By continuing to use this site, you agree to our use of cookies. Find out more

Member postings for Ian Abbott

Here is a list of all the postings Ian Abbott has made in our forums. Click on a thread name to jump to the thread.

<< First < Prev 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Next > Last >>
Thread: SS Great Britain
03/01/2012 21:12:17
There is a book about the rescue, building and the mechanics. I had one, loaned it to someone who didn't return it and I can't remember what it's called. A troll through Amazon might turn up something. It was a cheapo publication, paperback, but quite informative.
I'll have a look and if I find anything I'll post it here.
 
Ian
Thread: A Happy new Year to One and All
02/01/2012 20:15:20
Oh yeah,
 
In my euphoria, I forgot to wish everyone A Happy and Modelling New Year.
 
Regards to all
Ian
02/01/2012 19:47:37
As of today, I'm a pensioner.... Who Hooooooooo.........
 
(My life will change not one iota!)
 
Ian
Thread: Moving a lathe
27/11/2011 19:41:21
When I need to move stuff up to about a ton and a half, we pick it up with a three ton chain hoist under sheer legs or gin poles and drop it (not literally) into either an open pickup or trailer. Taking it out, just the reverse, pick it up, drive away, then lower it onto rollers. Use the same chain hoist to drag it into the shop if it's not steep enough to stand back and watch.
 
I think Machine mart have chain hoists for not too much mulah.
 
I never trust pickup eyes, I've seen them fail too often. Lots of chain with backups, just in case.
 
Many, many years a go, I used to lift a ton of hard nose from the front of tractors, in the middle of a field, the same way.
 
One caveat, whichever way you do it, don't stand anywhere near to where it might make a big hole on the driveway.
 
Ian
 
Thread: Have you recently submitted an article?
01/11/2011 17:59:31
Please give my best wishes to David as well.
 
Ian 
Thread: MEW 181 (Scibe a Line)
03/09/2011 18:47:39
I've been using my old Vectorworks, too poor to pay the £1600 upgrade, so I've just downloaded the DraftSight, even though the spelling is so American- should be DraughtSight.
 
I'll 'ave a play and see what it does.
 
Ian
Thread: Bristol Show
22/08/2011 17:59:59
Nine of us went up from Brixham and had a great time.  Friday was a bit swamped early on, but it seemed to steady up after lunch.  The catering was great, just a few minutes line up.
 
Bought a 0-1" Moore and Wright micrometer for a quid that I don't mind leaving on the bench with everyone around at the Youth project.  Spent too much on books as usual and came away hoarse from talking to too many people. There were so many fabulous models that I couldn't even start to decide which came out on top.  I do agree with Diane, the steamboats are something. Shame that they were tucked away in the corner, but on the good side, they were easy to get around without lots of people.
 
Ian
Thread: unknown lathe
10/08/2011 19:54:41
'S a RandA model A, long bed.
 
I've had one for 35 years, does everything I want. Do you have the screw cutting gears and carrier?
 
Ian
Thread: Explanation of job 'Engineers Driller'
19/07/2011 16:45:32
When I started my apprenticeship, we had to work with all the different sections in the shop to learn the processes. There were turners, shapers, grinders and drillers as well as blacksmiths, tinsmiths etc. The name of the position was the machine he worked on.
 
In our factory, the ancillary trades were considered, if I remember correctly to be "semi skilled" workers.
 
Ian
Thread: Steam Boat Ban
04/05/2011 20:04:31
Here's the pond story curtesy of the Mail.
 
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1365272/Emergency-services-left-man-floating-face-lake-half-hour-health-safety-reasons.html
 
Ian
04/05/2011 19:57:35
Posted by Ian Abbott on 27/04/2011 17:27:43:
............................... Remember the bloke lying face down in a two foot deep pond, with the ambulance et al standing on the bank, refusing to get him......................
Ian
Sorry Ian,
 
I missed that one, references please (Daily Mail or Sun doesn't count). Lets have the evidence
 
 
 
BBC Radio 4 news item, I think it was about three months ago, but I'll do a search.
 
Ian
27/04/2011 17:27:43
I'd get a few friends together and launch as many steam boat onto the lake, then wait for the council h&s officer to try to get them out without burning his fingers..... Then again, he may consider it unsafe for him/her to enter the lake without backup from the coast guard, so I'd say you're safe. Remember the bloke lying face down in a two foot deep pond, with the ambulance et al standing on the bank, refusing to get him.
 
Sorry IanT, but this hobby doesn't need people like you helping to mess it up. There are enough self important dunderheads out there already.
 
Ian
Thread: Technical and engineering drawing.
18/04/2011 19:40:29
Though Terry's intention is to assist in decyphering drawings, a series of articles would in fact help in teaching drawing to beginners, just by explaining how everything works together.
I think that those of us who learned engineering drawing, used it over the years and progressed into CAD would find it quite interesting, particularly given the multitude of opinions on what's good an what's not.
 
Ian
Thread: Car Boot Sales
05/03/2011 19:11:45
I picked up a 5" Metro, frames, castings, wheels etc. from the back of a lorry for £35 at the South Hams Working Meet and a 110v Sears Craftsman circular saw for a fiver off a different lorry at the Torbay Steam Fair last year.
 
Recycle depots are good too, I brought home a pile of Whitworth spanners from Newton Abbot and a nice wooden smoothing plane from Totnes recently. Total cost, a quid.
 
Lots of good stuff in my toolboxes came from boot sales here and garage sales in Canada. Picked up a Seagull in perfect nick for $25 on the West Coast (the outboard, not the bird, we've got too many of them).
 
The list goes on and on.
 
Thars gold in them thar rubbish piles.
 
Ian
Thread: Searching for an old ME issue
03/03/2011 17:26:03
Thanks guys, I'll pass it along.
 
Ian
02/03/2011 17:03:25
I've been asked to find out if anyone can remember an issue of ME from the early to mid eighties with a parabolic reflector driven hot air engine at the ME Exhibition on the front cover. Inside should be something on the model.
 
They don't know what the title of the piece is, so a search is a bit difficult.
 
Thanks
 
Ian
Thread: Touching down tool to work when turning
14/02/2011 20:06:38
I use the same method as David and leave some waste at the end to get the final cut right. If it's a face cut, then a bit extra on the diameter.
 
Ian
Thread: C A D for Mac
22/01/2011 17:11:38
I finally downloaded the TurboCad trial. So far, AAAaaaaarrrrggggghhhhh........
It insists on opening a document with the edges way outside the desktop, so everyone has to be resized.
Tried for a quarter of an hour to import a DXF file, couldn't figure out why not, then I accidentally discovered the files were there, but white on a white background.
Having imported a DXF file of a theatre plan, it was unlike anything in the original, arcs became circles, chunks missing, different sizes. Only good for a marginal template to start again.
Hate the mouse wheel zoom, which doesn't seem to want to go away.
It seems to be so orientated towards the 3D solids that draughting becomes a lottery.
Compared with Vectorworks, where the 3D is there, but not obvious until one wants to show it, it's like trying to draw using children's coloured blocks. I might have another try later, but at this point, I think that I'll stick with what I have.
As they say, "Other than that Mrs. Lincoln, how was the show?"
Ian
Thread: My subscription is running out
10/01/2011 16:40:34
$8.95 Canadian, according to the online currency calculator works out to £5.78.
 
Not bad for a magazine with a cover price of $2.95, and  I'll bet that the importers don't even pay that.
 
Oh yeah and there's sales tax too.  BC was about 7% at one time with no federal tax on books, but the new and improved "Harmonized Sales Tax" probably works out at 20%.  Alberta didn't have any tax on written stuff at one time, but I don't know about now.  Canadians get ripped off on anything imported.  Even with the US dollar at about even, there's a few bucks difference in the sticker price, especially on books.
 
Sure glad that I don't live there anymore. 
 
Ian 
 

Thread: Miniature welding
08/01/2011 20:24:59
At one time, I quite often had to weld dissimilar thicknesses, with one edge down to about 1/16".  Like Terryd, I would heat only the thicker piece, with a tiny flame.  When I had a puddle, I'd let it come up to the thin edge, then carefully run the bead just beside the joint and let the puddle do the welding.  Often the job would be on a machine, so there was no way of using firebrick to help keep the heat even.  Patience, patience, patience.....
 
We'd do something similar with solder repairs.  Heat an area away from a soldered joint and then nudge the flame towards the joint, just enough to let the solder run, then backing away, keeping the heat just below the melting point.  Quick nudge would allow a series of additions, then a pass over to smooth the joint.
 
Ian 
<< First < Prev 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Next > Last >>
Magazine Locator

Want the latest issue of Model Engineer or Model Engineers' Workshop? Use our magazine locator links to find your nearest stockist!

Find Model Engineer & Model Engineers' Workshop

Sign up to our Newsletter

Sign up to our newsletter and get a free digital issue.

You can unsubscribe at anytime. View our privacy policy at www.mortons.co.uk/privacy

Latest Forum Posts
Support Our Partners
cowells
Sarik
MERIDIENNE EXHIBITIONS LTD
Shopping Partners
Subscription Offer

Latest "For Sale" Ads
Latest "Wanted" Ads
Get In Touch!

Do you want to contact the Model Engineer and Model Engineers' Workshop team?

You can contact us by phone, mail or email about the magazines including becoming a contributor, submitting reader's letters or making queries about articles. You can also get in touch about this website, advertising or other general issues.

Click THIS LINK for full contact details.

For subscription issues please see THIS LINK.

Digital Back Issues

Social Media online

'Like' us on Facebook
Follow us on Facebook

Follow us on Twitter
 Twitter Logo

Pin us on Pinterest

 

Donate

donate