New member from mid-Devon, UK
 

Hi Everyone,
My name is Patrick - although in the British tradition my nickname is 'Paddy'. I have an Aprilia RSV1000SP motorcycle - the 'SP' signifies that it's a special limited edition machine, so from that my web username has become 'Paddy_SP'.

My interest here lies in the fact that I love engineering, and have a workshop full of boys toys (machine tools), including an Eckold 309. Here's an example of the sort of thing I enjoy doing/making: http://foxonic.com/harley.htm - it's my little sprint-hillclimb racer.

I also hunt a lot - contrary to what a lot of people on the other side of the pond think, we actually have a lot of freedom with regard to firearms. Sure, we have to have a police-issued licence for the exact type of rifle(s) we own, and we're not allowed handguns except under special circumstances. We are, however, allowed to hunt deer (for example) wherever we have permission. If it's in season, you can hunt it, no limits, no permits, no official checking-in. Since we have six species here, that means if we want to, we can hunt them 365 days a year. With screw-on moderators (suppressors).

My speciality is foxes - over here they are much bigger than in the USA as they don't have anything to compete with other than badgers. A large fox would weigh about 25 pounds, so not as big as a yote, but heading that way. So far this year my hunting partner and I have shot 233 foxes, not counting ones we couldn't find.

Anyway - I hope that works as an intro! :)

Welcome to the forum Paddy.

David

I thank you, Kind Sir! :)Which part of the country are you in? :confused:

Paddy, I am on the east coast in Essex. Harwich pretty much.

David

Paddy,
I hope you find the love of metalshaping more addictive than the shootin

Ah - a long way from me then!

Unlikely - there are too many people around here whose livelihoods depend on my controlling the foxes. One farmer up the road has lost around 2,000 free-range organic chickens since Easter. Have a think about what those birds were worth to his business...;)

Hi Patrick welcome to the forum
Peter

Hello Patrick and Welcome.:)
The SP in bikes normally stands for Sports Production...as in the Honda SP1, SP2
also with the Aprilia.
You definitely have one awesome machine, bet its pretty hard to keep them Bobbies happy:D
Happy riding, from a fellow biker.:D
Cheers John

I thank you - it's been a long time since I was last in your part of the world - we used to visit the Phillip Island GP track regularly - loved it!

Thanks, John! You are, of course, correct about the meaning of the 'SP'. As for the local bobbies - they are safe where my Harley is concerned - it does three miles to the gallon on a good day and only has a one gallon fuel tank (the tracks are less than a mile long). As there are no fuel stations for over ten miles in any direction, I won't be riding it on the open road around here!

3 miles to the gallon, Bloody hell Pat, you have joined the right forum mate. The 1st project I would start, is to build a long range tank...:lol:

Cheers