Craig Sawyers

Trying hard to ignore the World Cup, which most in England is gripped by with media saturation. No interest in the game, which puts me in the 0.1% population bracket. Our entire close family is similarly minded, especially my son who dislikes the game with a passion bordering the paranoid. Far prefer rugby, which like american football needs real tough cookies and an ability to soak up continual brutal punishment. "Soccer" players would not survive five seconds under those conditions, soccer players generally falling over if someone insults their hair cut. <flame suit on>

Just looked back, and Kevin's estimate for parts on 09/05/09 was $1500 including mil spec connectors - which is very close to what it cost me at current exchange rate, except my figure of UKP1,150 *included* the boards, and the DACT attenuator. Kevins number did not include either the boards or the attenuator. So the parts cost actually looks pretty good. He also estimated $250 for the SumR transformers, plus casework. Kevin - Does your casework kit contain the Teflon Stax connectors, and the attenuator/board fixing bracket?

Bought a car. Even though we both drive since '74 this is only the third new car we've bought - everything else either a company car or second hand. This was actually my wife's - and we'd gone in to just look at second hand Ford Fiestas with no intention of buying just yet. But because Ford are trying hard to sell new cars at the moment the cost of a new one was only 10% more than a used one with 12,000 miles. Ten grand later - bosh, new car (lots of negotiability too). Even has bluetooth and USB, plus a really natty voice operated sound system, so totally hands free. Massively impressive, and bewilderingly good value for money.

Orders on all components to stuff boards, including most of the hardware, external connectors, DACT attenuator, boards from Kevin - UKP1,150. To that has to be added the transformers and the casework. I already have plenty 6DJ8's (Mullard etc), but I'll need some 6CA7's. The parts will almost certainly be cheaper in real terms in the US. We not only get hit for import duty (ie VAT at 17.5% on parts plus shipping cost) but a so-called "clearance fee" of between

OK - just done the tube sockets from DIY HiFi Supply. $7 discount for more than $100, then a very reasonable $7 shipping charge across the pond. Punished massively by PayPay who did a $1.416 exchange rate. The UKP is worth diddly squat; great for exporters and seriously bad news for importers

I've just finished parts sourcing for the T2, and have parted company with an unholy wodge of dosh. For reference for others finding parts, here is where I got them: The majority of passives came from Mouser, which offer free shipping to the UK if the order is over

This episode was written by Richard Curtis - Four Weddings and a Funeral, Briget Jones Diary, Notting Hill, Love Actually, Vicar of Dibley, co-writer of BlackAdder etc etc. A serious heavy hitter. The BBC has really upped their whole game yet again with Dr Who.

Ooof! Hope she feels better soon. Odd that I'm much better at dealing with physical pain that my wife, but she's much much better at illness. I'm a real snivelling wimp even if I get a head cold or anything similar. Mrs S just keeps sailing straight ahead and gets on with life regardless of what bug she has.

That is really, seriously appreciated But I think I have it sussed - it is a Mouser peculiarity, not a fundamental block.

I think I have it worked out. The block on export is specifically on Mouser. I have tracked 10 down in the UK at GD Rectifiers, and have since found that Future Electronics have them listed and available to a UK address. So fortunately it is not a generic ITAR-type export restriction. As a postscript, I have just ordered from Future - ex stock, and cheaper than Mouser. So 'rice, my antipodean mate - try Future Electronics!

I've got a parts procurement problem for the T2. The IXCP10M90S from Mouser comes up with "Restricted availability", which is Mouser shorthand for the fact that IXYS has blocked supply of these devices to the UK. Heaven knows why, but it gives me a bit of a headache. Anyone got any suggestions how I prise the required 13 off out of the US?

I haven't heard about Aruba for ages - my Dad (long dead) was in the merchant navy, oil tankers, in the early to mid 50's, and used to call at the oil terminals at Aruba, and nearby Punta Cardon in Venezuela. In the UK there is a lot of news coverage of binge drinking, where young people go out and get hammered at the weekend; nothing new of course - my Dad used to talk of drinking sessions of truly heroic proportions in both Aruba and Punta Cardon.

That is a real bummer. Those faked reader slots that the organised crime guys stick on ATM's are pretty much undetectable. They just come along after a day or two and prise it off with all the data recorded in it. Major inconvenience while waiting for new cards to be issued. Happened to us twice - both times in restaurants. Never again.

I'm in this for the long haul. The pox-stricken dollar/UKP rate is still spiralling downwards, so now there is no financial benefit now from sourcing the semiconductors in the US - so I'll just use my UK supplier and have done. At least I'll be able to get on with board stuffing (lots of it!). Hopefully (I'm ever hopeful) the exchange rate will have come up a bit by the time my chassis set is ready (no rush, Kevin). I think we're being financially punished for all the oil we've thrown into the sea in the Gulf of Mexico.

32 miles running on the Ridgeway long distance path. Started at 00:40 in Wendover and finished at 09:00 in South Stoke. Ran through the dark with a head torch, with part of the route within the security perimeter of Chequers, the Prime Minister's official residence (it is a right of way, so the security forces can look at you but not shoot). Spiritual sunrise at 04:15. All totally solo - saw absolutely no-one at all until 08:00. Feeling quite knackered.

A bit like the black spaceship in Hitchhiker's Guide: "It's the weird colour scheme that freaks me. Every time you try to operate one of these weird black controls, which are labeled in black on a black background, a small black light lights up black to let you know you've done it. Hey, what is this, some kind of galactic hyper-hearse?"

Any chance of some pics, Kevin? Pretty please?

To give you an idea of the sort of place this guy was gunning people down, he finished his spree and popped himself here Boot, Eskdale, Cumbria Other places he killed his victims are: Gosforth, Cumbria Egremont, Cumbria Seascale, Cumbria Which gives a good idea of the scale of wierdness of all this - none of the places involved had populations much over a few hundred. He came from a place called Rowrah, which has about a dozen houses.

Absolute chaos in the English lake district yesterday. We were there three weeks ago, and my son two weeks ago. Yesterday a lone gunman went on a shooting spree and killed 12, injured 25 of whom 4 more are in critical condition. Divorced 52 year old taxi driver with children, living with his elderly mother. Everyone who knew him saw him as a regular guy who enjoyed a beer or two with friends in the pub - in a village with a thousand or so population. Starts by shooting two taxi drivers, his solicitor and his brother - and it went on from there - drive-by shootings in tiny villages. Eventually, like all shooting spree killers, he eventually turned a gun on himself in woodland near another small village called Boot in upper Eskdale. Last week two 16 year olds were killed in a coach crash - and one of their funerals was in progress in one village when the police show up in force persuing the shooter, who had just killed a couple in that very village. This is all exceptionally wierd - we have the toughest gun laws in the world after Japan, and the Lake District has the lowest crime rate in the UK. Totally and utterly safe, the sort of place that some years ago people would leave their houses unlocked so that friends could just come straight in. Looks like the guy had a license for both his guns (a hand gun, and a .22 rifle with telescopic sight), no record of anything wierd about him - just pow, some switch went off in his head.

I'll hang on a while for my casework in the possibly forlorn hope that the exchange rate will improve a bit. $1.47 at the moment - up a cent on the bottom. Even though we aren't in the troubled Euro, we're still tainted by association. Wish I'd taken the plunge on a pair of omegas a couple of years ago when the dollar was at $2 to the UK pound.

Tweeter repair on MG1 is not easy - the wire is aluminium (or aluminum depending on the side of the pond), which is easy to zig-zag up the panel, having removed the old tweeter wire, and then to stick down with thin varnish. The problem is making a good solder joint to aluminium wire. There is solder that is supposed to be suitable for aluminium wire, but it is not wonderfully successful. Been there, done that, still got most of a reel of wire and solder.

Try out the green and red specs

Uh?

For what its worth, Daughter Liz is a budding actress - publicity shot below. [ATTACH=CONFIG]3165[/ATTACH]

Apologies Reks - I must be feeling a bit maudlin. Didn't mean to bring back memories. I often think how good it would have been to know your parents when both they and you were the same sort of age. Good mature conversation over a beer or two. As it is, when they were young, you were a kid or teen and you parents are a PITA. And when you grow up they get old and cranky, and they can still be a PITA. No good solution.