A new editor for Model Engineer

[ron]

Good luck to you, I'll buy a copy in Smiths' in a few weeks time and if it has improved as you say I'll probably re-subscribe.
Ron

[ajsbsa]

I subscribe to MEW as there is always something to interest me, but I only buy ME when there is a free plan or a clock feature.
If you have no interest in trains then I think there would be not enough other stuff to make you take an ME subscription if you already subscribe to MEW.
Steve

[Nigel Bennett]

You're a brave man, David! Well done for taking the job on - and I wish you every success. My contributions to ME have been very few and far between, but I only write when I've something to say.

What I like to see in ME is very difficult to define - probably something that fires me with enthusiasm to make whatever it is that's being described!

Keep the letters page for me - that's something that always seems to indicate the health of a magazine. When I'm perusing back issues it's one of the sections I usually enjoy.

I'm delighted you're canning the "What Widget?" section. You obviously have a definite course to steer and I shall await future issues with interest.

[davidmew]

Hi There
I do have a plan. Also if I like an article, the majority of readers will probably enjoy it as I have a wide range of interests, probably too many but all model orientated. That does not preclude other types of articles.

I have been reading Model Engineer since I was 12 and now it is time to put something back.

The letters will hopefully be lively without slagging people off. The letters page is being moved to the back of the magazine, it is the elastic section that allows everything to expand or contract depending on the number of adverts and availability of sufficient Free Adverts.

regards David
Editor Model Engineer and
Model Engineers' Workshop

[weldsol]

I was a suscriber to ME from 73 to 95 but things changed and I stopped but still bought the odd copy from WH Smiths I agree with all the previous comments and hopefully these will change in the near future
If you want more articles why not post a link so they could be mailed direct or post a mailing address
Paul

[davidmew]

Hi There
Address for articles

David Clark
4 Mackay street
Castletown
KW14 8UQ

[e-mail]

regards David
Editor Model Engineer and
Model Engineers' Workshop

[2tenths]

Nov 28, 2008 12:56:18 GMT davidmew said:

Beginners are firmly in mind especially schools. The problems with beginners and most youngsters are that they are only familiar with metric dimensions. They have no idea when it comes to imperial dimensions. This is also a problem with MEW articles.


regards David
Editor Model Engineer and
Model Engineers' Workshop

HI

Have I missed something? I escaped from teaching 15 years ago. My ticket says that "I can teach boys metalwork" How things changed I ended up teaching computing and "Technology"

Point I am trying to make is "Have any schools got any machinery left and if so are there people with skills to use it?" The schools that I was involved with had one or two machines covered in crud and never used. Everything had to be done on paper

Regards

Tony

[drumkilbo]

Hi David,

Good luck with all that you've taken on. By your demeanour on this forum you're obviously prepared to listen to what people want, always a good thing.
I always imagined ME etc. to emanate from the heart of industrial England so quite refreshing to see that you actually bide in Thurso!
Cheers,

Ian.

[davebreeze]

Just to chuck in my 2p's worth:

I've very much enjoyed Ron Isted's Edwardian Elegance articles, I find them a fascinating read and quite inspirational, make me feel like heading out to the workshop and starting on a model of Parson's Turbinia or a Highland Railway scrap tank! Not purely model engineering I know, but I think there's room for that sort of well-written inspirational article.

I'm glad there's going to be no 'slagging off' in the letters pages! Too many contributors seem very quick to start ridiculing other peoples ideas. We get enough of that on TV when there's an election, I'm not interested. I'd much rather they stated their case in in a civil manner. I'd be quite happy to see a complete ban on arguing about metric vs imperial in the letters pages too, not to mention the 'global warming exists/doesn't exist' debate!

I've enjoyed Tony Griffith's machine tool articles, I know the material is on the web, but it's no less interesting for that.

I'll second the earlier suggestion about designs for non-steam locos such as petrol or battery powered. There's an electric loco I'd like to model some day in 7.25" gauge, if I get round to it I'll write it up for M.E.

I'm glad you're pulling those review articles on compressors, micrometers, etc. If there had actually been any review or comparison element in them they might have been of some interest but they were just like pages out of a catalogue.

All the best. I'll continue to read ME with interest.

[steam4ian]

G'day all.

As a recent participant I have started buy MEW at the local news agent and will most likely start subscribing. I already subscribe to AME with which I am quite pleased.

While I have browsed ME I didn't feel it contained sufficient to justify another purchase. There always seemed to be some articles in the middle of a series and whilst you can learn something the interest was limited.
I contrast this with MEW where there may be series but they are either short, say three editions, or each in the series stands on its own. The series on the "dreaded" Sieg 7x12 is a master stroke to capture the interest on many joining the ranks (I am one).

On another forum there was great debate when somebody had scanned a large collection of ME articles and placed them on an open web site. They were warned off over copyright issues. Maybe ME could compile and publish old articles perhaps with modern editing and comment. How many times did LBCS repeat his description of making a part common to many locos?

I would be happy to buy an ME Omibus, great gift!

In these turbulent times I wonder if two magazines can be justified. However I wish David and the team well.

Regards,
Ian

[redmog]

Nov 28, 2008 12:56:18 GMT davidmew said:

Beginners are firmly in mind especially schools. The problems with beginners and most youngsters are that they are only familiar with metric dimensions. They have no idea when it comes to imperial dimensions. This is also a problem with MEW articles.



regards David
Editor Model Engineer and
Model Engineers' Workshop

The above statement only goes to prove that the M.E.magazine is for old men !
Therefore like us its days are numbered.
Metric has been taught in schools for 40 years. 40 years = 2 generations, so I guess most model engineers are grandparents.
So what's wrong with metric Model Engineering ?

[davidmew]

Hi Redmog
I think you may have misunderstood me.
I want to increase metric articles in Model Engineer. Most articles are written with imperial dimensions.

While I can't justify redoing all drawings in metric, I do want to encourage authors to supply metric dimensioned drawings where possible.

The only way to attract youngsters into the hobby is to publish interesting material in a metric form.

That does not mean I am neglecting the older readers, a lot of them will have started off with model railways in say 4mm to a foot 00 gauge and hopefully understand the metric system.

This is another section to follow up in the readers survey.

Steam4ian
There was great controversy other copyright issues a while back. As editor, I have to protect the copyright of contributors' articles.
I do want to release a lot of the older information free on the web. Unfortunately, we don't have a web site.

The web site was written and ready to launch. I can't explain why it was not launched but the reason it was not launched is no longer valid.

The new problem is that MyHobbyStore has split from Magicalia, they are now separate companies and I don't know if we have access to the original web site. I will find out.


I have permission in writing from Tubal Cain's widow to put all of his articles that appeared in Model Engineer onto the web. There is a lot more material that can be made available.

Several editors of Model Engineer (and staff) were employed by by Model engineer and so their articles are copyright to the current owners of Model Engineer so there is no reason why authors such as Martin Evans and Edgar T. Westbury can't be reprinted via the web.

I am looking at 3 specials next year, (omnibus issues?) a narrow gauge garden railway special, Well known Model Engineers', Their Workshops And Their Models and the best of Model Engineer vol. 1.

These are following on from the success of the Workshop Special with the Cherry Hill interview in.

Davebreeze

Hi Dave There is no such thing as global warming caused by human intervention, it is a naturally recurring cycle that will continue long after we have all gone.
Having said that, there is no reason to publish anything about it in the letters column is there?

Metric and imperial are measuring systems in current use around the world. I see no reason to discuss them in Me other than to suggest authors try to use the metric system in preference to imperial. Do the Americans still work totally in imperial or do they use metric as well?

There are no plans to drop Edwardian Elegance. I spoke to Ron Isted yesterday after receiving two more articles (I now have 3 in total) and confirmed I would accept more. He spends a lot of time on research, writing up and drawing the articles and was reassured that he would not be wasting his time.

Tony Griffiths material will continue to be included by popular demand, (Sorry Richmond.)

2tenths
Some schools have machines but they are much more likely to be CNC machines. Although I don't intend to do much if any CNC in Model Engineer, certainly not before a reader survey, any designs printed in metric dimensions can be used by these students.

My first issue will be 4341. I have introduced a couple of minor changes and have included a decent selection of articles. It is on sale on the 19th of December, I would like you all to look at it (you don't have to buy it but it would be nice if you do) and give me some feedback.

regards David
Editor Model Engineer and
Model Engineers' Workshop

[redmog]

Nov 29, 2008 10:18:13 GMT davidmew said:

I want to increase metric articles in Model Engineer. Most articles are written with imperial dimensions.

While I can't justify redoing all drawings in metric, I do want to encourage authors to supply metric dimensioned drawings where possible.

The only way to attract youngsters into the hobby is to publish interesting material in a metric form.

I agree.

[gugger]

I am a subscriber to the ME since 30 years. Since a number of years I find it more and more difficult to renew the subscription. The content is not any more what one expects from that once great magazine.
In my experience there is no model engineering without a workshop. So, I could never understand why there should be a separate magazine for the workshop except commercial purposes.
To make the ME once again an interesting magazine with a variety of content I personally see no other way than to merge ME and MEW. That would save also an editor that has to concentrate on two magazines. Let him do a good job on one great magazine.

Walter

[Deleted]

Perhaps this great title has lost its way, and should be catering for people who just like model engineering, in all of its charming forms. Boats, planes, racing cars, clocks, fishing reels, the works, are all of interest to creative and ingenious people, and we few ME's who tend to concentrate on precision devices like scale steam engines do not have a monopoly on the hobby. Few people out there create a proper workshop until they have the space, means, and spare time so to do. I know, I didn't have one until I was about 53! Perhaps we should be switching our allegiance to MEW, thus permitting the new editor to create a different audience for this well-loved magazine. I wish him the best of luck.
Rant over.....
JB
By the way, I think that Gugger has a good point if the expected incease in circulation does not materialise.

[Richmond]

Dave,

Firstly, Congratulations ! and Good luck ! ;D

A Lot of the comments in this thread are valid, and all I will say about the imperial / metric debates is : I am not going to comment except state that "I will write in metric when appropriate, and imperial when appropriate!" ;D

I don't mind the articles by Tony Griffiths at all, I just think that they need to be thinned out a bit, say once every 3 or 4 issues............should keep you going for 30 years instead of 10 then

I have expressed my views of the "old" ME to you in person, and you have explained your vision of it's future to me, and I thnk we broadly agree on what was bad, and what needed to change ......... If I can help I will "says he writing one of my articles now"

We have already discussed writing articles about "great" Model Engineers, and I have already discussed and preliminarily ( read loosely ) arranged to meet 2 of them.

I have several articles on the go at present, some for MEW, and possibly one for ME.

More contributors are needed for both mags, and there should be some cross pollination of articles between the two mags. e.g Why not have an article about building a clock using CNC in ME ?

One of my minor gripes about exhibitions is that exhibitors love to show off their work and rightly too, i.e. finished products........ However, us mere mortals want to see the tooling, jigs, fixtures as well ( well I do! ) Therefore, some tooling articles in ME should be included, and not just put in MEW.

One further point, even though this hobby seems to attract the more "mature" person, a good proportion retired, some still do work, and given the economic times that we live in, people have to work harder to earn a crust or to keep their job. This leaves less time to devote to the hobby, let alone write articles. The pay rates for ME going up in Jan 09 is great news, and standardising the varying scales used by the previous incumbant I think is a much fairer way of dealing with things, and will I hope encourage more people to have a go!

Best Wishes
Keith

[JohnP]

Slightly off topic I know, but the point was raised about whether the Americans have gone metric.

Not in the oil industry they haven't! As a UK subsidiary of an American company we design in metric but some values are really converted imperial figures. It does mean that our younger mechanical engineers have to learn a bit of imperial....

I've always found that a few mental approximations are fine for most work, particularly 8mm=5/16"- I'm reasonably happy working in either system, but I do find myself converting to thous when talking about clearances!

JohnP

[odc]

Nov 30, 2008 11:45:18 GMT JohnP said:

Slightly off topic I know, but .......I'm reasonably happy working in either system, but I do find myself converting to thous when talking about clearances!

JohnP

I find the reverse is true,beingunder 30 and also challenged for mental arithmatic. Feet and inches are fine but anything smaller I can't handle unless it's mm

[steamjohn248]

Surely the metric/imperial debate should take acount of the cheapness and availabilty of metric fastenings. Our currently build is a 30 year old design (John Milners 2-6-2 tank all ten feet of it) and all the fixings are specified as metric. No problen then, much less of one now. (of course it was not designed to be built as a showcase model).

Our shop is a mixture of metric and imperial machines but the digital vernier and or a calculator take care of the transposition.

Additionaly much material is metric, sheet/strip/round bar etc. unless you want to pay over the odds for imperial.

At three score and ten I grew up with imperial but though it was odd at first I find no problem being "bi lingual" though when someone describes something in mm I still often ask, whats that in real money.

John

[dscott]

Congratulations on becoming the new editor David.

One of my designs I have done in both Imperial and metric, dividing the drawing in half as most of the views are symmetrical and allow this. This also covers the bolts in BA and M3,5&6 Also like most projects you need to build in a sequence, which means that you have to make several Assemblies then drill and tap through them into the frame. The frame drawing appears later for this reason.

Writing an article for publishing is hard work as I did several years ago for the smaller scales, it has to work and someone has to follow what you write and be successful in what 'they' make.

David.