RAF_Louvert

. No no, not a Roland of any kind Olham, I only meant that LFG was licensed to build planes for the company that actually designed the one in the photo. Also, to the best of my recollection, the kite shown never went into production as it was not seen as an improvement over the Albatros of the day. .

. Wayfarer, historically you should be seeing quite a lot of German two-seaters flying support for the advancing ground troops, and therefore German fighters flying cover for said two-seaters. .

. No Olham, not a Sablatnig model. However, Luft-Fahrzeug-Gesellschaft, (better known as LFG and/or Roland), was under contract to build aeroplanes for both Sablatnig and the company responsible for the above design. .

. Here's the latest addition to my gathering of Great War remembrances: A US WWI Victory Medal with the oft seen 'St. Mihiel' and "Meuse-Argonne' bars, AND the ultra rare, (and unofficial), Army 'Aviation' bar. Me so happy! .

. I would need a much larger room with far more corners, Hasse Wind. .

. Olham, yes Sir, an original medal, ribbon, and bars. While original US WWI Victory Medals are still relatively easy to find in this country, and at affordable prices, the Army 'Aviation' bar is VERY hard to come across. Probably a good idea too about the shoe shopping. Jarhead, there was an official Navy 'Aviation' bar which is rectangular with the rope edging, (like all the Navy bars are for this medal). The Army version however was an unofficial item that US soldiers either purchased in France and added to their medal on their own, or did the same thing once they got back to the states, buying the bar through the American Legion or VFW. Also, the ribbon on this one is the original silk item, and as you say is still in amazingly good shape after all this time. .

. MAW, like OFF, is a fantastic rebuild of CFS3. Blending the two only makes it better. I have a full OFF / MAW set-up and have flown many a mission in it, (though none lately I'm sorry to say). Here is a video I did sometime back showing a dogfight above the desert between a Brisfit and a brace of Albs. Great fun. .

. I don't tend to purchase replica items when it comes to my WWI collecting, but every now and then something comes along that I just can't say no to. The following is such an item. I have always admired the pilot's badges of Imperial Germany but the odds of ever owning an original are about nil, (unless I win the lottery). So, when this replica came along for the princely sum of $12.00 US, well ... I nabbed it. While the details on the face are not as crisp as an original it is still really quite fine and even sports the "hallmarks" on its backside. It should look rather nice nestled in amongst the other items on my shelves. .

. Olham, IIRC, British pilots were given 50 pounds from the Government and were expected to go out and buy their own flying kit. .

. We have met the aliens, and they are us. .

. My Irish pilot is Patty O'Furniture. .

. I stand six foot, and 186 was what I weighed at my prime in the USAF. I looked my best and felt my best at that weight, so that is where I am headed to again, if all goes. I've not only lost a lot of weight already, but more importantly I've gotten back into a regular routine of exercise that combines walking, free weights, calisthenics, and isometrics. Many thanks to all of you for your words of encouragement, they really do help a lot. .

. Tom, you can thank Burning Beard for the "how to" on setting up a slider control for mixture, (He 'da Man!). To your questions: Q1. I have certain functions set up via the CFS3 controls in OFF, the above mentioned mixture control being one of those. The others, such as the blip switch, work via the OFF profile I have set up in the Saitek Profiler. So I'd say "Yes", you should be able to leave the items you have set up in your CFS3 controls profile and simply add the others you want via an OFF profile in your Saitek software. Works perfectly with my rig. Q2. The blip switch, (and to a much lesser extent the mixture control), were the only ways to control the engine speed in the early rotaries, so "Yes" you would use the blip switch not only to land but in a dogfight as well, which is why it was mounted on the control column in the DH2 and other kites as it needed to be VERY handy for the pilot. Q3. You can assign the F12 key function to whatever button you like when you set up your OFF profile in the Saitek software. Enjoy, and good luck HD! .

. After a conversation with Tranquillo earlier this week I realized it's been well over a month since I posted an update on my quest for 186. My weigh-in on Monday was a milestone as it saw me below 200 pounds for the first time in two decades. Getting close now. If I can stay on track, by summer I should be there. And Tranquillo my friend, I wish you all the best. Beautiful pictures of Venice by the way, and from the photo of you I'd say you don't need to be losing anymore ballast Sir. .

. von Baur, I've practiced "If it ain't broke, don't fix it," for most of my life. Unfortunately, as you have so rightly pointed out, our society seems to be all about change and very little about tradition or honoring the past. Don't misunderstand, things should change when it's for the better. Far too often though change appears to be simply for it's own sake. .

. That is actually quite eerie. It honestly has remained nearly unchanged for all those years, much like my inability to learn from my mistakes. .

. You are more than welcome RS. And I'm not exactly a spring chicken myself, (turning 58 this year), so I'm also a fan of having unfamiliar things spelled out with a certain amount of detail in order that the ol' grey matter can take hold of it. Here's hoping you get your OFF controls sorted out and tweaked just the way you like. .

. I understand Cockney rhyming slang, but I hesitate to speak it again in these halls. Last time I gave it a go I was accused of watching "Mary Poppins" too many times as a youth. Too true of course, but still ... made me go all red in the bloomin' boat, it did. .

. Sid, the way I have my blip switch set up on my Saitek AV8R-01 stick works very well, and this is how it was done: First, go into your CFS3 control panel, (launch OFF, pick Quick Combat, get onto the field, hit ESC to drop down the menu, then go to Controls). Once there assign a single key command to the 'Magneto Increase' and Magneto Decrease' functions. I used the comma ',' key and the period '.' key respectively, and I deleted the old 'CTRL+M' and 'SHIFT+M' commands for these functions. Once this is done save the changes and exit OFF. Now launch your Saitek Profile Editor and go into your OFF profile, (or create an OFF profile if you don't already have one made). Once there choose the button you wish to have as your blip switch and right-click in the block to get the drop down menu and pick 'New Advanced Command'. Now then, click in the 'Press' box and then hit your period '.' key and you should see it show up twice with a split-second difference between the two, (probably .06 sec). Now go down and left-click in the 'Release' box, then right-click and in the drop down menu hit 'Clear All', and now quickly hit your comma ',' key, again you should see two buttons with a split-second difference between them, (and again likely .06 sec). Save the profile and you are good to go. Your blip switch will now work just like they did in the real WWI kites, which is to say as long as you hold the button down the mag will be off, and when you release the button the mag comes back on, with one caveat. If you start your aeroplane using the complex method, (and one would assume you are if you've gone to the trouble of creating a blip switch), you'll want to only turn on 'one' magneto, which means you only hit the 'Magneto Increase' button once, (remember that OFF has two mags modelled for every kite whether they actually had two in RL or not). If you use the 'E' key to start your plane, (wimp), you will need to hit the "Magneto Decrease' key, (likely twice), before your blip switch will function as it should. This is because your blip switch is only deactivating one mag so it follows that you can only have one turned on in order for everything to work as it should. Oh, and be sure to activate your OFF profile in the Saitek controls elsewise none of the special functions you've set up will work. Easy Peasy! But honestly, if you set it up like this it really does work outstandingly well. BTW, here is the current layout of my flying controls, for those who might be interested. .

. BB, very glad to learn it worked for you as well Sir, in particular after you steered me towards the proper way to set up the mixture control lever on my flying kit. .

. I agree Olham. You have to love OFF for just this kind of white knuckle experience. Nice screenie, BTW. .

. BH, I believe it's pronounced "Schmitt". .

. Yes, but are they listed before letters? Sorry, couldn't help myself RP, your typo was just laying there, and, well ... I'm a smart arse. .

. You forgot to sum up with, "Easy Peasy". Thanks muchly, Flyby. .

. Hmmm, an Oak Leaf Cluster for the BOC badge? I think we have enough problems getting our hats on some days as it is already around this camp. And, since we are sharing a few of our flying monikers: 2nd Lt. Testy McTesterson Leutnant Otto Knottfli Feldwebel Hans Offderplaen Sergeant Kenny Shewttum Lt. Howard Kannetbee Adjutant Frank Leigh-DeWerst Captain (acting) Reginald “Reggie” Wankersmith Sous Lt. Phillip M'Tanque Dummas and a host of others. .