To get things kicked off here I will go ahead and introduce myself and give a bit of backstory into some of the knowledge and experience that I have so far into this (granted I will say I am still really new to this trade). Firstly, my name is Matthew, I usually always find myself tinkering with all sorts of different things from simple hardware to electronics to complex mechanics. All depends on the day and the mood that I'm in. I grew up on a farm and my Grandfather taught me quite a bit before I moved away and he ultimately passed away June last year (2023, for any of you reading in the future).
My Grandpa, or Papa as I called him, was my inspiration to try and learn new things. From sitting and watching shuttle launches together off the dish tv in the living room and learning more about space physics. To small engine mechanics/repair and basic car maintenance. Woodworking and metalworking, different projects to make around the house. I remember building two syrup evaporators, the second one just a bit bigger (maybe 50 gallon bigger?). Papa would encourage me to take things apart when they would break to see if I could fix them. Why? "It's already broken, worst that's gunna happen is you break it more. Best thing is you fix it and either way you learn from both cases."
In high school, I didn't take wood shop 1 or 2 but got tossed into wood shop 3. Mr. Atwell at the time was not happy when he found out about this. The office would do this as a "dump class" when they couldn't figure out a class for a student to go to every so many years. I was that student that year that. Fortunately (or unfortunately?) for me Mr. Atwell soon saw that I was doing really good in Wood shop 3. After I handed over a few drawings of some of my projects to him he realized that I'd be okay. Mr. Atwell after two months of me being there asked if I could help teach the class for my grade, as a dozen and a half rowdy teenagers around dangerous equipment could be a recipe for disaster. It was my highest grade that year. I did take basic woodshop and metal shop in high school where I learned how to do the basics of drafting. I kept the skill with me today and use it from time to time. I'm trying to find a really nice PC version of it to hopefully share some free ones with you on here and possibly sell some prints later on.
I spent three years in the maintenance field at a tool and die company in my local area, nothing too crazy there. Just doing preventative maintenance, oiling machines, and cleaning as needed. This is where I learned the importance of proper upkeep on equipment rather than keeping things going just to keep them going. As well as, the true value of my work. I should have left that company sooner, rather than later. Nonetheless, I will digress from this topic and move onto the next one. I also became a Volunteer Fire Fighter for roughly three years starting around this time when I was getting ready to leave this company. Saw a lot of different tools and experienced a lot of experiences that I never would have joined in the first place.
I spent some time (a year on and a year on and off) doing landscaping and some minor masonry work for a company and for self employment (while I worked a second job, of course). This allowed me to learn some new things that got me to see some different tools that I never got to see that I thought was interesting as well. Did some traveling going from jobsite to jobsite with the landscaping crews when I was with the company, not so much when I was self employed as I stayed in the local area. Having to make a tool on the fly to do a job on occasion wasn't in the job description but was necessary from time to time depending on the situation. However, nothing that required a forge and anvil of course. This still required me to think outside the box.
From there I became a Security Guard at an automotive (and soon to be solar) glass manufacturing plant for about a year. Afterwards, I got hired directly into the plant and started working in the general labor pool. Once I was trained and qualified in both Wareroom and Tank departments, an opening and the Hot Repair Department for Back-Ups came up and I signed up to try out. The department itself is solely in charge of maintaining the furnace during the entire campaign. It's hot grueling work and the plant is running 24/7, 365 days a year! I was ecstatic to do it when started training after my first tryout. After I finished training, I went back to crew and I was just so amused (yay D: ). However my time would come and I would be asked to step into permeant hot repair. Obviously, I said yes. Then I was asked if I wanted the team leader position, to which I said yes again. It' has really gotten me to open up my brain again and really think outside the box and truly problem solve a lot of complex issues. I really love what I do, I'm in the heat, I'm on my feet (literally and metaphorically) and it's all good comradery. The work trips are amazing as well. A bit about some of the drafting skills that I have, they aren't perfect but they aren't bad. You can defiantly build something out of them and they are legible for hand drawn prints. Once I have some nice ones drawn up for this I will get them scanned in and I will share a few free ones. I'd love to try and find a good CAD program that isn't too expensive either for PC just to have and I've been doing some research on that, but not nearly as much as I should (It's been on other things at the current time).
Unfortunately, life has it's hurdles it loves to throw at us. Recently I had a medical issue that has me out of work for a bit and I'm having to slow things down a bit. I saw myself on a double edged sword there, I was going too hard too long. It all got me all at once. I'll take it for what it's worth, so be it. Kick in the teeth now, but you know I need a good hobby and this is something I have been wanting to do since I left high school and this is what I have been wanting to get into. So here it is.
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