almeehan

You should not turn a small bricon pad sideways. If you need to cover an area of 10 inches you will need to get an 11 inch pad. Coverage is not guaranteed at the back of the pad where the electronics and cable are positioned. There is no point in owning any ets system if you are going to leave a gap where birds can enter without walking on a live part of the pad and being timed.

I'll ring the man again tonight and see how things are, always awkward when its a non fancier but this person seems fine. Think it will end up a job for a courier.... Thanks for the offer.

Had a pigeon reported by a non fancier near Gatwick from our Kings Cup race.... anyone near that area who could collect it for me? We only had 60 in race time from near 2800 so I can't really fault the bird too much. Any help much appreciated. Alan

Printer needs to be PCL5 or PCL6 compatible, also must have a parallel port. USB only printers will not work.

Think you need to provide more information. Are you using a really old printer? You need to come back with the exact make and model. You mention gps, are you using the bricon clubmaster with the speedy or are you marking bricon through the unikon club system? It sounds like an old incompatible printer but need the information to confirm.

Printer is not the problem unless it is faulty. If a printer works on the unikon it will work on any ets system, the requirements are the same. What message are you getting on the speedy clock when you try to mark? It should give a reason.

No problem thanks for double checking. I'll try find out who owns it as this ring is not from my club, I got mine as a gift. I'll update if I get more info.

Cowhugger can you recheck the ring number? Let me know if it is definitely 78313.... Bit of a coincidence its so close to mine. Mine has a phone number ring on its other leg along with an ets ring.

I own (or used to own) 78213 a dark cheq cock, lost him in Sennen Cove yearling national last week.....

Long shot I know but had a bird reported by a non fancier last night in Ballymahon in Longford. Are there any members in the area who can collect this for me? I lost it from Mallow last weekend.... I'm told it has an injured leg. Any help appreciated. Alan

T3S are the newer clocks with the blue face, older T3 is orange. T3S should have longer life battery and better spring on the plunger. Otherwise both are the same. Thimbleless means fitting a cover over the cell which closes after striking. This keeps the rubber in place as the drum rotates and stops it jamming the clock. There are a couple of ways of doing this, the quickest and cheapest is to use the click'n'clock type which you can fit yourself.

Going over for the day on Saturday... flight out of Dublin at 6 returning at 8.45pm. Should be a good day.

You missed your chance they were in Blackpool, I bought the aircap 4 with the hard hat for 150.....

I have the aircap 4, bought it at the blackpool show for £100 a couple of years ago, they do special offers there every year. That price is mad, try hold out for blackpool if you can and if you can't go yourself get someone to buy it for you. I can only go on my own experience with masks. I tried all types, I've found the aircap to be by far the best. I found without the full visor my eyes really suffered. Because it blows the air onto your face it does not have to fit tight like a rubber mask. It is an awkward size but you get used to it, now I would not be without it and will buy another this year. It works for me, for what my opinion is worth......

The aircap is battery operated and blows filtered air down over your face, so it doesn't have to be an exact fit, it also covers your complete head which stops dust getting into your hair. There is no comparison between the aircap and any rubber mask. I've tried them all and aircap is by far the best.... when you get used to wearing it. You should also wash your hands and face when leaving the loft. I also wear a loft coat and shoes which I keep in a shed outside the loft. Can't be too careful with your health!

Lost a pigeon in the yearling national from INFC Sennen Cove this year, had it reported in Portaventura, the theme park near Barcelona. Also last year had a youngbird from the young bird national race from Penzance, had it reported in La Coruna in Northern Spain. Didn't get either of them back!

Bradwest Aircap the best mask by far, covers the whole head and battery powered

Good to hear, knew something would be sorted, good man Trevor! Enjoy the night, I went last year and its great if you have a trophy or 2 to show for it

I'm sure something can be sorted out, surprised the national winners are not automatically guests of honour at these events. If I'm ever lucky enough to win one I'm sure I'll find out! Do whatever it takes to get there, it will be well worth it.

There are 2 indicators which can flash, 1 is a warning triangle and the other is a flashing battery symbol. If it is a flashing battery you are on borrowed time as you don't know when it will fail. It is programmed to come on when the battery is 8 years old. If the clock is still running on 1st January the following year it will go off again. I have seen them last for years after but have also seen them die within weeks. The triangle symbol usually comes on at 6 years so you should be ok for a while. New batteries last for 10-12 years so this only applies to the older t3 clocks. Alan

Thanks lads just have an address for now I'll try get a contact number will send a pm when I get it much obliged alan

Hi I've had a pigeon reported in Truro by a non fancier, obviously being in Dublin this is a problem for me. Is there anyone local who may be able to collect for me? Thanks Alan

Has to be the aircap, bought 1 for 100 at the blackpool show. It covers the whole head and is powered and filtered so blows clean air over your face. I used every type but none compare to these. They are expensive but will last at least a couple of years so cheap in the long term, also can't put a price on your good health.....

IB, I did base my opinion on the figures which you put up! Even looking at the fuller figures posted it can be seen that the vast majority of cases are still of type Dt2 and DT99. I don't know what size of sample these figures are from, it may be a sample of 1000 or 100000 for all I know. It is possible that I am wrong about the prevalence of salmonella in pigeons, I am not a vet and make no claim to have diagonsed this. The questions you have asked of DEFRA are excellent and relevant but the answers given indicate that they don't particularly care to find out about the prevalence of salmonella. So unfortunatly pigeon fanciers still have to rely on their own experience in this matter.

Interesting thread.... Looking at the figures posted from DEFRA seems over 80% of the cases involved copenhagen strain so it can be argued it is the predominant strain of salmonella in pigeons. The vaccines are therefore targetting the correct cause. I don't think anybody can guarantee 100% effectiveness of their vaccine due to different storage conditions and use of the product, for instance over or underdose of the product or using contaminated needles. So what it comes down to is a good old fashioned cost benefit analysis of using the product. If you decide on balance of probability it is better to vaccinate you should. If not - don't! I do because I consider paratyphoid to be widespread in pigeons but that is just my experience and my opinion.