SteveHGraham wrote:I get the impression that Richard is like Harold. Maybe a tier or two above the video guys,
Thanks, Richard, but I don't agree. I see both of us on a common plane, but with different backgrounds. There's not a doubt in my mind that I would learn a great deal from you, just as I suspect you might learn a few things from me.Richard_W wrote:I don't consider myself to be above Harold. I have him on a higher plain.
The field of machining is so large that it's not common to find a machinist that has experienced everything, and those who claim they have are most likely to not be highly skilled in any of them. It takes years of daily "practice" to become proficient on machines---that meaning you can be handed a print, pointed to a machine, and turned loose, being expected to produce any number of parts in a timely fashion, per print, without supervision.
I agree.As for the video's that were posted... I don't think you really want to know what I think of the ones I looked at. I will give the guys who made them credit for trying to show the correct way, but they left out more than they showed you. This thread is proof of that.
Years ago I used to subscribe to Live Steam Magazine. What turned me off, more than anything, was the endless string of "how to" articles that were published by those with no real machine shop experience, providing guidelines for the project. I understand they are well meaning--but that doesn't change the fact that their instructions often were not good. Practice does not make perfect---but perfect practice does. If one seeks instruction, it should come from one with knowledge, so bad habits are not created (or poor practices incorporated in a process).
Harold