Friday 26 July 2013

Dark room photo enlarger kit

I have this mainly complete dark room kit set doing nothing and looking for a new home, it includes the developer tanks, timers, thermometer, enlarger and stand, light box and lots of other gizmos.


The light box and the enlarger lights both work.


The enlarger is branded Meopta, Opemus 111, it is well made and comes with a spare lens and required swing out red filter.
Contact me for more info, the price is R1500, which is U$150 only, we are in Cape Town and can ship to most places.

Roy

Thursday 25 July 2013

Enough blue sky to make a Dutchmans shorts

Dutchman's breeches


I heard this on 567 Cape Talk radio a few weeks back, I have heard it before but why the term?

Roy

Marilyn Kloss wrote:

"The clouds will clear when there is enough blue sky to make a Dutchman a pair of pants." My mother (born in 1913 in northern New Hampshire) has been saying this all my life, and she learned it from her mother (from Nova Scotia by way of Lowell, Massachusetts). Recently an aunt by marriage (from Waterbury, Vermont) mentioned the same expression (with the variation of "britches") and said that she had learned it from her mother. Yesterday I was with some friends (about 60 years old) from Liverpool, England, who know the same expression, but the variations are that it is an "Irishman" and his "trousers." Where did this expression come from?

Read more here:

http://www.randomhouse.com/wotd/index.pperl?date=20000712

Tuesday 23 July 2013

The licence plate for me

This would look great on my own Ford ldv?


The owner of this is an OCC member, also a surfer!

Roy

Monday 22 July 2013

St Helena Island gets a RO-RO terminal

That sounds a little grander than the truth but truth it is. Word was out some time back about a new hardbour wall construction for the island, I had always expected it would be in Ruperts Bay but what size will it be?

http://www.sainthelenaaccess.com/news/temporary-jetty/

Check the link, its a great idea and one that allows all kinds of heavy equipment to be off or on loaded.

The ship being used is the NP Glory 4 and has the contractors name Basil Read painted in hugh letters on the side of the ship.

RO-RO stands for roll on roll off, what they have done is build a narrow harbour wall, say 20 meters wide and out far enough into deeper water. Then the airport contractors have leased a very special cargo ship, the bow of which is quite flat and opens by folding out and downwards.

http://www.sainthelenaaccess.com/news/temporary-jetty/

I wonder will they ever remove all this hardware?
With the bow of the ship moored port & starboard and with two pick up bouys at the stern, its possible to take the ship in bow first, lower the bow onto the dock and drive the ships load right onto St Helena Island, very cost effective and very neat!

It will be suitable for smaller vessels to tie alongside when the chartered ship is away?



This is a picture I took back in 1977 and from the decks of Brer Terrapin,  Ruperts Bay is just around that headland and after that Jamestown. We were 13 days out from Cape Town.



I think this is the selected site of the airport?

Roy

Dragon class yacht, circa 1956

This yacht was given a major facelift last year, we supplied a lot of the materials used, fairing epoxy, Dow-Corning sealant, mahogany veneer and teak wood solids.

 
The decks were already in laid teak, the Dow-Corning sealant was for a re caulk of the joints.

 
Mahogany flexible veneer went on the coach roof.
 
 
Teak solids were used inside the cockpit and as floor covers.
 
 
As far as I know this Dragon was sailed in the 1957 Olympics in Melbourne, Australia and came third in the event for Sweden.
 
Click on the pictures for a larger image.
 
Roy