tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-82487427545946930222024-03-13T07:46:16.733-07:00Proxie ModelsA small miniatures company working on figures for the wargaming hobbyist.Ken Krouthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15892687506810371341noreply@blogger.comBlogger144125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8248742754594693022.post-83154497474885342742019-04-19T03:00:00.001-07:002019-04-19T03:00:05.363-07:00Last post here- OK, the web site drama is finally coming to an end.<br />
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Here is a summary. I had been using a Weebly web site, this blog hosted by Blogger, and a e-commerce set up by Open Cart. A bit of mash up but it worked.<br />
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I recently finished the interior for slot car scratch builds and place it for sale in the store. Inevitably someone tried to look at it with a mobile device and it did not work. On January 1st, during a bit of time off, I had a go at upgrading the Open Cart to a newer version. The result was a complete wipe out of everything.<br />
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Accepting the fact I was utterly incompetent at web site stuff, an attempt was made to hire someone to repair the damage. The cost was insanely high for local talent. I turned to an online freelance site called Upwork. Within minutes someone had agreed to build my site for a reasonable cost. They had to be given passwords and access to the web host and site admin.<br />
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Weeks went by with no progress. Eventually they stopped answering my emails.<br />
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I finally terminated the contract but found out they had changed password access to my site and hosting. After some calls to tech support and some intricate coding access was finally restored. In spite of this set back another effort was made to hire a freelancer. This was far more successful. Within days the new site was created.<br />
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Current site is all Wordpress. Shopping cart and blog are integrated. There are now unlimited pages available. I still have to do a lot of tweaking but it is back online. Future posts will be hosted at <a href="http://www.proxiemodels.com/">www.proxiemodels.com</a><br />
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So finally I can get back to work.<br />
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Ken Krouthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15892687506810371341noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8248742754594693022.post-15790815894410164412019-01-04T18:07:00.003-08:002019-01-04T18:07:36.411-08:00 New Year issue. This is a quick update regarding the web store.<br />
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It has been destroyed utterly. After numerous complaints that is does not work with mobile devices I set about upgrading on January 1st. A fresh year and a fresh store upgrade.<br />
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Hilariously, it did not go as planned. 13 hours later pretty much everything is ruined. My lifelong motto has been " I will fix it, or break it so it can not be fixed." Well in this case the latter has occurred. If you go to the web store you might notice cell phones and stuff. I do not sell those.................<br />
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So things are offline for a while.<br />
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More updates as things improve.Ken Krouthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15892687506810371341noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8248742754594693022.post-11967164098117682602018-12-07T18:10:00.000-08:002018-12-07T18:10:02.482-08:00Another year already? Hi again.<br />
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I ran in to an old friend and he reminded me that my blog has been stale. I tend to drop pics on Facebook but some people are not using social media so here is some of the same info again.<br />
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First off, the car is a definite go. Unbelievably it actually works. Been learning more about printing decals and have a box of decal paper ready to go. Also practicing masking off things to get sharp lines. Here is the final race version layout.<br />
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The driver mold is finished and the guy looks to mean business.<br />
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Going to buying a lot of chassis to be able to provide them as ready to run cars as well as kits.<br />
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So this is the only one of its kind right now. They told me you can not get that car, because no one makes them and never will. The amount of work expended was ludicrous, but it made sense at the time...................<br />
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This model is one of about 5 I want for my personal use and the next few years I will be making all of them. It may just be an American thing, but guys in particular have an attachment to the cars we drove as kids. I remember riding along and hearing the latest hit by Frankie Goes to Hollywood.....................<br />
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On my OTHER hobby, I think I have finally recovered from the shock of Age of Sigmar. After several years of not having much interest in minis gaming I have become enamored by 9th Age. It is not hyperbole to say these are the greatest rules since the 10 Commandments. <a href="https://www.the-ninth-age.com/" target="_blank">They are all free!</a>Reading them now and planning to roll some dice in the new year. If things go as planned I will be even hitting some tourneys this summer. There is a store a short drive away that has some players and it is nice to be excited about the hobby again. Here is a clip of the greeting I expect at the tourney.<br />
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Not really, but that video always gives me energy to get up and keep going. </div>
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(Note to Dave- I can loan you an army if you want to play old school) <br />
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So of course, since I have a custom slot car to race I need a custom miniatures army to game with. And the graphite keeps cranking out.<br />
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I call these the "Brides of Set". They are wearing veils covering the lower face which I intend to paint with fangs. This project is slowly moving ahead. Until something explodes.................<br />
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How this works is the EDM machine can burn this block in to metal creating a negative cavity that will fill with plastic and create models. But the burning action erodes the graphite also. It is going to be tricky to see how much details transfer. If the graphite electrode becomes "dull" by erosion it can be placed back in the mill and sharpened. This is a steep learning curve and a slow and tedious process. Sometimes it seems a bit too long and tedious...............<br />
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Trying to get more done but only have my spare time. If you think finding time to paint an army is tough, try to find time to build one completely from scratch! But it will happen somehow. <br />
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Day job has me working in a machine shop environment and learning a lot about milling and lathe work. It has been incredibly beneficial to see how things are supposed to be done. I just wish I had learned all this 10 years ago.<br />
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So that wraps up the year. I hope everyone is settling in for the winter and ready to paint all the models Santa brings.<br />
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Have a Great Holiday folks!<br />
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Ken Krouthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15892687506810371341noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8248742754594693022.post-86875440047754533312018-09-16T09:23:00.001-07:002018-09-16T09:23:53.602-07:00"My Cup Runneth Over"- or at least my well................. Hello everyone. Wow, fall came very quickly. Best time of the year by far, and life is going by in a peaceful kind of mellow existence.<br />
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Ok, now for some update on business and hobby news.<br />
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The latest episode in "What else can go wrong" is the fact it was a very wet summer with extraordinary rains. The storms were many and fierce as they say. My basement office and hobby area was flooded. But the worst was not from the walls, it came from the well. At some point in the past wells were placed in basements, which seems like a smart idea because the pipes will not freeze. But if the well overflows, it has no where to go. <br />
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I made the situations infinitely worse, which I am too ashamed to provide details for. Suffice to say I took a minor issue, and with great expense and sweat pouring labor, turned it in to an unmitigated disaster. <br />
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So you can notice the bottom foot of the wall had to be removed. Mold grew quickly and the entire area had to be cut out, carpets removed, and everything new painted with mold proof paint and drylok in the event future leaks occur.</div>
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After a month or so everything is better, the well is sealed and I have vinyl flooring with rubber cove base trim. This gave me an excuse to go through the piles of junk and some of it is going on E-bay. I have more things to do than years to do it in............. Overall the basement needed this and the end result is a hobby/office area that is cleaner, better laid out, and much more organized. Within a month it will be a mess but for now it is very nice. </div>
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The car mold is progressing nicely and it has been great fun painting my own car. It sort of feels neat having the only one on the planet. Here is a recreation of the Pop-Kola car raced by Benny Parsons. For some odd reason I am now a racing fan as a result of my interest in slot car racing. Cars have always been a part of my life, from working in a junk yard at 16 onward. But racing has been sort of boring and not of interest. Not lately. The only sport I tend to watch anymore is Nascar. People laugh and poke fun, but there is a lot of strategy going on behind the scenes once you get to understanding it.</div>
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Working on more today, and expect more pictures as I finish them up. The street car is going to be epic. I have been trying to find a good place to have decals printed. After looking on Craigslist for months and answering repeated ads for free lance graphic designer I gave up and learned how to do it myself. The best place on earth to get decals printed is Cartograf in Italy, but prices are $4-5 per sheet with a minimum of 300 sheets. What I want is some prototypes to play around with. I purchased the decals above from Patto's Place in Australia. My printer does not print white ink which limits what I can do. I am awaiting some white and clear decal paper in the mail to print out some of my designs. <br />
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This has been a real undertaking and no sane person should ever put this much effort in to having a slot car model. Remember, the first plan was to build my own Warhammer army, and that is not over yet......<br />
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This week has been one of running parts. The basement has taken a lot of time and inventory is depleted. My goal is to not stop until everything possible is back in stock. The parts below were designed by Elliot to compliment his Heroclix walls. This mold is utter crap because the parts stick to the wrong side. Each sprue has to be pried out manually but it eventually became obvious it was time to just break down and do it or throw the mold away. The previous product is gone and replaced by a new one with a mix of old and new parts. <br />
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While Elliot envisioned these as a game accessory for super heroes to smash and move around on, a customer sent me these pics and he made some nice 28mm terrain for any tabletop wargame.</div>
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I always enjoy getting emails from people and seeing what they are doing with things. I was looking at a battle report from Historicon and the pics had a bunch of my buildings in it. Nice. I once actually got an email from a self described fan- imagine that! </div>
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Ok, so back to that Warhammer army. The unresolvable problem is the concept of heroic scale. But eventually that has to be sorted. I have contacted someone to do some sculpts for my jungle themed primitive warriors. Why this army was dropped from 2nd edition WFB is a mystery. So these are his designs and after the car is sorted (still need windshield, interior, and driver molds) some sort of mini figures are going to be tackled once again. Most likely I have some more tests to do before these are in the breach. I am going to try to make something like some more infantry for 40K before I tackle this entire army. The procedure is- try, fail, learn, repeat. </div>
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So as the year winds down and the shop gets visitors of all sorts. This deer seemed oblivious to the machines running inside. And there is a toad in here that has been pushed out the door numerous times but keeps coming back to hop across the floor at odd times to cause alarm. Assuming he eats bugs or something else to earn his keep.</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3Q5jjCzT98g/W554n3f6QyI/AAAAAAAABo4/ZFpI2FfSCV0p6Up-Hazjskfhxsa4i2bGACEwYBhgL/s1600/20180622_191358.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3Q5jjCzT98g/W554n3f6QyI/AAAAAAAABo4/ZFpI2FfSCV0p6Up-Hazjskfhxsa4i2bGACEwYBhgL/s320/20180622_191358.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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One last thing I would like to share is a link to something a few local guys are doing. </div>
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<a href="http://www.littlewarstv.com/" target="_blank">Little Wars TV</a></div>
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Years ago I used to game with these guys a little, when I was doing more historicals. These guys are rules writers and publishers, as well as gamers. It has been at least 10 years since I gamed with them or even talked to many of them but I have enjoyed watching their videos and rules reviews. They actually have a building strictly to conduct their hobby and seem a decent bunch. It has been so long for me that I have never met many of them. They really do make historicals look great.</div>
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Ok, have a great fall and enjoy the best time of year. </div>
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Ken Krouthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15892687506810371341noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8248742754594693022.post-63505394727970421732018-06-17T20:20:00.000-07:002018-06-18T01:40:59.145-07:00"They didn't say you couldn't." Hello again everyone.<br />
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By now summer is in full swing and times are great for enjoying it all. <br />
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Lots of odds and ends to report, as well as some comments found online by some smart people. Which will eventually lead back to the title.<br />
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First some pictures showing that persistence eventually finds a way of making things work out. Perfection is always elusive, but good enough is not a bad consolation prize. What follows is the worlds rarest slot car. There is only one as far as I know on the planet. <br />
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First test- not so good.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ds6QDx5DOcQ/WycUvl5QbFI/AAAAAAAABl4/nRdjHb3nP3ALjqmouhzqBUNOaINsCJFWQCLcBGAs/s1600/20180516_160210.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ds6QDx5DOcQ/WycUvl5QbFI/AAAAAAAABl4/nRdjHb3nP3ALjqmouhzqBUNOaINsCJFWQCLcBGAs/s320/20180516_160210.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Better....</div>
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Better......<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-K9XmoaGdIsk/WycUhIai8wI/AAAAAAAABmE/79Vv5bwKg9gEXkYDxohS22wuroT1UkTYwCEwYBhgL/s1600/little%2Bless%2Bflash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-K9XmoaGdIsk/WycUhIai8wI/AAAAAAAABmE/79Vv5bwKg9gEXkYDxohS22wuroT1UkTYwCEwYBhgL/s320/little%2Bless%2Bflash.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Better still.......<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JZhWoh9mdP8/WycUhKJM6fI/AAAAAAAABmM/-tvecMDO7ukZcCP9gzWnBdtXX46loYcAwCEwYBhgL/s1600/carrera%2BCyclone.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JZhWoh9mdP8/WycUhKJM6fI/AAAAAAAABmM/-tvecMDO7ukZcCP9gzWnBdtXX46loYcAwCEwYBhgL/s320/carrera%2BCyclone.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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And getting to be acceptable.</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--h_w5fwOmCo/WycUiGXvVrI/AAAAAAAABmE/EOihaCeV4fotzP126kUxStAgEj6snebcACEwYBhgL/s1600/side%2Bby%2Bside.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--h_w5fwOmCo/WycUiGXvVrI/AAAAAAAABmE/EOihaCeV4fotzP126kUxStAgEj6snebcACEwYBhgL/s320/side%2Bby%2Bside.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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This car took more effort than painting a real one. Along the way there were casualties.</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BlEcynUeI9c/WycUinAfZoI/AAAAAAAABmE/yx0bCWoW7bAbo-TlwhgvxKfn0w05KdUTQCEwYBhgL/s1600/trash%2Bon%2Bfloor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BlEcynUeI9c/WycUinAfZoI/AAAAAAAABmE/yx0bCWoW7bAbo-TlwhgvxKfn0w05KdUTQCEwYBhgL/s320/trash%2Bon%2Bfloor.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I begin designing the hood and bumpers in the morning.</div>
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So that is good news. I am curious to see how the tiny slot car market -with limited companies supporting it- compares to the GIGANTIC gaming market with hundreds of vendors. </div>
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But the gaming market is not going to be neglected for much longer. Some circumstances have forced my hand, and I am going to pay the cost to get my figures sculpted.</div>
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My thoughts on this are to fund the first batch of sculpting myself, make those models to prove the concept. Then go to kick starter to pay for the rest of the sculpting for the entire bloody army.</div>
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So there is that.</div>
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Stop reading now if you have blood pressure problems..............................................</div>
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Now, why the sudden activity? Well there is a book out called "Who Moved My Cheese". Companies make employees watch it about the time they are getting down sized. And simply put, times are changing. </div>
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"They did not say you couldn't".</div>
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That saying comes from Smokey Yunick, a renowned race car builder from the 60's who literally bent every rule imaginable to win. </div>
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I related previously about playing a game of WFB in which my opponent deployed his canon in the water. While the rules forbid MOVING in to the water they did not specifically forbid deploying in water. So we played a game with a canon floating like a cork firing away with sopping wet gun powder. </div>
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So how does this relate to the act of running a mail order business? </div>
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In 2010 the US entered in to an agreement to foster greater economic opportunity for developing countries around the world. The idea was someone weaving baskets in the rain forest would be able to sell online and get preferred shipping rates. These are really good rates. A 4.4 pound package costs around $6 to ship globally. In comparison my international shipping has gotten to the point that an order of 2 packs of bases costs $22.50 to ship. International sales have vanished.</div>
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"They did not say you couldn't".</div>
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Well, among the places that signed up as "emerging" economies are Hong Kong and China. The result has been more and more sellers on Ebay and Amazon offering direct shipments to buyers with free shipping or extremely low cost shipping. The USPS is required by treaty to deliver the packages and eat any loss. Except they can not keep losing money so they have to raise rates on domestic shippers. It does not take a PHD to see where this is heading.</div>
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"They did not say you couldn't".</div>
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And it is even more interesting. Smaller items frequently weight much less than 4.4 pounds. SO they are compiled in to bundles and shipped. Once they reach the US that bundle is torn open and poured in to the USPS system. And if you look at an average package of a single base weighing 3 ounces, a 4.4 pound package could contain 20 or more of those smaller packages. </div>
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So imagine 20 of my packages shipped in one of these small bundles for $6, or me shipping 20 packages domestically at $3.50 each. The difference is a lot. I may get some discounts depending on my feedback and seller rating-but the standard starting rate is $3.50 and they are paying $.30. </div>
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"They did not say you couldn't".</div>
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So I spent a lot of time trying to figure out how people are coping with this. For a lot of E-bay sellers there is no solution. Just go out of business. They were doomed. Others are trying to make unique items. However, there are several stories about people simply having their products copied and sold alongside of the US based seller. For much less with free shipping. </div>
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"They didn't say you couldn't." </div>
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So here is a solution that seems to work, from another online seller.</div>
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"As an online merchant here in North America I have to send my inventory to a warehouse in China just to send it back the US. Costs me $15 which excludes labor to pick, pack, package and label to send the same packet down my street and only less than a $1 to have them pick, pack, package and label and ship from China. This basically means e-commerce in North America is as good as dead ! They also have compiled shipping which an alien concept for online merchants here in North America. Let say if you buy something on eBay or Amazon that weighs less than 1LBS, but you are still being charged the flat rate for 2.2lbs as you pay individual shipping to individual sellers which carriers like DHL, Fedex and UPS benefit. Not so in China they have warehouses and services that let you compiled all your purchases from different sellers until it reaches 2.2lbs before you authorize them to ship ...this is an awesome advantage that they have ! I am sure that the item you bought from eBay is from one of these service warehouses"</div>
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So an American company is shipping stuff around the word twice just to take advantage of this E-packet treaty. You know something is wrong when you have to go to such lengths to deal with a government policy. </div>
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The point is China is going to take over the market for generic items like bases. Accept it and adapt. Consumers love it, as I have for years been buying cheap stuff on E-bay with free shipping. It is not going away and is not going to change. </div>
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Proxie Models has to change. So look for some new directions and some new focus on getting products out the door. It is good to have a reason to get moving.</div>
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Anyhow, look for some more news as it comes available.</div>
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Thanks to everyone who reads this and supports my efforts. It continues to be a grand adventure filled with learning and making really neat things. </div>
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Have a great summer!</div>
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resources below for more information.</div>
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<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7r7nJZL41A" target="_blank">resource 1 you tube</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GqIX2u9iA2s" target="_blank">resource 2 you tube</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/wadeshepard/2017/11/05/how-the-usps-epacket-gives-postal-subsidies-to-chinese-e-commerce-merchants-to-ship-to-the-usa-cheap/#3ea5014a40ca" target="_blank">resource 3 article</a></div>
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Ken Krouthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15892687506810371341noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8248742754594693022.post-70495152669074529672018-05-12T04:58:00.000-07:002018-05-12T05:14:56.080-07:00Everything looked OK, and then it came to an end.<br />
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Just a quick update and some pics.<br />
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Things in the shop are progressing well.<br />
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The core of the car mold is done.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GbNDIJwW5ag/WvbMMwbZPEI/AAAAAAAABjU/nX9jY1b5R-w0ug6rT5ha_RLasdR95ehWgCEwYBhgL/s1600/20180430_174759.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GbNDIJwW5ag/WvbMMwbZPEI/AAAAAAAABjU/nX9jY1b5R-w0ug6rT5ha_RLasdR95ehWgCEwYBhgL/s320/20180430_174759.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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And in to the tank to mate the surfaces up.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gOZb4jNHJCU/WvbMN9PorEI/AAAAAAAABjM/SDwGAetxyZg1h1ipVK5LULB2VfrL9-EiwCEwYBhgL/s1600/20180503_090839.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gOZb4jNHJCU/WvbMN9PorEI/AAAAAAAABjM/SDwGAetxyZg1h1ipVK5LULB2VfrL9-EiwCEwYBhgL/s320/20180503_090839.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Those hoses provide a flow of solution that displaces the metal that is getting pulverized with electricity. It also adds to the " Mad Scientist" feel of the shop to have a tank of liquid bubbling with arcs of electricity in it.<br />
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Here are the assembled parts. There is still a great deal of shimming and adjusting to do before it gets tested.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cEKpYaHup2k/WvbMOzR-jHI/AAAAAAAABjU/4HmSl9Q6Ec4cXSl2ZiurWhCscuseHHtVwCEwYBhgL/s1600/20180509_112834.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cEKpYaHup2k/WvbMOzR-jHI/AAAAAAAABjU/4HmSl9Q6Ec4cXSl2ZiurWhCscuseHHtVwCEwYBhgL/s320/20180509_112834.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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On the left is the top of the car, and on the right is the core and sides of the car. The steel wedges crush the sides in and hopefully create something resembling my old Mercury.<br />
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The ACT machine is still down for parts so no progress on any minis. I ordered a breakout board from Amazon and had to wait 3 weeks for it to arrive from China. It promptly fried all of the driver boards and so I ordered replacements from E-bay and had to wait 3 weeks for them to arrive from China. They did not work at all so i ordered an integrated board and had to wait for that to arrive from China...................<br />
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Another update as soon as the car mold gets tested. Good or bad it will get done. And even if it needs a bit of finishing the design and milling skills acquired by tackling it have been invaluable.<br />
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I can not stress this enough to people- just do it and see what happens. For some reason people fear failure, but in reality there is no failure. You make it or you learn. Both of these are wins.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pl9djaUPJac/WvbZ1XQAKOI/AAAAAAAABj8/r9YE94zq5AsMMOeyZMKe-aB09s4OK2h9gCLcBGAs/s1600/sales%2Bdeath.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="1494" height="107" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pl9djaUPJac/WvbZ1XQAKOI/AAAAAAAABj8/r9YE94zq5AsMMOeyZMKe-aB09s4OK2h9gCLcBGAs/s320/sales%2Bdeath.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Online sales are in a bit of a slump, perhaps due to increased shipping costs. The issue is complex and I wrote a very long explanation and then simply deleted it. No one wants to hear someone whining about unfair shipping practices. It is what it is and we must prevail in spite of the challenge. If you like you can read this-<a href="https://www.forbes.com/forbes/welcome/?toURL=https://www.forbes.com/sites/wadeshepard/2017/11/05/how-the-usps-epacket-gives-postal-subsidies-to-chinese-e-commerce-merchants-to-ship-to-the-usa-cheap/&refURL=&referrer=#5b808e9940ca" target="_blank">article about shipping problems</a><br />
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But this is not going to keep working forever. Being able to change and adapt is the only way to keep going. </div>
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Currently I am exploring a couple of options. Included is shifting in to a supplier position for small companies or looking in to entering the retail chain. I will keep you posted in a future update.</div>
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Have a great spring everyone and enjoy the weather. </div>
Ken Krouthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15892687506810371341noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8248742754594693022.post-24991867657034132082018-04-15T08:06:00.000-07:002018-04-15T08:06:17.676-07:00Fake news..........creates fake conclusions..................... Well here is the latest news.<br />
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Been working on standardizing things across the entire work flow. I am just too darn slow and have to take shortcuts wherever possible. This means getting things that work and then sticking with what works. I have decided to make both CNC machines more compatible. They both run MACH 3 software but the drivers and settings are all different.<br />
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Here is the newly organized workstation, with new Craigslist desk and wall mounted monitors. Note the sound bar beneath the shelf and sub at my feet. There are a LOT of speakers around the shop to blast music out. I recently discovered Scandinavian metal and so have the neighbors! Novakon on the left, design station and PC gaming platform in the center, and ACT machine on the right. <br />
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Those plastic tubs contain plastic mixed with incompatible colorant. I have to pick all those specks of orange out.....................................ughhh............<br />
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Products are better organized thanks to some filing cabinets modified.<br />
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The top contains various colorants. Previously things were stored in cardboard boxes originally used for Harley shifters. One perk of working there is I got hundreds of these really great boxes.<br />
The large Novakon- (curse this P.O.S.!!) is actually doing OK. The issue is it requires a 32 bit operating system and an older style printer cable. I went as far as to caulk up the leaks, install a working E-stop button and limit switches, and a nifty light. It is going to get an automatic tool zero in the very near future. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4DeVa8rzA0" target="_blank">how to</a> I purchased a government surplus Windows 7 PC with 32 bit operating system and install the MACH 3 software on it. So I have a complete back up system for both CNC machines in the even either computer fails. Both currently run Windows XP. I plan to keep going as long as possible on this antiquated system. As long as everything can keep working reasonably well it saves a lot of money. <br />
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So in order to make things bulletproof, I want to make the ACT machine more reliable and standardized. The standardized figure holding fixture has been made again. This time it looks very likely to work. <br />
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The graphite block is held in the open rectangle and there are linear bearings with 8mm rods to allow the EDM machine to burn the image in to metal with out the binding up and face breaking that happened before. The action is smooth and effortless.<br />
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So I need now to be able to make the electrodes without any more delays or crap breaking. This requires the ACT machine to run without a hitch. In order to iron out the wrinkles. Before starting I had to take an honest look at the machine. It was a hopeless nightmare of patches. The limit switched and E-stop did not work. (Safety? we can bypass that!) The spindle was controlled via the circuit breaker box on the other side of the shop, and so was the dust collector. <br />
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This is much nicer.<br />
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And here is more new wiring. Sometimes it is worth it to take some time and do things right. This is the VFD for the ACT machine. I was manually setting speeds but when the new system is in place the PC will control this. <br />
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Which brings us to this little contraption. <br />
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At first glance, this looks a bit confusing. But the bottom is the breakout board that interprets signals from the printer cable and turns them in to action. Go left, right, up down, etc. It also send input signals back to the computer. E- stop, limit switch is reached, etc. This is what I needed to replace. It is going to be the same one used on the Novakon, since I have a notebook full of data on how and why things are wired. </div>
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Using my tester, it seems that the 4 small boards taken out did not really do anything. I removed them, and bypassed the wiring. If they did not do anything, who needs them? So this is the new set up. </div>
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Unfortunately, it burned out as soon as I applied power. Why? Well, it seems I should have tested the tester. I frequently buy things from Harbor Freight, and you get these neat free gifts. One of them is an electrical tester. Mine had a short in the one probe. Depending on how the wire was bent coming out it made contact or not. So, it was giving me fake news. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it did not. This thing only runs on 12V DC power, so it is not life threatening. I have better testers for 110 and 220 voltage thankfully. But it is extremely important to have reliable information when configuring complex wiring systems. </div>
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Basing my decisions on this "fake news" meant the remaining components were not powered properly and died a tragic death at the hands of too much voltage. 24V instead of 12V.</div>
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So, another $70 worth of boards are on the way and a new tester is in the shop. </div>
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Some new stuff did got run. The Makerspace concept actually came to fruition. Dr. Oogan <a href="http://www.oogan.com/" target="_blank">link</a> made a mold and stopped by the shop to run some parts. We had some issues with color.</div>
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At one point we thought the Arburg had sprung a leak and was mixing water with the plastic. I took the entire thing apart and tested it with crack detecting penetrant. It turns out we just got a bad batch of colorant off E-bay.</div>
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In the end his traffic cones were created with the proper color.</div>
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The flying base adapter is done. </div>
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It gave some practice with clear styrene. This is a little tricky and not really sure if this one will stay as a permanent product. The plastic is brittle and cracks under stress.<br />
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The scrap rate is unacceptable so once these are sold out it may not be re-produced.<br />
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I also finally finished the 100mm round base.</div>
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This is the first mold specifically created to run on the new mega-die assembly. The one that allows me to vary the size of the metal blocks and offset them to allow the plastic to be injected from any point. It was very tricky to set up for the first time. It is so large I did not plan on trying to fit chubby hands in to the tiny space required to attach it. It is just too far to reach to the middle. In the end I welded extensions to the end of a couple of wrenches and it worked great. <br />
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This success had been really a crucial stepping stone. At this point it really feels like this shop is capable of making anything. And that is just amazing. <br />
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Usually when you get the feeling that things are going well reality has a way of letting you know how wrong you are. <br />
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Sales are strange. Currently it is not time to panic, but last week was the slowest week in over 3 years.<br />
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I have been on some forums with other online sellers and many are facing some challenges. Both E-bay and Amazon have been trying to get me to pay more fees in exchange for better placement on search results. Many sellers are very suspicious of wild swings in sales numbers and blame it on deliberate hiding of listings or suppression due to this new "pay MORE" scheme. Others are equally upset about the free shipping from China that has simply killed their business. We all got things we would like to see changed, but have to just deal with things as best we can. <br />
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I have listed some items on a sales platform called Bonanza based on suggestions from other sellers. I never heard of it but it seems some people are looking for a better alternative. <br />
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The one blessing of slow sales is more time to work on other things. The whole lemons and lemon aide situation.<br />
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So there is the status. I hope everyone keeps working on what ever motivates you and never give up. Be willing to help others without being used, and be grateful when someone can lend you hand.<br />
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Have a great week. <br />
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Ken Krouthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15892687506810371341noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8248742754594693022.post-75398977122770613992018-02-19T12:39:00.000-08:002018-02-19T13:30:31.416-08:00Quick update-<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Hi again, still sticking to some resolutions to keep posting. For better or for worse. 2 times a month. </div>
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I am looking in to switching over to video updates. I made one youtube video and it was seen by over 100,000 people. This blog is read by about 20....................</div>
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So here goes- finally got rid of that annoying blue screen saver. </div>
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It was not going to be stopping things for long. I was prepared to purchase an entire new machine, and I did buy a complete replacement computer and was in the process of installing the mother board when I noticed the cooling fan had come loose, breaking the seal with the CPU and causing over heating. How it is managed to overheat in my frigid workshop is a pretty amazing feat. But that is out of the way, a back up PC is standing by, things are running again and looking good.</div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-F-U0iz91uTw/Wostp9fBxII/AAAAAAAABfE/f6Ngtm6WkQ8V-zScdtoiAgBG9NRh7J0mACLcBGAs/s1600/20180211_144016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-F-U0iz91uTw/Wostp9fBxII/AAAAAAAABfE/f6Ngtm6WkQ8V-zScdtoiAgBG9NRh7J0mACLcBGAs/s320/20180211_144016.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Here is a picture of just how fragile graphite is. My holding fixture flexed and this poor lass had her entire face broken off. Oh well, back to the drawing board. Adjusting feeds and speeds is making an amazing difference in the speed at which these can be made. I have reduced the time it takes to just a few hours. And my process eliminates the need for artists and sculptors, which his a plus since none of them answer my e-mails anyhow.<br />
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This car mold requires a LOT of metal to be removed.<br />
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But I am saving it and able to re-melt it in the amazing 1100 degree centigrade crockpot.</div>
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This thing really gets hot. Of all the various wounds and injuries I have had over the years I find pinches and burns to be the worst types. So being extra careful here. <br />
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Here I a nifty little trick I learned online. By grinding all the teeth off of a saw blade it becomes a giant circular razor blade. And it cuts blue foam board with out making any dust. The black item is a 3D printed holding fixture to allow the cutting of perfect 4" hexagons. Make a 4" rip, nip the end off at 60 degrees, and then cut at your 4" stop. This create diamonds that fit in this tool. Slide the tool across the blade, flip the diamond and repeat. Perfect hexes. I don't know why but the razor saw is somehow scarier than the one with teeth. Both will mangle you without mercy but something about the sharp edge freaks me out. <br />
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Ok, have a good rest of the winter. Spring is on the way and life keeps renewing itself. <br />
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<br />Ken Krouthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15892687506810371341noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8248742754594693022.post-68895465342472719672018-01-29T10:13:00.001-08:002018-01-29T10:13:56.463-08:00Book of Grudges Hi again. I am in a bit of a melancholy and yet fiercely defiant mood this morning so please do not get offended. There is some good and bad news on all fronts. The plan is to post every 2 weeks regardless if the only thing to say is " All is lost! Game over, game over!" or, " I am addicted to playing Tigers on the Hunt, no progress this month." <br />
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There is a scene in the Firefly pilot episode where Zoe and Captain Reynolds are trying to conduct a business transaction in a canyon and the tactical situation is not at all good. Zoe says to Reynolds, "They will have the advantage over us." And Captain Reynolds replies with a sense of resignation, "They always do". <br />
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And so it is.<br />
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Ok, you may have noticed in a recent post the declaration that prices are not budging as long as I can possibly make that happen. Well, the post office just increased first class shipping to $3.50 minimum. I get a slight discount by printing online and if I keep my seller rating up on E-bay. <br />
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But margins are thin enough on dirt cheap products and an extra $.50 added is pushing things even further. There were a couple of options, from increasing prices per pack to adjusting shipping. The best solution for the customers was to increase shipping on the first pack only. It was the single pack buyers that are impacted me the most by this change. I truly wish there was an option, but this is the absolute best that can be done.<br />
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Now, of course the post office is happy to deliver products from China for free. No increase there.<br />
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As Teddy Roosevelt said, "Do what you can, with what you have, where you are." <br />
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Now that Grudge is out of the way, let's look at number 2.<br />
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Working Class York Maker Space is not going to happen. Not soon, and maybe not ever. Government regulations have groin stomped the life out of another dream. Hey, its for your own good.<br />
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How to resolve this problem? There is another Makerspace I just found located in Dillsburg which is not that far away. Great place, more tech oriented and less dirt and flames. Still it was a fantastic find.<br />
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So both problem number one and number 2 are sorted. Never give up.<br />
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And finally Grudge 3. <br />
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Novakon is dead again. I hate this machine with the white hot intensity of 10,000 suns. Gremlins are back again with a vengeance. <br />
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Here it is stopped in the middle of a program. A lot of wasted hours. It has started to just randomly, after several hours, re-boot itself. </div>
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So I changed the settings so it will not reboot and now it gives the blue screen of death. I have recorded the error codes and will be conducting my usual repair protocol. Keep buying new parts until the bad behavior stops. Awaiting some new RAM chips from E-bay and hope that will solve things. (why I have time to write today)</div>
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And now for some good news. That is the way life is, conflict and then resolution.........at least on TV.</div>
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There is a Chromecast on the TV in front of my painting desk and it allows viewing of You Tube while painting. Watching Tabletop Minions has really inspired me and made me want to try out some new painting.</div>
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I actually painted a few of the Reaper Bones models lying about.</div>
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And still working on making some custom slot cars.</div>
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Someday it would be great to own a real one, but this is at least a nice car to race around with at 1/24 scale. If I live long enough the price on used ones will drop until I can afford it. </div>
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And work is not all bad. Most mornings I wake up as happy as the drummer from Powerwolf as I look forward to what ever the day holds. </div>
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By the time the day ends I am feeling more like Lizzy Borden. Die gremlins, die!</div>
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The drivers side car mold has a buddy now. It takes 9 pieces of metal to be cut to make the car body mold. 7 are done. More are required to make the hood, grill and bumpers but this part is the hardest and it will get done if I have to tear the entire PC out of the Novakon and replace it. </div>
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The CAD designs are getting easier, and if this CNC machine would work more than 10% of the time Proxie Models would be as big as Google by now.</div>
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Here are a couple of things designed and awaiting their turn on the mill.</div>
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The second picture is of car #2 I would like to make. I had a real one a long time ago but a huge tree got in my way one night and it died a terrible death. I walked away somehow.........</div>
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And, some more altered state of mind and changing of direction. </div>
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The huge volume and quality pouring out of China via Kick Starter has caused me to turn away from trying to make models for the gaming industry. I stated this before and publicly. Frankly, it seemed utterly pointless. The big companies can leverage their buying power to exploit the free shipping and cheap manufacturing from China. Plus, it is time consuming and a lot of things can go wrong. It is easier to pick the low hanging fruit. </div>
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There are a couple of things I still plan to make for my own personal use, and also offer to others. It has occurred to me that there still might be a market for low priced items, as in $5-10 range. Because if you happen to have $10 and want to buy something in the table top hobby you are pretty much S.O.L. Keep your eyes open and see if something new pops out soon. </div>
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This week the archers actually got a little progress. This is pose 2 being shaped on the ACT machine.</div>
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On the ASL in minis front there is an interesting choice to be made. </div>
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These are locking hex holders to allow the construction of hex boards with easy to change configuration. GHQ makes some Styrofoam in 4" hexes and these locking devices will hold them in place.</div>
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In the near future- (once the Novakon is working..............) these will be made in 3" and 4" sizes. This will allow for people to make some very nice 3D terrain boards without the hexes sliding about. </div>
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You can use marble bathroom tiles, cardboard, or cut your own tiles out of wood. However, the ideal material I think would be 3/4" insulation board from Lowe's or similar. (blueboard) It is denser than Styrofoam and a little tougher. It can be cut easily with a hot knife to shape hills and whatever. 3/4" will allow for some epic 3D scenery. </div>
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After the hex holders are done the idea is to run a kickstarter to purchase a laser cutter. I know where a used one is at and around $10,000 will secure it and pay for costs to pick it up and install it in the shop. It has dual lasers and will accept a 4 X 8 sheet of material. It is so large I will have to tear the wall out of my shop to get it installed. </div>
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The kick starter will be for plastic holders, blueboard hexes, and cutting tools to shape your hills. </div>
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If it funds it will save people a lot of work in making tables. If it does not fund, the plastic holders will still be available and I will just cut my own and not purchase it or offer the hexes for sale. The problem is that hexes are a pain to cut out by hand and some people do not have a truck to haul around large sheets of blue board. This would be a big help to a lot of people. </div>
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The pricing on this is going to be tricky, as it has to be cheap enough for someone to create a table for a reasonable cost. But not so cheap it loses money. </div>
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This plan is not 100% decided. I am not willing to put that kind of money out of pocket, which is why the thought of using kick starter came to mind. Essentially if I could get enough orders for plastic holders and blue board hexes for the machine to pay for itself I will do it.</div>
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More details will emerge as my brain sorts it. Right now I seem to be having the biological equivalent of the blue screen of death in my head. </div>
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Ok, there it is. 2018 and I am keeping my goals to write more stuff. And paint some stuff. And work on some stuff. </div>
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So far so good.</div>
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Have a great day everyone.</div>
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Ken Krouthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15892687506810371341noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8248742754594693022.post-25708202881535313112018-01-14T14:22:00.001-08:002018-01-14T14:22:42.222-08:00Mid January, resolve is cracking........................ Just a quick update on some little things.<br />
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The car is coming along. Broke the last ball mill and am awaiting another. Trying to squeeze in work between bitterly cold bouts. So far it is working. We went from 0 on Monday to 60 on Friday and back to 11 on Sunday. What a week. The 0 and 11 are weather, but the 60 is global warming and will require a new tax..................................<br />
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On my last blog I declared I would be starting nothing new. That resolution has been sorely pressed, starting on January 2nd.<br />
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I was informed I have a large credit at my local store................ Can you get me Advanced Squad Leader stuff? <br />
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No. But look at this new Necromunda ................<br />
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Can you get me Plastic Soldier Company stuff for my Squad Leader miniatures project?<br />
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No, but have you seen the new 40K?................<br />
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Perhaps some units for my old Warhammer armies, which would not be a violation of my oath. A new unit of 20 witch elves and 20 Sisters of Avelorn. A small addition to the good and bad armies would be great................ Wow, even with free money it hurts to pay those prices.......................<br />
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Oh well. Here are some pics of the Squad Leader to minis project and some pics of other people's take on it. It seems there are 2 schools of thought. First you can print out large map boards and play like that. Hex Draw allows me to add custom textures so the maps can look more realistic.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CS5BpJMG3DQ/WlvSQTjjVNI/AAAAAAAABcU/K2Cp4eDBbdcO0oG3-l9lFog43_soSGBxACLcBGAs/s1600/map%2Bsample.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1077" data-original-width="1497" height="230" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CS5BpJMG3DQ/WlvSQTjjVNI/AAAAAAAABcU/K2Cp4eDBbdcO0oG3-l9lFog43_soSGBxACLcBGAs/s320/map%2Bsample.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I spent (wasted) some time getting aerial tree photos and damaged road textures and neat wall graphics. And printed out with 4" hexes it looks pretty cool and the 15mm minis fit well in it. But it is still a printed map board. <br />
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Second option is to make your own hex terrain.<br />
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GHQ makes 4"Styrofoam hexes, which I owned a few of 20 years ago. I found them fragile and it was too easy to knock them about during play. Just google GHQ terrain maker and look at the images. Very neat stuff. <br />
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And this guy has developed a tool to cut the Styrofoam to matching angles. <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1378063512/tabletop-hex-terrain-toolkit" target="_blank">hex cutter tool kit</a><br />
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There is an ASL in Miniatures Facebook group and the guys share ideas. one of the guys cuts his own hexes out of wood, which is the direction I am leaning. The printed maps look great, but it is just not the same.<br />
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This is a recreation of board 78 by the founder of the group. He developed a really neat locking mechanism to hold the tiles in place. At this point that looks like the best option. <br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GhoUwGK0xOQ/WlvWHAtUF_I/AAAAAAAABcg/NBs4Na5z56g1nVlDBsP-ILZX0MVNShxFgCLcBGAs/s1600/board%2B78.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="720" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GhoUwGK0xOQ/WlvWHAtUF_I/AAAAAAAABcg/NBs4Na5z56g1nVlDBsP-ILZX0MVNShxFgCLcBGAs/s320/board%2B78.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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So that is hobby stuff. <br />
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The car parts are coming slowly in the mail. I have 100 axles, 100 gears and 100 motors already. Pretty easy to see the problem, as cars have 2 axles each........Awaiting spacers to get dimensions to spec out the chassis. <br />
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The crock pot is here, and it melts metal so that is nice. Graphite is stockpiled and ready for use.<br />
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I really need to clone myself...............................<br />
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And final note- still no word from the York Makerspace. If this falls through plans will be set back again. Not sure what is happening, some sort of red tape must be causing them to delay opening. I can only hope things fall in to place and we have that place to meet and collaborate.<br />
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Ok, that is my promised more frequent update with out a lot to really report on. More in 2 weeks.<br />
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Stay warm folks!<br />
Ken Krouthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15892687506810371341noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8248742754594693022.post-41741972396633299832017-12-31T10:52:00.002-08:002017-12-31T12:14:57.744-08:00Back to the Future Well, Happy New Year to one and all. <br />
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Today is the last day of 2017, and I always make a point to plan out the things I will fail to do in the coming year. Sort of a tradition. It is better to have planned shortcomings than just a random selection of shortcomings.<br />
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First, a review of 2017.<br />
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2017 was pretty good in a lot of ways. The groundwork for a many things continues to fall in place. At this point the gremlins wars are calming down, and although they fought a valiant fight things are working in spite of their efforts. And working pretty well. I broke 2 hardened steel taps off in metal and simply burned them out with the EDM sinker. Nice. Broken taps can be a huge problem if you do not have the means to melts the hardest material with the softest.<br />
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CNC is cutting with a vengeance-<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-L2Z89ZW_tD8/WkkcJPEq6lI/AAAAAAAABag/iGESc4C8JqcMol7NCBUjJXNQRWbIKTTcwCLcBGAs/s1600/20171219_125424.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-L2Z89ZW_tD8/WkkcJPEq6lI/AAAAAAAABag/iGESc4C8JqcMol7NCBUjJXNQRWbIKTTcwCLcBGAs/s320/20171219_125424.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tAXjbHDV1D4/WkkcJTf5usI/AAAAAAAABak/KLf6ccuDukw68Kaxvudw7_o165-H7-uhACEwYBhgL/s1600/20171219_184609.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tAXjbHDV1D4/WkkcJTf5usI/AAAAAAAABak/KLf6ccuDukw68Kaxvudw7_o165-H7-uhACEwYBhgL/s320/20171219_184609.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
And we got a new shop heater.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iM9SD7eEZtk/WkkcIO3UUFI/AAAAAAAABac/Cqta4DMYgm4C-dGwOLTdQotO4DdyoDAEwCEwYBhgL/s1600/20171219_105734.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iM9SD7eEZtk/WkkcIO3UUFI/AAAAAAAABac/Cqta4DMYgm4C-dGwOLTdQotO4DdyoDAEwCEwYBhgL/s320/20171219_105734.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
Does it work? Better than expected.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bLN7Q9-8H2U/WkkcKT8oDCI/AAAAAAAABao/dNFgDgoy81MQUJSd3epGMc9X51HQ1Vr_gCEwYBhgL/s1600/20171218_160446.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bLN7Q9-8H2U/WkkcKT8oDCI/AAAAAAAABao/dNFgDgoy81MQUJSd3epGMc9X51HQ1Vr_gCEwYBhgL/s320/20171218_160446.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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Ok, that last picture is really misleading, but it helps a little. <br />
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So the shop is running very well. Still anxiously awaiting the new Makerspace opening next month, and hoping to find someone passionate about creating something. <br />
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As a last minute tax write off, the shop will be adding a crucible and furnace to melt metal and stocking up on fine grain graphite for electrodes. Both are in the mail as we speak. The crucible should allow for melting and casting brass electrodes. Not sure if it is going to work, but figured it might be worth a try. <br />
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In addition the old computer is having a good cleaning and looking over some files. <br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8utw7J8-FIU/WkkpQFffCHI/AAAAAAAABbM/2HLDReFJe1wlycV8FvY8ZwYdtngbPeaGgCLcBGAs/s1600/medium%2Binfantry.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="823" data-original-width="1600" height="164" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8utw7J8-FIU/WkkpQFffCHI/AAAAAAAABbM/2HLDReFJe1wlycV8FvY8ZwYdtngbPeaGgCLcBGAs/s320/medium%2Binfantry.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Take this picture for example. This is a LOT of work just going to waste. I made all these guys, they are 3D printable and a single watertight single mesh each. When I printed them they are the correct height but look puny next to "heroic" scale minis. They are anatomically correct and therefore out of place in the grim dark future. So they were just forgotten about. <br />
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But it only took a little time for me to mess around and now they are much more compatible. They are still not He-Man carrying an engine block, but they are fine. So got to pencil them in for the near future.<br />
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Overall, that is my main goal this year. To FINISH projects before I get side tracked. <br />
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Hobbywise, for the most part the year had an overall theme was overcoming ADD. That is the persistent practice of jumping from one thing to the nest. (Oh look! New and Shiny!) <br />
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The first step is admitting I have a problem. The realization came when I spent $100+ on the year end FFG sale of 2016 and purchased a huge amount of stuff for Warhammer Roleplay. As a general rule I have not liked many of the games I pick up from FFG and this was no exception. A quick read of the rules and I knew it was going to do nothing but set on the shelf, like everything else. What a waste, but I learned a valuable lesson. DO not buy something you do not want just because it is cheap. Maybe someday it will get used but most likely it will hit E-bay. Shipping is going to be a killer.<br />
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So why keep up a frantic pace of consumption of new things? This idea has been cooking in my head for some time and it has finally evolved in to grim resolution. In the past a couple of friends decided to get in to 15mm WW2 using the Flames of War rules. $200+ and a completely painted army netted me a single game before they had discarded the rules and raced on to something else. <br />
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There is another problem with all the new and shiny. There is so much to do that time restraints are simply too difficult to overcome. And finding a group or persons who are of the same mindset can be challenging. I have really taken some time off from minis gaming in general because of this. Age of Sigmar really killed things for me in a lot of respects. It was real heart breaker. Here are my Warhammer armies, or at least some of them. <br />
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All retired now I guess. Oh, and let's not forget the lead pile-<br />
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If I could have zoomed out it would have looked like this.<br />
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There is a possibility of using them for Kings of War and I have purchased those rules, they just do not really inspire me a lot. It seems really suited for tournament play and I like a rules set that creates a narrative more than straight up competition. So fantasy miniatures wise I think things are going to be on the back burner again this year. <br />
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I did discover on Youtube that people are playing games solitaire.<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbgVZsMGneU" target="_blank">Guards Counterattack playthrough</a> I will be trying this out many times to re-learn the system. Here is an excellent and amusing battle write up by a first time player and it shows the craziness that makes ASL such a blast to play.<a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/420737/d1-guryevs-headquarters" target="_blank">Guryev's HQ battle report</a><br />
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I used to be a huge ASL (Advanced Squad Leader) fan years ago and realized that I have been missing it. I always wanted to play ASL with miniatures and that project is now making a comeback. I purchased a program called Hexdraw that allows me to make maps and print them out as large as needed. Here is board 1 enlarged using Hexdraw-<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AQCSQCqtOoU/WkkcLSzwFxI/AAAAAAAABbA/dMFOQAkIiJAsrqRE9IvNRS2bByIS9gcyACEwYBhgL/s1600/20171231_115620.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AQCSQCqtOoU/WkkcLSzwFxI/AAAAAAAABbA/dMFOQAkIiJAsrqRE9IvNRS2bByIS9gcyACEwYBhgL/s320/20171231_115620.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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The old board is laying on top in the top left and the one I printed out is below it. I am still tinkering with the size and scale I plan to use. I could continue to enlarge up to the size that 1/72 scale models can be used. It has always been a crazy idea of mine to play 40K setting and forces using ASL rules. I have some 1/72 scale WW2 stuff and have a 3D printed 40K tank. The boards would be pretty good sized when finished. Thankfully I have this eco-tank printer so printing things out is really cheap.<br />
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I purchased that board back in about 1977 or 78. I used to make a few bucks picking strawberries for a local farmer and that board has travelled with me most of my life. More men have died trying to cross those streets than I care to think about. I am glad those cardboard counters do not bleed when hit because the board would be illegible by now. <br />
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Going to sort these counters out soon. A lot of things are really getting organized and going through all the stuff I have hoarded over the years has been pretty therapeutic. In addition to the Warhammer display cabinet there are now several other miniatures and slot car cabinets scattered throughout the basement</div>
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I would suggest to anyone that getting your collection organized is just as important as collecting in the first place. It is very nice to have everything sorted and uncluttered. My basement has never been better, and I am really glad used bath water no longer pours from the ceiling and swarms of bees do not sting me without mercy. (see older posts for details) </div>
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So what is the plan for 2018? NOTHING NEW. NOT A SINGLE NEW THING. In fact this is my new theme song- <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4J4zA9OYIco" target="_blank">Not safe for work or kids!</a></div>
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The real new and shiny for me right now is a rule set called Across a Deadly Field by John Hill, designer of the first Squad Leader. Purchased the books and read through them. Now I have a huge urge to print out massive armies from this book and play a few games. <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/191217412X/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1" target="_blank">Paper armies</a> But NO! I can not allow myself to crawl down another rabbit hole or my ASL minis project and model car bodies will never get finished. </div>
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No new projects or anything, just learning to enjoy the wonderful things already piled around me. And finish some of the numerous started business projects. </div>
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But boy are those Civil War rules are appealing.......................and printing out some armies will not take that long.................................</div>
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See how hard it is? ( the new year has not started, so technically I could still start the Civil War project today and not be in violation of my rigid resolution)</div>
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I also want to try to post more often. Just something to keep me accountable. It might motivate me to have to report things.</div>
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In any event, hope everyone has a Happy New Year and let's make 2018 a time of peace and prosperity. </div>
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Ken Krouthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15892687506810371341noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8248742754594693022.post-37493206198984041602017-11-21T17:53:00.000-08:002017-11-21T17:53:01.337-08:00Ultimate Novakon meltdown, and other musings. Hello all,<br />
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Again a fine fall day. Best time of year to me. Mostly because I no longer have to mow the lawn or clean the pool.<br />
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Last post I commented that ting were running smooth. Boy did that ever piss off the gremlins and they launched an all out assault. Literally everything is going haywire, not the least of which was the Novakon CNC. It just sputtered, and simply lost its position again. I have had it with that piece of crap so I decided to re-make it. Every time it goes off mission it ruins a piece of metal and throws away hours of work. <br />
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This is the VFD or variable frequency drive. It died a long time ago. These were junk from the factory and the company did not really offer much support other than to allow you to wait on hold for an eternity. The proximity sensors are also shown in the top picture. These caught on fire because no sealant was used to protect them from the coolant which flowed in and shorted them out. So I disabled the proximity sensors and had no working limit switches for the past 5 years. </div>
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This is an aftermarket VFD added to replace the factory junk. It works OK. You can see on here also the toggle switch to control the coolant I added to replace the factory one that went bad. For years every time I turned on the machine it would start spraying coolant until boot up was complete and I told it to stop. The strange coil of wires is an attempt to prevent magnetic interference from corrupting the pulse of electricity. It is some type of shielding.<br />
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Also, the E-stop button has not worked for years. Not sure why since I tried everything I possibly could. So- no limit switches and no emergency stop. A limit switch is handy, but an E-stop is really nice when your sleeve gets grabbed by the spindle. <br />
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And finally to twist the knife, the machine also began for no reason to spin the spindle upon startup to go along with the unwanted coolant spray, and randomly stop spinning while also missing steps and losing its location. When I opened the access panel it sprang to life. So the CNC machine was as reliable as the juke box at Arnold's that Fonzie would punch to enjoy music. This was not going to work. <br />
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So it had to either go or be re-built. A new one is going to be over $10,000. So I got this device off of e-bay for less than $10 and decided to go for broke and re-wire the mess. <br />
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What you are seeing is pretty much the only directions that came with the device. It replaces this one that came on the machine.</div>
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This is called a breakout board. It connects to the printer port on your PC and directs all the signals normally used to print stuff in to different sections of the CNC telling it what to do. The problem is that EACH pin has to be carefully programmed or the results are disastrous. </div>
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I will be in therapy at some point for what followed, but somehow it seems to be working. Along the way the proximity switches were replaced and now work and the E-stop is working just fine. Two tubes of caulking should keep things dry and stop that expensive leak. (coolant is $200 a bucket and watching it pool up on the floor is enough to make a grown man weep) Going to return to milling and see how it does. Preliminary tests all seem to be a go. I can control the spindle off and on as well as RPM from this new board. This is done using PWM. This stands for pulse width modulation or some technical crap and it really is as screwy as it sounds. I input an incorrect setting and spun the motor so fast the cooling fan on the top exploded as the plastic fins could not withstand the force and were torn apart. </div>
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The thing about the CNC home workshop stuff seems to be that you have to become your own engineer. And everyone is super helpful on forums but each person has a Frankenstein that they pieced together and no 2 are alike. </div>
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Oh, and also the PC I design on and am typing on at this moment is having corrupted registry issues. Sometimes it forgets who I am and rejects my password. It hilariously locked me out of all my music, photos and e-mails. What a joy. Got that sorted but it might suffer a complete meltdown soon.</div>
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So as you can see the gremlins have been beating me like a baby harp seal gets beaten by a fur trader. Thank God I have 40+ molds lined up to make parts out of because these delays are frustrating for sure.</div>
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Which brings me to something I saw today that was super inspirational-<a href="https://gizmodo.com/uh-this-flat-earthers-homemade-manned-rocket-launch-do-1820627193" target="_blank">coolest man alive</a></div>
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Sorry about all the ads on the link. The internet is almost unusable with all the crap everywhere.</div>
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Anyhow, think about what this guy is doing. He built a home made space ship and is going in to space to de-bunk the round Earth hoax. While running for governor. Seriously, who is NOT going to vote for someone who can get things done like this man. He also spent a tiny fraction of NASA's budget to do it. He does not just reject reality, he gives it a kick in the teeth. </div>
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I got to say this has made me want to tackle even bigger challenges. This guy has the brains to build his own space ship and the balls to pilot the thing. His impending death will be a great loss. </div>
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On that uplifting note, I hope everyone has a Happy Thanksgiving. More posts on the way soon as nothing else can possibly go wrong. And for that I am very thankful. </div>
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Ken Krouthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15892687506810371341noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8248742754594693022.post-74484745293025271892017-10-14T09:38:00.000-07:002017-10-14T09:38:33.305-07:00More odd ramblings Hello again folks.<br />
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Things are chugging along, more or less the same as always. Thought I would update on a few things.<br />
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Sales are steady, with 10,000 packages being shipped since opening the store 7 years ago. Only about 10% are from the store with the majority going via other sales channels. If things stay the same all will be well. There have been no price increases for about 6 years. None are planned. Every time one of my costs go up I find some way to offset it. I am on my 3rd packing supplier because of this. <br />
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Shipping is very challenging, and it has simply eliminated overseas sales. Go to E-bay and you will see a host of items being sold from Asia with free shipping. Some items as cheap as $1. Try to return said item and the cost is $22.50. The government subsidizes their shipping. Some times you just have to admit defeat and dust yourself off and move on. This problem has no solution.<br />
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Machines are running as good as possible. There was some relay issues that caused me some grief but things are smooth currently.<br />
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The die assemble is going to be replaced. It has pounded out over 100,000 parts and is now out of square. One side is down .060" from the other. This results in mis-aligned parts. <br />
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It is going to cost some money and time but this has to be fixed. I am replacing the existing die, and making it perfectly flat with more re-enforcement to prevent future damage. Being slammed together with 28 tons of force hundreds of thousands of times I guess will tend to bend things a bit.<br />
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In addition, a new die is being designed and built. This one is going to increase the working space available from 4" X 6" to a whopping 8.5" X 12". The amount of plastic injected can not be increased, but the flexibility in part positioning and size is going to be a huge improvement. This die is going to accommodate 1/8" ejector pins and 1/4" ejector pins. Waiting on materials to show up at the door any day to make this a reality. <br />
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The primary driver for this new die is this all consuming distraction/challenge. <br />
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Is it possible to create a mold to make this car? Yes. Can I do it? Not really sure at this point, but I am spending a lot of time and money to find out. <br />
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From a business perspective, it seems to make sense to look for different types of products to create. The gaming industry is very crowded with better run and better equipped companies pouring out a flood of products. I posted in this Dakka thread and it explains things pretty well. <a href="https://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/739004.page" target="_blank">dakka link</a><br />
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I have been a life long fan of classic American cars and there are 3 that I want to make for slot car racing. It is going to take a slide action mold for this and thus the spending of large amounts of money to buy hardened bushings, springs, and pins. The mold pictured is the back of the wheels for the car design.<br />
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All 3 cars are getting the same wheels, chassis, interior, and driver. What I am hoping to make is equal to these from long ago-<br />
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As usual, failure is the best teacher. I made this mold for a guy, and now I have to make the whole thing over again. (sorry Andrew).<br />
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The bottom door for the shipping container will not fill with plastic. The reason is because I put it on the wrong way. I did not notice that one door is inset and therefore thinner than the other. I filled the thinner part first. This does not work. The plastic fills in and cools before the thicker side gets filled. If you flood it with hot plastic it might work, but the thick side will get sinkholes as it cools. You have to flow from thick to thin. It is a shame because he did some stellar work designing it. <br />
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Making figures is on the back burner for a while again. Although I ran some tests with the EDM machine and it was very promising. The only problem is that it is the slowest process I have ever seen. It sparks and cooks like a mad scientist lab but after hours of smoke and fire it has managed to drill a hole .01" deep. Something that could have been done on a drill press in seconds with a lot less cost and drama. But it is the fact it can drill a face shaped hole that makes it unique.<br />
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The shop overall is in the best shape it has been in years. I purchased a label maker and it seems to motivate a person to label stuff and put it away. So things are organized and in place instead of the usual post-tornado look.<br />
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And this was very fortunate, because a visitor stopped by. The goal of creating a maker space is going to finally happen, and not because of me. <a href="https://www.facebook.com/workingclassyork/" target="_blank">makerspace</a><br />
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The leader of the board of directors spent an hour or so visiting. This is a legit maker space, with a funding grant and actual grown ups running it. The building has 6000 amps of 3 phase electricity!!!!!<br />
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I think a Tesla coil built there could arc to the moon. Although I will not be suggesting that right at first, instead trying to stick to more practical projects like time machines and re-animation of dead tissue.<br />
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They are non-profit so no howling swarms of tax collectors to fend off, and they are INSURED. In addition, there will be free legal advice from Penn-State from their small business start up help called Launch Pad. There will be conference rooms and the chance to network with other locals. This is scheduled to open on January and I am hoping to secure a position on the technical committee. There is a good chance that the space will someday include plastic injection molding equipment for the members to use. After seeing my workshop the director seemed very keen to replicate it for the maker space. <br />
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So this is really good news if it comes to pass. The only unfortunate thing is that this maker space is going to be a slow process because of government involvement. I am just glad to finally see one in our area.<br />
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So that is where we are on this fine fall day. I will post some pics and updates if anything of note occurs. <br />
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Ken Krouthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15892687506810371341noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8248742754594693022.post-51661430730586200542017-06-06T08:30:00.000-07:002017-06-08T08:50:39.727-07:00From bad to worse and back again!Alright. Well things went from really bad to significantly worse. <br />
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Multiple items are getting scarce and there is no option to make more things. The heating problem has been repaired, with only one or 2 minor injuries. If you ever take 220 volts through a finger, be assured it is not fatal and feelings return to your extremities in as little as 2 days.<br />
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But the hydraulic system has utterly failed. Moments after the heating system got to working again. It seems to be a conspiracy. <br />
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This is going to take a major effort and it is very dirty, greasy work done by crawling about under the press. <br />
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So, expect some major delays unless a miracle happens. I will keep reducing the inventories as needed, until everything is gone.<br />
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I can not complain, the little machine was headed for the scrap pile and it has found a second life in my workshop. It has dutifully cranked out thousands and thousands of parts. <br />
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I guess it just wanted some downtime.<br />
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Ok, just enjoy the summer and hang in there.<br />
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EDIT: The machine is back, and better than ever! I guess a miracle did happen, because for no reason I can figure out the machine is now pumping away. The new heater wiring is fantastic. Previously the machine had been wired with heaters in sequence and only using one of the 3 available phases. I wired everything in parallel so each heater is getting a full blast of power, and am using 2 phases. (using all 3 would result in voltage jumping to 380) The warm up time went from 45 minutes to 10. And the machine stays locked on the temp with no fading. You can almost hear the plastic pellets scream in agony as they are cast in to the fiery chasm. The machine shows no mercy as they are brutally crushed in to parts. <br />
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The hydraulics just started working on its own. I unplugged a connector and plugged it back in, which had been done at least 3 times before, and it sprang to life. So all connectors got a good spray with contact cleaner and just like that things are looking much better. I will be making parts every morning for a week or so but that should get things caught up.<br />
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Regarding accidents; this is no laughing matter and I advise anyone attempting to do this to try not to be as stupid as me. The incident mentioned above happened during testing. Power was turned off, and the hot wire was disconnected and cut, so the shielding was covering the wire with only a tiny circle of metal exposed. This wire was placed in an out of the way spot and secured while I turned the power on to run a voltage test and figure out what was what. Well I dropped the test lead and without thinking reached to grab it as it fell. This caused my finger to brush the very wire that had been moved out of the way. And it took a hit that was a bit surprising. A real tough guy would not even need a fancy voltage meter. He would simply grab each wire and determine the voltage by the amount of pain he felt, after wetting his fingers on his tobacco juice. Those types of guys are getting scarce nowadays. <br />
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So while it is fun to tinker around with discarded industrial machines, try to respect the fact that things can get serious in a second. I have made a major effort to install safety guards and make the shop a very safe place to tinker. It seems that during maintenance things are most likely to go wrong. And this was a really freak incident that involved involuntary reaction to a falling object. <br />
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Ken Krouthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15892687506810371341noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8248742754594693022.post-26464039581015182962017-05-23T09:19:00.000-07:002017-05-23T16:03:01.014-07:00Old Yeller is dead.............for now. Hi again,<br />
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Boy have I been busy. Work has become 7 days a week, in addition to making and shipping products every day. There is a distinct possibility that my next day off the day job will be upon retirement.<br />
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A couple of updates; <br />
First on the meetup. I had to leave that platform because they were spamming people with resist messages regarding President Trump. It is not the part of a social network platform to interject themselves in to things. The owners of meet-up offered free services to anti-Trump groups and even created them to help foster the resistance. Not sure about Trump at this point personally, but pretty sure meet-up crossed the line by spamming my paid for group.<br />
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Second on the demo. Attendance was a disappointing 0. Not sure why, but starting to reach the conclusion that this avenue is a dead end. It is obvious the local community is not going to produce any people who have an interest. <br />
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Third. Got another rejection on insurance. This one was looking good until they discovered I make the plastic parts. They assumed I merely assembled them. Luckily, this dovetails pretty well with point 2. Insurance is not needed if there is no one to get hurt. <br />
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Ok, that is the bad news. It is strange to hear reality online sometimes. The world is full of false impressions that people try to create. It is something that has gotten a bit out of hand, to the point that most things online are a deliberate attempt to create an overly positive spin. This blog tells the dirty and painful reality of plugging along one step at a time. <br />
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Oh, forgot to mention number 4- Gremlins- ( again)<br />
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The plastic machine has died. It stopped heating up, and the breaker was thrown. Trying to reset it caused it to trip immediately. With no manual or wiring diagram it was going to be tough to troubleshoot this. Compounding the problem is the fact the machine is 44 years old and has been used hard that entire time. There were so many sloppy repairs on the machine over the years that nothing is as it should be.<br />
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This is the important stuff, and it looks pretty self explanatory. There are wires that goes here and there.........some breakers...........a transformer...................some other things..............a gismo............and this other part. Pretty basic. <br />
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Except it is 3 phase. In case you are wondering, 3 phase electric was invented by Tesla after drinking a case of Vodka and wondering through the forest eating hallucinogenic mushrooms. He thought it would separate the real electricians from the pretenders. Regular 110 electric has a hot and a ground. Regular 220 electric has 2 hot and a ground. Three phase has 3 wires, all of which are simultaneously hot and ground. Apparently. <br />
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Yeah, this one was a puzzler for sure but everything worked out in the end. Someone had wired all the heaters to the same phase, which is not as efficient as using all 3 phases. I am going to wire each of the 3 heaters to a different phase, which is going to save electricity and make pre heat up take a lot less time. <br />
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Than there is this part.<br />
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I actually re-wired this before so it is easy. <br />
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And here is the problem, after much trial and error.<br />
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The wire on the heater band is shorting out and is broken. New heater bands, relays, control units, and switches are on the way. When done it will be better than ever. The parts are going to take a while to arrive. They were ordered from Amazon with 2 days shipping. But that means they will arrive 2 days after they are shipped. And they are not going to be shipped until mid to late June. So inventory is going to be stressed and things are going to get a bit crazy. Already 20mm rounds are out of stock and it looks like a couple more are going to be out before things get back to normal.<br />
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And now the good news, besides the crushing Gremlin defeat already detailed.<br />
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I am in preliminary communications with someone who might be a huge help and catapult things in an amazing direction. Online of course, the locals are no help. <br />
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The current obstacle is the day job. But that is being sorted and should be better in the near future.<br />
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In spite of the negative comments at the start this is a positive update. In many ways the things that I failed at are not meant to be. Not having helpers is probably better in the long run.<br />
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Shipments will reach 10,000 packages sometime soon. Amazing, and I have to again thank all the people who are out there who keep coming back for more bases and bits. <br />
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So there it is, another great summer is on the way. I hope you all enjoy it. <br />
<br />Ken Krouthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15892687506810371341noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8248742754594693022.post-82221823332976642012017-02-10T14:56:00.001-08:002017-02-10T14:56:14.825-08:00Meetup- here it is Hi folks,<br />
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I finally started the Meetup group for being creative. Here is a link. <a href="https://www.meetup.com/Creative-Thinking-in-York/events/237596603/" target="_blank">enter the madness</a><br />
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The group is restricted, meaning I have to approve people joining. There are 2 questions to answer, and already I have used those questions to screen out several people. I will see how things go. It could be a waste of $60. <br />
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One of the problems with meet-up is the volume of complete strangers you are going to end up meeting. I guess that is the point, but it is also supposed to be a method to find people at least partially of similar mindsets. As long as there is no gun play all should work out fine. The location is a comic shop nearby. <br />
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After the event I will fully detail the good, bad, and ugly of the continuous quest to find the right folks to collaborate on projects. Right here on this blog. <br />
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This is an interesting weekend at the house. I am going through the lead pile and cataloging every single model, entering it in a database, and storing it away in a referenced location. At least that is the plan. A casual observer would describe it as shuffling junk around. Again. <br />
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I will also be purging the collection of areas I have no plans to dabble in. I have been doing that a lot of late. At a certain point it becomes evident that time is not a renewable resource. There are a lot of things that will simply not get done. The new goal is to finish the important ones. And figure out which ones are important. <br />
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Anyhow, if you want to learn every secret I know, stop by the meet-up. <br />
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Spoiler alert- it is really not a great volume of knowledge. More like a few tips.............<br />
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Ken Krouthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15892687506810371341noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8248742754594693022.post-873652497229606082017-02-02T08:10:00.000-08:002017-02-02T08:10:10.840-08:00Overloaded-3000 pounds of potential. Hello again folks,<br />
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Well the year is off and running. I guess a re-cap of last year is in order and as usual an insanely optimistic and completely unrealistic set of goals for the new year. All of which I will fail utterly to achieve, but try again anyhow.<br />
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Last year was actually pretty amazing. Shipped 6400+ items plus some wholesale orders. I kept off forums for the most part, only once making a fool of myself and getting some strangers to vow never to buy from me. Forums are interesting. Some really great people and a couple of folks with an insatiable desire to flame. Not worth getting involved with the latter. Just raises my blood pressure.<br />
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Speaking of which- I am on some new meds for said condition. Which lists these actual side effects:<br />
<span lang="">Constipation; indigestion; dizziness; faintness; dry mouth; cold extremities -hands and feet; confusion; depression; insomnia; nightmares; edema; fatigue; lack of energy; hallucinations; sensation of pins and needles; skin reaction-rash, hives; blurred vision; difficulty speaking and hearing; unsteadiness; wheezing; stomach pain; low fever; dark urine; jaundice; bloody urine; lower back and side pain; swelling of face, fingers or lower legs; vomiting; weight gain; black, tarry stools; bleeding gums; loss of vision; bone and joint pain; disturbed color perception; double vision; feeling that others are watching you or controlling your behavior; feeling that others can hear your thoughts; feeling, seeing, or hearing things that are not there; halos around lights, night blindness. <br />
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So nothing really negative and free nightmares as a bonus. </span><br />
Last year I picked up a lot of hardware and got it configured. A new PC with a Quadro graphics card, the EDM rigged and functioning, new controls designed and wired up for the Arburg, a new dust collection system for the ACT machine, actual non-toxic coolant for the Novakon, and a 3D printer working. I printed out some tooling fixtures to hold and standardize things. So that was some progress. <br />
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A couple of general points that may have good or bad implications this year. I am currently working 40+ hours per week in order to get health care and keeping up with orders in my "free" time. So far things are going well. Slow selling items are not being re-made until everything else is caught up. I will make them as time allows. My full time job is looking very promising, as I have a new staff person starting at the end of the month which will grant me the usual 2 day weekends.<br />
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There has been a change in leadership here in America and it might mean a change in the health care law. If this happens I could be back at Proxie working full time a lot sooner than I expected. Not sure if anyone reading this is a small business owner, but trying to pay for mandatory health care is very difficult. Hence the full time gig.<br />
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The only problem that has been really causing trouble is lack of time. Too many things to do and not enough time to do any of them properly. Gaining time through efficiency has helped a lot but things are moving along at about 1% the speed they should be.<br />
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Some more positive developments. A location to host meet-ups has been spotted. It is not my house, but the gaming area of a local comic book shop. I have to work out the details on times but this is going to happen within weeks, once those elusive weekends make an appearance. I loaned them my 28mm sci-fi scenery. I am selling off a lot of it and pretty much leaving behind this scale for sci-fi and switching to 1/72. So they get some scenery and I can some room to use once in a while.<br />
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I was rejected for insurance again, and this time I was as charming as possible. So a friend offered some very sage counsel. "Don't let idiots in the shop". A simple yet effective method to ensure there are no injury/lawsuits. I can use the comic shop to meet and greet and cast a first level "detect idiot" spell over the crowd. Here is an example of what to look for-<br />
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See what I mean? Of course I have to exempt my self from the policy. </div>
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The shop is filled with supplies also. </div>
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This is the low tech delivery system used to bring in plastic. This box holds up to 1500 pounds. There are 2 of them unloaded in the shop. One is neutral and can be died in to any color, and the other is black. 3000 pounds can make a lot of bits and it is nice to start the year fully supplied with materials. This is the smallest size box to qualify for free shipping and it just saves so much money to buy in bulk.<br />
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Updates will be posted as things happen. If things go as usual this post will most likely be copied and pasted next year. Or maybe something better will happen. Or it could be another hallucination.<br />
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Have a good day everyone!<br />
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Ken Krouthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15892687506810371341noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8248742754594693022.post-2747576639896569902016-12-07T20:36:00.001-08:002016-12-07T20:36:25.029-08:00Falling Down Hi folks!<br />
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Ok, so it has been a while. I managed to keep my mouth shut over the election so as not to alienate anyone. People get uptight real fast and foaming at the mouth seems to have become a national pastime. But keeping my head down and mouth shut no one was offended. I hope. Anything you say will piss off someone, including saying nothing. Thank God its over, although the next one has started I guess. <br />
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What have I been doing? Playing Oblivion. This is a great game and I put it aside when Skyrim came out. Since I beat the game of Skyrim's main quest I thought I would go back to Oblivion. Pretty neat to go through it again. My previous save game was from 2011 so I started a new character and made it to 13th level before becoming afflicted with Vampirism and had to retire. I could not bear being a Wood Elf force to guzzle healing potions because the sunlight is burning my flesh off. It was humiliating. <br />
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Just one tip; avoid the town of Hackdirt. I found this area and was given a hard time by the shop keeper. In fact everyone in the village is a jerk and the squabble escalated until each and every one of them lie dead and their meager possessions were looted. What a crappy town.<br />
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So last time I played video games was during a period of healing, and this time was no different. I stopped for an oil change and the mechanic tried to sell me an air filter. As I walked out to tell him "no" a bad thing happened. It turns out there are these large holes in the ground under your vehicle, placed so as to swallow up the unsuspecting. Let me tell you something, 32 feet per second per second does not really sound all that fast, but it feels like it. Luckily I made my saving throw and only took half damage. By grabbing my truck bumper on the way down I managed to dangle by one ankle and a few fingertips and pull myself back up. My knee bent the wrong way and took all my weight, tearing some ligaments. The ankle was also twisted around and got all purple and swollen. So it had to be elevated and hence the weeks spent playing Oblivion. <br />
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In the meantime I have not progressed on my mold very much. In addition to shredding my leg I got a promotion to supervisor at my day job. Apparently supervisor means "person who fills in unlimited hours for missing staff". <br />
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But all is not lost. I seem to have a new enthusiasm for a project I recently undertook, which I will elaborate on as it comes to pass. Just something I am doing for me at this point. Pretty much everything I make is something somebody asks for or I want to have for myself. It is just fun and creative and I find it very enjoyable. <br />
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There are a few new things in the shop. Some new pill bases and a damage tracker I made for Kings of War.<br />
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I thought they would enhance my troops a bit, but I have not really been able to stand much or find time to play. Just something little I knocked together one day.<br />
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What I am really focused on this year is getting some more people involved, and that means insurance. One thing my recent plunge into the grease pit has taught me is how easy it is to get hurt and how quick people are to sue. Almost every person I told my story to assumed I was going to call a lawyer, which I did not do. But it really drove home the fact that I have to be insured before opening my shop up as the Maker Space I want it to be. <br />
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So now it seems some of my posts on this blog were not that wise after all. Sure it is fun for me to talk about tricking out a milling machine by boosting it from 24 volts to 220, and preventing all my neighbors from listening to AM radio at the same time. But a potential insurer seems to balk at things like that.<br />
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Here is a typical conversation-<br />
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[insurance person] " Ok, so you want to take discarded industrial equipment with unauthorized modifications, and then invite total strangers in to your home to operate this equipment. And, I might add, strangers with no experience or training."<br />
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[me] "Yes. And don't forget my discount for having a fire extinguisher and band aids."<br />
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[insurance person] "Get out."<br />
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[me] [incredulous] " What?, are you from Hackdirt?" <br />
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In any event, that is what has been happening. I will post more as things progress, or less if I find a cure for Vampirism. Sorry, but someone has to close those Oblivion gates. <br />
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I hope everyone has a Great Holiday Season. Whatever you are doing, enjoy yourself. That is what makes life worth living. <br />
Ken Krouthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15892687506810371341noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8248742754594693022.post-16640683179947759912016-08-25T09:15:00.000-07:002016-08-25T09:15:26.448-07:00 Duck-less Dynasty Hi everyone. Just an update on how things are progressing.<br />
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In one word- superb.<br />
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For starters sales are growing slowly and steady. Revenue matched the best year ever and there are still 4 months to go. And the advertising budget remains a steady $0. I have reached the conclusion after being literally crushed with ads that there are enough out there already. When I try to read the news and there are dozens of ads around, amidst, and across the article while 3-4 tiny videos play that more are not needed. The community is doing a great job of spreading the word and I am extremely grateful of that. <br />
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Meanwhile, I have found a new game and realized why my interest in gaming has vanished. Almost all new games feature a specific set of rules and minis to go with it. My boss has been talking about Kings of War and there are 2 local shops with gaming groups. I bought the books and like it quite a bit. It has inspired me to open up some dusty old boxes and bring out the troops. Tonight I am venturing out with a few veteran units to join the fun. Kings of War has very few specific rules so it seems right up my alley.<br />
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However, I am going to need some unit damage counters. This is a printed prototype and I will be mass producing them shortly. The product will be made of green plastic. The skull beads are made in the USA but not by me. I will by them in bulk and supply them with the counters.<br />
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Pretty useful, and the spacing allows you to count up to 19 wounds. I colored mine with a sharpie. The counters are going to be out as soon as I get the time, as I am going to need them.<br />
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More importantly, it got my motivation going to get cracking on that army I have been planning for some time.<br />
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The metal block goes in to the big CNC for roughing and locator pin milling. I am now using the proper oil for cutting that looks a lot like milk. </div>
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The little CNC gets the fine work. I removed the coolant system since graphite gets cut dry. There is a dust collector now installed on this machine that takes away the debris.<br />
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These are the roughed in blocks for the first figure set, scout archers.<br />
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I made a test graphite block and then a final one. Keeping track of all the settings is important. The goal is to standardize everything to increase the speed of making the mold and to allow repeatability.<br />
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The small round circle is my stop point. When that touches the EDM work is done. Only a small portion of the block is ever going to be burned, and the cavity has been pre-milled so only about .020" has to be removed.<br />
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With the fine settings the details are pretty good. The one things that still causes problems is the heroic nature of most gaming minis. Some of the details on this mini are pretty small but in proportion. I shelved my female sci fi troopers for a bit until I can make a woman with heroic boobs hold a heroic gun and make it look natural. Currently they look like the Michelin man playing bag pipes. </div>
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Meanwhile, these troops are planned to be kicking ass next summer at local tournaments! Not just these, but the rest of the lot. The whole bloody range.</div>
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There are still a LOT of things that can go wrong of course. Like the EDM of death.</div>
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There are a couple of setting that are the most important. First of all is output. Imagine if you were sanding something by hand, output would be the amount of force you are applying. At 1/16 you are lightly sanding fine furniture. Frequency is the same as the grit of the sandpaper. 250 is very fine, while .5 is a chain saw. Getting these 2 right is the next challenge. Go too light and fine and you will be measuring cutting time with a calendar. Go to harsh and there will be no details and a rough finish. Stay tuned, I am sure I will screw this up the first few dozen times..........................<br />
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Which brings me to the final update. What about those ducks? It is a tale worthy of J.R.R. Martin. A story that starts bad and grows steadily worse. Grab your happy pills and read on.................<br />
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We kept them safe until adulthood, when it was discovered that this breed is a flightless variety. The thing about buying ducklings from Tractor Supply in the spring is the knowledge that in a few months they simply fly away. Once in a while they come back to eat but eventually they blend in with the other ducks. So by fall they have joined with some wild ducks and off they go. <br />
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These 3 are too big to fly, which raises the perplexing problem of what to do over the winter. They were named Moe, Curly, and Larry by my daughter in a blatant but effective attempt to make me like them. As they grew Curly turned out to be a female, while Larry became the alpha male. The 3 of them chummed around together with me wondering what to do with them. Winter is Coming...........<br />
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One day 2 local dogs broke free and showed up. I was called out to the barn by my panicking daughter. A half grown great dane and a pit bull were attacking them. The pit bull had a steel cable hanging off him so he must have broken free. <br />
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Larry stood his ground and gave battle while the other ducks made it to safety. He was in the tiny pond and he was not routing as the others had. He had enough room to submerge and swim at them to pop up and startle them which kept them occupied. When I arrived I took the cable and put a lease on the great dane. We walked them a half mile to the owner identified on the tags. She actually complained that they were muddy, which is the equivalent of a murderer bemoaning their blood soaked suit.<br />
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The other ducks were fine, but Larry had a fair portion of his rear end torn off. In the summer heat he suffered, but flies swarmed around him and his walking was slow and difficult. <br />
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Enter Curly, his previous girlfriend, and Moe. Moe starts attacking the injured Larry with a vengeance. Over and over I chased him away but as soon as he could get at him he kept attacking. Larry would try to find shade from the sun to rest, but Moe was relentless. This was outrageous, and on par with draft dodging hippies spitting upon soldiers returning from Vietnam. Finally, in a moment I grew to regret, I shot Larry with the BB gun in the wing. It seemed like he needed a little Karma to settle his violent nature.<br />
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The plan worked, but now I had 2 injured ducks. At least Larry got to suffer in peace. I took this picture that last morning I seen him alive. I do not know where he went, but I think he died in peace. Although watching his girlfriend run off with the idiot you died defending had to be a real downer.<br />
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So about 2 weeks passed and then bird Karma finally caught up with Moe and Curly.<br />
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I found their bodies right outside the shop. The attack happened midday so not likely a fox. The female had been mostly eaten and a huge pile of feathers surrounded the body. Larry was 2 feet away with no injury other than a surgically severed head. There is a hawk around here most days, as I hear its screams. Researching online revealed plucking of feathers is characteristic of a hawk attack. I am guessing the hawk pounced down to eat the female and Larry finally grew a spine and tried to object, only to find out a duck bill is no match for the talons of a predator. I was reminded of the old song Screaming for Vengeance. <br />
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So, one less thing to worry about. Real life Game of Thrones plot line, eh? Pointless, relentless horrible things happening. (I still do not understand how that guy got rich peddling that garbage) <br />
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Ok, have a great Labor Day and I will update with some more info as it happens. <br />
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Ken Krouthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15892687506810371341noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8248742754594693022.post-45786850411024471862016-06-03T09:26:00.000-07:002016-06-03T09:26:31.151-07:00Feel the burn! Hi folks,<br />
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Well things are going Ok lately. I got some odds and ends to update.<br />
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As I disclosed previously the EDM missing word is Auto. Is it a mere coincidence that this important word was smudged out and all the safety circuits had been bypassed? Perhaps.<br />
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I decided a suitable warning label was in order.<br />
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I actually burned something this week. It is a pretty neat machine once you overcome your fear of massive electrical arcs in a solution of flammable oil. It has a clear door in the front and under power it sizzles like bacon frying. There are a great deal of charts telling you how to alter the settings. You have a gap setting, because the 2 pieces of metal never touch each other. There is also a power adjustment to determine how fast you want to cut, and a frequency adjustment to decide how many pulses per second you want to burn. This is going to be another trial and error process for sure.<br />
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And here is a burn I made this week.<br />
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The dark block at the top is a block of pencil style graphite, just a little higher density. The cavity suffers from me getting bored with slow progress and cranking it up to see just how fast it can go. Overall it seems a neat little piece of gear. This is the old method of doing these things. <br />
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Here is a pic of a very old mold made in the 60's by Aurora. <br />
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Things like this have been a huge help in the goal of trying to re-learn many things that were lost over the years. ( maybe a new word here- Archeo-industry?) One new advantage we have over the 60's is the use of 3D printers to test things out. Here are some bits printed out this week to test for size.<br />
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The waist on the girls is too small in relation to the hips so I am going to re-size. I already increased the guys legs by 120% to keep up with scale creep.<br />
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Here is the new Arburg controls. I installed audible and visual warning lights and all new matching temperature controls, fuses and relays. It works like a dream! It previously was running on a single functional control with the nozzle wired directly to 110 volt electric and the second heating unit having to be switched on and off manually resulting in erratic temperatures. <br />
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If you open the door wires will explode out like a bundle of spring loaded snakes. Note the advanced inventory system on the left and new mold storage on the right. I built that out of 2X10 lumber because those molds are heavy enough to sag lesser boards.<br />
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And speaking of springing out like a bundle of snakes......<br />
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I suspected there was a snake under a rock just outside the workshop and was surprised- (horrified) to find a hideous pile of snakes instead. Luckily I found out a garden hoe is actually +2 vs serpents and you automatically gain initiative if the serpents are caught unawares. Looks like the pond is safe for another year! <br />
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I actually have ducks again and so far have managed to keep them from getting eaten. <br />
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Although one day this behemoth was spotted walking in the creek and I think their luck may run out. This snapping turtle was so big I just let him go on his merry way. Maybe 15-20 pounds? You could actually hear him crashing through the grass as he approached. <br />
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Now for some other odds and ends. The tyrannical local government will not allow me to add any more room to the workshop so we still have no place to house the laser cutting machine. The previous rule was things had to be 5' off the property line. That was increased to 10' and now 15'. In addition all structures require footers and a building plan approved. This old style pole barn would not be allowed to be built today.<br />
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The other problem is the local overlords- (school board) will tax the living shit out of anyone and anything they can. If you so much as put a railing on your porch they can re-assess you and make you pay for that railing everyday for the rest of your life or until you finally break and can not afford it. Then they forcibly toss you in the street to die and confiscate your house. ( but hey, its for the kids!) I see so many really great empty buildings for sale that I could buy and have a great place to expand. But the iron boot of the teacher's union is ready to stomp on every throat. If I expand I have to leave this area and move to a more business friendly locale. Not going to happen. Too old and lazy. Plus this equipment is too hard to move. <br />
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The idea of a Makerspace for gaming is also facing one gigantic hurdle. Litigation. If anyone stops by to use any of the equipment and gets maimed it pretty much is the end of my life as it exists today. So the reality is that for as far as I can see in the future progress will be limited to the glacial pace of a single fat old geezer. Me.<br />
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Sorry for that pessimistic bit, my intent is for this this blog to give people ideas and inspiration. I also try to keep it as real as possible. It is my firmly held conviction that the world's economy is going through a lot of changes and will continue to do so. We are living in a lie based economy, where everything is as honest as an ex-cons resume. Fakebook and the internet seem to exist so people can avoid reality and pretend to be something else. People are bombarded all day long with the false images other people are presenting. <br />
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Someday a house of cards will tumble. The rise of robots is also going to make for a lot of extra humans roaming the planet with no real purpose. <br />
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There is a certain joy in making something with your imagination and your hands. People just need to find the right combination of tools and help and everyone can benefit. Life can be a win-win situation. Contact with collaborators is ongoing, some works out some does not. I am in contact with some amazing artists and hopefully you will someday get to have a look at some of their work. <br />
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So with that cliché soaked pep talk, let's get out there and go team!!Ken Krouthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15892687506810371341noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8248742754594693022.post-211892625528792382016-05-24T10:10:00.000-07:002016-05-24T10:10:01.784-07:00More show info Sorry, but I should have provided a link to the show- <a href="http://mfcashow.com/">http://mfcashow.com/</a><br />
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And while I am at it, a few pics my brother took!<br />
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That is about all the awesomeness I can take for one weekend!Ken Krouthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15892687506810371341noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8248742754594693022.post-40100203359466637482016-05-21T13:45:00.000-07:002016-05-21T13:45:38.074-07:00Inspiration! Hello again.<br />
The mystery word is "AUTO". A setting on any machine that deserves the fullest respect.<br />
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But more importantly-<br />
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Minutes ago I walked in the door from the miniature figure show at Valley Forge. I am going to post a bunch of photos which have humbled me as a painter for sure! There would be more pictures if my photography was not so shaky. Darn it I wished some of these had turned out better.<br />
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There were plenty of vehicles on display. I really liked the ferry built to invade England and of course the tank diorama is a timeless classic.<br />
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The dioramas or vignettes on display were really epic. You could look for hours and see something new. The artists were putting little details in that I was in awe of. Look at the coverings on the jousting horses.</div>
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Look close at these hand painted details. These knights were about 54mm scale, but still plenty small enough to make these sort of details amazing.</div>
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There were also a lot of busts with great creative artwork on them. The German soldier's binoculars are so realistic with weathering.<br />
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Some 40K stuff was also in the competition.<br />
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Chariots with some impressive bling. The hand painted Medusa face on the Greek chariot took some effort. All of the hand painted Persian rug and plaid stuff was really impressive.<br />
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And of course some fantasy stuff. <br />
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Very inspiring.<br />
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In addition I recently downloaded the entire set of 9th Age rules and printed them out. Maybe it is time to dust of some minis and try it out!<br />
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Since re-prioritizing my time to make more time in the shop almost everything has made a dramatic improvement. The Arburg is up next and I am rewiring and replacing all of the heating controls. Right now it is a chaotic pile of wires with no hope of repair, pretty much an average day.<br />
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All of the other equipment has been cleaned and refurbished. The EDM has all of the missing safety components in place. This Maker space is really starting to gel. <br />
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I will post more progress when I can. All the pieces are coming together, so things are looking great.<br />
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Have a good spring!<br />
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Ken Krouthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15892687506810371341noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8248742754594693022.post-4070583477950878872016-03-10T18:45:00.000-08:002016-03-10T18:45:45.364-08:00The Enigma Hello again.<br />
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It is spring time and hope springs eternal once more.<br />
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The past year or so has been a time of gathering my strength for one more push. And working some insane hours at numerous jobs to gather some extra cash. It was all part of a plan.......sort of made up as things went along. And now, the past couple weeks were spent to rebuild the new machine.<br />
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Here it is all assembled. The filter is replaced and years of crud scraped out of the tank. The drain hose is new. ($88 for a 6' section of hose? Are you kidding me?) The fill hose is new and the upper seal around the window is all replaced. I checked the electo-magnetic tool holder and it works fine. The pump sprays oil as it should. Lights are working now too. You push a button and compressed air floods the tank pushing dielectric fluid up in to the upper chamber. It must cover the work as all cutting must be done submerged to avoid igniting things. There is a copper wire inside the fill hose that grounds out the tank to prevent the gases trapped in there from igniting and blowing the tank apart. Overall it looks extremely safe and the odds of igniting this special fluid seem to be very remote. A cheaper alternative is to use kerosene as your dielectric fluid in which case the odds of ignition worsen exponentially. I spent the money and went with less-flammable stuff. It seemed prudent as the insurance company now refuses to cover my workshop, for some bizarre and inexplicable reason. I do not understand how they stay in business. I have had loads of experience with accidents and mishaps and yet they do not give me any credit for learning from those situations. Instead they will happily insure someone who has never so much as blew up an outdoor grill. Makes no sense.</div>
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Anyhow, so far so good. I plan to do some test cutting next week, depending on how many bases I have to produce to keep things in stock. </div>
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There is one small nagging question that I have not been able to figure out.</div>
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This switch seems important. It is in a very obvious spot and is claims to define the status of the ram. Sort of like your status on Facebook, although they give a lot of options including no less than 58 genders to choose from. This switch is just one way or the other. </div>
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It must have been used heavily by some ham-fisted machinist back in the day causing the words to rub off. Using the same techniques used by Zecharia Sitchin to decipher the cuneiform clay tablets of the Ancient Sumerians, I have concluded that the top word should be "Locked". This means a safe and secured position I assume.</div>
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The bottom word is the real challenge. It seems it ends in "O". It could be NO, as in "Do not ever switch to this setting". Or maybe, "Is this locked?" And the answer is "NO". Still seems a bit strange.</div>
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It might be the end of a "D", but I am not certain. The "O" seems more plausible. And judging from the location of the "O" it might actually be a 3 letter word. The only decent 3 letter word ending in "O" is of course "UFO". </div>
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At this point it is probably just wishful thinking that the machine has a "UFO" setting. Ruling that out maybe "SLO". Why would they misspell the word slow? </div>
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It has to be some sort of 2-3 letter synonym for "UNLOCKED". Maybe they could not fit the word unlocked on the surface so resorted to an abbreviation of some sort. Of course the top word might not be "Locked" , which pretty much throws everything up for grabs. </div>
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It might be best to just turn things on and throw the switch back and forth under various conditions and see what happens. Learning all of this is going to take a bit but someday it should all bear fruit.</div>
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I plan on making another blog post once the EDM machine gets figured out. It really should be a massive game changer. Along with the 3D printer it is a lot of investment in time and money that will someday pay for itself I hope.</div>
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And one last note, there are a couple of egg shaped bases in the store. I made these for some customers to rebase their cavalry models. I also lowered the price of the magic tokens. At current sales rates there will still be some left forever. I do not plan on making any more if by any chance this first run ever sells out. </div>
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I leave you with a couple of quotes you should never dwell on.</div>
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From the 40K book I think- " Hope is the first step on the road to disappointment."</div>
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And from Latrell Sprewell- "Success is just failure that hasn't happened yet." </div>
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Life is a little more magical when you take some time and ignore reality and think about the possibilities. </div>
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Take a look at this film-<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFq_fOa5rEk" target="_blank">Dudes and Dragons .</a> A film made by people on a budget. I watched the little "making of" feature on the DVD and was massively inspired. And actually it was a lot better than it should have been given the methods they used. I give them the utmost respect for the ability to do something like this.</div>
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Have fun guys. </div>
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Ken Krouthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15892687506810371341noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8248742754594693022.post-57419754359033324132016-01-17T08:06:00.002-08:002016-01-17T08:06:25.692-08:00Inspiration You tend to find inspiration in the oddest of places sometimes. This commercial seemed to sum up things pretty nicely for how things have transpired over the months of tinkering. But watching it has really got my mojo going again.<br />
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<iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/giJxJdSuq74/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/giJxJdSuq74?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
It is a very true statement that filling your head with knowledge can sometimes push out the important stuff. Ignorance is vastly undervalued when it comes to discovery.<br />
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BTW. The EDM machine actually turns on. Still not burning yet, but it hums a little when you throw the switch.<br />
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Oh yeah!!!Ken Krouthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15892687506810371341noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8248742754594693022.post-24812626522911907862016-01-13T05:44:00.001-08:002016-01-13T05:44:47.071-08:00Another New Year- off and running. Hello again. <br />
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Well a new year dawns and with it my unrealistic expectations of what is possible. Constrained by the draconian impositions of a 24 hour day and the wasteful need to sleep it may be possible to get everything done.<br />
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Fortunately last year sales were pretty much on par with the 2 years before that. Overall retail sales have been growing while contract work has been steadily dwindling. The latter due to the brutally short life span of some hobby start ups. Some things are doing well and others have been gigantic flops. The Magic poker chips may be the worst product ever. Absolutely no one likes them. It was rejected as a news item- (now you know why I need to be nicer to people), and got me banned for life from a forum for even mentioning them. And this was a marketplace forum of things for sale. The second worst product reception of the year, and would have been number one if not for that Sigmar thingy. Last year I ran about 35,000 parts so that keeps me busy. I do hope to make something new this year at some point. Not poker chips I can assure you.<br />
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But things are looking up in a couple of ways.<br />
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I continue the vertical integration strategy with this new beauty.<br />
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It is the EDM machine. All 1350 pounds of it. Some days a fork truck would come in handy. In my feeble old age I was reduced to getting help moving it. What a disgrace. I am running wiring today to connect it. It runs 30 amp single phase. The problem is that it requires a specialty oil to use. I really thought this would not be a problem until I learned it takes 30 freaking gallons and it costs $30 per gallon. I almost needed a kick starter to buy oil for crying out loud. Instead it was some extra hours at construction and I am picking the oil up today. I got a discount code for checkout and saved a bit of cash which helped.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oSgIRDLtQAo/VpZGfKUCxAI/AAAAAAAABGM/gutaC32-qEk/s1600/IMG_1947.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oSgIRDLtQAo/VpZGfKUCxAI/AAAAAAAABGM/gutaC32-qEk/s320/IMG_1947.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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This is the control panel. You can see there are switches, dials, knobs and buttons. Pretty much the entire range of things to play with. Not really sure what any of them do except maybe the on button. Will be finding out soon though. </div>
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The instruction manual includes the usual cliche safety warnings- "Acid is not to be used to rinse eyes" and other such drivel. It also has these helpful charts.</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CrdJOgghSmw/VpZJ7B0wfuI/AAAAAAAABGk/vZP5q9yul-M/s1600/IMG_1951.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CrdJOgghSmw/VpZJ7B0wfuI/AAAAAAAABGk/vZP5q9yul-M/s320/IMG_1951.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Pretty straight forward if you have a degree in calculometry I am sure. Unfortunately I skipped that class along with all the other ones so Google is going to have to be my friend on this one.</div>
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The real advantage of the EDM is that it should allow me to do everything. It is the last piece in the puzzle, aside form the critical lack of manpower. </div>
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In reshuffling the shop I took the time to set up a resin casting and paint/hobby area.</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4wrs7xHnE1A/VpZGf3jam_I/AAAAAAAABGc/wTCsQInyViw/s1600/IMG_1950.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4wrs7xHnE1A/VpZGf3jam_I/AAAAAAAABGc/wTCsQInyViw/s320/IMG_1950.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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The speakers hanging on the wall are from my old Army days purchased in a pawn shop in about 1986. Kept them all these years and now get to enjoy them while painting. Even got a mini fridge now. The map on the wall is a magnetic campaign map for a failed Warhammer battle generator. The system seemed to work great but the game fell apart when folks got to fighting in real life and the tabletop. I will run this again someday.</div>
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The 3D printer is taking some tinkering to get dialed in but results are improving. Tip #1- spray the bed with hairspray to make the first row stick. It helps a lot.</div>
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And finally, the real carnage of a real battle.</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--OHSIvlIU5Y/VpZGfTTpYlI/AAAAAAAABGU/A58mWnpGZuY/s1600/IMG_1943.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--OHSIvlIU5Y/VpZGfTTpYlI/AAAAAAAABGU/A58mWnpGZuY/s320/IMG_1943.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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While replacing those leaking pipes I inadvertently opened up a passageway for yellow jackets living in my wall to invade. The ongoing battle lasted weeks with the bees suffering heavy losses. Every day a new swarm was flying around in the rec room. They seemed to exhibit a primitive tactic of flying in to a window glass over and over again. When pressed, they adapted this to crawling up pants legs and stinging or falling down shirts and stinging. At the height of the blitz there were about 50 in the air at once. Now we are down to the occasional straggler. It seems the hive lacks the resources to launch another full scale attack. That might change in the spring. I have got to patch that hole someday. </div>
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My goal this year is to recruit some sort of partner, but that is not really likely so we will see what I can get done myself. The ideal person can work and think. If pressed I will take a worker. Thinkers are out of the question. People who are convinced that thinking alone gets things done are frustrating to me. Thinking about making a sandwich is integral to making a sandwich. But if you don't crack open a loaf of bread you are going to starve to death setting on your ass thinking about it. </div>
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I want to once again thank all the great folks who have helped me along the way. It has been a great adventure so far. Last week shipped the 5000th order. Really amazing. People have been wonderful with an extremely rare exception or two. Not sure how many customers read this, but if you are thanks. And if you are reading this out of morbid curiosity waiting for the inevitable implosion, thanks to you as well. </div>
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Let's see where this year leads.</div>
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Ken Krouthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15892687506810371341noreply@blogger.com5