope so, why don`t some of you send in a few of your anecdotes of your altered lives? Time seems appropriate to start the...… "Covid Chronicles"!

Cheers for now, Trevor

Hi Trevor, I just dropped in to the forum as I have a bit more spare time these days. I enjoyed your posts and was interested in the R/C model kit you have purchased. Yes I always used to build off plans, but do recall that my last model, built in about 1973 was kit form. Ripmax Dazzler 48 I recall. I used a Horizon 4 channel digital proportional set, and one of my Oliver Tiger 2.5's up front, on an 8x6 prop. Its all coming back! I bought an R/C throttle for the Oliver, so had Elevator, Ailerons, rudder and throttle. Great fun to fly, as the Oliver was more powerful than the glow motors the kit recommended. I sold the lot to fund my second TZ

So I imagine that your model will have electric propulsion?

I am thinking about building an electric powered glider and trying not to terrorise our horses. What else do you do with 3 acres of paddock

Well, that's about all from me for the moment. Hope all are well and staying safe

Covid Chronical 3
                        We are now entering our eighth week of self-imposed lock down so far with little incident, the most serious of which is trying to recall which day it is!
Great to hear from you Peter, I had no idea you were a one time aeromodeller not too late to resume though! The model I am constructing will have an old OS 40 four-stroke installed that will haul the model aloft puttering nicely swinging an 11x6 prop and perfect for quiet, lazy summer evenings.
There is quite an interesting tale associated with this engine becoming available for the new model. A few years ago we decided to have the house re-roofed, so all of the junk accumulated over the years had to go, not an easy task as our house has twin gables, hence the name. One gable loft space housed my collection of air frames, about eight, and sundry modelling kit. The previous summer to this exercise we had quite a few wasps in the house but just put it down to the vagaries of nature.
So, come the weekend of the start of loft clearance prior to the old roof coming off I stuck my head into the space flicked on the light and horror of horrors those pesky wasps had made a huge nest covering five sundry wings and fuselages. After calming down from my initial anger I was intrigued by the ingenuity and creativity of the much maligned wasp, no idea how many wasps it took to make the nest but soft Balsa wood must be a very inviting, and immediately available building material for them.
The nest was so vast with bits of plane sticking out that I had to enlist the assistance from one guys erecting the scaffolding around the house to get the thing out to the garden to chop it all up whilst liberating engines, servos, switches and so on. The scaffolding guy had never been up close to a wasps nest before and thought the whole thing was incredible and quite unbelievable.

All of you out there take care  and to quote a care worker on the radio yesterday when referring to the general public, " cover your face and give me space " !
 
Until next time, regards, Trevor