2013 at the Hammond Barn

[Ryan]

Amazing pictures guys. Just totally foreign to me. 3 weeks now without a drop of rain, paddocks dry and becoming barren. Dust, grass seeds in your clothing and cloudless skies.
All the best for 2013 from down under.

[RHClarke]

There was a reception committee awaiting my arrival at the barn this morning. To my surprise there were about 20 quite large birds pecking away at the snow in front of the barn doors. As I approached with my camera, half of the crowd flew away with remarkable speed. The braver ones eye-balled me with curiosity until I got up close - then they took off in a flurry of feathers and rude noises. Of course the camera on my mobile telephone decided to ask me some qestions about exposure, and by the time I had sorted it out, the turkeys were gone. Bob has been feeding the local "flock" of turkeys and they obviously have told their friends about the free food at the barn.

After lighting up Lucifer (it was -10oC outside), I headed out of doors for some more snow management. Bob showed up mid-morning and after catching up on the past week's activities, we spent the remainder of the morning clearing away some snow, which is now becoming more of an irritant. Bob mounted his trusty tactor and cleared the laneways and in between the barn and shed. I busied myself cleaning off shelters and digging out the barn doors.

Once that was done, we headed indoors for some metal work. Bob concentrated on some of his sheet metal components while I looked at the Pilot Model doors - photos are on the 42 Pilot Model thread. Lunchtime rolled around and Joyce popped in with tea, coffee, chips and hot dogs. This was a very pleasant surprise and we enjoyed lunch in the comfort of the barn (which was now at a balmy 15oC).

Later on, Grant joined us. He and Bob got into the metal work for Bob's truck. Bob had fabbed up a replacement piece that really looked the part when they temporarily put it together. That burned up the remainder of the afternoon, and as darkness fell, I left Bob and Grant in the barn to put the finishing touches on another of Bob's remarkable creations.

Photos:

1 - Reception Committee
2 - Bob drilling out spot welds to remove a panel
3- The replacement panel being test fit
4 - Lunch is served!
5 - Bob and Grant checking the fit

[maple_leaf_eh]

I was at the EOSC range Sat and Sun midday both days. On Sat there was an extended flock of turkeys working through the snowy corn fields East of the dogleg turn and bridge near Canaan Road. Probably 3 miles SWW from the Barn.

And I wasn't being antisocial, I had a very specific sighting in task that failed on Sat, but succeeded on Sun. Lesson learned - when adjusting scope alignment at close range, make bold corrections on the base. Two feet left at 20yds is more adjustment than is ion the telescope knobs.

[RHClarke]

Guy,

We have a partially destroyed seat back and cushion cover for you to copy. If you like, the package can be dropped off chez vous tomorrow after lunch. If you need better samples, let me know.

[Bob Carriere]

....made up as soon as possible.....


Guy

will be barning tomorrow afternoon ..... if you have time why don't you drop in for a chat.....

Bob


.....and you can see Rob at work..... you will see he does change clothes and works on different parts...

[RHClarke]

Originally Posted by Bob Carriere

.....and you can see Rob at work..... you will see he does change clothes and works on different parts...

You can tell that I am not used to being "shot". I am usually on the other end of the camera.

[RHClarke]

Today I took delivery of a 20 foot High Cube (HC) Sea Container that will serve as the garage for my 45 HUP. I had to get a HC so that I could drive the HUP in and out. The standard 20ft container is just too low to allow the HUP to drive in and out - particularly since the HUP is perched up on new 10.50X16 tires.

Getting the box into the barnyard was fun. The container was loaded on a Jerr-Dan carrier truck, which made the load height 13 feet 5 inches tall. This posed a small problem at first as the telephone lines measured in at just over 13 feet 6 inches (according to the wobbling measuring tape that I held "away" from the lines). The next issue was the ice. Yesterday, we could almost swim in the puddles, but today it was frozen solid. The truck had a hard time getting traction at the driveway entrance, but the City of Rockland generously donated some gravel that went under the wheels to great effect.

Next was negotiating the various trees on the way to the barn. The trail is lined with a lot of trees and there are (or were) a number of them that hung over the roadway. After carefully picking his way along the very icy road he made the critical turn across Bob's "bridge". There is no way that the driver could have come closer to the edge of the bridge without rolling the truck... Finally, we got the box into the yard and he dropped the trailing edge onto the ice. After some fancy maneuvering with the bed controls, the box was deposited on three logs as its temporary home. We may have to reposition the box later next weekend to open up the passageway to the barn, but that is a story for later on.

Why a 20 footer? There is no way to drag a 40 footer (which would have been a lot cheaper) down the laneway to the barn. There was talk about dragging a 40 down the railway tracks and then into the barnyard, but when it comes time to move, the 20 will make that task a lot easier.

Cost wise, these things are not cheap - I now sing soprano... Despite the cost, it will serve as a fitting (see what I did there?) home for the 45 HUP and will provide much added security (to keep cats with mega bladders at bay).

Photos:
1- The Jerr-Dan delivery truck
2- Entrance to Hotel HUP
3- Hotel HUP awaiting its first guest.