powerrabbit

The bottle opener logo appeared in red in 1972/3 just after the Tennaco takeover but Case was not introduced into the decals until around 1976 when the decals went to black. The bottle opener logo came to be because of the identification markings on Sir Davids private plane which carried the same shaped D.B. and the planes call-sign in the phonetic was 'delta bravo' and the angular shape of the 'D' is known as delta which, joined to the 'B' as it was, looked like a bottle opener, hence the name the logo was known as or more particularly nick-named.

It will come to pass, probably not in my time and probably not in the next generation, that farming and food production will have to resort back to the Victorian methods as climate change and modern resources become strained and economic pressures and an ever increasing need to feed an ever increasing population bites. Back then the pressure of life was substantially less and the feeding of the nation was more important than World economic importance and machinery and farming in general, although more labour intensive, fulfilled the ideal that 'a well fed man did a good day's work' and without this ideal then the English nation would not have built itself to the strength it did up to that time and a little beyond. What I'm saying is I suppose is that when prices are so high that people can't afford the basics and fuel starts to run out then to move forward we will all have to go backwards. It is said that 'history has a habit of repeating itself', it's just a pitty that no-one has seemed to have learnt from it.

I would love to be able to aquire a copy of the 'farming bible' they refered to from time to time, 'Stephensons Book Of Farming' but original copies make several hundred quid and the reprints are not cheap either.

Yes, it worked perfectly. I think they must have had a bit more help with it than shown in the programme as the bellows had been cleaned up and looked like new. The farrier tested it out after they lit it with a couple hundredweight of coke and shod Clumper the Shire with his new shoes. Then Alex, tutored by the blacksmith made an iron doorknocker for the old man Acton for a Christmas present. Apparently, you should never call a farrier a blacksmith or vice-versa, they are recognised as seperate professions with different skills!

The first series that they did, 'The Victorian Farm' screened last year was the programmes that was accompanied by a book and was later also released on DVD. I think there is a DVD planned for release on this last Christmas short series as well. The book is very good and although advertised at the retail price of £20 I got a copy from W.H. Smith when it came out for £12.

Has anyone watched this series of programmes on BBC2 over the last few weeks? It was the last one tonight.

The shop where you bought it has an obligation to either refund you the cost or to replace it with another as it comes under 'the sale of goods act' which states that the item should be fully working and 'fit for purpose'. Take it back as soon as you can, tell them it's not working and that you want them to replace it with one that does and if they can't replace it ask for your money back. If they won't replace it or refund you then be brave and threaten them with 'the sale of goods act', that normally does the trick. Remember, you have full rights.

So what's with the 'hanging' chains on the linkages of the Nuffield? Are they broken or just that UH doesn't know where they join up?

Only 8.5lb Sue? So you're eating alone this Christmas then. I shall be preparing my turkey tomorrow ready to bung it in the AGA around 8.00 Cristmas morning, stuff the crop-end with a pound of sausage meat and a pound of sage & onion stuffing to keep it moist and that extra bit of flavour and a bit more to carve. Only having a small turkey this year, 22lb.

Been 'chilling' today. Started last night when I had to go to the coach station in Exeter to pick up my Sister-in-laws 70 year old freind who has come to stay for Christmasfrom Russia. The coach was supposed to come in from Heathrow at 9.05pm but due to the chaos caused by snow at Reading it didn't come in till 05.10am this morning so by the time I got in the door it was just after 05.30.

SpecCast do a lot of those sort of things in 1:16 and in recent years Norscot have produced a few.

It's an early 20th Century platform balance weighing scale. Mostly used for weighing sacks of potatoes and grain. You put the full sack on the larger wooden platform and your weights, 14lb, 28 and 56's or multiples of on the other side and when the two top boards are level with each other the amount in the sack will be the same weight as what you have in weights on the other side.

The Exeter fairs are very good and well attended with quite a large selection of farm related stuff and there are 3 or 4 stalls there that do nothing but. There are a couple of stalls that do all older lead figures and animals and related stuff and a smattering of farm related items can always be found on a lot of the other stalls. There are between 4 to 5 fairs at the Wespoint Arena per year the next being 10th January, doors open to the public at 10.30am to 3.15pm and most stallholders are there setting up by 8.00am and before. Stalls or tables cost £35 I think but may be less as I have not done one for some time now but best to check and book a table from the organisers, Steve Clements Fairs Limited on 01380 725322 or 07958 101891.

Just to add to ploughmasters post, the 'rolling road' display TW35 had a Howard rotaspreader coupled to them. These spreaders were a darker colour orange than the later ones, I have two pairs of these tractors and the spreaders. I knew they came from the rolling road shop display but always wondered why there was a strip of velcro under the weigts, now I know why.

Depends on how it was listed. Ebay rules normally state that if you list an item under the 'aucyion' format then you are supposed to ignore any 'offers' to buy it before the listing has ended. Your best bet is to go to the help page and find the 'end listing early' topic and read what's there to help you. Too many options to discuss here I think.

I will be at the next Exeter event. It promises to be a good first-of-the new year one as a lot I spoke to at the little one at Newton Abbot today were getting excited about it. I have been informed that the new UH 1:16 Nuffield should be here in time, being delivered to some dealers this coming week so they should be at the Bath & West as well.

The 2 Fordsons are restored originals and being hard to find now thought that £40 for each was a good price considering what they make elsewhere and that the work has already been done. The garden roller is an original and a good find for just £1. The lead figure is that of the Britains 'Village idiot', although a reproduction it is solid cast as the original and an exact replica, it is several years old and could have been cast from the original mould. Research on this one would need to be done but at just £16 was a snip.

Picked up these few bits of Britains from a little local toy fair this morning.

Get a new replacement one first before you remove the old one, you'll see how it fits then. Just fits in the slot on the side by putting the extended bit in the slot first and then pushing in in a downward arc motion. Removing the old one, do the opposite. You will find new ones cheap enough on eBay, there's a chap from Somerset that does a lot of Britains replacement parts by the user-name of Yeomar12, his parts are very good.

That's an Exeter registration plate, 1979. You'll have to do a search on the DVLA website to see if it's still registered on the computer, if it is you'll be able to get a log book and tax it then.

For the tractors in this series I have it on good authority that Mr. Originals had a lot to do with them.

For the figures, the 'Britains Herald Plastic Figures' book is a good read and reference for production run of years.

The model I would most like would be blonde or brunette or I'd even settle for a feisty red-head. Would have of course to be curvacious and ample in the right areas, not too tall and between 28 and 43. I promise to be good next year! On a more serious note, a cabbed D.B. 995 or 996 in 1:16 would be very acceptable but I think I may have to keep wishing for some time yet. Oh well, next year perhaps.

Be good if this can be added to the previous postd from 2007 as per PDH's post. Anyway, values of the tractors and the Land Rover have not moved a lot in the last 2 years. The D.B. 900 seems to be the more readily found one and the rest very much harder now. The 'Home Farm' ones in the same series are quite common and can be found in toy fairs for around the £40 mark or less. These were in dark green boxes with a pictorial paper label on the lid harking back in style to the original home farm stuff. They are very nice sets, extremely good detail and heavy solid lead/cast. Apparently these sets were very poor sellers because of the hefty price of them and not too many shops actually stocked them. I have a few of the sets but am still looking to find the rest to complete my collection of them.

What boxes are you looking for? I have some templates I've done for some older stuff but mostly smaller things like the early tractor roller, Vicon acrobat turner, walls, gate and sign, duck-egg tipping traler with lades box, Vicon fertaliser spreader, 3-furrow plough, early cultivator/scuffle and a few others that escape memory for the moment. That's just Britains stuff, I've also done some templates for some Corgi, Dinky and Matchbox farm stuff as well.