ElderlyGent
Member
Good mornig all.
I hope that this thread may be of some help to others who may already be in or may at some time join me in the position I now find myself.
So what is the problem? in a word, Blindness.
Usually we are born with two eyes, and in most cases they have excellent vision, which is a decided advantage for fine woodworking.
I had them until in 1962 a split scond of inattention which was entirely my own fault I lost my right eye. I was told ny my GP, a personal friend also, who fought behind Japanese lines in WW2 and lost an eye during one of his more exciting times that I must never let anything beat me as it might later lead to making it an excuse for not doing something.
This became a Mantra for me and led to getting a Pilots licence. SCUBA, driving fast cars amongst other things which included a lot of building, carpentry, DIY etc. So I have been a maker of sorts for many years.
A few years ago I was watching my Brother-in-Law turning a Pen Blank and after he showed me how to put it all together he challenged me to do the same.
By this itme I had had a Veinal Occlusion in that remaining eye which cost me the sight of the bottom right hand quadrant. OK but with a lot of trepidation, never having done wood turning, though a lot of it with metal lathework in the workplace, I had a go. Not too bad a result. This then led me into bowls, platters, etc.
At this point I should add that I am now on the verge of becomming a nonogenarian, yes, passing that 90 year old line.
A few years ago I found Vectric and this opened up a new world of possibilities...... CNC. Not knowing if it was the THING FOR ME and as with poor sight the thought of trying to build one from scratch as there didn't seem to be fully built ones at that time in the UK I imported a very small one from the USA, a Next Wave Piranha, which has only a foot square (300 mm, I still am stuck in Imperial) work area. In hindsight this was an error as it really limits job size.
I found this to be a really interesting road to go down and found that he more I learned, the more ther is lurkong on the horizon. I have moved up the learning curve and eventually did some of the Monthly Freebies inckuding the Paradise box and the Fancy That one as well.
But without warning on one of my eye checkups I was told that a cataract was forming and needed removal. I researched it and saw that it was safewith only 1 in 1000 with problems. Those odds seemed to be fine, so I agreed tothe op.
Came the day and it was done, but while waiting for the eye to settle I felt that something was wrong. Did I say 1 in 1000? Yup, but I was the ONE.
Spiked Occular Pressure off the charts, kept in overnight for observastion. Now I am totally photophobic. Any brightness and I am best part blind. Then to add insult to injury AMD joined the party so now I have lost my central vision as well.
So the Mantra kicks in. Now how do I cope with this? I use a PC with a large screen, and can magnify any text or drawing as needed. in fact I am typing this in 30 point and looking sideways at it using peripheral vision to see the typos etc.
The same applies to Vectric. Having moved up tp Pro I got the Box and Dovetail Creator gadgets. The thought of trying to make those by hand would be a complete fiasco, as would so much else, so stick with the CNC. Do the design and let the machine do the cutting. To see me in the shed setting the Home Point and the Touch Screen and finding the right toolpath to use, bent over the controlller peering through a magnifying glass, could cause some merriment for any chance observer.
I admit to having had a lot of problems with tight joints, some are fine but others a real headache as I try to use the same settings but get different results.
I hope that this thread may be of some help to others who may already be in or may at some time join me in the position I now find myself.
So what is the problem? in a word, Blindness.
Usually we are born with two eyes, and in most cases they have excellent vision, which is a decided advantage for fine woodworking.
I had them until in 1962 a split scond of inattention which was entirely my own fault I lost my right eye. I was told ny my GP, a personal friend also, who fought behind Japanese lines in WW2 and lost an eye during one of his more exciting times that I must never let anything beat me as it might later lead to making it an excuse for not doing something.
This became a Mantra for me and led to getting a Pilots licence. SCUBA, driving fast cars amongst other things which included a lot of building, carpentry, DIY etc. So I have been a maker of sorts for many years.
A few years ago I was watching my Brother-in-Law turning a Pen Blank and after he showed me how to put it all together he challenged me to do the same.
By this itme I had had a Veinal Occlusion in that remaining eye which cost me the sight of the bottom right hand quadrant. OK but with a lot of trepidation, never having done wood turning, though a lot of it with metal lathework in the workplace, I had a go. Not too bad a result. This then led me into bowls, platters, etc.
At this point I should add that I am now on the verge of becomming a nonogenarian, yes, passing that 90 year old line.
A few years ago I found Vectric and this opened up a new world of possibilities...... CNC. Not knowing if it was the THING FOR ME and as with poor sight the thought of trying to build one from scratch as there didn't seem to be fully built ones at that time in the UK I imported a very small one from the USA, a Next Wave Piranha, which has only a foot square (300 mm, I still am stuck in Imperial) work area. In hindsight this was an error as it really limits job size.
I found this to be a really interesting road to go down and found that he more I learned, the more ther is lurkong on the horizon. I have moved up the learning curve and eventually did some of the Monthly Freebies inckuding the Paradise box and the Fancy That one as well.
But without warning on one of my eye checkups I was told that a cataract was forming and needed removal. I researched it and saw that it was safewith only 1 in 1000 with problems. Those odds seemed to be fine, so I agreed tothe op.
Came the day and it was done, but while waiting for the eye to settle I felt that something was wrong. Did I say 1 in 1000? Yup, but I was the ONE.
Spiked Occular Pressure off the charts, kept in overnight for observastion. Now I am totally photophobic. Any brightness and I am best part blind. Then to add insult to injury AMD joined the party so now I have lost my central vision as well.
So the Mantra kicks in. Now how do I cope with this? I use a PC with a large screen, and can magnify any text or drawing as needed. in fact I am typing this in 30 point and looking sideways at it using peripheral vision to see the typos etc.
The same applies to Vectric. Having moved up tp Pro I got the Box and Dovetail Creator gadgets. The thought of trying to make those by hand would be a complete fiasco, as would so much else, so stick with the CNC. Do the design and let the machine do the cutting. To see me in the shed setting the Home Point and the Touch Screen and finding the right toolpath to use, bent over the controlller peering through a magnifying glass, could cause some merriment for any chance observer.
I admit to having had a lot of problems with tight joints, some are fine but others a real headache as I try to use the same settings but get different results.
I have drifted into box making and would really like to get to the standard I see pictures of as they would make great gifts or even perhaps pay for the materials. Perhaps there is a croup that specialises in this?
We, that is my wife and I tried Craft Fairs but as I live on the Isle of Man there is a very limited market for pens etc.
I use just 12 mm ply for now as there is NO hardwood here and I do not want to waste very expensive timber with something that is not perfect. I used to be able to get Sapele but no longer available.I would like to use different woods for the sides and the ends.
I add a couple of photos of the test boxes and joints so far to show progress. Several went into the waste bin.
I hope this tale may help any on here that are starting to or already have the first signs of impending sight loss. The Mantra sequel is Adapt and Survive.
I shall post mors photos from time to time in the hope that I can gain advice and progress to Craft Standard.
Finally for now, my wife who is 20 years younger has insisted that I live to at least 100.
Best to all, stay safe and well.
EG.
