last week i asked one of the machinists at work if i could do some mill work on a part for my motorcycle. i showed him the original part and explained why it wouldn't work for my aplication and drew a sketch of what i wanted. i told him that i would sweep up the machine shop after i made my mess that included the mess already there. he agreed and gave me a quick rundown on the old mill (i didn't get to use the new mill) and the large drillpress. after i did my work and cleaned up i thanked him and the weekend p***ed. today we got a rush job and he asked if i was caught up with my work in the welding shop. i am 2 weeks ahead on my project so i got to cut out the parts (which is normal with the plasma table in the welding shop) latout, drill and tap the holes. i know it doesn't sound like much but i got to do something different that will help me out later. now i'm gonna try the jigmill... just a little encouragement, that if you show interest and are willing to give, not just get, you can improve your ability. in this case i got paid to do it and i understand the difference between learning and figuring out. learning has always been cheaper and less painful for me. just my $.05
That is awesome. Congrats! Thats is pretty much how I became a machinists apprentice. My neighbor built race engines and I asked if he would show me how to machine my 426. He showed me, let me do the work with supervision so that I didn't destroy anything. Got me a part time gig as student/laborer while he built engines and did tool & die work on the side. I learned a lot. He got pissed when I told him I had to get out of Arkansas. I joined the Marine Corps and haven't seen him since 86'. I appreciate all that he taught me and have done my best to teach what little I know when I get the opportunity.
Best way to get ahead plus you always learn something new everyday when you have a positive at***ude ! There is nothing better than learning something new on the job and the boss like your work . That's a win , win situation ! Good work ! Retro Jim
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