willedoo

In this ABC article, election analyst William Bowe has produced this graphic based on averages of polling. It shows voting at the last federal election compared to averaged voter intention now. One Nation is up 20% which is made up of a 5% loss to Labor, 10% loss to the coalition and 5% to those listed as others. The only one that hasn't moved is the Greens steady at 12%. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-02-15/story-lab-one-nation-polling/106322978

Yes they do, and very loud. Not as loud as the butcher bird's but close. They wake you up at night. For years I thought the sound was some weird bird up in the roof ridge cap until I did some googling and found out it was the geckos. I originally thought they were the native gecko, dubious dtella. but with more googling and some close up inspection I'm fairly sure they're one of the introduced Asian species. They moved in here when I built the place in 1996 so are probably into the fifth generation by now.

I used to think the tubes running down each side were just part of the framework until I found out they are critical to the way the lanterns work. A bit like intake manifolds, but act as structural integrity as well. I usually burn one or two at night on the verandah. It provides a nice soft light and keeps the geckos happy hoovering up the moths attracted to the light. Another benifit is the nostalgic smell of burning kero; it reminds me of growing up with the kero heater. The kero heater was a stinky old thing and didn't throw out a lot of heat. I can't remember what year we got mains power on and would have changed to an electric heater. Before the mains power we had a 32 volt generator run by a single cylinder Southern Cross diesel. The battery bank was stuffed so as soon as you cut the motor to go to bed, all the lights went off. I've still got that generator but unfortunately not the engine.

The 5 gallon split tanks have screw in caps, RH thread on the right tank, LH thread on the left tank. The right cap is vented and the left cap solid to stop fuel spillage while on the side stand as there's a balance tube between the tanks. The petcock is on the rear of the left tnk, none on the right tank.

I thought about making a custom tank, but I think I'll use these 5 gallon Fat Bob tanks. They're old-ish and have a lot of character. The only other bike tank here is a rusty old rice burner tank (last photo) but it's a bit ordinary style wise.

The hot blast lantern like the Lanora in that photo has an air gap between the top of the globe and the chimney. In this photo the one on the left is a cold blast lantern and the two on the right are hot blast lanterns. With a hot blast, fresh air enters in the grate down near the burner. Some burnt gases exit the gap at the top of the globe while other burnt gases go into the hood, down the side tubes then into the plenium before mixing with the fresh air. With a cold blast lantern, the burnt gases go straight out the top chimney. Fresh air is taken into the side tubes from openings that are covered by the shroud below the chimney. This then goes down the tubes to the plenium. It's a more efficient design as a cold blast has only fresh air supplied to be burnt, fed from the plenium and the grate around the burner. Less smoke and a brighter light. The hot blast intake is a mix of hot, burnt gases from the plenium and fresh air from the burner grate.

I forgot to add, I prefer the hot blast lanterns. Not as efficient as a cold blast lantern, but they give off a much softer, more yellowish, glow which is a bit more old world style, more character and ambience. The others are better if you just want more light.

I got a fright tonight when I dropped one of my favourite lanterns (in the top four) onto the verandah floor from well above waist height. One of those times when you're not game to look down and see the damage. Luckily it's a strong, well built lantern and survived without a scratch. An el cheapo Chinese one I have would have been busted up badly in a fall like that due to it's paper thin constrction. The dropped lantern is a Sunlight brand cold blast lantern made in Indonesia. It's a large size, basically styled on a Dietz No.80, so a bit of weight to fall from that height with a full tank of kero. I think there's a couple of reasons it's such good quality, one is that the company's main business is making 44 gallon drums and the same gauge steel is used in the lanterns. They are also very well built and a factor in that is that I think they're mainly produced for the domestic market in Indonesia which requires a sturdy, useable product. A lot of contempory Chinese lanterns on the other hand, are made especially for the junk export market and are of low quality. The older lanterns made in China and Hong Kong were fairly good quality. I have a very old Hong Kong made Globe brand (aka The World Light Factory) hot blast lantern and it's of good quality. Of all the lanterns I have, a mix of hot blast and cold blast lanterns including brands from the USA, Germany, India and the UK, in my opinion the best of them all is the old humble Australian made Lanora hot blast lantern. They're not flash, but solid as a rock, burn beautifully and function mechanically way better than any of the others. I have two of them, the attached photo shows the yellow one burning away on the verandah. The Lanoras were circa 1940's/1950's, very common lantern and widely used by the military, railways and government as well as household use.

Well said Jerry. Firstly I'm breaking my golden rule here. I had a lengthy break from the forum and set a rule for coming back on a regular basis that I would avoid the politics section, so this is a relapse. I think it's a turbulent time in politics for a lot of the reasons mentioned by you in the above post. It's a good way to analyze the issue, otherwise it just turns into an us against them mudslinging match. Devotees of the major parties often like to think those on the fringe should come into their fold because it's the only way to provide stable government. Here's the catch - a lot of those people only have one small part in the power structure, and that's their vote every three (or four in some states) years. A lot of them use that vote to send a message to the majors, and let's face it, without a reality check, complacency will rule. While it's a sound two party system where we have this eternal your turn, my turn setup, performance of governments and major oppositions will always be pedestrian. A lot of the disgruntled people don't want to reward that. I don't think the shift to the right is a blip, and it certainly won't be halted by simply denigrating those people. At the moment here in Australia, Labor has a declining primary vote in the polls, but with the number of seats held, should be right for a while without having to go to a Labor/Green coalition. The immediate problem is for the conservatives with their primary votes bleeding to minor parties, mainly ON. There's a possibility if voter disillusionment with the major parties is not addressed, we'll see a shift to more European style government where it's rare for parties to form government without cobbling together a coalition of parties. Be prepared for the possibility that might be the new normal in Australia in the not too distant future. Liberal/National/One Nation coalition or a Labor/Green coalition with a few independants thrown in here and there.

Edit: [Poor comment from a moderator. Cut it out. You set a bad example. The subject needs to be delved into a bit deeper. Nev] Nev, as an example of the point I'm trying to make, the above quote has been edited to normal text. Yes, I know you do it for emphasis, but your posts don't need emphasis. They are short enough to be clearly understood without caps. The fact is they are less understandable with the cap emphasis you put in the posts, and can visually look like a rant. Have a good look at the two versions above and try to imagine them through the eyes of others; it's not hard to see which one looks more polite. You don't need a sledgehammer to crack a nut.

Nev, you're still shouting. Either that or your caplock is sticky. Caps are a poor way of emphasis and irritating to most readers. That's the last I have to say on that matter.

Thanks Marty, that's a well reasoned, thoughtful and balanced reply. I don't want to put anyone's nose out of joint, but your post is the standard of debate this forum needs as a lot of the political posts have been bordering on childish at times. It would be nice to see forum members stick to the play the ball, not the man rule.

Just to clarify, it's not a pleasant experience reading posts riddled with capitalised words. In print form, it looks agressive and overbearing. There's a lot of forums that would ban you for continually doing it.

It might add to the quality of the debate. Try leaving the caplock alone as well, it's the online version of shouting at someone and is classed as rudeness in the internet world. If you must emphasise a word, italics, while not ideal is a lot more palatable than a shouty post full of caps.

Nev, with all due respect, you didn't answer his question.

I could use one of those articulated ones about the place.

It reached US $5,000 an ounce yesterday, or AUD 7,000.

Crazy prices for split window Kombis. I remember them as an underpowered tin box on wheels. But they had a lot of character.

That's ok Nev, enjoy your junk free retirement. I haven't quite got to that stage yet; achieved the retirement part but still haven't cured the junk addiction.

To each his own. Nev, you do what you enjoy in life and I'll do the same.

I think I'll enjoy this project for a couple of reasons. Firstly, by it's nature it will be a fairly long term project and a nice way to play around in the shed on rainy days. It's all about the journey, not the destination. Secondly, it's not a registered road bike project. Not having to be road legal means one important thing - total freedom to do want I want. No concern about rules and regulations, no dealing with difficult bureaucrats and naysayers, and not having to march to someone else's drumbeat. It also helps a lot that I have a passion for rusty junk, which is how this thing will most likely be described.

I just noticed in those photos the gal trailer looks rusty. It's only 12 months old and it's not rust, it's leaf tannin stain from when I parked it under a tree for a while without a cover.

Picked up some ratty bike bits today. 2x 1984 model CBX750F Honda 4's. One assembled that's a potential runner and a second complete one in bits, motor with a stuffed crankshaft. There's bits and pieces there I can use and might part some of it out eventually. All the plastics and fairings are there (in the back seat). It cost bugger all.

The man who would be king is a good old movie. He was good in the hunt for red october as well.

A bit off topic, but on the subject of workplace accommodation, here's ours in early 1985 - a two man maggot camp. For those not familiar with the terminology, a fly camp is a junior off shoot of a main camp and a maggot camp is further down the pecking order from a fly camp; the term obviously comes from a maggot being the offspring of a fly. A fairly basic setup - a swag, a foldup shearer's cot, a cardboard box of tinned food and a golden circle pineapple tin for a billy. The reason we chose this spot is because we could have a shower after work. There was a small turkey nest full of water where the drillers had been filling their water truck and they'd left the pump and lay flat hose there. After getting back to the camp after work we could fire up the pump and there were enough holes in the lay flat hose to provide a good spray jet to have a bogey.