Chronic's Research and Aeronautics Project (C.R.A.P.)

[NARSES2]

9 quid!   Of course, the conversion rate got me....  55 pounds total turned into $75.          But that's not too bad, conversion rate aside. I happy with the price, though, because one of the kits I couldn't find anywhere for less than $60 so for $75 I got it, and two others. 

As long as you are happy with what you've got then that's all that matters. That's my attitude to model buying 

That conversion £ to $ is about spot on the current rate, so they've been fair there. The £ has fallen a lot in the last year or so (we won't go into why  ) so you've got a good deal.

[TheChronicOne]

Economics is a strange bed fellow with kit buying. Our Dollar isn't what it used to be. I swear I remember a time when the Dollar was valued higher than the Pound, not the other way around how it is now. That said, our Dollar is better than the Canadian dollar so when I buy kits from there, it's always a treat. That 55 in Canadian would have been more like $40 instead of jumping to $75.  Win some, lose some!   

Finished priming the ATR 72!  It's pretty good! I need to add more putty to the part that caved in on the starboard side but that should be simple enough. I can go through and fine tune some other stuff as well then another round of primer and it should be ready for paint. In a strange break from traditional airliner paint jobs, this entire thing is white aside from maybe the wings. Usually there's all kinds of grey sections, NMF, etc on the undersides. Not this one! I'm glad this time because it will make painting easier. I'm going to go pick up a can of COMPATIBLE appliance epoxy to put on this. I don't feel like brush painting it and since the white rattle can paint I have crazes with the gloss I have it's a fine time to grab some appliance paint.

[TheChronicOne]

If I do anything today, it will be to smear some putty on the caved in part on the ATR 72 then get to work on the Hustler. I'm feeling the deadline creep up on me and while it seems like I'm close to being finished, I have still to paint it all and haven't even sourced any transfers for it yet. So....    I'd like to at least get the main paint work done on the plane itself and get the engines started. I have to rebuild some of that stuff and will have to PSR it and re prime it so it will take a bit of time. I've already started this process, at least.

I'm not planning for much else because I have a big day scheduled and will have to stop to run errands in the late afternoon.  Chasing money down. I told them they could just write a check and put it in the mail but noooo.         First world problems I guess.....  complaining about going to get money. 

[NARSES2]

Economics is a strange bed fellow with kit buying. Our Dollar isn't what it used to be. I swear I remember a time when the Dollar was valued higher than the Pound, not the other way around how it is now.

I don't think so. Mid 80's it got down to the 1.1xxxxx $ to the £, so you might have found some tourist rates showing parity, but I don't remember that either.

The current rate is one of the best it's been from a US purchasers point of view.

[PR19_Kit]

I can recall a short time when the dollar was higher than the pound, and it got to me because I was over there at the time. When I got back and put my expenses claim in I got all sorts of grief from the company as the rates had gone back the other way round.

[TheChronicOne]

Fascinating stuff. I read a story not too long ago about a billionaire or whatever. Anyway, at one point in time he figured out that it was possible to make "free money" by simply moving it around through the exchange rates and by time it got back to American money he had made a profit. Money is like celestial bodies, at some point people have so much of it that the pile attracts more merely by existing. 

[NARSES2]

Fascinating stuff. I read a story not too long ago about a billionaire or whatever. Anyway, at one point in time he figured out that it was possible to make "free money" by simply moving it around through the exchange rates and by time it got back to American money he had made a profit.

How do you think a lot of these very rich people got rich, or their fathers, grandfathers did anyway ? It's very possible but you have to have a large sum to start with and you can lose big as well.

The same as us ordinary plebs going down the racetrack.

[TheChronicOne]

You said it brotha!  That's why it's so funny to me when gov't try to ban gambling but they conveniently forget about stock exhanges and the like.

OH HEY, YOU FORGOT ONE...     "Wall Street"... pffft... the world's largest casino more like.               

[TheChronicOne]

Ooooh very cool!! I posted a picture of my ATR 72 on a Facebook airliner modeller page and Laurent saw it and likes it with the heart react.      That's the dude that owns the company and makes them. 

It made me feel good because I know it made him feel good to see someone building up his stuff and pouring a ton of love and effort into it. 

More work on that one today I guess. And the Hustler. I didn't get much done on it the other day. I'm basically at the point where there's really nothing TO be done until I start the actual painting so I need to get on after it..

[TheChronicOne]

I'm going to focus on the Hustler today if I can. I'm painting it and if I can keep on task I should be finished and able to gloss it. I still need to find transfers, though! I'm almost certain I have everything I need already but it might take awhile finding all the necessary odds and ends.

No other plans yet because I may need to pitch a tent at my Dr.s office. I called in my prescription over a week ago and have made three seperate trips to the pharmacy to pick it up (because I got a call last Friday, a week ago, to go pick them up).  They had one, but not the other. I'm a patient man and always give people much more time than they should to rectify things. Per their own damn policy they say to call in the prescription 48 hours in advance. Well, 48 hours was up 6 days ago and after multiple trips and waiting I'm starting to get pissed off so if they don't have my stuff ready this FOURTH time I'm leaving the pharmacy, driving to the doctors office, and will sit there until these people fill my prescription. I might get really bored of this really fast but then again I may wind up sitting there for awhile, who knows. 

[zenrat]

...I'm leaving the pharmacy, driving to the doctors office, and will sit there until these people fill my prescription. I might get really bored of this really fast but then again I may wind up sitting there for awhile, who knows. 

Take a model with you to pass the time...

[TheChronicOne]

Impromptu modelling sesh. 

That would be hilarious....  just walk in with a big box and folding card table. Don't announce myself, just walk in and post up in the corner and start building. 

It turned out alright. 4th trip to pharmacy didn't yield any dope, and once again I'm told they haven't gotten their fax back so I drive to the dr.s office and they of course say they never got the fax at all. Whatever. To avoid any more shenanigans I request a hard copy that I can physically take back to the pharmacy so that's what I did and finally 8 days and 5 visits later I have my prescription. A month long prescription, mind, that hadn't been filled since JULY.....   Alls well now, however, and I managed to stay calm so it's a good day.

[TheChronicOne]

I didn't plan it, but all three of my airliner projects wound up in one place so I took a picture!   



BAC-111 "What-If Air California"

ATR-72 "American Eagle"

Boeing 737-200 "Air Saudi Arabia"


As far as an update, I've completed some work on the ATR 72, the Hustler, the F-52, and the.. .  uhhh... I guesss that's it. The F-52 work was to finally finish up priming all the interior parts. Glorious! Now I can paint them and then some will need to be glossed for control panel decals. 

At some point I took thse pictures:





It's primed! Atr 72. 


Good night, and good luck...

[NARSES2]

They still use a FAX machine ?  Haven't seen one in years.

I know our medical system is totally different, but I still prefer to pick my regular two month prescription up and take it to the chemists. I request it on line and everything could be done electonically, the chemist would even deliver it, but I still prefer to do it myself while I still can 

[zenrat]

Faxing was never a very reliable process back when they were in everyday use.
Nothing quite like hearing that voice coming out of one of them "hello? hello! THIS ISN'T A FAX LINE! #$%@@$".

As part of my job I get the dubious pleasure of sending faxes for the odd customer who needs it done.  We try to put them off by charging twice what a local newsagents would but some of them still insist.  I reckon three times out of four there is a problem.
Why can't they just take a photo with their phone and e-mail that?