Shop Truths, Phrases, Tales; and Outright Lies

[Frank S]

Yup always someone wise guy, so rewarding for all, with the requisite 'gimme 50'.
I knew right off being a joker would have to wait... making up ever since!

I had also heard from my dad to never volunteer for anything.
One very cold dreary almost raining morning in Basic the 1st Sgt addressed the company of 4 platoons. Something that was unusual since usually the senior DI did this.
the 1st SGT asked if anyone could drive a truck. No one replied at first. then a buddy of mine from high school spoke up and pointed to me then said he can 1st SGT. I've seen him drive his grand father's Mack to school a couple of times.
Well this got me singled out and called out. too late to play dumb I thought my bud has just volunteered me for pushing a wheel barrow I thought.
So I was asked if it were true. I answered in the affirmative then I was ordered up front. Top asked if I had a driver's license. So I pulled out my wallet and handed him my chauffeur's license.
Well lookie here we have a guy who can drive anything on wheels. DO You really know how to drive a truck? give me some of your back ground. So I explained a few of the things I had driven and how long I had known how to drive.
Then he told me to go to the orderly room and get a pass then catch the shuttle buss to South Fort and go to the transportation motor pool and have my self checked out. and to return to the Mass hall with a commercial 5 ton cargo truck.
A couple hours later I backed a F700 Ford up to the back of the Mess Hall. I spent the next 6 weeks driving it when ever the mess hall was required to accompany the company on a march or bivouack. But that was not without its consequences I was expected to be super numeracy in every thing My DI hated me because I was exempted from marching in most of our marches.
It was good for something though because when I went to my AIT and subsequent permanent duty stations I already had a DD348 with a 2 page long string of endorsements from the TMP.

[Toolmaker51]

This post is a work in progress. It fits nicely within parameters, described by title "Shop Truths, Phrases, Tales; and Outright Lies", and reinforced by comments of it's various contributors.

So, first the setup:
I don't have a particular attraction to cable TV "How It's Made". Always disappointed that how it's made turns out more to be "How It's Assembled". I'm sure a large audience more interested in the real tooling behind "How It's Made" items. Applies equally to one-off customs or mass produced. But tonight's feature was US Navy Littoral Combat Vessels...Yeah, I'm an old Navy guy, yet the interest wasn't locked in by the ships. Presentation illustrated importance of aluminum, to commercial aircraft. The vessel concept success needs reduced draft and other weight savings.
Well, the aluminum was highlighted by a very special plane Douglas DC-3 Flagship St. Louis NC21745. I swear, photo of that plane caused me to choke up, and welling in my eyes. Immediately. And my next reaction, that aircraft was born and built without computers, CAD drawings, online catalogs and many of the other 'requirements' of today. There are examples still flying today, some more than eighty years old.

https://dc3dakotahistory.org/dc3-dak...ican-airlines/

Later in same show, they followed design and construction of a electric motored hotwalker for horses.
That 'designer' started right off in CAD...a merry-go-round for horses.

[Frank S]

I haven't seen the episode in question but as far as walkers for horses I was building horse walkers out of old truck or car rear ends over 50 years ago no cad needed just weld a support frame together to hold the rear end vertical pull the back cover off and weld the spider gears for a positive drive add an old 4 speed manual transmission put a 14" diameter pulley on the input shaft to a 2" pulley on a jack shaft with a 12" pulley on the other end drive that with a 1/3 to 1/2 Hp electric motor with a 2" pulley. Mount 4 to 6 20 ft long pipes on a wheel mounted on the top axle tie the reigns of a hackamore halter to the ends of the pipe to lead the horses. Put the transmission in low gear and switch on the motor. it would walk the horse at a nice leisurely pace to speed them up a little just change the gears High gear would be a fast trot but too fast for the 40 ft diameter of the merry go round.
A variation of this was to not weld the spider gears but to hook up a brake line to the brakes on the bottom axle bury the line and run it several feet outside the walking path then with a master cylinder you could control the amount of friction holding the drum disk brakes hadn't come out then the harder the brake peddle was mashed the faster the walker made the horses walk you didn't need the transmission but you did need another jack shaft to get the reduction gearing and the brakes would wear out about every 2 or 3 months of constant use One advantage of using the brakes was if you let all of the pressure off the horses could stop the walker while the motor was still running. you could add a 2nd master cylinder to operate the brakes in the top axle for emergency stop.
If they want to do a how it's made segment come talk to me I can build and show them how things could be and were made long before we had computers.

[PJs]

Nice couple of rabbit holes, TM51! The DC3 article was dear to my heart as my uncle worked for them in Long Beach for a Long time...35-40 years and I've been on one flight in one at an air show and in many of them at air shows...does kind of make you well up. I remember the smell...a real olfactory experience I got back when I read the article.

Yup, we've come a long way since pencil and velum and made leaps and bounds with every step. If you want a mind rattling rabbit hole take a look at software for designing ASIC chips and what they are capable of doing with them. And yet every idea starts in the head and sometimes built on the fly and last just as long, or Longer (think pyramids or Parthenon).

The show is Ok for a lunch time recess to me but they don't say much, only light a candle once in a while.

PJ

[Toolmaker51]

Original text says it all;

[Toolmaker51]

Not once; ever seen proper recognition in anyone's place of employment. This would be nice to see, walking in every morning.

[Toolmaker51]

Some of us imagine how we got 'here'.
Better yet, to recall how you started.
Improving on that, knowing where you want to end up. . .


AMA Motorcycle Museum Hall of Fame | Burt Munro

Timing official, remarking how Burt pulls away already at 90mph "when you opened her up in top gear, you sure left us in the dust. . ."

[Frank S]

That video clip was from the movie worlds' fastest Indian Staring Anthony Hopkins as Burt Munro. But the movie surprisingly follows his life long dream pretty well even down to the Officials nearly banning him from making a run our of safety and technical concerns.
Indian Motorcycles even commissioned to have a one off replica of the famous Indian Scout the builder a guy in Florida fabed the bike for the company.
Burt cast his own pistons and made all of the other parts to create his dream by hand using scrap materials from other things.
Hats off to Mr. Munro a true legend in the DIY world.

[Toolmaker51]

In a roundabout [sort of slant drilling into a rabbit hole] search, I found a comment on this youtube video. Appears 'we' are on the same page.
But this video will be enjoyed by any who feel "How It's Made" hardly tells the story. It's 29 minutes of cast iron porn.

BTW, the best comment is "Who needs industry when you can have call centres!" closely illustrates observations in a large percentage of responses to the video. The lamentations sound particularly British.
Pleases me no end; believing a community exists that Quality, good Design, carefully specified Materials, and proper Fitting justify Cost; which show in subsequent reselling, willingly pay extra for the honor.

[Toolmaker51]

Contractors make things so difficult, like keeping schedules, sticking to job quotes. . .DIY is the way to go.