Photos as promised...

Good Morning,

As you might have guessed, I didn't get in until late last night...  I've been up since 4 this morning stressing whether or not I removed the crocodile clips from the truck battery I've been using to test my lighting strips - on Wednesday, my prototype went up in smoke when someone dragged a bit or metal accross the floor shorting it out...  now although no one should be there, we do have a mouse in residence and if she's scurried past... well, this morning we could be turning up to a bigger pile of smoking timber!!!

I was going to go in and check, but (given the yard was broken into the other night, by truck driving, bad-uns, wielding "gas cutting gear") I've decided to take a chance... the mouse may be having a lay in anyway.

SO - As we've not had time or energy to plan anything boaty, this week, here is a photo stream of the nearly finsihed chair-o-planes that have taken over my life for the last 3 months...

At the moment, it's looking like this:

Centre pole of the ride being craned into position - prior to this, we were trying to balance a few pallets on a fork truck, along side a scaffold tower... the grim reaper left a message so I stopped things and ordered the "right tool"

Centre pole finally erected and the build up around it could now begin.

1 set of steps down... 19 to go.

24 NEW swifts ... in 6 coats of paint.

Roger wandering around looking worn out - oh, the green thing is a grating (platform to walk on) -  20 of them ... each slightly different to make the walkway under the chairs.

Speaking (well writing) of chairs, the 1st batch of 24 in Royal Maroon after being repaired.

Trial run of swift, bars and chair - Roger doing the honours again.

4, 6 way light distribution boxes that end up at the top of the pole  through breakers. - fiddly as heck to do and my finger ends are still sore.

Lighting strip number 1 - 

Original light holders that "clamp on" to the wire - as you can see, made in 1965... we have 1000's in new boxes for the vintage rides... the modern stuff is all  leds.

Build up of top frame

I'm bored with these by now...and still had 20 to go.

Top frame completed. Now for some pretty stuff.

Rounding boards going on - 24 boards, with retaining panels between them.  All newly decorated.

Half way there...

Close up of Rounding boards 

The other 24 chairs - British racing green (ish) colour number 226.

Trying out some ceiling panels and trying to work out the best way of fixing them down without damaging them.

These are the newly made hangers the chairs attached to.  The originals were too far gone to be safe so we cut 48 new ones from 10mm plate  - they weigh a ton.  All new shackles and if you look closely in the bottom right hand corner, you can see a little black safety chain - this is in case the big one ever failed...it's certified to 2 ton and costs a fortune.

Another coat of green 

Fitting the centre droppers - these are heavy and the cherry picker is more hindrance than help really...

And that is where we left it last night...

Today, we somehow need to give all 80 steps another coat of gloss, do the edges of the platforms,  finish the lighting strips, fit strengthening bars to the steps, rig up the lap chains and leg belts to stop folk falling out, do the remaining  47 safety chains, cuprinol the undersides of the steps and gratings, fit the rest of the droppers, attach the chains, attached the chairs, drill holes in each swift to accommodate the light strips, make a few brackets for the light strips... - oh you get the picture I'm sure....

5.15 now so it's time to sing *Hey ho.., Hey ho... it's off to work I go...*

until next time...