To complete the trolley that would help me move heavy objects from one workshop to another, a handle was the finishing touch.

Some things never change.

As I promised myself, following the completion of the ROV frames, I would resume work on the Special. The bonnet hinge mechanism, although not needed just at this moment, was nevertheless an interesting project to get back into the swing of things. I first had to assemble the tube bender. It's been a while since I used it last and even with the instructions (the illustrations are not particularly helpful) it took me a good half-an-hour to work out what went where.

I needed the machine to create the first 45° bend, the rest I would have to do around various jigs. Heating not particularly special steel tube had its problems and I learnt quickly that the flame had to be directed at quite specific points to avoid the tube collapsing as it took up the shape. Anyway, I managed to produce two profiles within a gnat's of each other.

Originally, I had designed the bonnet hinges to be the other way up so that when the bonnet was closed, the flat would rest on the beam. I can't make that work with the travel of the wheel from lock to lock, though fortunately, all I had to do was turn them upside down to get the clearance. This is the closed position...

... and this is with the bonnet open. The flat describes a complete 90° segment so all should be well.

A jury rig of the hinges and support bends demonstrates that I'm in the ballpark.

Checking over the order for the ROV frames, I noticed that I was four hinge brackets short. I was quite happy about this as I was beginning to enjoy welding aluminium and this was another chance to practise. The hinge metal (the bit with the hole in it) was much softer than the angle - I had some careful filling and shaping to do afterwards - and it's nice to explode the myth of old dogs and new tricks occasionally.

As the Summer starts to fade, a visit to the beach was in order.

Southwold pier has a water-driven clock which every fifteen minutes or so sees the two men in the bath squirt water at each other. Then, below the bath, the trousers of the two men drop and their subsequent micturition waters flowers that rise from the base. Most gigglesome.