My New Black Cheek

[My New Black Cheek]

He looks good Emmy.

You wrote he arrived today so was it by courier?

Also brave move buying unseen, guess I'm a bit skeptical about buying remotely (unless it's eBay then you can't get me off that site). Was he from a breeder?

Good luck with him, black cheeks are one of my favourite new mutations.

Lee

[Cfws]

Nice bird.

Good results, what's the split of cocks to hens of the 11 you've bred?

[Led Lighting]

Gary, each dimmer controls 4 cages, my timer doesn't have dawn dusk I just use it as regular on offs - you'll have to let me know the details of yours (mine was only a cheap one off eBay, think it was less £4 delivered).

I have a dawn dusk programmable dimmer on my main lights and run them on an overlap with the LEDs.

The LEDs I have used are 4 way natural white light waterproof units, see photo

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[Led Lighting]

Andy, just check out my recent introduction (lee in Warwickshire) thread, there's photos on that one.

Lee

[Led Lighting]

Gary, my LED cage light set up is working well, as you mentioned its a lot cheaper to run plus they don't generate heat the same as normal bulbs do, so on hot days like today the bird room isn't baking.

Most of the items are available via eBay (12v dimmers, timers and power supply), the actual LEDs I brought from China via aliexpress.com a link site between Chinese manufacturers and the UK.

I have 3 lights per 24" cage, with each row of cages controlled by a separate dimmer, this way I can bring the breeding pairs on early, whilst leaving the later youngsters on a different time cycle.

Couple of photos of mine attached.

[Lee In Warwickshire]

Thanks for the comments about my new bird shed coming on, designed and built from scratch to fill an unused flagged area the side of the house. 12' x 6' with a low eaves of 6'6" fully insulated (floors, wall and roof) with 25mm polystyrene sheets and fully plasterboarded. It's got 8 breeding cages installed (modified double breeders to give quad flight cages). Cages are future proofed, in that i can add another row of cages above and below the existing, but thought it best not to overwhelm myself this year. The cages have 12v LED internal lights with a programmable timer and separate LED programmable dimmers for each row. The eNd section of the shed contains a dividable internal 6' x 3.5' flight, giving me either 2 small flights or one larger one. The main lights are fully programmable with a dawn/dusk dimmer function, the brass switches are a bit OTT but they were actually salvage items I'd perviously hoarded. Ventilation achieved with 8 louvred 8" vents plus the louvred end window, heating is via a thermostatic controlled tube heater. The whole concept started because I was offered a cheap load of featherboard planks and the previous shed wasn't big enough.

Sorry, I don't do commissions, and no you can't live it.

Cheers for looking.

[Lee In Warwickshire]

Just introducing myself to the forum, I’ve recently started keeping birds again after a 25+ year gap, which should make me ancient but I’m still only in my early forties.

I started as a junior breeding and exhibiting Zebra Finches plus a mixed aviary of foreign finches (Bengalese, Silverbills and Cutthroats) Diamond Doves, the odd canary and CP Quail, then cars, work, girlfriends and lager became higher priorities in my life. So my uncle took over my birds (we had a few years exhibiting as a Novice partnership together), he continued for numerous years exhibiting the Zebras and still keeps and breed birds to this day, but now has a more diverse collection including poultry, pigeons and doves, as well as the finches. He is well known in the scene and because he retained our partnership name I think I'm a champion exhibitor by default. From time to time i'd accompany or meet him at one of the shows or sales, in fact it was nice to see the odd breeder/exhibitor from my youth still going strong with some lovely quality birds all these years later.

I have now got my life back on a steady keel, in that I now have a job that I get back from each day (spent years working away from home), space for my hobbies (no longer in living in rented accommodation or hotels) and a young family, so I’m spending longer at home and have time to indulge myself again in bird keeping.

Started smaller this time round with just a couple of pairs of exhibition Bengalese finches, which I'm having quiet a successful season, 12 in the moult and both pairs back on eggs, but because I've still got an attachment to my initial love I picked me up pair of Zebras last weekend as a treat to myself for finishing building a new bird shed - see photos

They were a bit of an impulse purchase at a bird sale, (BC normal cock, fawn (think split BC) hen) so may end up replacing them once I've bred off them as I would really like some decent Black Cheeked CFWs. (Please bear me in mind when if you have any surplus BCCFW birds, I don't mind travelling for nice

Thanks for allowing me on to the forum, and no doubt I'll be asking for advice about genetics etc as and when the collection grows. Can't believe the amount of colour variations now widely available these days, and those 'triple orange?' birds are stunning, I would have never thought it possible.

Thanks,

Lee