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Dick Ransome / pre-crash damage to K7
Posted: Mon Dec 30, 2013 9:31 pm
by Renegadenemo
Sad to have to report that 'Big Dick' Ransome passed away yesterday. A big, jovial, barrel-chested elder of Coniston, I first met Dick when he worked in the engine room of Gondola - a crazy place for such a big bloke to move around. Then I visited his barn to have a look at his steam wagon and traction engine only to discover that the living room ceiling in his cottage wasn't much higher than Gondola's deck.
A cousin of Arthur Ransome, he had, shall we say, an interesting take on people who liked to dress as pirates and invade his front garden, but he was quick to get on the tools when he came to visit us in the workshop one evening.
A cracking bloke - and a very sad loss.
Re: Dick Ransome
Posted: Tue Dec 31, 2013 9:03 pm
by sheppane
Dick on the 4th of November 1966, watching as K7 is launched for the first time.
He is the large imposing guy behind DC. © Paul Allonby.
DR.jpg
He came to the rescue, with the Hadwins heavy tow truck, when K7, on the back of the Adams Bros trailer, got stuck in the mud on the 3rd of November. They fastened the tow truck to a tree, and then used the truck's winch to pull K7 to firmer ground.
Re: Dick Ransome
Posted: Tue Dec 31, 2013 9:52 pm
by Terminator
Sad news in deed Re Dick Ransome a gentle giant of a man. Eric Hadwin always said they had a great security man in Dick who would be up half the night burning the midnight oil.
I recall the many stories Dick told us over the years especially the one when he had broken his leg and Donald Campbell insisted he got into the back of the E type and drove him to his destination. Often seen at the Church House supping a pint or three and having the crack a jolly fellow that he was he will be sadly missed.
But I'm quite sure his best friend Fred Dibnah will be sharing a pint or to and the odd tale with Dick in that great bar in the sky.
Rest in peace Dick.
Novie Dzinora
Re: Dick Ransome
Posted: Tue Jan 21, 2014 12:15 pm
by Richie
Just noticed that the square window is open on the tail cover.... That was blocked off for the final run with cardboard...
Re: Dick Ransome
Posted: Tue Jan 21, 2014 12:19 pm
by Renegadenemo
Just noticed that the square window is open on the tail cover.... That was blocked off for the final run with cardboard...
...until some clumsy diver put his hand through it trying to find out what it was made of.
Re: Dick Ransome
Posted: Tue Jan 21, 2014 12:52 pm
by Wonderboot
That is pretty bent-up...any ideas what caused that? Heat from the jet? Fitting an Orpheus in a force-niner with a lump hammer?
Re: Dick Ransome
Posted: Tue Jan 21, 2014 12:54 pm
by Richie
Yes she was in a sorry state towards the end.... But she was an aging girl by that point. I don't know of any other record breaking machine that had lasted as long as she did..... No doubt you guys will come up with a list.
Re: Dick Ransome
Posted: Tue Jan 21, 2014 1:06 pm
by Renegadenemo
That is pretty bent-up...any ideas what caused that? Heat from the jet? Fitting an Orpheus in a force-niner with a lump hammer?
It got mashed when she sank in Lake Mead. They cut and shut the F-1 frame on the tail cover and put a shaped patch on the inside but the shape never really came back.
It got mashed even further in the 67 accident because the front engine mount had come adrift so the jetpipe was able to come up and smash into the underside of the tail cover. The result being that we had to get rid of the 67 damage while leaving the Lake Mead ding. That was interesting. There's another vestige of the sinking damage that we've left in place and that's a twist in the very aft end of the closing strip that joins the lower hull to the tail cover. Bet Mike has a pic.
Re: Dick Ransome / pre-crash damage to K7
Posted: Tue Jan 21, 2014 2:06 pm
by Renegadenemo
We still have the seagull damage. OK, so it's buried amongst even more damage, but it's there and we can save or sanitise with that one.
Re: Dick Ransome
Posted: Tue Jan 21, 2014 2:42 pm
by quicksilver-wsr
Mike Bull wrote:On a similar note- just the other day as it happens Richie was querying whether we intended to recreate the duck and seagull damage to the two spar fairings on the left side. Although I think in the past we've said that we would do so, my gut reaction now is that while it's one thing to sensitively work around existing battle scars rather than sanitise the entire machine, it's quite another to purposefully create false damage in a new part; for the moment, I'm of the mind that both spar fairings should be in normal, 'pre-bird' state. I'd also say that with the amount of overlapping fairings and sealant and paint finish to consider, having a duplicate set of 'damaged' fairings would be more trouble than it was worth, too. What does everyone else think?
I think I've already chipped my two-bob's-worth in on this in a post on another thread some while back ...
My own view is that recreating an old injury may be a little contrived, and a tiny step too far which might detract from the overall - very laudable (and successful) - efforts made to date to uphold fidelity to the boat's original pre-crash state.
Being a thoroughly reasonable bloke, however, I can see sense in both sides of the debate!
If the evidence of the bird-strikes is still locked away in the metalwork somewhere,
and clearly identifiable amongst the crash-crumples, then it may not be too big an authenticity issue to tease it back into view again for all to see.
Nigel