[TheForge] Re: Old Putterers

[Ries Niemi]

>
> Ries> Modern tools are not made for old putterers like most of us...
>
> I *do* understand that you didn't mean that as a condescending slur --
> you did, after all, use the first person *plural*.  But I've had my
> perspective at least since I was 27, arguably earlier.
>
> I have neither the skill (aka ignorance) nor the temperament (aka
> stupidity) to run a business such a Ries does.  But I'm (possibly
> overly) touchy about such locutions as "old putterer".  There is a big
> and variegated middle ground between bottom-line oriented biz and
> feeble old farts puttering around, between biz and "hobby".  It's
> getting gradually more difficult to occupy that ground with dignity
> and style but it is, IMHO, worth the effort.
>
>
> - Mike
>


I certainly didnt mean the term in a derogatory fashion.
But what I am trying to get at is that there are people who limit 
themselves by insisting they will never buy new, or use modern tech, or 
even get a job.
I have a friend who is one of the smartest guys I know- he is a whiz 
with lasers and holograms, and can build just about anything from junk, 
and have it work.
He has a self limiting attitude, though, which would never allow him to 
play with the big boys.
I am not advocating selling out, or running with the big dogs on Wall 
Street.
But I do think that certain modern tools, even though they are 
expensive to buy, use expensive consumables, and wear out expensive 
parts regularly, are indeed superior to homemade stuff cobbled together 
from scrap.
There are a few guys I know who can work wonders with dumpster rejects- 
I have a friend who built a working airplane from exercise machines and 
lawnmowers he got from peoples yards on garbage day, and a propellor 
made from a pallet with a router.
But only because he was such a singular genius could he ever get to 
that point, and if he just got over it and used real tools, he probably 
would have a working homemade space shuttle in his yard.
Tig welding is a good example- yes, you can use a gas torch to do some, 
but not all of what a tig welder will do, and yes, a new tig welder is 
fiendishly expensive. However, the time and money saved, and the higher 
quality of welds means you can use your brains and hands to better 
purpose, and get more, better things done.
Similarly a CNC milling machine can do things quicker, easier, and 
better, than the greatest old machinist on a bridgeport.
Nothing wrong with old guys with bridgeports- I am one. But making 
those technological leaps enables some really cool stuff to get done.
Frankly, those boring dudes in industry dont deserve all the good toys- 
we could do much better things with them, if we could only get our 
hands on em.
To see an artist, or a real craftsman, explore the potential of a tool 
is awe inspiring- like the stuff Abrasha does with a milling machine, 
or Grant Sarver does with his 3D CAD and CNC mill-


Ries Niemi
Industrial Artist

http://www.RiesNiemi.com