Member postings for Steve Neighbour

My late father had three Austin Maxis in sucession back in the 70's and swore by them, they were so versatile, it was the our family car, limo, truck for trips to the community tip and go anywhere vehicle all in one, the traction was mainly down to it being built like a tank (and weighing like one as well) and front wheel drive, not that Dad ever put his foot down, he was happy pootling along at 28 mph, and just as happy ignoring the Q behind him

Pity it was let down by poor British Leyland build quality, as were more of the 70's cars made in this country.

I moved over to German made cars in 2014, (MB) they are built like a Panzer Tank, and the latest one has far too many gizmos and electrikery than I could ever need, or understand for that matter, it is rear wheel drive, with traction control, it surprises me on its winter conditions and snow/ice capability.

Appoligies if I offended

I was merely pointing out 'upgrading' to W10 is not as bad as some think, and does not have to cost anything.

If you don't you will eventually be at a significant disadvantage with what other systems on your PC will run, as an example, I assume you have a printer, so lets say your printer throws a hissy fit and you need a new one (as fixing an old one is no longer cost effective) your 'new' printer is more than likey going to need W10 to operate. We have all been through this conundrum, I started off with MS DOS, and then upgraded to Windows 3.1 and hated it, and then Windows 95, the dreaded Millenium, and then XP. W7 and W8 (which was so much better) but was slowly forced to move with the times and now run W10 and keep it right up tp date (completely for free)

Quoting Nick, look whats happened to the car industry, I used to enjoy setting the valve rocker clearances with feeler guages and adjusting the spark plugs to get the engine to run a little smoother, but those times are long gone, as are drum brakes and radial tyres (unless you own a classic or older car) and who ever thought mobile phones would become as widespread as they are, which isn't such a good thing !!

Ironically there are still around 4% of PC's running on Win XP, even though the last update was launced in 2008, and it was no longer supported by MS in 2014

Having said all of the above, 'IF' your computer is not connected to the internet, the Windows XP is absolutely fine and will serve you well, however 'IF' you connect to the internet, you are seriously at risk from just about every virus, malware or hacker that there is !!

Phillips 2000 and music on 8 track cassettes (now I'm showing my age)

AFAIK there is NO subscription fees for W10, if you splashed out on a 'new' 'puter it would come with W10 pre-installed, no subscriptions anywhere to be seen.

That however is NOT the case for software such as Word or Excel, in order to keep up to date with the lastest version MS have migrated to Microsoft 365 which is subscription based.

Like ALL software these days it VERY quickly becomes out of date or superceeded.

I feel like that when the grandchildren come round, they all have the latest 'gadgets' and gizmos and keep telling me that I'm 'old' . . . . guess it's how it has always been.

Now where's that VHS tape gone ??

Steve

+1 to upgrade - Windows 7, 8 etc are no longer supported for secirity and viruses etc, you PC and personal information will be at risk if you do not keep up to date !!

Rapid metals are doing a complete overhaul of their website, when I looked (last few mins) it was 14 days away and counting !!

So at the moment you can't order via the tinternet

+1 for WD40, spray on, leave for 10 seconds and clean off with a link free cloth, this should remove the 'transport coating'

Then apply quite a liberal coating of a 'millway' specific oil to all the bed and slide surfaces, the tail stock quill etc, and run everything back and forth to the full extents.

Hi Dave,

Have you insulated the walls and sealed the floor ? they will be a source of damp ingress.

Like you I 'created' my 'man cave' otherwise known as my workshop in a brick built garage, (didn't have any choice really) and so far (touch wood) I have not had any damp issues, my tools and metals seem to keep rust free, so I thought I'd share how I insulated it.

I lined the walles with a thermal wrap **LINK**

I literally hung it like wall paper from floor to roof, dab fixed with a cheap verion of no nails adhesive, then I applied a layer of celox (like you have used) I used the 15mm version, then a 6 mm ply covering to finish off.

For the roof, I used good old fasioned loft insulation, again with a ply cover to finish, then I have painted the floor with a sealing floor paint.

For the winter months I have a 2kW panel heater which comes on for 5 minutes every hour (on a time clock) to keep the chill off and humidity low, and so far it has worked a treat.

The only difference to you is the loft type insulation which may allow more air flow than sheets of Celotex in the roof space.

We live in a civilised democratic country where we enjoy freedom of thought and speech, and can hold our own opinions based on what we decide is worthy of our attention, understanding and belief.

That is what sets the UK apart from countries such are China and Nth Korea (to name just two of many)

THis freedom is what makes life interesting and vibrant, please respect this freedom !!

Edited By Steve Neighbour on 22/02/2020 11:39:01

Thanks for all the comments, I guess at the end of the day it is 'horses for courses' on which system you use (or decide to get)

I have used AutoCAD for some time for work, but this is generally way beyond the pocket of the 'home user' . . but I have found that TC does seem to emulate a lot of the UI deployed in AutoCAD, so the learning curve has (so far) been not too steep.

I manged to get TC Designer 2019 for only £38 in the end, so a reasonible dicount, I have subsequently 'upgraded' this to TC 2019 Deluxe, this is the full 3D version, in addition to the conventional 3D capability it has a lot of other functionality that the 2D version lacks.

I did this through the U.S site, so paid a discounted price in dollars, and could then take advantage of a fair exchange rate giving more discount

So the total cost to me has been just under £100 for the TC Deluxe which is widely advertised on UK sites for around 50% more.

But I fully appreciate it's not a CAD program that suits everyones needs.

Kind regards,

Steve N

As previously mentioned, there are numerous 'long thread stuffing glands' readily available . . .

Mr Google is your friend for this, then trawl through RS components (tend to be expensive) or the likes of E Bay, or Amazon.

Other good sources are Screwfix (trade outlet of B&Q) but also Newey & Eyre or City Electrical can prove useful.

Or . . . you could always make a bespoke gland on the Lathe (assuming you have access to one)

For those that may be interested, there is a offer for Turbo CAD software at a nice 20% discount on this site

**LINK**

(I would add that I hove no afiliation to this site or the pruducts offered)

Is your 'Hobby Horse' an auto then

The cons of an auto are a lot less than ever nowadays, my car has a 9 speed triptronic gearbox (fancy name for fully electronically controlled) coupled to a 2 ltr EU6 diesel and easily achieves 50-55 mpg, on a longer run an a motorway at a steady 70 mph it will hit 60+ mpg, I travel in excess of 25k miles a year, in all weather conditions, and find it very easy to adapt to ice/snow etc, just select the correct mode and the electronics does the rest, it also has flappy paddles allowing quick and easy manual changing so I fail to see what the advantages of a manual are now !

On the flip side, my better half has a small car with a 900cc 3 cylinder petrol engine, and a 5 speed manual gearbox, it averages around 35mpg being nowhere near my car which has a bigger engine.

The old thinking of "Brakes to go, Gears to slow" - I was taught that very method when I learnt, has long been overtaken by new techniques (no pun intended) simply because using only your gears to slow down gives no rearward warning from brake lights that you are actually slowing down and brake pads are a lot cheaper than gear boxes and clutches (ROSPA advanced driving course recommendations)

Climbs off perch and getting my coat

Steve

I disagree, maybe a few years ago, when automatics were generally 3 speed Borg Warner, then the fuel mpg suffered and they were very expensive to repair, often also needing frequent transmission fluid changes, but that was then !!

Things have progressed significantly in the last 10-15 years, automatic gearboxes are now very reliable, are often 7, 8 or even 9 speed, no longer use a torque convertor system and are completely electronically controlled along with clever stop/start systems which can (and do) return mpg figures only dreamed of by those driving a manual car.

Example, when did you last see a manual bus, rubbish truck, or emergency services vehicle ?

I changed over 10 years+ ago, much to the horror of my father (always a manual man) and wouldn't drive a manual vehicle for all the tea in china now, simply there is no comparison with respect to mpg, ease of driving, ability to control the car effectively and overall comfort - in my mind (entirely my opinion I appreciate)

Obviously a few manufacturers think the same (JLR, MB to name but two) where it is no longer easy to buy a manual box model any more.

Edited By Steve Neighbour on 04/12/2019 15:22:44

Edited By Steve Neighbour on 04/12/2019 15:26:53

We dumped Talk Talk when they had the security breach . .

we're now with Sky (TV, Phone and broadband package) the continuity of service is better, and the TV is 100% better for picture quality etc, but any dealings with their customer 'non' service is a nightmare, wife and I both have mobile contracts with Vodafone, and they are NO better !!

It seems almost without exception the BIG utility providers all train at the same 'how to customers off' academy for customer service . .

I would suggest Model Engineering is like so many other hobbies or 'pastimes' go through decline, then become more fashionable, then decline and so on, so as Neil said, it is 'changing' or more accurately 'evolving' . .

My wife is a prolific knitter, how many young girls (or boys to tick the 'pc' box) take up such crafts, although having said that she is trying to teach one of our granddaughters to knit and crochet . . hopefully when she is older she may take this up, only time will tell.

I started model engineering way back in the '60's . . . being taught to use a lathe by my late Grandfather when I had to stand on a step up to reach the controls, my own late Father showed no interest, and nor have I until since I made my own way in the world, raising a family and following a career.

I have always had interests in model and full size steam, and ironically when I was a small lad of about 8,9 or 10, those that made, owned or operated model steam engines and trains all seemed to be in their 'senior years' . . . and having visited the MIdlands Show this weekend, they are still of the same age !!

I 'played with' RC aircraft, helicopters, PC games, and even recently a quad-copter (primarily for aerial photography) but like all technology the novelty can quickly wain.

Time has passed quicker than I would like, I am now very much in my 60's and busy building my 'man cave' to house a lathe, milling machine etc such that I can follow my dream and passion for model engineering.

Edited By Steve Neighbour on 21/10/2019 11:11:49

I attended the show on Sunday, which I thought was really very good, I was as always very impressed with the exhibits, there are certainly some very talented folk about.

One reason I went (but there were many) was to look at the Myford stand, which was as usual really good, and the staff were well informed and very helpful, I compared the refurbished super 7 to a new 'made in Asia' equivalent, and the quality is no where near that of the Myford machines, so it certainly proves that you get what you pay for ! (not detracting that the 'Asia origin' machines are more than capable of producing some very accurate results !

It was also great that the sun decided to come out, the rain stopped, and the live steam Traction engines showed how good they are at managing to remain mobile in quite soggy conditions.

In particular I thought the 'Young Engineers' displays were top notch, it is so nice to see that the younger generations still enjoy Model Engineering as a pastime

Edited By Steve Neighbour on 21/10/2019 10:40:50

More precisely, they look very like a pair of Telephone specific 'GPO' quick-grip pliers, manufactured by GEO Plumpton Ltd around 1965-70

I have to disagree (tempting fate maybe) I'm on my 2nd Mercedes (No 1 was a C class estate) I now have a E class estate and it is nothing less than superb, it it by far the best car I have driven, it is very economical, easily achieving 50+ mpg, (the best I have managed is 62.7 )

My local MB dealers service is second to none, and always go that extra mile to ensure I'm a 'happy customer' - maybe I'm just lucky, but for me (at the moment) there is no other car I would consider !!

Edited By Steve Neighbour on 27/04/2019 11:04:48