"The Great Do-It-Yourself Era"

I have a later Black and Decker 7780 12" Dewalt radial arm saw. Truthfully I don't use it much anymore, the Dewalt compound miter saw and Delta Unisaw get much more use. Before the Dewalt I owned a Craftsman 10" radial arm saw (Emerson Electric made) that I purchased new around 1987, it was my first stationary tool purchase and also my worst. Any bump to the arm or looking at it crooked would twist the mounting and un-align everything. I sold it after 2 frustrating years and purchased the well used B&D Dewalt which is 100x better than the Craftsman.
 
I've always been a kind of DIY guy but have to agree with Dorn. It has become much easier due to the internet. The downside is that, with all the information available, I have more hobbies than time for them all.

If it wasn't for the internet I probably would have given up on machining a long time ago. But with help form this site and the numerous videos available I am enjoying this newest hobby. It has consumed a LOT of my time. Good thing I'm retired.

My grandson, who is 14, just remarked yesterday that he wants to learn how to work on cars so that he can save money when he has his own car and it needs repairs. I've got a 1997 Toyota Tercel that he can learn some basics on. Change plugs, air filter, oil change, etc, It hasn't been driven in years but still runs and will likely need a new timing belt and brakes too. After he has learned how to do all of these things, with his papa's help of course, he will be given the car he did all the work on.
 
I enjoyed that read, I had the old green saw with red knob . I gave it to my step father , I hope it's still in my mom's garage . It was bought by my gran pop in the fifties. It made many built in cabinets and houses too. Ill have to Ck on that. My gran mom gave it to me when I was old enough to use it. It's a worker and really sings.
 
Prob getting rid of my Craftsman RAS this weekend. Need room and have not really used it in years Except as a storage place. In a small area it is just to big when I do not do that much wood working. Need the room for metal working.
 
My Craftsman RAS is still doing the job for me. It is about 50 years old, and still in nice condition. Radial arm saws are lots more dangerous than a table saw used correctly, but both are relatively safe used correctly. Table saws are also highly dangerous used incorrectly, just in different ways. And, of course, all saws are dangerous, even a hand saw, if used incorrectly. All the machines in my shop have high levels of danger inherently. Danger can be mitigated by being truly careful when using them -- no shortcuts, always wide awake, and paying full attention to what we are doing. If something seems dicey, then it probably is. Address the issue immediately and make it safer. I am almost always the only one in my shop when working, and no one in the house, either. If I get hurt bad, it could well be the last time. Work carefully with machines like it matters -- it really does!
 
Interesting reading, I never knew where the Dewalt name came from. I've only known it as the higher end line from Black & Decker.

It does help me understand where my wariness of radial arm saws comes from though. My did didn't like them, and although the schools I went to still had well equipped wood shops, we never had a radial arm saw to use. I'm pretty happy with a large miter saw and table saw although both make my fingers hurt when I use them (doesn't take much imagination to know how little effort it would take for the saw to liberate them).

I'm 70 and I sort of thought that NOW was "The Great Do-It Yourself Era".

If you need help figuring how to fix a carburetor problem on a John Deere LA145 lawn mower? -- There's a video for that.
If you need help learning how to thread on a metal lathe? -- There's a video for that.
How do you make dovetails if you want to make a fancy drawer? -- There's a video for that.
How would you make a simple spinning wheel? -- There's a video for that.
I got a powder coat kit for Christmas. How do I use it? -- There's a video for that.

... and those are just a few of ones I've actually used.

The one time this failed was when I wanted a practical introduction to hydraulics and couldn't find anything that really helped me much. But I've still got faith. Ave has said that he is going to start such a series. (If you don't know who Ave is, you are in for a treat. Just search Ave on youtube and prepare to spend the next two weeks watching his old videos.)


I thought it was going to be about the present as well. The internet has made it so much easier to find information and buy stuff no matter where you are. Then of course the whole 3D printing thing. It also seems like the DIY'er has it much easier today with quality home shop equipment available. I look at those old many tool in one things that cost a ton, weighed a ton and don't look like they would do much of anything well. Doesn't sound like it was easy to buy or learn how to use them either, no wonder so many just sat in a corner collecting dust.
 
It does make you wonder if there was more DIY'ers, or just more magazines. It IS amazing what's on YouTube and I'd be lost without it. My dad subscribed to Popular Mechanics and several others mags yet never really made anything. Growing up it seemed like where ever we lived there was always one guy who was doing projects in his garage. But it was one out of how many blocks?

Right now I'm that guy as I'm out in the garage almost everyday. There is another neighbor who's often doing wood working where mine is 99% metal. But everybody else for blocks and blocks has their cars on the streets not because they use the garage for a shop like me, their garages are packed with junk. No way could you hardly get in there much less work, repair or build.

I've inherited a Craftman table saw and Hitachi miter saw from my dad. He was the handyman in his over 55 mobile home park. So he was the guy when the old guys would pass on that the widows would give him their tools. He's literally has 3-5 of everything. No RAS thankfully. Every once in a while I miss what a RAS could do but not enough to give up the floor space. And like Bob, if I'm not at least apprehensive about using some power tool I know I shouldn't be using it probably.
 
And like Bob, if I'm not at least apprehensive about using some power tool I know I shouldn't be using it probably.
I have no reservations whatsoever about using my RAS and do not think "I shouldn't be using it probably." If I thought that I would not use it, ever. If you do not feel OK about using a machine, especially as a hobbyist, then just don't do it, or, get enough training and experience with people who are comfortable and skilled with the machine to know you are competent to use it, and then use it competently.
 
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I'm sorry Bob, I shouldn't have been paraphrasing. I will probably just make it worse, but being wide awake and full attention is what you said and I agree. I had a metal shop teacher early on who said if you are not a little scared you were not paying enough attention. That's how a gauge how I approach whether I should be using a dangerous machine, and that's just me. The couple of times I just pushed ahead and was not on edge was when I had some close calls. I'm all alone during the day while I'm working so I try to maintain a high awareness of the machine and its surroundings.
 
Danger can be mitigated by being truly careful when using them -- no shortcuts, always wide awake, and paying full attention to what we are doing. If something seems dicey, then it probably is. Address the issue immediately and make it safer. I am almost always the only one in my shop when working, and no one in the house, either. If I get hurt bad, it could well be the last time. Work carefully with machines like it matters -- it really does!

Wise words Bob. It's funny that i fish many times solo, sometimes 40 to 50 miles offshore., a day or two at a time. As i got older i thought /think about those things. I try to take nothig for granted. The weird thing is I feel more comfortable now then when i was younger. Not sure if that's a good thing or bad.
Sorry for the sidetrack.
 
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