Trying to get back on track after being discouraged

[commuter ebikes]

Other than links without comment to the YouTube videos, I never posted much about the TIG Steel Frame Building class at United Bicycle Institute. I was so encouraged about frame building when I was heading to school, but I felt completely flattened and deflated on the way home.

The instructor was short on patience and (in my opinion) burned out, but I blame myself because I assumed that the frame building classes would be like the mechanics classes. I also made it harder on myself not taking written notes because the instructor definitely did not like saying anything twice. If anybody is going to take a class, you have to take written notes, redo the notes every night and ask any remaining questions the next morning.

These days, I am back at work working only about 45 hours/week for awhile, but I have done very little in the shop in the two weeks that I have been home. I am having to resort to making this post about how I will get back to the positive space that I was in before heading off to school. I was one productive mofo before going to frame building classes, and I have most of the tooling that I need and a long list of work to do.

[max_volt]

Sorry to hear of the speed-bumps but life is a cycle if you will, a series of ups and downs. You are a prolific bikist so keep up the good works.

[commuter ebikes]

What I won't do:
(1) dwell on the negative aspects of the last three classes at UBI, and
(2) be lazy and waste time on the computer

What I will do:
(1) remember the good times in the mechanic's classes at UBI,
(2) at the first opportunity, clean the shop (which always involves just putting a few things away), and
(3) attack my To Do list

[commuter ebikes]

Sorry to hear of the speed-bumps but life is a cycle if you will, a series of ups and downs. You are a prolific bikist so keep up the good works.

I think once I get back into my old routine, I will be fine. The key may be putting away the laptop.

Most of our ebikes could not have been built without the internet (and Google!), but the computer can be a huge time waster. It is ridiculous that a grown man would mope like this. No more. I was killin' it in my shop just 7 weeks ago. I wasted the six days I was home from school (between classes) and the last two weeks. I will never get back that time.

[commuter ebikes]

Weird thing to do, but I am posting my To Do list. In the past, I have only had 1 or 2 projects, but now I have five projects going on at once. The school project doesn't involve much because it only requires waiting for my next vacation and enrolling in the classes.

Projects

Jacob's bike:

Prep frame for powder
Take frame and fork to powder coater
Buy hubs, rims, spokes, nipples and Tannus tires
Build wheels
Buy other parts
Assemble

Bench test rig:

Make a list of what parts I need to test systems
Fab heat sink/controller mount
Fab pannier mount and battery boxes
Pick up frame from powder coater

Tube Welding Practice:

Find tube notching program
Make 60 degree paper template
Consume current stock of filler & electrodes
Buy CREW tubing
Buy .045" ER70S-2 and 1/16" lanthanated electrodes

Frame Building Shop:

Buy horizontal mill
Buy Anvil fixtures
Make a list of other tooling

School:

Hang up certificates
Take TIG and Machining classes at The Crucible
Enroll in GTAW (2 weeks), GTAW SS and Ti (1 week) and Weldability of Metals (1 week) in Ohio
Take machining classes in Houston

[JPLabs]

What a good to do list, though. each can be very satisfying.

I liked seeing tube welding practice listed. Free (almost) school, with a patient teacher. cut up your own welds and grade them. you can!

I was discouraged daily, lately, by a messy shop. I cleaned off the floor Saturday, and my bench Sunday. I walk-in in later, I'd forgotten, so surprised myself, pleasantly.

it is VERY motivating to have the shop ready to go, so every task wont have to start with the unpleasant chore of cleaning a spot to work. Good plan.

Even if the class wasn't up to your expectations, I bet you know more now about the subject, and what you stil DONT know. that IS valuable.

You'll feel better after you dig in again!

[JPLabs]

Bump for motivation! Hope you are getting psyched up again.

[commuter ebikes]

Oh, I am definitely back to where I was. Once I got wrenching again, I am right back to blazing through my list. Wrenching and welding is so fun.

I got a financial boost when a buddy gifted me some good stuff to sell on eBay, so all that money went to the bike parts for the two frames that I built at school. The powder coater has the ball in his court now.

So now I just need to save up for a horizontal mill (with the associated tooling) and all of the Anvil fixtures. That will take me a whole year to save up for just those two items.

I start the Structural Welding classes at The Hobart Institute in Troy, OH in January. There are 23 weeks of classes, so that will take me three years of vacations. I will definitely be sure to take written notes all the time and rewrite those notes daily so that I won’t have the same problem at Hobart that I had at UBI.

I will always be evangelizing to any students that I meet to take written notes.

The next time I encounter an instructor that appears to be burned out, I will definitely bring it up with the instructor. My tuition at UBI for the last three classes was $7,000 and I still have that whole balance that I am paying off my credit card. I definitely did not get $7,000 worth of instruction on that trip, but that is water under the bridge.

[JPLabs]

Great! I'm glad to hear it. Keep on making life fun!

[commuter ebikes]

Life is good. I just spent all the money I had on a crankset, bottom bracket and headset. Life just doesn’t get any better than that!