I would just like to say

[Dippypud]

An that anorl.
As for the hotels, I think is a tickler kinda bee that uses ours. Smaller an darker than a nunny bee. They walls the toobs up, mebbe to hibernate or to protect babee?

Stops magpie and crows getting their beaks in and eating them …

 

[landowner]

.... I am a bit cross/sad/disheartened. Harumph!
I thought that today would be a very good day to change the valve stem oil seals on the Mini, but It isn't.
Rocker pedestal off, plugs out, pick a cylinder at the bottom of its stroke, fill the cylinder with soft nylon rope, wind the piston back up to crush the rope against the valves and Top-down valve spring compressor deployed but NOPE. It don't fit it is far too big and the head casting gets in the way of the legs that are meant to be inserted into the lower coil(s) of the spring.
No matter what you do all you get is the spring pulled up and the top half of the spring compressed, and you cannot free the collets.
OK, try another tack spread the legs of the compressor across the 2 adjacent valves to the one you want to compress.
Progress? ...just about got the collets out, but the magnet wants to stick to the tool, the spring cap, but not the collets.
Managed to get them out and remove the spring.
Off with the old seal, on with the new one.
Try reassembly....... Just NO!
I cannot get the spring to compress enough to insert the collets because.... the valve drops by about 1/16th of an inch each time the spring is compressed and the collet grooves are now not all accessible.
Very frustrating, so I have come indoors for a cup of coffee and a sulk.
There must be another way to do this without taking the head off or losing your sanity.

I have just watched this bloke do exactly what I am trying to do, and he has had no real problems (maybe he did all his swearing off camera?

I shall have another go when I have calmed down a bit.

Hows about making something like this ?

 

[DanClarke]

Hows about making something like this ?

Yes, or an angle iron bolted onto the rocker pedestal studs and levering off that with a bit of 1" tube on a bar.

 

[DanClarke]

... Hosp visited, she has to have a colonoscopy next week.
Poor thing, not going to enjoy that I think.

 

[Stanleysteamer]

... Hosp visited, she has to have a colonoscopy next week.
Poor thing, not going to enjoy that I think.

I've had two, the biz before where you empty your bowils in't much fun. The colonscopy itself is OK until they have to manouevre round a bend then it can get a bit painful, but they give you gas and air. At least she should be able to see what is going on as they do it cos they have at least 2 screens usually.
If they find any polyps they usually deal with them on the spot and they have two or three ways of doing that.
After my last one, where they only found one minute one, they told me not to bother again!
Of course if you have had one all this is useless info!
Anyway give her my best wishes and that they don't find anything worse than benign stuff.

 

[Turktowner]

I've had two, the biz before where you empty your bowils in't much fun. The colonscopy itself is OK until they have to manouevre round a bend then it can get a bit painful, but they give you gas and air. At least she should be able to see what is going on as they do it cos they have at least 2 screens usually.
If they find any polyps they usually deal with them on the spot and they have two or three ways of doing that.
After my last one, where they only found one minute one, they told me not to bother again!
Of course if you have had one all this is useless info!
Anyway give her my best wishes and that they don't find anything worse than benign stuff.

Much the same as my experience. I had intravenous paracetamol because I had driven myself in. Discomfort, but no more. Best bit was hanging out some washing that morning, I thought it was a fart..

 

[Stanleysteamer]

And today's news is that I have started on the electronics.
I have desoldered one big and awkward to get to capacitor, measured its capacitance, and sho nuff, it is 20 mF where it should be 47 mF.
So it looks like the peeps on the forum were right.
I then soldered a new one into place, (fiddly as FLIP!) cleaned up on the PCB where there is only a narrow gap between one solder point and another track. Put it all back together and it is now on test.
One anomaly is that when I actuate the slider that goes from off, to timer, to on (economy) then finally to on "comfort" It all works as it should except the on/off position stays on!!! Not a problem as it is all switched via other switches on the consumer panel, but still, interesting!!

So, onwards and upwards.

Much the same as my experience. I had intravenous paracetamol because I had driven myself in. Discomfort, but no more. Best bit was hanging out some washing that morning, I thought it was a ****..

Yep, you don't want to be far from a loo and as Billy Connolly says "don't trust a ****"

 

[Stanleysteamer]

Well.......... (ahem)( you were waiting for this!)

I left the stat switched on and came downstairs to do other stuff pricipally helping W make tomato soup, but also to make a coupla phone calls.
W had put a pan on a gas and I said to her, what's been burned or scorched? so we looked around couldn't see nuffin, so I went upstairs to check and, you guessed it, there was a faint trickle of smoke coming out of the back of the stat!

I moved the switch to "off" no diff, indicator lights were flickering, The original fault, so I went downstairs and switched it off at the mother board.
So on further investigation, the relay is toast, the new capacitor ditto, (it had been touched by molten stuff coming from the relay which is right next to it.
So I took the opportunity to nip off the two other capacitors which others had said could be dodgy, measured them and both were fine.

So, was the relay dodgy anyway, or had I been hamfisted with the soldering?
One of the six terminals to the relay is indirectly linked to the path that comes extremely close to one of the terminals of the capacitor. I have to imagine that it was this, or the relay was on its way out anyway.
I think I am going to have to modify my soldering iron, i.e. to grind the tip down so it is much narrower.

I think this was only to be expected from an amateur.
Doubtless I'll get better with practice.

 

[kevstar]

Bort meself a new laptop bag as the zips are giving up on mine. Ah dun't like the ones int chop so had to go online. Tis 12 years old so done well. Wassa rescue bag. It were being chucked out and eye rescued it. It were new still int bag but hadda split int material so binned like a raggy doll. Need it fer wuk.

Suits you sir.........

 

[kevstar]

Our solar hot water tank is 300 litres and can get as hot as 95 degs, not that we ever would!

Excellent....can you can make 300lts of soup for us.

 

[Hippo]

Well.......... (ahem)( you were waiting for this!)

I left the stat switched on and came downstairs to do other stuff pricipally helping W make tomato soup, but also to make a coupla phone calls.
W had put a pan on a gas and I said to her, what's been burned or scorched? so we looked around couldn't see nuffin, so I went upstairs to check and, you guessed it, there was a faint trickle of smoke coming out of the back of the stat!

I moved the switch to "off" no diff, indicator lights were flickering, The original fault, so I went downstairs and switched it off at the mother board.
So on further investigation, the relay is toast, the new capacitor ditto, (it had been touched by molten stuff coming from the relay which is right next to it.
So I took the opportunity to nip off the two other capacitors which others had said could be dodgy, measured them and both were fine.

So, was the relay dodgy anyway, or had I been hamfisted with the soldering?
One of the six terminals to the relay is indirectly linked to the path that comes extremely close to one of the terminals of the capacitor. I have to imagine that it was this, or the relay was on its way out anyway.
I think I am going to have to modify my soldering iron, i.e. to grind the tip down so it is much narrower.

I think this was only to be expected from an amateur.
Doubtless I'll get better with practice.

The thermocouple may be in the tip. Depends wot type ov iron yer gottid. Damaging the surface ov the tip will make it more difficult to solder fings.

 

[kevstar]

I've had two, the biz before where you empty your bowils in't much fun. The colonscopy itself is OK until they have to manouevre round a bend then it can get a bit painful, but they give you gas and air. At least she should be able to see what is going on as they do it cos they have at least 2 screens usually.
If they find any polyps they usually deal with them on the spot and they have two or three ways of doing that.
After my last one, where they only found one minute one, they told me not to bother again!
Of course if you have had one all this is useless info!
Anyway give her my best wishes and that they don't find anything worse than benign stuff.

My pal had this done recently he's 28 & has been passing blood, I mean big clots n loads of blood.

 

[kevstar]

And today's news is that I have started on the electronics.
I have desoldered one big and awkward to get to capacitor, measured its capacitance, and sho nuff, it is 20 mF where it should be 47 mF.
So it looks like the peeps on the forum were right.
I then soldered a new one into place, (fiddly as FLIP!) cleaned up on the PCB where there is only a narrow gap between one solder point and another track. Put it all back together and it is now on test.
One anomaly is that when I actuate the slider that goes from off, to timer, to on (economy) then finally to on "comfort" It all works as it should except the on/off position stays on!!! Not a problem as it is all switched via other switches on the consumer panel, but still, interesting!!

So, onwards and upwards.

Yep, you don't want to be far from a loo and as Billy Connolly says "don't trust a ****"

Englishman

 

[Stanleysteamer]

The thermocouple may be in the tip. Depends wot type ov iron yer gottid. Damaging the surface ov the tip will make it more difficult to solder fings.

The tips are detachable, so no electric connection to anything. So I am guessing solid steel.
You will know bettern I.

 

[Stanleysteamer]

My pal had this done recently he's 28 & has been passing blood, I mean big clots n loads of blood.

Oh dear that doesn't sound good at all.

 

[kevstar]

Oh dear that doesn't sound good at all.

Yer I dont think they've found out whats going on yet.

 

[Stanleysteamer]

Yer I dont think they've found out whats going on yet.

Well you know all about my bruv's situation. So I know what can be involved, but 28, that is flipping ridiculous. do seriously hope that they sort him out soon and well.

 

[Turktowner]

Well.......... (ahem)( you were waiting for this!)

I left the stat switched on and came downstairs to do other stuff pricipally helping W make tomato soup, but also to make a coupla phone calls.
W had put a pan on a gas and I said to her, what's been burned or scorched? so we looked around couldn't see nuffin, so I went upstairs to check and, you guessed it, there was a faint trickle of smoke coming out of the back of the stat!

I moved the switch to "off" no diff, indicator lights were flickering, The original fault, so I went downstairs and switched it off at the mother board.
So on further investigation, the relay is toast, the new capacitor ditto, (it had been touched by molten stuff coming from the relay which is right next to it.
So I took the opportunity to nip off the two other capacitors which others had said could be dodgy, measured them and both were fine.

So, was the relay dodgy anyway, or had I been hamfisted with the soldering?
One of the six terminals to the relay is indirectly linked to the path that comes extremely close to one of the terminals of the capacitor. I have to imagine that it was this, or the relay was on its way out anyway.
I think I am going to have to modify my soldering iron, i.e. to grind the tip down so it is much narrower.

I think this was only to be expected from an amateur.
Doubtless I'll get better with practice.

It appears that Stannage, to Stan, or be Stanned is branching into new fields..

You int bin doin stuff fer SpaceX have you?

I note the last launch was successful. GO STAN!

 

[kevstar]

Well you know all about my bruv's situation. So I know what can be involved, but 28, that is flipping ridiculous. do seriously hope that they sort him out soon and well.

Yes do know about your bruv poor chap.
I only hear from my bruv when he wants somit or he wants to show off a new toy
He likes to borrow money then pay it back in dribs n drabs. I paid off his car which was on finance so he could sort his life
out then turns up with a new fancy motorbike & hadn't given me a penny back, bloody thousands of pounds I shelled out.
Lesson learnt lol

 

[Hippo]

Just bort meself a long reach scrubbin bog brush ont ebay cos yer can't gerrum int chop. Me normal one can't get in enuff to remove worreye fort was pipe sealer int u bend.