OT: What's this type of bracket called?

If I had a mate who claimed to have some qualifications, and I believed he did, but ppl were questioning that he had any, I would simply ask him about them.. where he got them and what they entailed. that would be the normal and natural thing to do. the mere fact that grubby will not simply as his BFF about his alleged qualifications, and sight them so he can testify to them, but rather will post diatribe after diatribe in defence of knobby's claims, only tells us he is shit scared that his BFF doesn't have any, so he doesn't want to be made to look like a fool.

that was very well said!

I have a feeling Grumpy knows what the reality is. I mean, he couldn't be *that stupid*, could he?

Indeed!

The real world is proving somewhat of a challenge for Noddy.

I also completed my Diploma of Technical Teaching through Hawthorn Institute of Education (later absorbed in Swinburn University) in the mid-80's

At the time, I was teaching Electronics Apprentices at the Army Apprentice School, Bonegilla, on the Hume Weir, and, each Wednesday, a couple of HIE Instructors would come up to Bonegilla to run classes for a group of about 20 - 25 Electronics, Electrical, Motor Mechs, Metal Workers and Carpenter & Joiners Instructors.

During "School Term Holidays", we would go down to Melbourne for a weeks 'intensive' training and excursions ... even a trip to GMH's Fisherman's Bend plant where, amongst other things, we saw engine blocks being "run in", several minutes at max revs .... 'dry', i.e. Red Hot!! When the siren went off, you soon knew it meant another block hadn't made the grade!!

I don't quite know what our trip to the National Gallery of Victoria was supposed to teach us!! Maybe seeing all that Art and stuff would take some of the Tradies rough edges off, or something!!

I completed the Cert TT in 81-82. It then took me a four more years to get the Dip TT graduating in 87. Had I already possessed the Automotive Technicians Certificate, I would have had the Dip TT at the end of 82 - and started on a higher pay scale to boot.

BTW, HIE was absorbed into Melbourne Uni. They had some sort of affiliation but later went the full amalgamation process.

One of those would have possibly been Bart Pridmore. Another might have been Ray Retell. Might have been a Martin Busby in the mix. They were the three automotive instructors at HIE that I recall. Frankly, I am amazed I can remember them at all.

For the record, my posting was to have been Bonegilla at the end of 82 but my wife had an ectopic during the August hols. As a result, she needed to remain within cooee of the Royal Women's Hospital so I swapped postings with a fellow SI, can't recall his name, who was posted to Sunshine. I ended up in Sunshine (again - was a 1st year SI there) and he went to Bonegilla in my stead. Later, when TAFE was separating from the education department, I applied for a position at Richmond. That turned out far more favourable than Bonegilla would have been. BTW, Sunshine Tech was where electronics was taught to apprentices. I knew all the chaps in that department but can only recall a Mick Morambito.

Some of that testing ended up being done at Richmond TAFE. When the new campus was built at Cremorne Street, it included a chassis dyno and a full engine dyno setup. The engine dyno was idle for a considerable percentage of time so its use was contracted out. The college won the contract to do the GM family II engine testing - a programmed series of idling, acceleration, WOT full load running, cruise, deceleration, etc. The intent wasn't to run them in or run to destruction but, instead, simulate real world running on the highway. Still had the odd blow up. One such blow up took out the dyno for a time.

Some of the tradies had some really rough edges. ;-) I went through with two groups, commenced Feb 81, totalling 30 automotive tradies in all the various areas; motor mechs, panel beating, auto electrical, etc. Ten or more ended up being posted to Richmond so I was in familiar company during my time at Richmond. It was a huge automotive only TAFE college and motor mechs alone had 47 teaching staff.

I don't know what you were looking at, but I can assure you it *wasn't* "running in engines".

Holden, like many others, used to test fire engines on the assembly line (usually on natural gas) where they would have their oil pressure checked and their ignition timing finally set before the engine was passed as "fit" to be installed in a car, but that hasn't happened in decades. These days, engines generally don't get run until they're installed in the car and it's started and driven off the line.

What you witnessed would have been just a random batch test, which was probably done to prove some new mod before it went into production.

Noddy, you weren't there so you have absolutely no idea what was going on. He was obviously told by people who did know. It was obviously a testing procedure of some sort. I saw such things at Matech so they do go on and the purpose is no doubt way beyond your ken.