New member from Netherlands

[NTwoO]

Hi there,

I am new to the forum. Spent some time reading the posts as a guest, but it would be nice to also join in on some of the discussions.

Short history about me:

I was born in South Africa and I am educated as an electronic engineer. At the moment I am a C programmer at a telecommunications vendor in the Netherlands.

My father is a maxillo-facial surgeon, but also very handy. He is for instance currently building a two seater aeroplane powered with a BMW GS1200 motor. My father also has a workshop of 500m2 at home with a two poster lift. We were brought up as kids to do our own maintenance on our cars, so I have overhauled some diesel and petrol motors, gearboxes and diffs in my youth.

The past 7 years I've been living in the Netherlands and until december 2008 I ownede a Bester MIG welder. It was a very decent machine with stitch welding function.

In december 2008 I sold the Bester and bought a Lorch HT 180 AC/DC with footpedal. What a machine! It is really great to be able to weld Alu.

I'm looking forward to some interesting discussions on this forum and hope to learn a lot!

 

[zardoz]

A workshop with a vehicle lift and an AC/DC Lorch! cant be bad at all
It is good you were brought up to do your own maintenance on cars. We were brought up to do the same, from bicycles upwards. Cant seem to get the kids and nephews interested at all, its all X-box this and buy me that, nothing is repaired only thrown out.

Anyway a warm welcome to the forum.

 

[peterd51]

HI,

you don't often hear of surgeons doing any 'manual' type work as they generally want to protect their hands.

Welcome to the forum.

Have you made anything interesting, or planning to?

Regards
Peter

 

[NTwoO]

My father paid for his pilots license from repairing beatles bought at the government garages and selling them. He is very methodical when coming to mechanical work. Working as a maxillo-facial surgeon is very mechanical and practical. It is a refined form of orthopedics. The orthopods are also a big group of homebuilders.

Even though we enjoyed it, my father had a very simple rule. He pays for all spares, but if we don't want to do the maintenance ourselves, we may pay for it ourselves. At 18 I converted my 412 VW from an automatic to a manual. With the cars from 1970's that is very doable.

In NL I don't have this luxurious workshop setup, only the Lorch (and a growing set of decent tools) and 25m2 of workshop space. The Lorch has been used to weld me a neat little welding kart. I've also welded my welding surface in stainless from a stainless bar (6x80x3480 cut in 7 pieces). The welder has also been used to fix our garden furniture which is a combination of highly oxidised porous alu and extruded alu.

The main projects in the near future is a garden rocking chair (photo's will follow of the example) from stainless and a recumbent bicycle in Aluminium.

 

[eil]

Hi
Echoing your comments as well as zardoz I was helping bleed brakes as soon as I could reach the pedals as the old man had no one else to help, and thinking back you did repair your own bikes or at least try as well as building your own soap box cart from old prams, when was the last time anyone saw one of those out and about.
Looking foreward to seeing your projects.

 

[NTwoO]

Added a photo album of the kart.