Build threads.

[Enough!Participant @enough]

Posted by Andrew Johnston on 12/11/2015 22:59:44

:………there is a 'thanks' button on TT so people can show appreciation, so at least you know it's being read.

There is number of "Views" data here in the Latest Posts listings, so you not only know if it's being read but by how many.

[JAParticipant @ja]

Posted by fizzy on 13/11/2015 00:03:21:

I love this resource, but can anyone justify to me why bee keeping should even get a mention on a model engineering forum?

Surely we are a "broad church". I am a member of a small motorcycle club: a chat about bikes but also many other things like keeping chickens, decorating houses, rugby and many other things. I am told that knitting circles frequently talk about computers.

Personally I like reading about Clive's bees since I know nothing about beekeeping.

Getting to the subject of the thread, anything that can improve my knowledge of workshop practises is welcome and that includes making specific models. I do admire those who post such details particularly how some keep lathes etc clean during machining.

JA

[Ady1Participant @ady1]

I love this resource, but can anyone justify to me why bee keeping should even get a mention on a model engineering forum?

It's an off-topic area, but technically interesting, I may learn something new and my life is spent learning new things

Model engineering stuff interests me because there is casting welding machining metallurgy threading milling mathematics mechanical-dynamics boilers boilermaking soldering and a whole bunch of other technical stuff I'm going to spend my life learning and I hope, mastering

If we ever move to the country then I can ask Clive about bees and any forums he uses and any tips he can provide

This site is a technical repository of human knowledge with a thousand plus years of experience on a multitude of disciplines which a member can draw upon

[jason udallParticipant @jasonudall57142]

One thought occurs.

A theoritical minutely detailed with drawings “build thread”….
Mmm … might that compete with the magazine

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Posted by fizzy on 13/11/2015 00:03:21:

I love this resource, but can anyone justify to me why bee keeping should even get a mention on a model engineering forum?

.

fizzy,

I find posts like yours [quoted ^^^] very tiresome:

But I would defend your right to make them.

MichaelG.

[Ady1Participant @ady1]

I also run a theory thread on TT, although it has been in obeyance for some while due to other pressures:

**LINK**

Clearly this thread is specifically related to traction engines and is therefore probably best hosted etc etc

————–

It's a dead link for many of us

An exclusive club for members only

Not all of us want to be members of exclusive clubs whose collective knowledge is hidden from the world at large, the power of the internet is open learning and sharing that knowledge openly

It's probbly a very good forum, but as an "outsider", I will never know

[Ady1Participant @ady1]

I also had a look at HMEM and MEM out of interest (had to hunt via google)

Seriously dedicated sites focussed almost exclusively on the building of models. period.

Many of us do not have that level of commitment, we dabble, it's a hobby, a bit here, a bit there

If I ever got really serious then I would look at these places and sift through the huge amount of detail they contain on a myriad of projects, but I simply aint got the time

Back to work now, places to go, stuff to do… will be done by midnight… as with most days…

[David ColwillParticipant @davidcolwill19261]

Posted by fizzy on 13/11/2015 00:03:21:

I love this resource, but can anyone justify to me why bee keeping should even get a mention on a model engineering forum?

I think that what is great about Clives bee keeping snippets, is that they are just that. They often raise questions and these are answered with a short informative answer. Sometimes I admit they can lead to a (in my opinion) too long discourse (usually by others) , but when this happens I stop reading. Also if you create a thread with a title of "what did you do today" then I think it is fair game, especially when you consider the number of people who are interested.

Whilst I don't follow many build threads I am grateful to those who take the trouble to post them and would never discourage or worse criticise their work.

Dean Clarkes fantastic thread on the supercharged V12 2 stroke is probably my favorite but there have been others.

I am always very disappointed when any thread descends into criticism or personal attacks as I believe it can take quite a lot of courage to post on here especially if you are a beginner and this coupled with the lack of apparent interest mentioned by others is probably why there aren't as many as there should be.

I have mentioned before the cyclic nature of this forum, so I think that this will change over time.

Regards.

David.

[Douglas JohnstonParticipant @douglasjohnston98463]

You don't have to read every post, I certainly don't and often skim through a lot of them, then a real gem crops up and I'm hooked. I must say I think a number of people are a tad narrow minded when it comes to appropriate topics.

I know this is an engineering forum but surely there is room for the odd off topic comment. I see the bees and astronomy are getting a bit of stick here and I for one love both topics, despite only having a passing interest in both subjects.

Build topics are fine as well but need to be done with care to prevent them being a bit too long. In this regard I blame the digital camera, why take ten pictures when one would do.

Live and let live and don't dare touch the bees!

Doug

[Peter G. ShawParticipant @peterg-shaw75338]

From my point of view, any build thread I started in connection with anything I do is likely to take months, or even years, before it reaches a conclusion. The problem is that this is a hobby which comes after lots of other things which means that any project can quite easily come to a halt for a few weeks, or longer. Therefore, any build thread would be likely to disappear for a while which is not really the best way to keep people interested.

Then, as someone else has said, there is the problem of documenting and photographing everything – more time!

Plus, of course, the important point that I am in this hobby to learn by trying things out, education by experimentation I call it – and along the way have garnered an impressive list of things that have gone wrong, such as setting the lathe running forward when it should have gone backwards etc. In fact, I've probably made more mistakes than I've had successes.

So I won't be doing any build threads anytime soon.

Regards,

Peter G. Shaw

[Ady1Participant @ady1]

From my point of view, any build thread I started in connection with anything I do is likely to take months, or even years, before it reaches a conclusion.

That's my problem too. I dig threads up out of the bowels of ME as I progress but it's slow going. Three months has just been spent chopping up a giant steel billet with a hacksaw lashup on my drummond, then I'm going to have a go at making a decent fixed steady, the standard issue FS is a bit weedy.

I used to wonder how engineering prototypes overran by years and cost hundreds of millions more than budgeted on the BBC news but I'm slowly getting the bigger picture

ady (skiving off for an hour)

Edited By Ady1 on 13/11/2015 16:44:19

[Neil WyattModerator @neilwyatt]

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RoboBee

[David Clark 13Participant @davidclark13]

Trust Neil to put his one cents worth in!

Should they not have six legs though?

[Enough!Participant @enough]

lol, Neil

You do like to live dangerously.

Edited By Bandersnatch on 13/11/2015 17:28:33

[nigel jones 5Participant @nigeljones5]

First off I certainly wasnt aiming anything at Clive. I didnt know he has bees, someone else mentioned them! But you miss the point entirely. Foe example, Baking is a technical subject to those who bake but if I wanted to read about baking I would go to the apropriate resouce. Put an engineering related topic on the strictly come dancing forum and see what response you get. It will instantly be removed as it has nothing to do with dancing, and therein lies my point. And as for tiresome posts, at least it is on topic.

[Speedy Builder5Participant @speedybuilder5]

Post deleted as nothing to do with thread or engineering.

Jason

Edited By JasonB on 13/11/2015 18:25:10

[John Stevenson 1Participant @johnstevenson1]

Posted by Speedy Builder5 on 13/11/2015 18:18:35:

Post deleted as nothing to do with thread or engineering.

Jason

Edited By JasonB on 13/11/2015 18:25:10

ROTFLMAO

[AjohnwParticipant @ajohnw51620]

i only read a few of the early posts but I wonder if people appreciate that many people who own telescopes also own a lathe and it's not all that unusual for people who own microscopes either. And then there are those that make tooling to be used in all fields. There is no saying what people might make with those. Bits for motor bikes isn't uncommon or given there is an aircraft thread maybe even bits for those.

So if this should just be a build a stream engine or loco forum what is MEW doing on here ?

Could it be that some people just want what they want and bugger everybody else ?

The other problem with build threads is having sufficient people about who are prepared to write them. There are plenty of often inadequate ones and odd bits and pieces about on the web.

John

–

[HopperParticipant @hopper]

Posted by Peter Nichols on 11/11/2015 19:05:52:

Hi,

Is there any chance the site could help promote more 'build' threads and in particular those of beginners ?

Possibly two reasons we are not seeing a lot of these.

First is the site's very clunky multi-step process for posting pics.

Second is that the last time I saw a beginner ask for help on this forum one member told him he should take up knitting for a hobby and another told him to stick with assembling pre-machined kits.

There are so many forums out there on any given topic that it's a competitive business to attract posters. People will take the easy and pleasant option most of the time.

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

I am surprised to find that my previous post has been deleted.

[without leaving any Audit Trail]

 

Edited By Michael Gilligan on 14/11/2015 00:03:14

[julian atkinsParticipant @julianatkins58923]

dear John (W1),

you ignore that fact that since 1924 this hobby has been principally driven by building miniature steam locomotives. Percival Marshall realised this when LBSC started describing the construction series of dear old 'Ayesha', and sales went through the roof. this was the first ever proper construction series in ME of anything. ok, call it a 'build thread' if you like!

virtually all the ME clubs in the UK are principally devoted to building and operating miniature steam locos. the other great somewhat later major ME pursuit is the miniature traction engine, which ME failed to adequately cover except with very small examples for many years.

does this forum adequately cater for either? unfortunately not. it ought so to do!

i think a traction engine in miniature is far more difficult to build than a miniature loco, and i have the greatest respect for those who do, and remember the happy times i spent with Henry Marshall of Gainsborough, and helping do jobs on fullsize traction engines and taking the wheel and driving same.

again, re another thread, to ignore the 'core' subjects of model engineering is very sad.

John, you have a very well equipped workshop of which we have seen many pictures of on here. what do you make in it?

cheers,

julian

[John Stevenson 1Participant @johnstevenson1]

Julian,

That adequately describes ME but this forum also covers MEW as well.

I have said this many times in the past but I feel the Americans have the better title with Home Shop Machinist because as many have stated on here, they do not build models.

The M in ME is fully justified but I feel the M in MEW isn't

[julian atkinsParticipant @julianatkins58923]

hi John (Stevenson),

i think you have summed up the problem pretty well in your above post in your usual succinct way! as i stated in my second post on this thread, model engineering is too broad a church. this forum will never be ok if it tries to please everyone all of the time, including apparently the vast majority of armchair members who appear to prefer general irrelevant chat rather than concentrating on what we actually do in our workshops.

i am reminded of a guy called Basil Heath on the Isle of Wight. he was very well off and in his extremely well equipped workshop were a collection of miniature locos he had bought. over the years i noticed the swarf on his lovely lathe was exactly the same. he never used the lathe or anything else. it was all for show!

cheers,

julian

[Enough!Participant @enough]

Posted by julian atkins on 14/11/2015 00:37:08:

model engineering is too broad a church. this forum will never be ok if it tries to please everyone all of the time, including apparently the vast majority of armchair members who appear to prefer general irrelevant chat rather than concentrating on what we actually do in our workshops.

That's one viewpoint. Your mission, if you choose to accept it, is to impose that viewpoint on the majority who – by your own admission – think otherwise.

As for "armchair members" (appears to be used as a mild slur which some might find slightly offensive) I don't think I could count myself in that group since I spend an hour or two in my shop virtually every afternoon. Nonetheless, I think I would fit right in since I too prefer the "general irrelevant chat" (your term, not mine) that we have right now.

[Steven VineParticipant @stevenvine79904]

Posted by julian atkins on 14/11/2015 00:37:08:

i am reminded of a guy called Basil Heath on the Isle of Wight. he was very well off and in his extremely well equipped workshop were a collection of miniature locos he had bought. over the years i noticed the swarf on his lovely lathe was exactly the same. he never used the lathe or anything else. it was all for show!

There is nothing wrong in the guy not using what he owns. If he gets pleasure out of just owning it then so what?

Steve

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