Duplicate Articles?

You cold find out by becoming an advertiser.

What I can say is that unlike most of the sector ME and MEW readership is effectively static, with a slow drift from print to digital and naturally some turnover. A few years ago an 'industry expert' told me we have some of (if not the) highest ratios of subscribers to casual readers in the UK magazine sector.

I hope that's good for the magazines and good for the hobby (hobbies) - some of the modelling sector titles saw a 30% decline in twelve months to mid 2017.

Neil

Andrew,

It's not time to move on, just accept that in this world of Model Engineering (which is a misnomer if ever there was one) there people from all walks of life: some have lots of expertise, some have very little, some like making models, some like making full size articles, some such as Larry and me just like to tinker and learn how to get the best out of our machines. But we are all linked by a desire to do something other than sit in the armchair gawping at the box in the corner, doing something that will exercise our brains, and in this respect let me tell you a personal tale.

My maternal grandfather finished work at age 65, no hobbies and within 5 years was dead. But those last few years were marred by a distinct loss of memory, I suppose today we would say Altzeimers. He had to be told every little thing to do. Frankly, seeing that deterioration scared me, an 11 year old when he died. Today, I've exceeded his death by over four years, the medics say I show no sign of mental deterioration, ok physical yes. We are told that one way to stave of mental deterioration is to keep the brain active, so Model Engineering, Computing (well-sort of), choral singing (or perhaps not as the old ears are letting me down) and so on. Indeed, anything that takes my interest.

Unfortunately, or maybe not, my engineering knowledge comes from reading and then going out and having a go. But I do run into problems. Take for example my homemade countersink. It works, but it shows what I think are exclusions (not sure of the technical term) but when I put a photo of it on the website someone explained that I had well and truly overheated it. Now that is where book learning can only go so far, and its people like you with much more expertise who can assist folk like me who have never been shown how to do something, but who are willing to have a go, even if it goes wrong.

So please don't move on, keep sharing your expertise, we may not thankyou everytime, but we do appreciate it, and even if what you say does not immediately prove helpful, the chances are that at some time in the future I or someone else will think, "Hang on, I've seen this before somewhere. Now who was it.....?"

Larry,

It's nice to meet (?) someone who thinks like I do.

Peter G. Shaw

Good news indeed, Neil - and long may it continue. Buyers of postal subscriptions are always welcome - publishing houses get their money up front, and don't have to pay the newsagent's commission. I'm sorry to hear about that 30 per cent decline in the modelling sector. It indicates to me that youngsters are no longer getting pleasure out of creating something.

Peter: You and Larry have got it right. One aspect is that we don't necessarily have the right equipment for a job, so we have to improvise. This means that the thinking time is far longer than the actual machining time, and it's that kind of activity which keeps the dreaded Alzheimer's at bay. It certainly helped me recover from a stroke five years ago. I'm 76, and the flesh may be weak but the brain still works - at least that's how I see it. Others may beg to differ!

Edited By Mike on 23/11/2017 15:27:47

I agree with Larry.

After breakfast I do an hour's practice on a large 3-manual digital organ - reading the music uses the brain and the manuals and pedals keep the fingers, wrists, ankles and knees going.

I do not play as well as I did twenty years ago but although I'm 85 I get a lot of pleasure out of the organ and then into the workshop to the lathe and mill.

So, according to my GP I'm still plenty mobile and mental arithmetic is still a doddle.

I have given up driving a car. The sheer selfishness of so many other drivers left me appalled.

So keep up the good work in the "man-cave" and take no notice of what other people say - it's good for you.

Many thanks to all you good people who have helped me on this excellent forum.

richard 2.

Peter,

That was a sad way for your Dad to go,but I,ve seen it time and time again,and often for the same reason, no outside interests . Some of the men I worked with,younger than I am,are now dead,the only thing they knew was the job,the job! nothing else. No way do I intend to go that road and as long as this forum exists and there are others out there willing to put up with us I say keep going until your motor burns out,or you blow the last fuse !

PS Even if I can make nothing else, I do make lovely swarf !!

Mike,

That's exactly what I'm doing at the moment. No.2 grandson came up with a problem - I start thinking about how to do it, and am now making a modification to my fixed steady, you know the sort of thing, sort of now what comes next, ah, I need to do this; No I don't , must do that first. And so on.

Richard2,

Interesting comment about the organ. I've been choral singing for something like 55 years and although I can find my way around the keyboard with one finger - any finger, on either hand - two fingers simultaneously defeats me, unless I take it extremely slowly. In respect of singing, 12 years ago I developed Menieres and effectively lost most of the hearing in one ear but as long as the other ear worked, I was happy - I was at least still upright! But then last Easter my other ear started to play up - loss of bass response - which forced retirement as I couldn't hear properly. Since then I've been to the NHS audiologist and been given two new hearing aids - one fixed to, I think, augment the bass loss, and the other really cranked up for the almost non-existant ear. I'm told it takes the brain about 3 months to get used to them and that will be up mid-Jan. The domestic authority is pressurising me to go back to one of the choirs if I can (she's fed up with me hanging around the house - can't blame her) so I might just do that. It'll depend on how it sounds if I do get back.

I haven't given up driving - I actually enjoy driving in the present car. But what I have done is to refuse to go back to my birth town after the last chaotic episode. Trouble is, living in a rural district with reasonable roads, and then going back to West Yorkshire with its bad roads, and all the traffic restrictions etc, and it's no thank you, I don't need to so I'm not.

Larry,

There was an interesting facet to Grandad's problems. Apparently he was scared of hospitals and generally refused to go anywhere near them. My sister, who never knew him thinks it was because his father died in a mental hospital. Anyway, he had, from memory some sort of urinary problem but because of his memory failings, didn't know where he was going so there was some sort of advantage to it. Trouble was, that was where he died.

Peter G. Shaw

As someone who has been gifted with the honorific of "The Old F**t" (by his eldest son) - I'm probably sufficiently qualified to say that this thread has wandered far enough off course now to be put out of its misery...and allowed (like any old soldier) to quietly fade away.

But before it does - "Engineering In Miniature" - There I said it out loud Neil !!

IanT

Some body mentioned about the way threads can wander. I seem to remember a thread some time ago,dont remember what it started out as,but they ended up talking about sheep ! Does anyone else recall this one ?

I certainly see creative hobbies as an investment in mental health long-term (and short-term sanity some times!)

I'm also trying to walk more although hitting 10,000 steps a day can be a challenge standing around in the workshop does help rack them up

I think there are many creative youngsters, many of them use other 'maker' oriented approaches to gathering and sharing information. Several younger faces and a lady driving engines in the latest ME so all is not lost!

Neil