Member postings for File Handle

I have also been around computers for a very long time. Also tend to prefer keyboard shortcuts.

I have often wondered why no one has designed a mobility scooter that can be towed. I suspect that some of the reasons have been aired above.

No they sell both

Thanks for all of the replies. My collection is made up of new ans secondhand (many as new). I don't really use them enough to be a good judge. At my age I am tempted to buy carbon. I have only managed to break one carbon tap. A 12 BA that I was a bit heavy handed with whilst using freehand, If I remember correctly it was a cheap one that I bought from Props at a show. I have also broken brass in a M3 die, trying to cut a brass rod that was greater than 3mm. I put both down to experience.
Not in a rush to make a purchase, so will cogitate a bit more before splashing the cash.
The tap and die site put me off by the way they advertise their discount based on prices "elsewhere". I know it gives a nice looking discount, just seems an odd think to do.
Andrew what did Tracy Tools do to upset you?

I need to add to my taps and dies. Carbon ones are obviously a lot cheaper, what are the disadvantages. My initial thought is to buy carbon ones from Tracys. But I noticed that the Tap and Die co sell what they call HQS ones. Is this just their name for carbon? Has anyone used both firms, how do they compare.
The intended use is for brass and steel of unknown origin.
Thanks Keith

I am curious how grass creates soil? If you mean the organic part, so do trees, just walk into woodland to see it.
Where possible farmers now use no-plough methods. If you look at the moment you will see cereal stuble that has been seeded using minimal cultivation. I suspect that you might need to look at who is funding the university research.

We already grow wheat to make bioethanol to make up 10% of E10 petrol.

The point is that it is in excess of what is being used. As I understand it wind turbines are paid not to produce energy when it is not needed. It makes sense to use it to produce an energy source that is storable, rather than not use it. The problem with light and wind energy is that production is not consistent with use.

Using agricultural land to produce energy reduces the amount of food that we can produce, so solves one problem by creating another. For too long finite resources have been assumed to be infinite. The real problem is always ignored, that there are simply too many people trying to consume these resources. However, if we get to the position of producing an excess of green electricity, this could be used to hydrolyse water to produce hydrogen (and oxygen) to provide a clean fuel.

Although I have a good selection of Whitworth, BA, AF, Metric spanners and sockets, and even my dad's old magneto spanners, I also have a selection of adjustable and stilson spanners. I know it will upset some but I don't have a problem using adjustable spanners, especially on small sizes.
I grew up on a farm and it was often necessary to use what was in a tractor toolbox, rather than waste time going back to a workshop, At times I would make available spanners fit by filling the gap with a flat screwdriver, or thin spanner.
Some of my spanners have been modified by previous owners e.g, a 3/8 Whit that is enlarged to 3/4 AF. i guess a previous owner was short of a 3/4 spanner. The only one that hangs on my spanner wall that I remember modifying is a 3/16 combination spanner that has the ring bent at 90deg., used when I didn't have a deep enough socket.
Just incase I give the impression of being a metal butcher, I was using 2BA bolts this afternoon, I had a 2BA spanner on one end and a 2BA box spanner on the other end.

Or wait for artificial photosynthesis to produce carbon fuels from carbon dioxide and water.

Mine go down to 1/8", but you can buy them down to 1/16".

Apparently Russia are burning off the gas that they can't sell:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-62652133
I wonder if anyone is traveling with superglue to stop it.
Without a world wide agreement anything we do will have no effect.

Malcolm you might find this useful:
https://pages.cs.wisc.edu/~bolo/workshop/thread.html

Keith

When I read about not getting the ring shank screws in the wrong place, it seems that stainless steel wood screws would be a better option.

My Honda Jazz averages pretty close to 60mpg. once warm the engine switches off when not moving. with the price differential, i would want a hybrid to do much better than that.
The future issue will be the secondhand value of EV cars. Will fitting a new battery make a secondhand one nearly as good as new as there are fewer moving parts, or will replacement battery cost mean that they become scrap when the battery dies.
It will be interesting to see how the future pans out in terms of cars and powering our homes. I suspect that there will be many who can just about afford to run an IC car but wont be able to afford the switch to EVs. Equally a new gas boiler might cost £3000, but switching to a heat pump likely to be 10 times that when the need for extra radiators and beefed up insulation is factored in.

Except that as I understand it for most not well insulated home they don't provide sufficient heat.
One way of balancing out the electricity supply would be to electrolyse water to produce hydrogen during times of low demand and use this as a form of heating. However, the capacity to produce AND TRANSMIT electricity needs to be greatly increased if we are to meet the demand for switching to electricity. it was a mistake in the past not to build nuclear power stations.

Edited By Keith Wyles on 22/08/2022 18:47:47

It is more than just the generating capacity, it is the ability to transmit the electricity. as I understand it there is no spare capacity in the national grid, so it will need upgrading.
There is also talk of borrowing electricity from car batteries. I wonder if owners will be compensated for the reduced life of these batteries?

i have read the article and found it of use. A cost comparison of different ways of reroofing would be helpful. i have always refelted using heavy duty felt. But have seen others use corregated plastic coated "tin" , bitumen or plastic, often on top of the felt.
The editors can only include articles that people are prepared to write. The pool of engineers must be dwindling as a result of product being sent abroad. The subset with the ability to write interesting articles will be smaller, as will those with the time and willingness to do it. sadly a lot of knowledge will / has disappeared with them.

Won't this solve the problem? Less people - less polution. probably the only likely solution that is going to reduce CO2.