Model train to raise funds

: >

: >But on the subject of naming railway 'locomotives', I would like : >the APT-E fully restored and then named "Frank Whittle".... : : That would be too disturbine.

I get your thrust...

" I'll tell you what, why settle for a railway engine, ISTM that he could be a prime candidate for a *permanent* occupier of the 'Four Plinth' in Trafalgar Square - rather than =A0all this modern conceptual and or politically correct 'art' that they keep placing there... " Until the BNP got into power !

" But on the subject of naming railway 'locomotives', I would like the APT-E fully restored and then named "Frank Whittle".... " Now that IS a good idea ! I thought it had been restored and @ The National Railway Museum at Shildon ?

Chris

:: But on the subject of naming railway 'locomotives', I would :: like the APT-E fully restored and then named "Frank Whittle" : : Now that IS a good idea ! I thought it had been restored and : @ The National Railway Museum at Shildon ?

I doubt that it's got any engines, IIRC they were removed when it stopped being tested - they would have had either substantial resale or scrap value. When I said fully restored I meant to full running condition, not just cosmetically.

On Wed, 25 Feb 2009 16:12:13 -0800 (PST), snipped-for-privacy@o2.co.uk said in :

Absolutely. And I am Not Happy that the government is willing to bail out the idiot banks who caused this titanic clusterfuck, to the tune of a year's GDP, but refuses to contemplate a bail-out for LDV, one of our very few remaining indigenous vehicle manufacturers.

Guy

On Thu, 26 Feb 2009 21:46:50 -0000, "simon" said in :

And Sir Barnes Wallis. But my favourite under-rated hero is Robert Hooke.

Guy

Apart from the point about having to bail out the banks, they are indeed to big and integrated to fail (and they know/knew that, hence they became increasingly reckless), I agree - the problem though seems to be with the brain-dead in the EU rather than HMG, even the Germany and France are having the same problem but seem to be prepared to tell the EU were to go if needs be, but then they haven't got a anally retentive ex EU commissioner deciding of their national business policy like the UK has now.

It was not getting the APT-E moving that was the problem .... it was getting it to stop, especially at low speeds.

Chris

If your local authority/NHS bought LDV's instead of Fiat/Iveco/Renault/ Mercedes/any other make, the LDV wouldn't need bailing out. Whilst I have zero tolerance for the crooks high up in the banks, our manufacturing problems are home grown - by us, there is no "them".

Cheers Richard

On Sat, 28 Feb 2009 03:14:28 -0600, beamends said in :

It does buy some, and so does the Post Orifice and various other places. But the export market is impacted by exchange rates and all buyers are being squeezed. Germany and France still have manufacturing industry because they had bail-outs and protectionism; we eschewed these in favour of worshipping Loadsamoney types. Of course it's "us" - for values of us that might be using British-built vehicles every day in my case, and ones with a Queen's Award for Export at that - but in cases like this is may well be cheaper for the public purse to underwrite a debt temporarily than to pay for unemployment benefits for the staff. And what the hell is wrong with offering the same consideration to people who actually add value that we are apparently prepared to offer to a load of people who can't spot why loaning money to bad credit risks might not be a great idea?

Guy

: : If your local authority/NHS bought LDV's instead of Fiat/Iveco/Renault/ : Mercedes/any other make, the LDV wouldn't need bailing out. Whilst I have : zero tolerance for the crooks high up in the banks, our manufacturing : problems are home grown - by us, there is no "them". :

But that purchasing policy comes down from central Govt and indirectly the EU - from the times I've spent in France and Spain I don't recall seeing many (if any) 'non native' manufactured public service type vehicles. The UK buys everything on price, nothing else matters, it's very true what is said about the UK - we know the value of everything but the worth of nothing...

I actually agree - I'm a great believer in the "One pound battleship"[1] line of thinking. While building battleships is probably not quite the right thing for these times, seeing the Coastguard driving round in L200's with zero UK content when we make far superior vehicles here with a very high UK content just seems like UK PLC doing it's best to commit suicide.

Cheers Richard

[1] This is a theory from the 30's depression. If you employ many thousands to build a battleship and generate business for suppliers, the taxes raised, rather than paying the dole, mean the ship actualy only costs £1. I don't think that ever did work out exactly, but it keeps the economy moving.

The modern equivalent though, judging buy the railway, is to import trains and create 1500 jobs in Japan and 500 here;-)

I'm no mathemitician but I wonder how many fare paying passengers does a coach costing £5m need to carry before it produces a return on the original investment?

(kim)

It was great idea from their point of view since they were earning huge personal commission on every loan they approaved, none of which has yet been paid back

There's a lot of consternation locally that the council is still purchasing Peugot vehicles when the company long since transferred production to eastern europe to save on labour costs.

(kim)

On Sat, 28 Feb 2009 10:59:00 -0000, "kim" said in :

I don't know but FGW have just invested £1m per unit overhauling the HSTs, which have been in service for the thick end of thirty years and a million miles apiece, so probably not that many per journey.

Guy

DLV owned by the Russian GAZ Group ?

Chris

: DLV owned by the Russian GAZ Group ?

Your point being what, that they are built in UK (with UK labour) and not in Russia (with Russian labour)?...

It's not UK labour ( is that the half brother to New Labour ? ) but EU labour.

..... and don't the profits go back to the Russian shareholder ?

Chris

PS Is it Asperger's and / or ADHD you have Jerry ?

LDV Leyland DAF Vehicles. Do any of you recall the DAF 66 car ( subsequently to become the Volvo 66 ). A fellow student at uni' once told me his could go as fast backwards as it could forwards due to the auto gearbox ?

Did any other machines have a 'sliding gear' arrangement like a steam locomotive ?

Chris

It's not the size of the dog in the fight but the size of fight in the dog.