[BITList] RR Engine for A-380

[HUGH]

John,

The Heath Robinson socket spanner arrangement I described was not used on a
Doxford - I rush to explain lest the God of Doxfords smite us exceedingly
for slander. It was used fairly regularly on the Morar's gasifiers.

Your graphic description of the perils accompanying work on the Bristol
Hercules thermocouple reminds me of many such, when half the fingers become
thumbs.  I heard a tale about a BI Chief who was supervising the boxing up
of a Doxford chaincase. This was at the aft end on the Cs, and was held on
by an enormous number of studs and nuts.  At the very end of the process,
who should drop a spanner through a handhole at the very top but the Chief.
Never forget Sod's Law.

When I read of marinised items I start to wonder who does the marinising. I
suspect the average functionary thinks applying a coating to stop rust will
suffice.  It's horses for courses - people with no practical marine
background should never be let near anything to do with the sea.  I spent
too many hours rectifying major howlers committed by over paid "consultants"
and out-of-their-depth graduate trainees.  Maybe I should have let the
rubbish go through, but that's not how I was trained.

Hugh.