rsser
26th June 2006, 03:25 PM
A forum member suggested that this was worth a thread by itself .... comes in two parts, courtesy of William Noble. It was posted on the Stubby newsgroup coming from a metalwork group originally.
Machines are Gods.
Ive noticed a distinct pattern among different personality types on this
newsgroup...<WBR>lets see if I can express this pattern.
Type 1. The Dreamers
This group is constantly talkign about machines, but seldom ever
actually get one. They talk, not look. They ponder the good and the bad,
discussing the various aspects of their gods, always dreaming about
the One True Machine, but no matter how many machines are offered to
them..they are always are talking something better, never content to
simply get the best they can Now..and learn to use it, while continuing
to look for something better, no matter that they can sell their current
one and get their dream machine next week, or next month or next
year..but missing out Today on learning and using. I cant figure out if
they want a machine handed to them on a silver platter, or they are
really interested in simply talking about machines and not actually
DOING something with a machine.
Type 2. Tire kickers.
Tire Kickers are a subgroup of the Dreamers. They actually get off
their asses and look for machines. But like the Dreamers..they seldom
actually get one. No matter how many usable machines are offered up to
them..they always have an excuse to not get one. Its too far, its too
dirty, its ugly. Its one thing to pass on a hammered piece of ####..but
to pass on a machine that takes a bit of effort to go and get, or whle
its capable of holding tolerence..its ugly and so forth..is buffonery.
You either want one, or you dont. If you dont..why do you bother going
and looking and then passing up a machine that you can actually DO
something on? Like the Dreamers..they forget that machines can be
bought and sold as a better one comes along but in the mean time..its a
user. Life is short. If you pass up a perfectly good machine..you may be
hit by a bus load of nuns before you torment yourself into actually
getting one. Its a bitch trying to turn cranks from a wheel chair or a
walker as Alzheimers makes you forget what you were trying to do.
If she is a bit homely, a little tired and a little old..but is a cheap
date and will #### your brains out..are you gonna pass it up?
Type 3. Cheapistanis.
Look yall..lets face it..not everyone can find machines for free or near
free. Location location location and effort effort effort MAY get you a
cheap machine. Maybe. Sometimes.
If you are unlucky enough to not live in the Rust Belt or be a Natural
Born Scrounger..a machine worth doing something with, is gonna cost you.
It may not be much..but it will cost something. The more pretty and
"accurate" it is..the more money its gonna cost. You have to decide if
pretty or "accurate" is more important than Usable when digging into
your piggy bank. Yes..a pretty and accurate machine is a joy to use. But
you pay for the pleasure. Either #### or get off the pot. Do you want a
machine or not? Some of you have been pissing and moaning about not
finding any machines, and the next day or the next week someone offers
up one..and yall dont even bother to get the details. Not unless its
free, or damned close to it.
Type 4. Beverly Hills Machinists.
This is the type of person that will not take anything other than the
best. Its got to be mint, dressed up like a fancy lady. I suspect this
type has a trophy wife or girlfriend, drives a fancy car and brags to
his buds about how hip slick and cool his toys are. But
unfortunately.<WBR>...its sad how little they actually use em. They spend
their time waxing and polishing and doing plastic surgery and making the
old bitch into a sweet young thing..no matter that its still an old lady
under all that bondo and paint. Long discussions on the most best trendy
paint, best place to have ways ground (and screech in dismay at the
cost).
There are loads of machine tools out there. But there hasnt been a US
manufactured manual machine made in at least 20yrs for the most
part..and they were used mostly in production..<WBR>run by men and women who
were tasked with running it to its maximum capacity, day in and day out.
Or hammered by newbies in schools and colleges. The 100 hr Instructors
machine that was hidden in a secret room in the neither regions at the
back of the campus and only used during alternate full moons are out
there. But they are damned rare.
Ive seen some "restored" machines done by hobbiests. They generally tend
to be like our aging lady..looks good from a distance..but when you get
up close..the old bitch is sagging, lumpy and looks like a worn out
painted whore. If they had simply been cleaned up and used..they would
at least have charector, and not have been a huge hole in the restorers
time, time best spent in actually using the beasty.
If you want a status symbol..buy a 'Vett and a big watch. Maybe grow a
pony tail and get a young chick to hang on your arm. A machine tool is
exactly that..a tool. You are either a machine user..or a machine
restorer..and most hobbiests dont have a clue how to actually rebuild
one..or know how much work there is in doing a decent job. Ever see an
invoice on a professionally rebuilt machine? Its not much less than a
new one. If your hobby is restoring machines..all the power to you. If
you want one to actually use...shrug.
Type 5. The Pragmatic Builder
The Pragmatic Builder is a interesting type. He wants to Built Stuff.
His goal is to make things, repair things, or make chips while he is
learning how to Build Stuff. His hobby is making Things. Machine tools,
while interesting, are simply a means to an end. He looks for the best
machine he can afford that will do the job. He learns his machines
weaknesses..<WBR>and learns to work around them as he Builds Stuff.
Cosmetics, while nice..are secondary to the use of each machine. As he
progresses and advances..he will be keeping an eye out for something
beter that may come along..but the machine itself is NOT his goal..but
simply a tool. He may tweak the machine a bit to make his task easier,
enable him to be more accurate, but his hobby is not rebuilding
machines, but to actually use them to Build Stuff.
Type 6. The High Priests
High Priests are a combination of Beverly Hills Machinists and Dreamers.
They argue about which machine is Da Best. The Machine is God..and all
machines besides their own gods are inferior. Old Gods are #### They
often dont have a clue why one god is better than another. And are often
wrong. Fundimentalist Machine Snobs. They often hear that one machine
is better than another..and once they get their minds made up..they will
buy even #### machines that look nice or have a certain name on it..no
matter how clapped out it may be. OOOH..I gotta have a Hardinge! And
they get one...one with more swayback than an elderly mare..but its A
Hardinge! Glory Be! Pass the tooling! And they often wonder why they
have chatter, or cant hold tolerances better than a couple thousands. It
cant be the machine..its a Hardinge!!!
Liz Taylor was a famous beauty in her prime. No matter how good her
make up artist made her look this morning..do you really want to bone
her today?
Do you want a machine that will do the job, or do you want a status
symbol to brag on? Yes..it may have some surface rust and maybe it wont
hold small tenths..but how often are you going to be needing small
tenths? Ill tell you. maybe a couple times in your life. Maybe. Unless
you are a Builder who makes watches or jet engines.
<!-- / message --><!-- sig -->
Machines are Gods.
Ive noticed a distinct pattern among different personality types on this
newsgroup...<WBR>lets see if I can express this pattern.
Type 1. The Dreamers
This group is constantly talkign about machines, but seldom ever
actually get one. They talk, not look. They ponder the good and the bad,
discussing the various aspects of their gods, always dreaming about
the One True Machine, but no matter how many machines are offered to
them..they are always are talking something better, never content to
simply get the best they can Now..and learn to use it, while continuing
to look for something better, no matter that they can sell their current
one and get their dream machine next week, or next month or next
year..but missing out Today on learning and using. I cant figure out if
they want a machine handed to them on a silver platter, or they are
really interested in simply talking about machines and not actually
DOING something with a machine.
Type 2. Tire kickers.
Tire Kickers are a subgroup of the Dreamers. They actually get off
their asses and look for machines. But like the Dreamers..they seldom
actually get one. No matter how many usable machines are offered up to
them..they always have an excuse to not get one. Its too far, its too
dirty, its ugly. Its one thing to pass on a hammered piece of ####..but
to pass on a machine that takes a bit of effort to go and get, or whle
its capable of holding tolerence..its ugly and so forth..is buffonery.
You either want one, or you dont. If you dont..why do you bother going
and looking and then passing up a machine that you can actually DO
something on? Like the Dreamers..they forget that machines can be
bought and sold as a better one comes along but in the mean time..its a
user. Life is short. If you pass up a perfectly good machine..you may be
hit by a bus load of nuns before you torment yourself into actually
getting one. Its a bitch trying to turn cranks from a wheel chair or a
walker as Alzheimers makes you forget what you were trying to do.
If she is a bit homely, a little tired and a little old..but is a cheap
date and will #### your brains out..are you gonna pass it up?
Type 3. Cheapistanis.
Look yall..lets face it..not everyone can find machines for free or near
free. Location location location and effort effort effort MAY get you a
cheap machine. Maybe. Sometimes.
If you are unlucky enough to not live in the Rust Belt or be a Natural
Born Scrounger..a machine worth doing something with, is gonna cost you.
It may not be much..but it will cost something. The more pretty and
"accurate" it is..the more money its gonna cost. You have to decide if
pretty or "accurate" is more important than Usable when digging into
your piggy bank. Yes..a pretty and accurate machine is a joy to use. But
you pay for the pleasure. Either #### or get off the pot. Do you want a
machine or not? Some of you have been pissing and moaning about not
finding any machines, and the next day or the next week someone offers
up one..and yall dont even bother to get the details. Not unless its
free, or damned close to it.
Type 4. Beverly Hills Machinists.
This is the type of person that will not take anything other than the
best. Its got to be mint, dressed up like a fancy lady. I suspect this
type has a trophy wife or girlfriend, drives a fancy car and brags to
his buds about how hip slick and cool his toys are. But
unfortunately.<WBR>...its sad how little they actually use em. They spend
their time waxing and polishing and doing plastic surgery and making the
old bitch into a sweet young thing..no matter that its still an old lady
under all that bondo and paint. Long discussions on the most best trendy
paint, best place to have ways ground (and screech in dismay at the
cost).
There are loads of machine tools out there. But there hasnt been a US
manufactured manual machine made in at least 20yrs for the most
part..and they were used mostly in production..<WBR>run by men and women who
were tasked with running it to its maximum capacity, day in and day out.
Or hammered by newbies in schools and colleges. The 100 hr Instructors
machine that was hidden in a secret room in the neither regions at the
back of the campus and only used during alternate full moons are out
there. But they are damned rare.
Ive seen some "restored" machines done by hobbiests. They generally tend
to be like our aging lady..looks good from a distance..but when you get
up close..the old bitch is sagging, lumpy and looks like a worn out
painted whore. If they had simply been cleaned up and used..they would
at least have charector, and not have been a huge hole in the restorers
time, time best spent in actually using the beasty.
If you want a status symbol..buy a 'Vett and a big watch. Maybe grow a
pony tail and get a young chick to hang on your arm. A machine tool is
exactly that..a tool. You are either a machine user..or a machine
restorer..and most hobbiests dont have a clue how to actually rebuild
one..or know how much work there is in doing a decent job. Ever see an
invoice on a professionally rebuilt machine? Its not much less than a
new one. If your hobby is restoring machines..all the power to you. If
you want one to actually use...shrug.
Type 5. The Pragmatic Builder
The Pragmatic Builder is a interesting type. He wants to Built Stuff.
His goal is to make things, repair things, or make chips while he is
learning how to Build Stuff. His hobby is making Things. Machine tools,
while interesting, are simply a means to an end. He looks for the best
machine he can afford that will do the job. He learns his machines
weaknesses..<WBR>and learns to work around them as he Builds Stuff.
Cosmetics, while nice..are secondary to the use of each machine. As he
progresses and advances..he will be keeping an eye out for something
beter that may come along..but the machine itself is NOT his goal..but
simply a tool. He may tweak the machine a bit to make his task easier,
enable him to be more accurate, but his hobby is not rebuilding
machines, but to actually use them to Build Stuff.
Type 6. The High Priests
High Priests are a combination of Beverly Hills Machinists and Dreamers.
They argue about which machine is Da Best. The Machine is God..and all
machines besides their own gods are inferior. Old Gods are #### They
often dont have a clue why one god is better than another. And are often
wrong. Fundimentalist Machine Snobs. They often hear that one machine
is better than another..and once they get their minds made up..they will
buy even #### machines that look nice or have a certain name on it..no
matter how clapped out it may be. OOOH..I gotta have a Hardinge! And
they get one...one with more swayback than an elderly mare..but its A
Hardinge! Glory Be! Pass the tooling! And they often wonder why they
have chatter, or cant hold tolerances better than a couple thousands. It
cant be the machine..its a Hardinge!!!
Liz Taylor was a famous beauty in her prime. No matter how good her
make up artist made her look this morning..do you really want to bone
her today?
Do you want a machine that will do the job, or do you want a status
symbol to brag on? Yes..it may have some surface rust and maybe it wont
hold small tenths..but how often are you going to be needing small
tenths? Ill tell you. maybe a couple times in your life. Maybe. Unless
you are a Builder who makes watches or jet engines.
<!-- / message --><!-- sig -->