Post Office TFT, (Trainee Factory Technician 1972)

GPO TFT, (Trainee Factory Technician 1972)

I look back today with fondness about how lucky I was to pass the entrance tests to become a GPO TFT 

Imagine today a young 16 year old traversing the 27 mile round trip  to work and back home via 3 buses to get there and 3 or sometimes 4 buses for the return trip home on a college night, which was made worse by finishing college at 9.00 pm and finally arriving home at 11.30pm, only to leave home at 6 am next morning for a 7.45 am Factory start

But the training was worth it and first class

32 young people from all over Birmingham were in a line on that September morning waiting at the gate house, some of which have remained good friends to this day.

What’s photographed below is not special, far from it everyone in that Training School made the same items

Below is just a sample of the work that I made nearly 50 years ago .

 

 I hope what follows rekindles memories 

Tool Box

My Tool Box was formed from sheet steel, spot welded and soft soldered on the corner gaps to ensure all rads were smooth

The box was then painted in the works paint shop

All the internal tools and even their retaining clips and front clasp were hand made by me

 

                                                                           Layer  One

                                                                           

                                                                         Layer Two 

Each TFT had their worked marked by experienced trainers  

 

 

Buzzer Box

This was a functional continuity tester in a sheet steel box

 

                                                                     Internal View 

Somewhere hidden in the depths of my loft hides an empty 5 tray cantilever tool box I made there too
I might photograph that to during the lockdown

         Source:- My own collection