Have you ever felt lazy or no longer interested to build engines ?

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I do. By the time I am finished a build, I am totally burned out, and don't want to even think about machining. After two or three weeks away from machining, I will have a new idea and start thinking of how I would do it, and that idea pulls me back into the machine shop.---Brian
 
I have more one hobby and will switch from time to time.
Basically I change to time of year or starts feeling like going to work.

My other hobby is welding and do my drawings in winter for both hobbies.
I also limit my time hobbies to 8 to 24 hours a week. The rest of time doing things with my wife and keeping the home up.

Dave

Hi All !
Have you ever felt lazy or no longer interested to build engines ?
Now, I feel lazy in building the engine
And you ?
 
In the past I always had too much energy. Loved the Navy and 12 hour plus days never bothered me. Retirement allowed time with my machines. Along the way I discovered I might be getting old. I cherish a break now and then from making engines and just sit. Sitting can be fun. Gives me time to count my blessings. AND they are many.
 
When I stall on any project, I stop, put it away "for a rainy day" (we get a lot in the UK.), then start to tidy the garage....
Within minutes I have found a completely different project to distract me.
Or I go for a drive with my better half, look at the sea, ships, beaches, or rotten weather, then feel much more like a bit more "garage time".
The major distraction is the varied and interesting comments on this website. Keeps me lazy and occupies the mind to stave-off senility! So much to learn, and so much inspiration. Including your stuff, Minh.
Thanks all for keeping me sane.
K2
 
I am glad you raised this as I am currently suffering this lull too. It has happened many times over the years and I have often put a project aside only to pick it back up months or years later.
I often think 'Why am I doing this?'
Usually I get my Mojo back within a month or two. Doing repairs for other folk often helps to keep the mind and soul going in the interim. :)
 
Heck we all get burnt out on something for a little while, change is good but we will always go back to what we really enjoy, retired at 68 and now 71, I do get tired of several things but some I have to do, keep up the place, keep her trucked washed, large garden, still love getting lathes and restoring them, a few months ago I went to work suppose be part time as a heavy equipment operator, well the part time is full time so now I look forward to a rain out and then doing mechanic work for him besides the lawnmower repair shop at home, some days would like to stop it all and move in an apartment with nothing to do and no grass to cut but I know not to make a decision like that, us kind of people I guess will always be a tinkers.
 
Thanks everyone !
There's a lot of work to complete an engine, we have to do it all by ourselves, we have to deal with the obstacles on our own.... that seem to wear away patience and excitement
But : a hobby is still a hobby ! Sometime it will come back.
 
For me there is always the difficult moment to start.
Especially when an engine has a fault but is essentially running.
My 5" gauge class 216 was running slow and did not have much power.
So converting the onboard system from 12 to 24 Volts was the idea.
The controllers were able to cope with both voltages, so no change here.
Just swap the arrangement of the batteries and replace the motors.
BUT:
It took some time to actually start taking the "actually working" loco apart in order to get the improvement done.
As soon as the first parts came off, I went on an finished the project.
The decision to start took a few days.
 
I have mentioned before, but I worked for about 4 years to learn how to machine engine parts.
I would attempt one part at a time, such as a cylinder head, flywheel, cylinder, piston, piston rings, etc.

Generally it took me at least four failures to finally get to where I could make a usable part.
I would fail, put it aside for a while, and then come back and try it again a week or so later.
I have lots of ruined parts, but I did learn how to machine.

Ditto for learning foundry work.
My early casting attempts were terrible failures, and I had a poor understanding of the entire casting/molding process.
I gave up on learning casting work many times over a six year period, but can now pour gray iron engine parts with impunity, and basically never get a bad casting.

And the process was repeated when I was trying to learn 3D modeling.
It was so frustrating for so long, and I would put it all away and swear that I would never be able to learn 3D modeling.
It took me a few years to learn Solidworks, but I finally got that figured out too.

Making an engine is like carving a statue from a block of marble.
You have to chip away at it for a while before an image begins to take shape, and then you have to refine your techinique to produce the fine details.
But it can be done.
People can learn and do far more than they realize; the key is you have to keep trying, and not get discouraged.

.
 
Minh-Thanh, Thanks for bringing this up. The discussion shows that we all have a lot in common here, and no matter what, somebody else has been through it too. And as we get older, the time and energy available to us isn't what it was even 5 years ago, so some rearrangement of priorities has to be done.

I think the important thing for me (and probably most of us) is not being too hard headed to realize when that general change in ambition or interest or initiative, is becoming a problem for ourselves, or for the people we care about. I can be pretty dumb about spotting that as early as I could/should.
 
One of the many things I like about this hobby is that there is no deadline. It is very easy to pick up and start where one left off, be it a day, a week or, a month or 2 later. Now that the warmer weather is here, I will probably be doing more outdoor activities, but my build in progress will still be there and ready to be worked on again anytime I get the urge.
 
I retired just few years ago do to chemotherapy. FYI my last PET scan was clear for first since 2009. Now to recover from chemotherapy.

I only work in shop when warm it not heated but does have a good cooler.
I found by doing different things all week long keeps hobby fresh and interesting. In past post I limit my time to 8 to 24 hours a week. Oods are I would spend more time if I was not married I would spend more time.

Dave

Heck we all get burnt out on something for a little while, change is good but we will always go back to what we really enjoy, retired at 68 and now 71, I do get tired of several things but some I have to do, keep up the place, keep her trucked washed, large garden, still love getting lathes and restoring them, a few months ago I went to work suppose be part time as a heavy equipment operator, well the part time is full time so now I look forward to a rain out and then doing mechanic work for him besides the lawnmower repair shop at home, some days would like to stop it all and move in an apartment with nothing to do and no grass to cut but I know not to make a decision like that, us kind of people I guess will always be a tinkers.
 
Not exactly the same thing, but related - I try to recognize when I am getting tired / frustrated as I work, so that I stop before I have an accident. This has been learned by not stopping when I should, and totally mucking up a part ... or making yet another blood sacrifice to the machining gods!
 
It's just a hobby so I there is nothing I'm doing that HAS to be done. I have walked out to the shop, turned on the lights, setup the mill, drilled the first hole the wrong size, shut off the lights, and gone back in the house. Who cares. Try again tomorrow and get many hours or productive time in. If you are struggling or just don't feel like it, don't! Keeps it more fun and that will keep you from getting burned out.
 
A lot of great comments. Lockdown has hurt all of us. The machine shows were a great inspiration. Rubbing elbows with other hobby machinists and speaking machine speak. This site allows me to enjoy the hobby when I need a break.
 

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