I have only been on the site for a short time, and don't want to upset any of the more senior members about my comments to come, but I am a person that talks straight and to the point, no BS, just words of truth.
It seems to me that some of the newer members are reluctant to join in the fun, and it just might be because some of the more experienced members are overwhelming them because of the machinery and tooling that we possess.
This bit now is directed towards those new people.
On other sites, I have apologised for having to show parts being made on larger and more expensive machinery, this is because most of us 'old guys' have been doing engineering etc for maybe years before you were born. In my case, I started fairly young and have got 50 years experience under my belt.
This is why we have such huge collection of machinery and tools. Like anyone else, as you come to the limitations of your machinery, you strive to get bigger and better, just to allow us to expand our repertoire. So we end up with shops containing masses of big machinery and tooling, and when a new person sees all that, they feel inferior because they only maybe have the basics to work with.
You ARE NOT inferior in any way, everyone has to start somewhere, and unless you have cash to burn, you start with the basics, like we all had to do.
My first 'lathe' was a hand bench grinder, you know the type, spin the handle, grinding wheel spins. I fitted a woodworking hand brace chuck next to the stone (the stone acted as a flywheel to store the energy), and used gravers to shape the bits I wanted to make, and it was no easy feat, turning the handle with my left hand and shaping metal with the right, but I managed to make some bits, not accurately, but good enough to get my first steam engine built and running. You start from humble beginnings and grow over the years.
So don't feel you have nothing to offer because we can make bigger and better things than you can, you are a member of an elite group, purely because model engineering and the other trades shown on here is not the 'norm' in the general population. You have taken the initial plunge into attempting to make your life more meaningful rather than becoming a couch potato or someone who pi**es his money up the wall every night. Grab that opportunity as best as you can, it can only make your life more fulfilled.
So don't be put off when you see big machines or complicated machinery, that is just us old farts doing our own thing. Ask questions, make comments, even if it is 'what a load of crap', at least you have joined in, and the more you join in, the better you will feel.
If you don't want to do it publicly, then PM or email the person who has shown something, I for one have never failed to answer anyone who has a genuine question or query, and I am sure the other experienced people are the same. We are here to help you, not to boast about our achievements.
So lets see a few more questions being asked, not only to help yourself, but others who may be too shy to ask the same question.
John
It seems to me that some of the newer members are reluctant to join in the fun, and it just might be because some of the more experienced members are overwhelming them because of the machinery and tooling that we possess.
This bit now is directed towards those new people.
On other sites, I have apologised for having to show parts being made on larger and more expensive machinery, this is because most of us 'old guys' have been doing engineering etc for maybe years before you were born. In my case, I started fairly young and have got 50 years experience under my belt.
This is why we have such huge collection of machinery and tools. Like anyone else, as you come to the limitations of your machinery, you strive to get bigger and better, just to allow us to expand our repertoire. So we end up with shops containing masses of big machinery and tooling, and when a new person sees all that, they feel inferior because they only maybe have the basics to work with.
You ARE NOT inferior in any way, everyone has to start somewhere, and unless you have cash to burn, you start with the basics, like we all had to do.
My first 'lathe' was a hand bench grinder, you know the type, spin the handle, grinding wheel spins. I fitted a woodworking hand brace chuck next to the stone (the stone acted as a flywheel to store the energy), and used gravers to shape the bits I wanted to make, and it was no easy feat, turning the handle with my left hand and shaping metal with the right, but I managed to make some bits, not accurately, but good enough to get my first steam engine built and running. You start from humble beginnings and grow over the years.
So don't feel you have nothing to offer because we can make bigger and better things than you can, you are a member of an elite group, purely because model engineering and the other trades shown on here is not the 'norm' in the general population. You have taken the initial plunge into attempting to make your life more meaningful rather than becoming a couch potato or someone who pi**es his money up the wall every night. Grab that opportunity as best as you can, it can only make your life more fulfilled.
So don't be put off when you see big machines or complicated machinery, that is just us old farts doing our own thing. Ask questions, make comments, even if it is 'what a load of crap', at least you have joined in, and the more you join in, the better you will feel.
If you don't want to do it publicly, then PM or email the person who has shown something, I for one have never failed to answer anyone who has a genuine question or query, and I am sure the other experienced people are the same. We are here to help you, not to boast about our achievements.
So lets see a few more questions being asked, not only to help yourself, but others who may be too shy to ask the same question.
John