How daft can you get?

[Tony S]

It seemed like a good idea at the time.

I bought a set of laboratory scales this morning for what was a good price, the rub was “buyer collects” and I don’t drive!

So I’ve now got a lump of glass, mahogany and brass thirty five miles away that’s going to cost a small fortune to get on to my mantelpiece.

 

[roys]

Yeah but it’s nice, I like kit like that.

 

[Tony S]

I was brought up with them Roy.

The days when you learnt about physics and chemistry at school. Chasing blobs of mercury around the desk and catching it in your hand as it fell off the edge.

Could you see a teacher showing a class how to make gunpowder these days?

 

[ProDave]

I bought a Grandfather clock from Birmingham.  We live just north of Inverness.

It was timed with a family trip down south, and I had measured up and made a trestle to support the clock laying on it's back inside my Subaru with the top of the clock between the driver and passenger seats..  I had even removed the plastic trim from the hatchback as that allowed the feet of the clock to protrude into the boot mechanism a couple of inches to eek out a bit more length.

It fitted in perfectly.  The only annoying thing was it went "bong" every time we went over a bump in the road.

 

[roys]

I recently bought an ex lab Fortin barometer, which has a leather bladder filled with mercury. Really like the look of it but I had to hang it up in my workshop as apparently my idea of tasteful decor is different from my wife’s.

Our electrical workshop in the 80’s use to have big brown heavy bottle filled with mercury for topping up switches, I remember blobs of it falling onto the conveyor belt covered benches and rolling it all back together into one big blob. 

 

[Tony S]

I’m hiring a car to collect it.

Its come down to “I want it” and I’ll do what’s required to get the bloody thing!

 

[Sharpend]

35 miles in which direction? 

 

[kerching]

Daughter boughtba BFO tent on ebay

my son said it was no issue shipping it 350 miles up here and he would sort it with one of his carriers

nobody would touch it due to,weight

daughters mate got it to,brighton

they they met up halfway at Oxford and daughter paid her fuel

got,it eventually

presently away camping in it, so all ended well

 

[Tony S]

35 miles in which direction? 

I’m in Nottingham, Ashbourne is about five miles north, north west of Derby on the A52 / A515. Not a major problem if you can drive.

It was my choice to stop driving due to suffering blackouts. I couldn’t give a damn about my life, I’m not going to be responsible for taking someone else’s life.

So a thirty quid piece of memorability is going to cost a tad extra. It will be more than worth it just because of its sentimental value.

The silly thing is, the coins I collect are far too heavy to put on the scales.

 

[Sharpend]

Sorry Tony that’s the wrong side for me to be able to pick it up for you. 

 

[Tony S]

Thank you for the thought of helping out.

I’ll get it sorted one way or another. It’s a long time since I’ve been back to Derbyshire so it will be a day out for a photographic expedition. If you would like to meet up somewhere then we can arrange a time and place.

 

[Sharpend]

Thanks for the offer Tony, work takes me all over the country so if I’m ever in the area of Nottingham, you’re first on my call list! 

 

[Tony S]

A taxi is now booked to pick the scales up.

I'll post pictures when they get here,

 

[Tony S]

The scales are now ensconced on my mantelshelf. I’ll post pictures tomorrow.

 

[ProDave]

This reminds me.  when I was a lad, I had some old laboratory instruments that I was given.  Once was a recording ammeter, a lovely piece of woodwork containing a large moving coil meter, with a pen that recorded the reading onto a slowly moving roll of chart paper.  Plus various volt and ammeters all in their nice wooden cases.

I can't remember what happened to them but I wish I still had them.  I also wish I still  had one or 2 of the old valve radios I had, the only "old" ones I still have are a couple of 1960's ones in bakerlite cases.  Again I had a really nice old wooden one that I wish I still had.

MY bakerlite cased wind up Air Ministry megger must be getting on to being a collectors item?

 

[Geoff1946]

This reminds me.  when I was a lad, I had some old laboratory instruments that I was given.  Once was a recording ammeter, a lovely piece of woodwork containing a large moving coil meter, with a pen that recorded the reading onto a slowly moving roll of chart paper.  Plus various volt and ammeters all in their nice wooden cases.

I can't remember what happened to them but I wish I still had them.  I also wish I still  had one or 2 of the old valve radios I had, the only "old" ones I still have are a couple of 1960's ones in bakerlite cases.  Again I had a really nice old wooden one that I wish I still had.

MY bakerlite cased wind up Air Ministry megger must be getting on to being a collectors item?

Oh, the stuff I was given when young, which I played with, studied, dismantled and disposed of, without ever thinking of their technology heritage value! 

I was always interested in technology from an early age and can recall having some early 1900s telephones in mahogany boxes, a photo projector device of similar age; I plugged it in and the lamps blew because they were 110volt! A 1920s battery radio, sadly lacking valves, which I now know I could obtain.

Numerous vintage mains radios came my way, which I learned to repair and eventually even sold one or two for a profit, when hard up, but many more I would love to still have. Finally I couldn't say how many TV22/TV24 bakelite cased TVs I must have dumped!  Sought after collectors items now.

 

[ProDave]

I must have repaired hundreds of televisions.  Fact: Every television I have ever owned, including the ones in the present house, have come to me faulty and I have repaired them, some I got free, some I paid for.  I have never bought a working television, ever.  But I can't think of any that stand out as "I wish I still had that"  I am not old enough to have had any of the old 405 line stuff.  I guess some of the early 625 stuff may be worth a bit, but I can't think of any that stood out as a thing of beauty.

I still have a box of old television valves but there doesn't seem to be much demand or interest in them. But I can't bear to throw them away.

 

[roys]

Hi @Tony S, how’s the scales looking.

Remembered to take my iPad into the workshop to get a pic of my new to me old barometer.

 

[Evans Electric]

I still have a box of old television valves but there doesn't seem to be much demand or interest in them. But I can't bear to throw them away.

You're as bad as me for not letting go of stuff  Dave . 

 

[Geoff1946]

Hi @Tony S, how’s the scales looking.

Remembered to take my iPad into the workshop to get a pic of my new to me old barometer.

View attachment 10173

That's nice. A friend of mine has one of those in pride of place the hallway of his house. It deserves better than the garage!  

Worth a bit too; I saw one in an antique shop for £600+.