The Bigger Move - Phase 2 begins!

[Leon]

Very carefully I trust !

Yep!  We've isolated the supply into the shop lights/sockets so we're OK there.  We'll get the light switch and a set of sockets moved onto the side wall tomorrow and then that'll be done.

I hope you get a good price for it at the metal recyclers - copper isn't chap at the moment

A scrap van came around and bought the last lot off us so we might get something for this new pile, plus a few radiators and a load of steel!

[fsn]

Right - silly question - but that's the way my brain works.

Assuming you could strip and clean the copper cables, could you use them to make figures?

What would the properties of copper figures be? Would they take paint? Would they bend easily? Would copper work in the machines?

No practical application, just a mental exercise.   

[Leon]

Assuming you could strip and clean the copper cables, could you use them to make figures?

What would the properties of copper figures be? Would they take paint? Would they bend easily? Would copper work in the machines?

Afraid not, the melting point of copper is something ridiculous, way above the 270C that we set our melting pots. 

[Orcs]

Right - silly question - but that's the way my brain works.

Assuming you could strip and clean the copper cables, could you use them to make figures?

What would the properties of copper figures be? Would they take paint? Would they bend easily? Would copper work in the machines?

No practical application, just a mental exercise.   

Silly Replies

Assuming you could strip and clean the copper cables, could you use them to make figures?

No, THe melting point of Copper is 1084° compared to lead aroud 327°


What would the properties of copper figures be?

Harder than copper and copper coloured


Would they take paint?

Yes I have used copper wire in conversions


Would they bend easily?

No


Would copper work in the machines?

I doubt  the melting pots could get a high enough temperature
The Rubber molds would burn


I havev now wasted 10 minutes of my employers time answeing your daft questions, .... But that probably makes me dafter than you.

[paulr]

At least it wasn't your own time

[Leon]

A time-consuming and fiddly job today as we got the timber screwed up and the false ceiling re-attached to it, but it looks a lot better now.  We now need to move the light switch and plug sockets over to the wall and then we can put all of the ceiling tiles back in and fit some white plastic trim over the timber beam to blend it in.

ShopGapFilled by Leon Pengilley, on Flickr


Weather permitting, Friday is going to be spent outside getting all of the weeds/vegetation strimmed and out before winter hits.  There's a load of debris from the initial fitting out that needs to go into the skip as well, so we'll get that sorted out. 

[paulr]

Looking much better 

[Big Insect]

Right - silly question - but that's the way my brain works.

Assuming you could strip and clean the copper cables, could you use them to make figures?

What would the properties of copper figures be? Would they take paint? Would they bend easily? Would copper work in the machines?

No practical application, just a mental exercise.   

A very long time ago (back in my yoof @ college) I made a silver & gold plated Wars of the Roses chess set, as a commission for a client - using 20mm lead figures (possibly Minifigs) I made up rubber moulds that allowed me to cast multiple wax figures up. I then used the lost wax casting technique to cast the silver figures. They needed a lot of conversion and cleaning up, and then had to be carefully hand-polished, so as not to lose all the detail. One 'side' was then gold plated.

The board was made out of ebony and ivory (yes - I know - but back then we worried less about poor old jumbo!) set into a silver grid on a mahogany board. I had a nice polished rosewood box made for it all, with an inlaid silver plaque that was going to be engraved. It was some sort of recognition award, but I never found out for whom.

It was a nice project. I did try to sculpt some of my own 20mm wax figures - based on the Moorcock History of the Runestaff books - I loved the idea of the various insect and animal armoured 'orders of The Dark Empire of Gran Bretan - but my sculpting skills were woefully inadequate. They were too large and lumpy.

Never tried copper - but lost wax is your best bet for higher melting point metals.

[Leon]

Today we were all outside strimming, weeding, clearing and filling the skip!  It was a ton of work but we got most of it done in the end. There's just a bit more strimming to do on the far side of the car park where there's some chunky tree stumps to work on and then we'll get the jet washer on to the front of the building and clean up the brickwork.

The side of the building to the right has been piled high with wood/masonry/junk since we first moved in so it was nice to get this cleared.  The fence line to the left has got a 2ft gap between tarmac and fencing, so we'll shutter that off and fill it with concrete after winter.

ClearedQuadrant by Leon Pengilley, on Flickr


The car park is a lot tidier for now but there's more to do here.  The strimming needs doing on the far side and then after winter we'll get the grass dug out properly and lay some fresh concrete to extend the parking area a bit.  We're then going to put some raised planters inside the front fence line and plant a load of wildflowers.

ClearedCarPark by Leon Pengilley, on Flickr


I wish I'd taken a 'before' pic of this as it was a complete jungle down here and you could barely walk down it.  Everything's out now and we'll get the jet washer down there to clean the walls and get the moss off the floor.

ClearedAlley by Leon Pengilley, on Flickr

[Duke Speedy of Leighton]

Impressive

[steve_holmes_11]

Van peeping round the corner like a sentient killer-car from a Stephen King novella. 

[Techno II]

Looking good !

Cheers - Phil.

[Leon]

Work continues and we got a lot of painting and maintenance stuff done last Friday.  Today we got our heating frame up and welded together, ready for a bit of painting and then heaters being installed on Thursday.  This rather odd looking construction will have wiring coming in from the left wall which will power 4 x halogen heaters above the casting stations.  Push button switches will power them up for 1 hour at a time whenever the guys get a bit chilly.  This will be the first time in nearly a decade that the casters have had a proper heating source so they're looking forward to it!

HeatingFrame1 by Leon Pengilley, on Flickr


Progress in the shop has been a bit slower than I'd hoped but we got the light switch and sockets resited today, so they'll be behind the counter once that's built.  And Mike got the former partition wall bit of roof trimmed out so that it's nice and neat now.  The far wall needs a bit of plasterboard over the gap, then plaster and paint to finish.  Next to be done in the shop is getting the old carpet up and the new one laid.

WallRoofFixed by Leon Pengilley, on Flickr


And finally something that might be of interest to a lot of you... Last Thursday we travelled down the M1 to pick up nearly 3000 books from a friend of ours.  Around 2500 of these are brand new (the rest 2nd hand) and will be going into our shop once it's ready.  We want to get as much variety in the shop as we can to make it more attractive to a wider market so these will definitely give folks a reason to come and see us!  Once we've got them all unpacked and organised I'll put up a list here for everyone to look at.

BooksVan by Leon Pengilley, on Flickr

Books2 by Leon Pengilley, on Flickr

Books1 by Leon Pengilley, on Flickr

[steve_holmes_11]

Bookz is good.

[paulr]

more good progress

[Leon]

Last Thursday we spent all day in the workshop getting the new lights and heaters installed in there, just time for the clocks going back and the dark nights setting in!  The lights are hi-bay LEDs which put out an impressive amount of light and make it much easier for the casting guys to see what they're doing.

NewLights by Leon Pengilley, on Flickr


The heaters are halogen lamps and are operated by a push-button switch, which powers them up for 1 hour at a time.  We're getting some work done to the roller door to try and make it a bit more insulated and less drafty, so that should help as well.

HeaterSwitch by Leon Pengilley, on Flickr

HeaterOn by Leon Pengilley, on Flickr


And while we were in the workshop we fitted a new light in the alcove to brighten up that area a bit.

AlcoveLight by Leon Pengilley, on Flickr


This week we've pulled up the carpets in the old back office, ready for the new ones to arrive next Wednesday.  We'll have to wait until after Salute to get them fitted though!

CarpetUp by Leon Pengilley, on Flickr


Today we've finally started fitting the slatwall panels in the shop.  We'll be continuing this tomorrow and should have at least 50% of it done I think.  Again, we'll have to wait until after Salute to finish off the rest of it, as time is at a premium at the moment.  There's going to be a lot of sales-space here so we'll have to see what products we want to fill all of these walls with...

Slatwall1 by Leon Pengilley, on Flickr


And finally, I'm sure most of you know how busy we tend to be at Pendraken HQ but here's something to help illustrate that a little...  I've always wanted to organise all of our outstanding releases/projects so that I can keep an eye on them and make sure that nothing gets forgotten.  So, presenting the Projects Wall!  There's a few missing that I need to add here but this is all of the major projects that we've got on the go at the moment.  There's the Peninsular Naps, Arab-Israeli range, Castle Arts buildings, Dungeon revamp, Sci-Fi expansion, new flags, more modern vehicles...

ProjectsBoard by Leon Pengilley, on Flickr

[paulr]

 

[Orcs]

Well Done!

Note to self :-
I do NOT need to drive 440 miles round trip to visit Pendraken shop .
I do NOT need to drive 440 miles round trip to visit Pendraken shop .
I do NOT need to drive 440 miles round trip to visit Pendraken shop .
I do NOT need to drive 440 miles round trip to visit Pendraken shop .
I do NOT need to drive 440 miles round trip to visit Pendraken shop .
I do NOT need to drive 440 miles round trip to visit Pendraken shop .
I do NOT need to drive 440 miles round trip to visit Pendraken shop .

[steve_holmes_11]

Well Done!

Note to self :-
I do NOT need to drive 440 miles round trip to visit Pendraken shop .
I do NOT need to drive 440 miles round trip to visit Pendraken shop .
I do NOT need to drive 440 miles round trip to visit Pendraken shop .
I do NOT need to drive 440 miles round trip to visit Pendraken shop .
I do NOT need to drive 440 miles round trip to visit Pendraken shop .
I do NOT need to drive 440 miles round trip to visit Pendraken shop .
I do NOT need to drive 440 miles round trip to visit Pendraken shop .

I do....

[pierre the shy]

Can't see myself getting there anytime soon I'm afraid.

I was talking to a work colleague yesterday who just came back from a visit to the UK as her father is terminally ill over there.

Said she spent 24 days in isolation in UK and NZ, had multiple covid tests (all negative but had to pay for anyway) before she flew out of NZ and the UK and she is double vaxxed with Pzifer. She was lucky to get a MIQ (mananged isolation quarentine) spot here on her return to spend her 14 days in isolation in NZ.

The good old Kiwi OE (Overseas Expedition) tradition of going overseas to "see the world" is not really an option these days, instead people seem to be crossing Cook Striaght and visiting the (mostly) still covid free South Island.   

Travelling overseas will never be quite the same.