Heh heh, thanks for that Null, you obviously predate me at Colerne by a couple of years, 69 I started at Halton. I well remember the wash bay, over where the old museum aircraft were stored. To this day I remember there being a large container labelled "descaling fluid" at the side of the pan. I always wondered what it was used for, you can imagine an 18 year olds curiosity, and it's ability to clean up a penny was amazing. Do you remember the stuff, and was it used on aircraft ? As for washing the aircraft, pre Base 3, another memory was doing undercarriages or flap bays, wearing a "zoot suit" and getting back to the block with more black grime over me than if I'd helped do the wash in a pair of shreddies. The second was waiting around 3 days for my eyes to get back to being able to see again, after the detergent we used had spent the day finding its way into them. Happy days though, Colerne was a great place to learn your trade in the early 70s.
Best
Smudge
Now, DeanoP, give us the story on your nose leg problem, and put us out of our collective miseries.