I use gearbox oil. Clings well and runs relatively clean.

£6/ l

As others have said, Bucko is a bit rough around the edges (lots of junkies etc).

However, it also has a bit of culture too, if that’s your thing (Good amdram scene, Opera house, touring small time bands etc).

The weather is a bit rum.

The riding is great.

Not sure about longevity yet, but I’ve got some Pirelli Scorpions on a 4wd SUV. Amazing grip on snowy roads in the Peak today. £120 a corner fitted.

I really don’t think we can criticise Transport Scotland for running an effective competition on the Aberdeen bypass; imagine the furore if they had not chosen the best bid. ‘Price’ is only one of the factors they will have considered, albeit the lowest price would have been heavily weighted in the evaluation process.

At the end of the day Carillion has disappeared from the construction joint venture. The other members of the JV will have to complete the project. Transport Scotland will not have to step in in any way; the public purse will be unaffected. They have done well, from a tax-payers perspective

The contracting world is harsh, and most industries think we are insane, working on the meagre margins that we bid. We do it to ourselves I’m afraid. Construction is really rather shit.

Aberdeen Western Bypass is a PFI type deal; if Carillion goes bust the banks will step in to preserve their investment. The other partners will be severally liable/ entitled too, so will probably go on in any event, and the banks not need to step in.

Not sure why AWB has been such a disaster, but it’s a good example of the upside of PFI, from the public’s point of view – when it all goes tits up, the consortium has to soldier on and the public has a fixed price contract.

Sorry to hear that; it’s not easy is it mate

NJA is obviously the expert here, I’d just add that this is going to take quite a while to sort out (apologies if you had already sussed that one). Unless you mother had cash & investments it could be a couple of years before anyone receives a legacy.

In my experience the stereotype is wrong; they are not ‘posh’, just farmers out enjoying the countryside.

I have no time for foxes (a fox once killed 90% of a flock of battery hens we had rescued).

Foxes are cute vermin; would there be the same objections to hunting rats from horseback – if it were practical?

Surgical spirit works for me (although it hurts like a bastard when you put it on)

A Chiropodist suggested it to me, wipe over the whole foot and between the toes morning & evening.

Normally clears it up after a couple of days

Dinner suit, slicked down hair, topped off with an old life jacket (Titanic vibe)

Yes it’s worth it, but take touring skis

If he’s familiar with Ireland at all, the Ross O’Carroll Kelly books are superb

£20k is too much. Offer fortnighly valuations.

I’d say that either the builder already has cashflow problems, or they seriously don’t trust you as a prospective client (in which case the £20k could be put in escrow and drawn against with certified valuations)

On the road use: http://www.dynaplug.com/bike.html

In the workshop I just clean it all out and use an old fashioned thick rubber patch, on the inside of the tyre.

I caved in after a torrid time with repeatedly mis-ordering bearings for a Cannondale, and got one of the headset tools from MSA. Works a treat https://www.tredz.co.uk/.FSA-Headset-Guide-Tool_78701.htm?sku=254512&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=google_shopping&gclid=Cj0KCQiA3dTQBRDnARIsAGKSflm4HqOwvRRdV6dyGxbNDzIJIEDKY5ImnIiuEivCWFd2iFdtTGR5Hb4aArYHEALw_wcB

It gets borrowed A LOT by mates. An investment worth making

The CTC pointed me in the direction of Slater Gordon, when i was clipped by a bus.

I was very pleased with the service

Mudhuggers – look crap but work well

“The particular problem for the Welsh Valleys is geography.”

The new A465 should help I think. After years in discussion it looks like the final links in the project are finally moving ahead/ going out to tender next year.

Slater Gordon

One of my life’s few regrets is not knowing about The Neutral Milk Hotel until recently

video

I can tell you what to avoid: SAP.

It’s very clunky and, although it interfaces well with corporate finance processes, your users will hate you for it.

Off-shore wind energy now costs us ‘only’ double what a modern, low CO2 emitting gas fired power station can sell us power for.

Make no mistake, the renewables energy supply market is a serious earner for the investors who go into it (admittedly probably backed by yours and mine pension funds, so maybe not all bad)

The average household currently contributes around £80 per year towards green energy subsidies, this is expected to rise to around £190 by 2020. This is via inflated energy bills

What everyone tends to forget with PVs is that efficiency drops off as they reach the end of their lives, and that PVs will have to be disposed off as hazardous waste – expensive! (They contain Cadmium Telluride, very expensive to deal with – assume a £2k – £5k disposal cost, at today’s prices)

5 Mile commute? I’d go for petrol.

A lot of diesel owners are reporting Diesel Particulate Filter (DPF) problems once their cars have been serviced. I’m told that recent software updates undo the ’emission cheat mechanism’, that Bosch have apparently engineered into their ECUs – supplied to numerous makes and models, but predominantly German/ VAG.

Short commutes could well lead to DPF problems.

I’ve recently bought a car; the dealer was at pains to understand my typical journey pattern and it was quite obvious they didn’t want to sell me a diesel if I was going to be doing short journeys – although they were very cagey on this.

I’m sure most manufacturers will be caught out on this, VW are just the first.

You cam get a 20p map from Tourist info in Keswick

Yes, there is a diversion across the fields just by the first knackered bridge from Keswick. You are supposed to push through the field up to the top track into Threlkeld – everyone rides it though.

My then boss, a verified tosser was making his way home when he rounded a bend and saw a bloke frantically waving at him to stop.

‘F&*k off’ thought Simon, ‘he’s hardly got his wellies wet’, so bollocked on on until the current caught him and jammed him against a wall, the whole car pretty much under-water by now. He was lucky to get a window open and slip out.

The chap who was trying to warn him had been standing on a submerged wall.

Oh how we laughed

I know what BIM is. If you’re comfortable in the coordinator role then a ‘manager’ is good opportunity to ‘come off the tools’ and lead a team – if that’s what you want. I work as a director in construction and I can tell you for sure that, with a few honorable exceptions, management are just better at hiding their insecurities that most!

If you want to join the rear-echelon go for it & ask for some management training; if you want to remain project focused then stick with the co-ord role.

Can’t advise on the heating, but screed naturally dries out at 1mm per day, assuming it doesn’t get re-wetted. This can be sped-up with dehumidifiers

A liquid DPM can be painted on top if there isn’t time to let it dry before a timber floor is laid.

If it’s ceramic tiles (have you seen the posh ones that look like wood?) then use a cement adhesive

Some good news about offshore wind generation increasing and costs dropping recently.

http://renews.biz/107357/wind-blows-price-down/
http://renews.biz/107364/wind-top-in-uk/
http://renews.biz/107339/cost-reduction-incredible/

True enough, but the wind farm operators are also receiving subsidy of between £30 – £50 per MWH, on top of whatever they sell their energy into the grid at. This is not often mentioned in the press; without price support off-shore wind is not a viable investment.

Rather odd comment in that article “Critics of renewable energy sources will point to the disruption renewables cause to the established energy system”.

Renewables tend to cause voltage fluctuations in the grid; Gas/ Coal fired stations are needed at the moment to regulate this.

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1364032116303094

Energy storage (Salt mines/ Power walls/ etc) will hopefully obviate this problem in time.

Same dilemma for me. I found the Evoque (& Disco Sport too) imprecise and tiring to drive to be honest. They wandered around a bit – more like a Landrover than an SUV.

I tried the new Jag F Pace, which was better but big on the outside/ small on the inside.

I’m thinking about a Macan now. Too expensive, not British built though.

The good thing about scaffold is that you can load it out with a fair amount of materials – less cocking about.

A good, safe, stable working platform.

so along came New Labour with PFI…

I don’t think PFI was ever used for rail? Do you know differently?

Get some legal advice

As said above, an Architect’s certificate (of practical completion) does not protect you as a buyer from construction defects. If the vendor is offering a transferable Designers collateral warranty, you will have some protection from design defects, but again not workmanship defects. Also the warranty may not be assignable, in turn, by you – when/ if you come to sell the house. (You would need to read the actual warranty/ get legal advice on this). Design warranties are notoriously difficult to claim against anyway.

Would you buy a new car without a warranty?

AFAIK all companies offering insurance backed transferable warranties against building defects (E.g. NHBC cover) require the contract setting up at the outset, so they can inspect the building works progressively – I.e. it will now be too late to get such a warranty in place I’m afraid.

‘Snagging’ is the building industry’s way of down-playing defects. A snag is a defect, plain and simple.

I think what level of inspection you decide to do depends on the certification that the building has already received: basic Building control approval, or has it got NHBC – or similar cover (insurance backed)?

If you, or a friend know what they are doing then it’s possible to download a checklist from the internet and do your own inspection. One of the most searching tests is to use your phone as a thermographic camera (download an app) and examine the walls and roof. This needs a decent temperature difference from inside to out, but will pick up any gaps in insulation, vapour barrier tears or mortar bridging of cavities. Similarly insulation defects on the roof, or poor sealing of eaves etc will be revealed.

Your builder will likely shit himself when you threaten this.

Lady Cannings

(Just too twisty and jumpy now)

I had it really badly a few years back, turned out to be a burst disc (what used to be called a ‘slipped disc’)

A consultant offered to trim the offending bit off (that was pressing on my nerves) but did not recommend it. I kept moving and it gradually went away.

Really unpleasant few weeks/ months.

Try to get referred to a consultant who deals with this stuff all the time.

A real bummer – I hope you get better soon.

They’re called ‘snake’ or rabbit’ slings. Not available in the EU due to crap regulations (in my view!).

You can get them here (but may end up paying VAT on them as they come in

http://yatesgear.com/climbing/slings/index.htm#7

http://www.fullspeedahead.com/products/cyclocross/headtube-guide/

It’s a free country, and it doesn’t (normally) hurt to talk

I’d lay off telling your gaffer for the time being.