Humungous Redback

My truckie BIL used to load honeycomb rocks from farms in Colac and flog 'em off to Garden Supplies. We got the occasional drystone fence, but usually we just drove his 30yard tipper into the paddock and hand-loaded direct from the ground. A lot of hard yakka, needless to say, especially when we had the hungryboards on. The "flats" were the big money items, up to about 5' across and 12" thick... they're also the prime nesting places for tiger snakes. :rolleyes:

Now my BIL was a BIG bloke, 24 stone when he passed on last year; he wasn't far off it back then, either... but he amazed us one day when he rolled over a smallish flat. Next thing we know, he was a blur up the side of the truck, not even touching the hungryboards. :eek:

There he was, top of the load, yelling at us to kill the $#&^# snake and when we looked, there was a li'l tiddler barely 12" long. :D:D

G'day,

I was just down the shed with the camera to take some shots, when I saw this big girl running across my bench and as luck would have it, my tape measure was out - talk about perfect timing! :eek:

I could've done a Steve Erwin, but I didn't pick her up, thought it might be a tad risky seeing as how big she is.

This sheila was huge, was being past tense, as she's now a big splat on the shed floor.

Then coming back up from the shed, SWMBO spots a red back in a nest just near the steps, no where as big, but now dead jsut as the other one now is.

My place must be being invaded or something. Normally I leave spiders, but not redbacks or white tails. SWMBO hates it when I leave the huntsmen's in the house and don't tell her. :)

As much as I like spiders there is nothing as character building as a bloody great huntsman abseiling between you and the monitor when you least expect it, I generally pick them up and put them outside, after the pulse rate has subsided a bit.
Even the girls do it now and are not frightened.
The other great experience is walking in long grass and stepping on a long curved branch which proceeds to roll and smack you in the back of the leg.
That can be a change of jocks job in the middle of summer:D :D :D
Just saw the piccy, you baiting seppos again or is it photoshop?????

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Originally Posted by Iain

Just saw the piccy, you baiting seppos again or is it photoshop?????

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G'day Ian,

What's Photoshop? No idea what you're talking about. :confused: Honest it was that big.

Wow what a monster!! Better keep that away from your little girl!!! :-) It might even carry her off!!!

G'day Matt,

Reackon it would've carried me off to if I was quick enought to kill it after taking that shot.

So Matt, what sort of woodie stuff do you do in the shed of yours? ;)

That's only a baby, Waldo. You didn't even wait for it to grow up before you killed it?

Amazing coincidence how it stopped right next to your tape measure like that.......:rolleyes:

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Originally Posted by Felder

Amazing coincidence how it stopped right next to your tape measure like that.......:rolleyes:

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G'day Felder,

Not really, pure coincidence, I've got a few tools lying on the bench you see. Dumb spider raced past my #4 Stanley with out even a second glance. But then I would've too if I was a spider and I thought I might get killed.

Really, it was big. SWMBO wouldn't like me keeping a pet like that.

And besides, it was racing past my tape measure.

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Originally Posted by Waldo

And besides, it was racing past my tape measure.

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Sorry Waldo - forgive me for being a sceptic. Must just be my nature.:cool:
It's just that I have had a good look at the photo and I can't see any blur marks that would occur if I were to take a photo of a spider 'racing' next to the zero point of my tape measure. :confused:
I guess you are just a far superior photographer to I.;):D

G'day Felder,

Yep, many years of experience in directing photo shoots. I guess it must be the camera:

http://www.nikonusa.com/template.php...roductNr=25215

G'day,

Gee, I thought I'd be blasted for posting a blurry shot, so here's the other one. Not so clear, but maybe now you lot might believe me. :confused:

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Originally Posted by Waldo

G'day,

Gee, I thought I'd be blasted for posting a blurry shot, so here's the other one. Not so clear, but maybe now you lot might believe me. :confused:

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I don't believe that these blighters grow that big, and if they do, I'm going into denial mode, and won't believe it's that big :eek: :p :D :D :D

a few years ago the missus wanted to move the bed around being a water bed it had to be emptied so i drops a hose pipe in the bladder and run it out the window then sucks on end of the pipe till i felt the water coming down the pipe (not wanting to get a mouth full of the yuck water) first thing out of the pipe was a red back near cr@pped me pants:eek:

Waldo
So whose plastic spider is it?

G'day DavidG,

I can honestly and truthfully say that the spider wasn't plastic.