Oops

1. I spent a couple of hours making two small parts yesterday and was only two operations away from completion when an errant piece of swarf jacked the parts up too high whilst milling. I’ve seen this happen to other folks but I’m really careful about cleaning swarf away when I position something. I’m sure this is the first time it’s ever happened to me but it’s still annoying.

2. I ordered a small number of cap head socket screws for another job and tried one in the workpiece when they arrived today - too short. I then remembered I’d increased the size of the workpiece by a couple of mm...

I’m hoping that’s it for cu’s today ...

Ordered a central heating radiator yesterday to replace an old leaking one, delivered this morning, great says I, job for the weekend. On unpacking I find that idiot me had ordered a double panel instead of a single on checking prices I was amazed to find that there is only a £4.50 price difference. Apart from adjustment to the supply piping I can't be bothered to return it and will turn the TRV down a notch to compensate for the increased heat output.

A slight variation on "measure twice cut once" but I think you know what I mean.

Phil

Reckon should be in this thread...

**LINK**

George.

Making the enclosure for a model Pelton Wheel, out of old surplus acrylic, found out just how brittle it can be. Guess what happened as I tapped the very last 2BA hole? Typical!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Today is the last chance to remake without ruination.

Howard

How about people like us forming a club.? In order to join,you must prove that you have at least three real cock-up,s to your name. I would qualify straight away,might even have a few to share around.

Not me but wept with my friend when he had just finished all the profiling of the cams for Otter , only to find he had read the drawing in the wrong elevation.

Good idea except there must be a Premier Division. Three cock-ups is junior league stuff - I'm well into double figures. And there should be a special gold star for people who make mirror images of the object on the plan. Do it three times in a row if you want to feel really, really stupid. Don't ask how I know...

Don't throw your mirror images away. Once we get past March next year we will be in an alternative universe, and it may well be that your (currently duff) bits are the only ones that are right.

Tim

Dave,

It,s nice to know that I am not alone in making cock-ups,but I see that I am only in the Half-penny place.

I still have so much to learn,even about this ! However I do have a fairly big scrap-box,which gets bigger by the day,so perhaps there,s hope for me yet.

As you point out,you are way ahead of me,I envy you !

My recent fo pa is not quite a cock up but recently I spent a while trying to find my oil can I take to rally's with my engines but after searching the garage, sheds and trailer I went to town and bought a new one, when I got home I filled it with oil and put it on the bench next to the one I couldn't find

Martin P

Martin,

Join the club! What you did, I have done several times over the years, hence I possess a number of the roll up type steel rules. I had a very nice Birthday pressie a few years back in the form of a Mitutoyo elec. caliper which I lost last Autumn. After buying an el cheapo replacement from Arceuro in Jan.?, the Mitty reappeared having fallen out of sight in my indoor toolstore. Grrr! The ArcEuro one is different in having fractions which I'm not bothered about but I quite like it and often use it. I just try hard to be methodical with having one drawer for my Allen key collection. All my hammers and mallet in one place. Main thing is to clear up and put things back where they belong and not in a temporary place which one promptly forgets!

John

As for cock-ups, wish I had a quid for each one! I usually search scrap bin for reusable piece of metal before cutting virgin stock. In the wasteland of SE England and Brighton in particular, it's very expensive to buy metal by mail order. Most exhibitions involve long journeys and overnight stays. Nearest being easily reached is Guildford event in July but not many advertisers go there like they used to. Sods law says you always have plenty of say steel angle when you need brass angle and so on. There are odd stockists about like Preside tools West of Littlehampton but that's 50 mile round trip. Only ME & MEW advertisers seem to have stocks of metal tailored to the man in shed needs but most are oopnorth.

Just a thought, maybe the American idea of having a bill of materials and make up a big enough shopping list to collect on a day out to some nearby venue (steam, of course!)

Martin and DMB ( and any others it applies to ) Don't forget the little man who borrows your tools then brings them back after you've got a new one. Every shed has one

Roy

With regard to not being to find something when you need it,here is a surefire way to avoid this ;

When I asked an old friend how he managed to find anything in his totally untidy workshop,his reply was :

"Ti,s purely a question of remembering where you last dropped it "

Not sure if it,s any help,but it,s food for thought

PS I now have three small angle grinders,reason being that the first one went AWOL,was replaced by another,which followed suit. Bought another one,two days later,first one showed up. No 2 is still missing,but I live in hope.

As to people borrowing things and "forgetting"to bring them back,yes I,ve met them too !

Was it the Bard who said "Neither a borrower nor a lender be,for both lose friends"

How right he was.

There is an old saying that if everyone had their own tools back,some guys toolbox would be rather empty.

I've spent the last three days looking for my fixed steady.

I have no idea how I could misplace something so large. I have even emptied out both bins.

The certainly lose spanners...

Making a few small items on the lathe I lost some! Searched High and Lo but, No, not found so made a few more to complete the job numbers. A few days later I cleaned the lathe and there, sitting in plain view 4 lost items sitting on top of the cross slide.

Done all these things, and felt a total fool - but I did find one answer that works for me. If I can't find anything in the 'shed' now, I ask the missus to come and help me look - she always seems to find things immediately, after I've spent hours looking, or made a replacement. I have my own theory why she can do this, but I can't say anything - she sometimes reads this forums, and I want to live just a little longer!