"One Perfect Part at a Time"

Asides

Machine Shop

Perhaps it is time to return to machine shop activities. The making of real parts with brass and steel and aluminum. For that matter, any machinable materials.

I have been beating myself (mentally) with the Junque I make with plastic 3D printing. Some things need to be made with plastic. I will certainly keep making plastic parts.

Small mechanical things like live steam and gas engines can only be modeled in plastic. Not made operational.

Fall season is returning to Texas USA and the weather will cool. 

My shop is in an unconditioned attached garage and subject to the extreme air temperatures. Working in a 100 degree shop is unbearable to an old dude like me. I have fans to move the air around. I really need an (air) conditioned workshop. Both for heating and cooling.

If I ever move from here, there are certain conditions that will have to be satisfied. A conditioned workspace for the machine shop and a conditioned space for my amateur radio “ham shack”. Could be tied together but the radio-electronics area will have to be a separate area or room.

Pipe dreams for now but dreams are allowed.

Where does all the time go? Oh yeah, smokin’ that dream pipe.

Model Engine Builder 2016

mebheader

I have always looked forward to getting my copy of Model Engine Builder (MEB)

If you want to build model engines this is the publication to get. There is also a free Newsletter:

“Sign up today for our free newsletter at www.modelenginebuilder.com. The sign-up form is on the right of the page. This newsletter contains some articles from the magazine but more information about other relevant issues like taking good pictures of models, etc.

Go check out their website listed above or click on the logo and start your subscription today. I just re-newed my subscription and I am not even sure where I stood on my previous one. The fact is for me each issue alone is always worth the cost of a subscription.

The author, Michael Rehmus just sent me (and probably many other subscribers) an email regarding the timeliness of his publications. The schedule is intended to be tri-monthly. However, Michael has been and still is enduring some very serious heart problems. He received a new heart valve replacement and is presently battling an infection with that surgery.

That has understandably slowed down work on the magazine. The next publication has been pushed to late October, 2016. He and his wife Toni, run a very small publication house they call Elmwood Publishing, Inc.. But he hasn’t forgotten about his subscribers. Let me say his heart is still in it. Sorry Mike, bad pun, but it’s the truth…

I figured my renewal is a vote of confidence. If you have never subscribed, now is the time. It is not all that expensive and the information is priceless, whenever it comes.

If you ARE a model engine builder, this is the publication to which you want to contribute. Mike is always looking for tips, tricks, pictures of… Continue reading

New Look

If this is not your first visit, you notice the look of this site has been refreshed. The content hasn’t changed but there is now a family resemblance between the THMS blog (here) and The Hobbyist’s Machine Shop.

They always work together and now they look like they belong to each other.

This blog site runs in a Content Management System (CMS) called WordPress and the Web site uses a CMS called Joomla. Conveniently I have a site design tool named  Artisteer that permits me to share a site design between CMS systems. Some background info, but you can see the results.

I think is looks new and refreshing. I like the change.

The Lists

I used to post blog type thoughts and comments in The Hobbyist’s Machine Shop web site under the tab names “Shop Notes.” I was scanning that menu just a little while ago when I was reviewing the web site. The effort to publish those notes has been superseded by this site. The “Shop Notes” has become what is this blog today.

I kind of miss seeing all the topics listed in one simple list. So I thought the blog site (here) needs to have a list like that. I just made some changes in the right column that makes the posts and pages a lot more visible.

I think it looks good so it will stay… until I make another change. <g>

How to Cure a GAS Problem

I ran across an interesting read in a Photography blog called F/8 (f-stopeight.com) written by Olivier Duong. I had an immediate impression about his style of high contrast B&W photography. I think it is interesting but just not my bag. It works for him and that is all that matters.  What I do like is what he has to SAY in his blog about photography and his case of GAS, and that is spot on.

His story is a line about Gear Acquisition Syndrome he acronyms to G.A.S. and having G.A.S. attacks. What he writes about is using “Self Talk” as a justification and it sure hit home with me. I experience self talk all the time, but I almost always talk myself out of the mistake.

I haven’t gone overboard on camera gear, but I easily could. I may be close to the addiction edge on machine tools, computers and other hobbies. In fact I see where what Oliver has to say reaches far beyond his world of photography to many other acquisition addictions.

I like that Oliver doesn’t knock gear acquisition per se, but only when it conflicts with his intention of becoming a great photographer. It’s a confession of a camera gear addict that has found a way back to sanity, like a recovering alcoholic.

His words ring true. GAS is an addiction and like all bad habits, can’t be erased, but they can be replaced with a different response.  Go read what he has written. Ignore he is writing about camera gear. You may as I did, see a part of yourself.

Categories
NOTE: Log in is for admin and members only, not required to post comments.