Sunday Toughie 75 (Hints)

Sunday Toughie No 75 by proXimal

Hints and Tips by Sloop John Bee

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I found that quite tough last night but maybe I was affected by the paint fumes from the ongoing redecoration of the bathroom. As usual with proXimal and Toughies, limiting the hints to about half is quite difficult. I hope you have an easier time parsing and find the checkers to finish this puzzle.
I have hinted at half of 14a and 16d clues today (with a bonus pic and video) and I think I have most of this parsed if you want an extra nudge or two just ask. I will be finishing a second coat of a slightly too-vibrant yellow in the bathroom but will assist if required.

Here we go, Folks…

As it is a Prize puzzle I can only hint at a few and hope that will give you the checkers and inspiration to go further. I’ll return with the full review blog just after the closing date. Don’t forget to follow BD’s instructions in RED at the bottom of the hints!

I hope I don’t have to redact any comments but I am new at this and don’t want to rock the boat. If in doubt, I’ll rub it out! I think that sentence is a bit redundant. You have all been so helpful in sorting out prior parsing failures, and I am sure I will need similar help again.

Most of the terms used in these hints are explained in the Glossary and examples are available by clicking on the entry under “See also” Where the hint describes a construct as “usual” this means that more help can be found in The Usual Suspects, which gives a number of the elements commonly used in the wordplay. Another useful page is Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing, which features words with meanings that are not always immediately obvious. Don’t forget the Mine of useful information that Big Dave and his son Richard so meticulously prepared for us.

A full review of this puzzle will be published after the closing date for submissions. Some hints follow: Remember the site rules and play nicely.

Across

1a Seafood pieces roughly cut on counter (5,7)
Start with some powerful chess pieces, a two-letter synonym of roughly or about, and to cut trees or horns reversed (on counter)

9a Help penning article on mean discriminatory system (9)
A synonym of help “pens” a mean score at golf perhaps and a definite article

12a 

13a Dog overturned across a plant (6)
An obscure (to me) plant from a synonym of dog, hound or fret reversed about a from the clue

17a Wrapped up limb with one cast (8)
A specialised limb of a water-borne creature, the letter that looks like 1 and to cast one’s hide or horns

19a Reptile back occupying smallest stunted tree (6)
A constricting reptile is reversed in a shortened smallest

27a A space hollowed by clever badger (9)
A preposition for each or a, what remains of space when hollowed and clever or astute

28a Rat is secure somewhere remote (6,6)
The 7th Armoured Mobile Division (Egypt) is our rat, is from the clue and to secure at Terra Firma

Down
1d Shaking doubt about Bible (7)
An officially sanctioned edition of the Bible goes in a doubt

3d Refusal to American to consume port of bad repute (9)
A refusal, to from the clue and an abbreviation of American surround a South American port.

5d Devotionally inept, not into spoiling sweetheart (4-4)
An anagram (spoiling) of a word in the clue after into is removed

7d Broadcast journalist avoiding mad sort of dictator (6)
Another extraction anagram is an adjective relating to a Roman dictator

15d Back to salad, hard to be involved in diet that’s never-ending (9)
The last letter of salad, and an abbreviation of hard go in what you have to do with your diet to lose weight

16d End connection with insurrection with line written in fourth letter (8)
An insurrection and the letter that looks like a line go in how you may say the fourth letter of the alphabet

20d Fret about VAR upsetting a brilliant display (7)
To fret or chafe around a reversal of VAR and a from the clue

21d 

25d Enter run to measure pace (4)
To enter and add up a long column of figures and a cricket scorer’s run

 

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