Winner Homemade Lathe Build Log

[Bill Gruby]

When I stated, "You missed your calling", I went by your signature, "Grease Monkey by Trade". The work you produce is well above "Grease Monkey" level. There are very few that can produce work like you do when they start out. You are a gifted individual.

"Billy G"

 

[John Hasler]

I missed my calling? I plan to go to a 2 year community college to get a bachelor degree then to a machining trade school. That is if competitive shooting doesn't get in the way.

You don't want to go to engineering school?

 

[Andre]

When I stated, "You missed your calling", I went by your signature, "Grease Monkey by Trade". The work you produce is well above "Grease Monkey" level. There are very few that can produce work like you do when they start out. You are a gifted individual.

"Billy G"

Thank you very much Bill! )

My signature "Grease monkey by trade" is a little saying that came up because my hands are always dirty. Even if I'm doing inspection or other "clean" work they always seem to end up dirty.

 

[Andre]

You don't want to go to engineering school?

My grandfather was an engineer at Xerox, and prior almost worked at IBM. He was very smart, had me doing algebra I don't even know now when I was 8.

Just a little story here, we have a creek in our yard about 20 feet wide and 35 feet wide when it overflows during a heavy rainstorm. The tree had to be long, at least 30 feet, and with 50 acres of woods there are a lot of trees to choose from to build the bridge out of. We needed two logs, one for each side of the bridge. We found two good trees, but had to find out how tall they were before they were cut down.

And not having a ladder tall enough, he taught me an equation to figure out how tall the trees are from shadows of the sun during a certain point in space. At 12'oclock, knowing the angle of the sun, measuring the shadows gave an equation and it turned out to be within two feet or so. I fully understood the equation at 8 or so. I look back at the equation that's written on a piece of plexiglass, don't remember it but it just is a homage to how smart he was an his dedication to teach.

I'd rather be a machinist than an engineer. Absolutely nothing wrong with engineering, I have serious respect for engineers. But I'd rather be making things with my hands, it really gives me something to think about and enjoy what I make and it's something really enjoyable to me. That's what I like about working by myself, for myself. I get to do all the thinking, draft it out on a drafting table so I can take the print to the shop, cut material, machine it, finish it, and enjoy the end product.

The way engineering is going now is not what it used to be. If engineering was the way it used to be when my grandfather was working, I might want to be an engineer; but it's all computerized now and I don't want to be in front of a computer all day if I can help it.

 

[Bill Gruby]

The Engineer puts it on paper, the Machinist makes it work. I always felt that part of a Machinists job was to make Engineers look good, they never proved me wrong. :rofl::rofl::rofl:

"Billy G"

 

[jumps4]

congratulations Andre

You have a promising future ahead of yourself If you can place this much attention into a project at 14.
Job well done and keep posting your progress as you go
steve

 

[Rick Leslie]

First let me say that this thread didn't grab me to start with. I would come back and catch up from time to time and as the project matured, I found the quality and scope of the project very intriguing. When I read that you're "14, going on 15" (I remember those days) I had to read it twice. The work is on par with many seasoned machinists. The scope of the project is more ambitious than most care to tackle. Your planning, execution and documentation show advancement well beyond your years.

But what caught my eye more than that was your attitude and outlook. For years I've worked in the engineering department of a local utility. I work with professional engineers every day and have never cared to do what they do. Your observation put into words what I've always felt: that hands-on was much more satisfying. Your attitude about your work is far beyond your years. Please keep that passion in whatever you do. Clearly your calling in in the mechanical field.

 

[John Hasler]

I think that by the time you graduate the only "machinist" job you will be able to find will be programming machining centers and 3D printers. You will still spend all day in front of a computer but the engineers will already have done all the fun parts. A few years later that job will disappear as the software gets smart enough to interpret the engineer's drawings directly.

There is a lot more to engineering than sitting at a computer dimensioning widgets in Autocad. The best engineering jobs consist of inventing things and solving novel problems. You also often get to do a lot of experimental work yourself. Most of the design work on things like CERN's Large Hadron Collider and NASA's Curiousity Mars rover was done by engineers. You might even find that university broadens your horizons enough to make you consider going into science.

And you can still have a shop full of old manual machines in your garage.

 

[uncle harry]

The Engineer puts it on paper, the Machinist makes it work. I always felt that part of a Machinists job was to make Engineers look good, they never proved me wrong. :rofl::rofl::rofl:

"Billy G"

To my way of thinking every engineer should spend at least 6 months to a year learning shop procedures & capabilities before producing his first drawing. When you crawl around machines or have to assemble them you gain an incentive to actually practice the K.I.S.S. formula. Some of the best designs can start on napkins or flight sickness bags.

 

[Andre]

congratulations Andre

You have a promising future ahead of yourself If you can place this much attention into a project at 14.
Job well done and keep posting your progress as you go
steve

Thank you, Steve!

- - - Updated - - -

First let me say that this thread didn't grab me to start with. I would come back and catch up from time to time and as the project matured, I found the quality and scope of the project very intriguing. When I read that you're "14, going on 15" (I remember those days) I had to read it twice. The work is on par with many seasoned machinists. The scope of the project is more ambitious than most care to tackle. Your planning, execution and documentation show advancement well beyond your years.

But what caught my eye more than that was your attitude and outlook. For years I've worked in the engineering department of a local utility. I work with professional engineers every day and have never cared to do what they do. Your observation put into words what I've always felt: that hands-on was much more satisfying. Your attitude about your work is far beyond your years. Please keep that passion in whatever you do. Clearly your calling in in the mechanical field.

Rick, thank you!