The Rust Bucket
03 Jan 2020Will Keaton
Personal Log - ALLEN ZOOMFIG, IMPERIAL ENGINEERStardate: 93607.92
<BEGIN LOG>
Today is the day I finally take out the old Rust Bucket for a spin. This little sidewinder has been in our family for 3 generations and it needed a serious overhaul. I had to replace all of the core internal modules with new ones since they had all rusted to shit due to the improper care of the vehicle. Next I had to refit the right engine mount as well as give the whole ship a brand new paint job which cost me a few thousand out of my pocket. After that I was ready to test out her flight capabilities so I had one of my friends tow it up to Fairbairn Station (I didn't want to overload the thrusters when I tested them out for the first time).
So after a nice trip up to the spaceport I readied the ol' girl for her first flight in what hat to have been decades. I mean this ship probably hasn't flown since 3270. Still after all the refits I ended up pulling in order to get this bucket of bolts goin again, I can proudly say that she purred like a kitten. It was honestly one of the happiest moments of my life.
# NOTE #
As a note for this log I worked as an imperial engineer which meant that I was used to fixing up Gutamaya ships like the Clipper. And as most people while know Gutamaya is known for their craftsmanship, those ships are built to be clean and beautiful. So naturally it was quite a shock to have to deal with all of the cheap parts that were barely holding the Rust Bucket together. It was quite a challenge to get that ship back up and running, I spent hours pouring over old manuals filled with coffee stains and torn pages trying to figure out how i could refit or even update the engines.
# # #
So after I got the engine started I took off and ran around LHS 3447 to let the ol' girl stretch her legs a bit. There were a few creaks and moans as we jumped in and out of supercruise but nothing that was really worrying. After that I took her back to Fairbairn Station and ran some diagnostics on the thrusters and let them cool down for a bit.
In the end I'd say that it was a pretty successful refit of a shockingly reliable ship. I'll have to test out a few configurations of the weapons slots to see if I can get her combat ready.
And as of now I'm changing her Transponder code from the Rust Bucket to Nancy, a more fitting title for a sweet lady.
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- IMPERIAL DATA BROADCAST 1423:153 -