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Post by suctionhose on Jan 6, 2019 8:44:03 GMT
The 'Motivation' thread is getting a bit long to read right through so I thought I'd take dscott's idea and start a new thread! This is for people to share their "inspirational relics". The ones from days gone by that consecrate your workshop. eg your father's model engineering efforts, your own false start years ago, something that inspires you to be doing what your doing... My contri to kick off is the invoice for my father's Myford ML10 in 1972. That's when it started. No doubt about that! Best $391 anybody ever spent!
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Post by Jo on Jan 6, 2019 10:25:58 GMT
Currently? I nominate my friend Eric Offen as a workshop relic .. He has a stunning workshop with amazing tools and in the past has made even more amazing model engines. However for the last six years he has not actually made anything He has brought yet more machine tools, extended his workshops, traded lots of casting sets (many have found their way into my collection ) but he has not actually completed anything. Now his health is going down hill and it is increasingly going to prevent him doing any more .
So watching what has happened to him has motivated me to upgrade my workshop ready for retirement, then last year to take early retirement so I can make my models. Last count I had 24 years worth of models to make.. plus a 2" ploughing engine, a 7 ¼” Locomotion, a the odd couple of 5" Locos ….
Sorry must go out to the workshop these models don't make themselves.
Jo
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Lisa
Statesman
Posts: 806
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Post by Lisa on Jan 6, 2019 11:17:55 GMT
Lurking under a bench is these, the wheels are the last remnant of a 3½" gauge battery electric loco that dad made for me when I was 5 or so, and replaced the original wooden wheels that I wore out in a few months.
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Post by mr swarf on Jan 6, 2019 20:08:51 GMT
My workshop relic has to be this old Flit DDT tin. One of my earliest memories is of my dad using this to pour white stuff over things he was turning on his Faircut lathe. Back then the tin was nearly new with its colourful red branding. As a small boy it took me a while to realise it wasn't actually Flit in it but soluble oil. I still use it today with a smile every time I do. P1061995 by Mr Swarf, on Flickr Paul
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uuu
Elder Statesman
your message here...
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Post by uuu on Jan 6, 2019 20:42:24 GMT
Flit - that brings back memories!
Wilf
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JonL
Elder Statesman
WWSME (Wiltshire)
Posts: 2,909
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Post by JonL on Jan 6, 2019 22:06:01 GMT
It's the actual lathe for me. I've done to death my motivation behind my locomotive and I don't want to rehash it and bore everyone to tears, but my ML7 was handed down by my grandfather, and I was using it from such a young age I don't actually remember not being able to use it. The photo above is him as I remember him, grubby workshop clothes and covered in swarf! I can't use the lathe without remembering him. I'm aware I've harped on about him a lot, but in this case it is actually relevant!
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Post by suctionhose on Jan 6, 2019 22:08:09 GMT
Great picture to have!
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don9f
Statesman
Les Warnett 9F, Martin Evans “Jinty”, a part built “Austin 7” and now a part built Springbok B1.
Posts: 960
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Post by don9f on Jan 6, 2019 22:55:50 GMT
Yes that’s just a fabulous memory.....
Don
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4303
Active Member
Posts: 44
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Post by 4303 on Jan 7, 2019 9:02:51 GMT
About four years into my apprenticeship in the toolroom (ca. 1967) I was able to purchase the wooden toolbox from the estate of someone with the initials 'FS'. One of the first things I found was pension paperwork relating to the owner's retirement in 1944. The measuring equipment therein included 'Brown and Sharp' micrometers dating from the 1920's which I still use on most days; each included the setting pieces. Having reached a great age now myself I find it a bit depressing that a) the imperial system has disappeared and b) taking (a) into account nobody would have any further use for the tools which, I am sure, would last another working lifetime. Also, apart from our delightful model engineering community, engineering per se seems to be a 'niche' industry nowadays. (Trying to be cheerful!)
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Post by David on Jan 7, 2019 11:04:21 GMT
I use a micrometer I found in my old man's shed, despite it reading those weird and obsolete imperial measurements ;) I also have his apprenticeship papers somewhere and some of his marking out tools I never use are in a draw because I have a DRO and print paper templates from 3D CAD.
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Post by simplyloco on Jan 7, 2019 11:30:34 GMT
I have only two 'relics'. The first is this cannon that we apprentices were allowed to make during our second year (1964). Trust the military to come up with that idea... The second is the pocket square made in my first year, still bearing my initials. I use it every day, and it is still spot on! I had lots of other bits, including a small M&W adjustable bevel gauge (Final year First Prize), but after two divorces and eight or nine house moves they are lost in the mists of time... DSC00662 by inkaboat, on Flickr DSC00663 by inkaboat, on Flickr
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Post by Deleted on Jan 7, 2019 11:37:14 GMT
good to see the picture of 4472 being displayed John... Pete
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Post by suctionhose on Jan 7, 2019 11:44:09 GMT
I was using a radius tool on the lathe today that I realised I'd ground up as a tech college exercise for 2nd year. It has my class engraved on it "2M". That would have been 1981...
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Post by ettingtonliam on Jan 7, 2019 12:24:23 GMT
Currently? I nominate my friend Eric Offen as a workshop relic .. He has a stunning workshop with amazing tools and in the past has made even more amazing model engines. However for the last six years he has not actually made anything He has brought yet more machine tools, extended his workshops, traded lots of casting sets (many have found their way into my collection ) but he has not actually completed anything. Now his health is going down hill and it is increasingly going to prevent him doing any more .
So watching what has happened to him has motivated me to upgrade my workshop ready for retirement, then last year to take early retirement so I can make my models. Last count I had 24 years worth of models to make.. plus a 2" ploughing engine, a 7 ¼” Locomotion, a the odd couple of 5" Locos ….
Sorry must go out to the workshop these models don't make themselves.
Jo
Another Locomotion builder eh? There arn't many of us about. How far have you got? Richard
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Post by Jo on Jan 7, 2019 12:43:19 GMT
Another Locomotion builder eh? There arn't many of us about. How far have you got? Richard I have brought the wheel castings.... then I found that none of the commercial boiler companies wanted to do a boiler for me I am still looking out for some of the brown stuff to make the cladding/tender out of.
Jo
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Post by ettingtonliam on Jan 7, 2019 13:49:02 GMT
Yes, the boiler looks simple at first glance, but all those stiffeners do complicate it. My boiler inspector wasn't to keen on the idea of all those tapped holes in the shell, even with the stiffener plates, especially with Comsol caulking from new. I wasn't that impressed myself either, so I'm substituting blind tapped bronze bushes, omitting the stiffener plates for lightweight stuff like the footboard brackets. Theres still a lot of them though and they have to be in the right place, so I'm not surprised the commercial builders fight shy of it. Then theres the pressed flat in the crown of the firebox, for which David Piddington made a special press tool for Reeves, but its gone missing---. To overcome this, I made a press tool, about a months work (I'm a slow worker) but it did work well. I've got the flanging plates, ex Reeves, so if you do decide to have a go, I can lend you the plates and press tool. I used English ash for the tender, and got it from a chap on ebay who supplied it in approx 30" lengths. 20mm for the main members and 5mm for the planking. I'll see if I've got his details.
Edit It was a chap called David Stephen of Poppyhill Farmhouse, Poppyhill, Henlow Bedfordshire, SG16 6BZ tel 07913849846, and I got 4 lengths of 5 x 85 x 610, 2 lengths of 20 x 85 x 610 and 2 lengths of 10 x 85 610 English Ash for £81. I've built the tender from it, with some to spare for the footboards, but I didn't for some reason get the cladding at the time. It was nice clean straight grained stuff, and worked well. This was in April last year, but I don't know if he's still doing it.
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Post by ettingtonliam on Jan 7, 2019 14:59:09 GMT
I regularly use a tap wrench I made in the school metalwork lessons in 1965.
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JonL
Elder Statesman
WWSME (Wiltshire)
Posts: 2,909
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Post by JonL on Jan 7, 2019 16:11:59 GMT
I regularly use a tap wrench I made in the school metalwork lessons in 1965. I went to Secondary school in the 90s and we didn't touch metalwork once. Just built Oxo cube holders and charity boxes out of MDF. My apprenticeship was an improvement but I do wish I'd had a go in school.
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Lisa
Statesman
Posts: 806
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Post by Lisa on Jan 7, 2019 17:09:03 GMT
I regularly use a tap wrench I made in the school metalwork lessons in 1965. I went to Secondary school in the 90s and we didn't touch metalwork once. Just built Oxo cube holders and charity boxes out of MDF. My apprenticeship was an improvement but I do wish I'd had a go in school. I was in secondary school in the 90's too; all the metalwork we did was sheet metalwork. Basically we just made various sizes of little boxes that were either rivetted or tack welded together. I did more interesting metalwork at home.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 7, 2019 19:58:19 GMT
I don't have a picture to hand but I would say that my relic would be my Unimat 3 which my father bought for me at Wembley ME, IIRC that was 1983 so 36 years ago this month. I still have it and plan to make good use of it when making the various boiler fittings. When I was at secondary school in the 70's I had Metalwork, Woodwork and Technical Drawing classes. I made a working submersible submarine in metalwork, so that was my first pressurised vessel, the second and last being the vacuum reservoir for Doncaster. In woodwork, my project was a 'racing car'. When it came to choosing my options I had to choose one from those 3, I chose TD as I found it a challenge and was pretty good at it. It's a real shame that such classes have been confined to history these days... Pete
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