Drayman

I'm not defending anyone but it isn't only young folk. I see plenty of stuff chucked out of vehicles by all ages and especially from trade vehicles. Behind a new-ish Volvo 4x4 at a roundabout the other day - two coffee cups straight out of the window - and the occupants were easily in their 40's. A pity more "older" folks don't set an example.

I've always understood the CW range to mean that the lower number is the minimum CW to make the rod act correctly when casting - anything lighter and it won't bend enough - and the upper CW weight is the maximum weight to avoid damage to the rod when it's compressed during casting. Apparently there's a rule of thumb guide of 1oz CW per pound of test curve. This would put yours at about 4lb.

It's set out in our deeds. When the land was sold from an estate they kept the mineral rights down to 400 yds. After that it belongs to us BUT it also says that any extraction of minerals cannot be brought to the surface within 1/4 mile of the property. Mind you, as we sit on pure greensand I won't be doing any digging soon.

Cheers Mongrel and thanks for the heads up on the fishing forum.

All but one of the mackerel on the boat last week were quite small - nothing like the size they used to be - we put it down to early season fish but I'll watch to see if size improves. Haven't noticed the worm problem but I'll look more carefully now. Did a search on fish worms and it seems everything suffers from them to some degree. Been eating fish forever and never noticed a problem but I suppose, like all wild animals, they'll have their share of parasites.

errr - is it legal to wander the streets with a sten gun (deactivated or not)?

Anyone know if the mackerel are close in around the Shoreham or local areas? We had loads off the boat from Littlehampton but I want to do some evening runs to the coast for a bit of beach fishing. Cheers, Chris

They do have some things right such as filet (fillay) as in filet mignon. The only trouble is the jokes don't work ... she was only a fish mongers daughter but she laid on the slab and said fillet Mind you, we were walking with a ranger and group in the Sierras (California) and he was telling a story of how this young woman had tripped and sat on a camp fire and set light to her fanny! - the wife and I couldn't contain our smirks

The Gilera DNA is a 4 stroke and like all engines will use oil. I suspect if it is making a lot of noise you'll be looking at big end, small end, possibly crank bearings and so on. You may be lucky and at least it hasn't seized. You'll only know what has been done when it comes apart. 2 strokes use the crank case as part of the fuel inlet system and, as I've always understood it, need oil in the mix to lubricate the crank and small ends. 4 strokes use a separate inlet system (via conventional valves at the top of the engine) and need a separate oil feed for the crank and small ends.

If any of you have domain names then the Domain Renewal Group are currently doing their rounds with fishing letters (look very official) saying you need to renew your domain name. If you search the web this is well publicised as a scam to get you to change to them. It was new to me so thought I would let others know. Any correspondence goes in the bin.

Sounds like a great opportunity. If you are a BASC member drop them a line. They should know or know who to contact. Like it or not, safety and liability will need to be dealt with. And getting folks to sign a disclaimer to use a ground that isn't safe voids the disclaimer! You'll also need to consider the neighbours and make sure they have the right information. There's a lot of difference between, "we are planning to hold a clay shoot for 4 days each year on a Saturday between 10 and 3" and the normal rumour of "they are opening a clay ground next door which will shoot every weekend including Christmas day".

He'll have to set up the company first. Unless it's changed he'll need a company secretary (which can be his accountant), will need to file company returns and so on. So there is some work to do. He could pay himself a minimum salary from the company and then pay dividends which will save some NI. Will need to keep Directors meeting minutes, accounts etc. and will need the accountant to sort out what he can and can't put against costs to reduce company profit i.e. business tax. He could put a car on the company but needs to watch for benefit in kind. But with high miles this shouldn't be a problem. All servicing etc. could then go through company. Change after 3 years and sell it to yourself at knock down price - then it's up to you what you do with it and who you sell it to. If you don't do many miles this doesn't work - I've looked at this from every way an the BIK outweighs the savings. Might be able to go Flat Rate VAT registered which will also benefit a bit, assuming VAT registered, but will need to add VAT to bills. None of this is difficult - just needs a bit of planning and organising. Mind you, I would like a penny for every time I've heard, "you're all right, you can put it on the company!". Er no! In his case he's earning the money so it's still him who pays. The only benefit is some things come about 20% cheaper. Good luck.

Well I tried but I've drawn a blank. The B&B that was, is no more. The pub in our village is >£75 and the pub in the next one £85-115 (gulp!) Premier Inn still looks like best rate and reliability - you could even get to share a bed with Lenny!

Nearest Army town is Aldershot. This gives you an example but I HAVE NO IDEA what it's like but I doubt I would stay there! http://www.lionbrewery.co.uk/b&b.htm Aldershot is 30 minutes away without traffic. Guildford to Dover 2 hrs + twice a day. Still checking a couple of local B&B's - will let you know later. How long would you be around (weeks) as they might do a deal.

Well they've got to pay for all that private school education somehow We're about 5 miles outside Guildford. There's a B&B in the next village which doesn't show on the web. I'll see if I can find out the cost but I'll be really surprised if you could beat the Premier Inn for price. The B&B pub in our village is >£55. Welcome to Surrey - pints are expensive but Sainsburys has some good deals! Where are you travelling from and where is the office as traffic in Guildford can be really bad at rush hour.

We have some really good private schools in Surrey... but we also have some where the kids are thick as ****. But no matter what the school, the parents all love to say, "we send our kids to private school!" It doesn't matter if the sign on the gate says "State, Private, Grammar, Home or Approved" it's what's on the other side of the gate that counts and whether it will suit your kids. And no, no chips on my shoulder - State primary, Grammar Secondary, University, Oxford Doctorate, Post Doctorate, 21 years senior corporate, now my own Ltd company. The biggest challenge for parents is to find out what really goes on in the school and whether it's right for your kids. It's a tough choice and you want to do your best. And if there's a spelling mistake following all that education - am I bovverd!

I'll just add the counter to that from leafy Surrey. My wife has been a teacher in the state system for a long time and her school has a reputation for working with children with all forms of learning problems within normal classes. They also pick up the one's that the private lot are failing. The best bit is that when the parents go along to private schools for interviews or viewing they are told, "we aren't sure we have the facilities to best meet the needs of your child". It is selection and discrimination by another name, not of course, that it is never admitted. She has loads of examples of kids who were struggling in a private school through poor teaching, and are now flourishing in a state school. As has been said, your child's education is a meld between them, the school and their teachers. What works for one will not work for another. Never assume that paying for an education gets you a better education - it just gets you something different. A good school is a good school, but it's only good if it works for your child. Our kids went to state school. In hindsight I would have liked a better school, but it could have been state or private. Both have gone on to Uni, both are well rounded and others speak highly of them - I can't ask for much more. To my mind, the question should never be State or Private? It should be "what does my child need, what will make them flourish, and what's the best place to do that?"

What works for me. As said, practise as much as you can but I try to make the shot quickly. I try to get the shot done in the time it takes to say "spot, acquire, fire". I normally use a 22 rimmie. So, spot the rabbit. Bring the cross hairs on to the head and fire. If I wait any longer then it starts to wander. It's also easy to practise on static targets. As I say, works for me. The other thing I've found helps is once you've taken the shot just relax and see where the gun naturally wants to point. If it's not on the target then it means you were using muscles to hold it on line. I think it's better to be virtually on target with no additional effort, so move your feet.

Good information. The ShotKam is obviously very different to the device from WelshWarriors friends, but you would struggle to justify the extra £9.5K for the instant replay. I could easily see coaches using the ShotKam to review a group of targets for any level of shooting, and it's at a price point where many folks would consider buying it (individuals, coaches, clubs). When you try to invent something or design something new there's a general rule of thumb - "it's been done before, you just have to find it". You only have to do a quick patent search to see how many citations there are http://www.google.com/patents/US4835621 which says it's very likely there is already something out there. There's also an outside chance the device infringes an existing patent but unlikely that anyone would worry - though you never know. If after searching every known source then ask those who might know. Then if your research says, "never seen it or heard of it", you might be on to something new. Then you have to make it a winner. WelshWarrior's mates may be on to something but Ben.W has posed the time honoured question. "Why would I pay that much for yours when I can have that one for much less?"

Two clubs (sporting layout) I use are close to banning them as people just don't bother to pick up.

Nice product but as with all products you have to work out the target market and the flaws. Just to add my two penneth: As said, this looks like an expensive bit of kit. If they plan to make money from it then I suspect there are few coaches and only some grounds that will buy one unit. For the new shooter (really new) they want to pull the trigger and break a few clays. This is unlikely to help compared a typical good coach. They won't get to pull the trigger as many times (you need time to review) so they may not feel the session is value for money. Mid range - good. I can only speak for myself but generally I can work most targets out for myself or with a coach. I can see it helping with those really problematic targets where you are convinced you're doing it right but still missing (sporting layout and I can happily show folks one of those ) Top range. I can see this being of real value to competition shooters to finesse their technique. Question is, can you make money from them. So all in all it looks like a top range product and, obviously, some really good work has gone in to it - well done to your mates. I've done a lot of work with eye-tracking technology and I know this isn't easy. But, in one of the examples (teal type, going away left to right towards the tower, about half way through) concentrate on the target symbol, not the clay. It looks to be incorrect, especially if it was shot by the left hander in the first part of the video. So for a newbie that would be hard to understand if that's where you are saying they should shoot. If the position is right then some work will need to go in to the explanation. Please don't think this is criticism but having worked on new products and billion dollar brands for most of my life I know that the devil is in the detail. Good luck with the project and keep us posted. PS. not one for Dragons Den

You may do already but if you get good service from the FEO dept. it's always worth dropping them a line. Like any of us, they like a bit of positive feedback and their bosses can use it to show they are giving a good service. Only takes a minute, and well done if you do it already.

Measure the size. Add some good pictures check for any signatures. Brief history of the house and approx. build date - the picture can't be older unless it was added in from somewhere else. Then email the lot to an auction house like Bonhams - they give you an appraisal, subject to viewing if you need a confirmation. If you go to a local society you'll be in the local rag the next day, "man find rare historic picture" etc. Up to you if you want the popularity.

They've had a long time to spread - apparently there was a colony on the East coast in the 1880's (or perhaps earlier).

Got a good insurance company. Whenever a quote is due for my cars or bikes I do an online quote. They then match the best one or better it. I know all premiums are too high but I can't ask for much more these days.