….. or rather a few rather large and magnificent lathes and milling machines.
I’ve been offered tenancy of a fully equipped engineering blacksmiths workshop. Its been in action, in the same family, for a century and half and is getting ready to wind up. I’ve been offered it at a peppercorn as a sort of custodian/caretaker as the owner doesn’t want to disperse all the kit. The offer comes serendipitously just as what little metal working kit I’ve got (TCT saw and mig welder) got knicked.
Thing is…. I’m not an engineer or a blacksmith – I just cut and stick bits of angle iron together now and again. Theres room for me to move my woodworking machinery in though, so thats fine. But apart from milling / lathing metal, what other materials could I put the machinery to use on without buggering them up. Will I upset them if I machine hardwoods or MDF? Plastics? I use a bit of polyester resin/glass fibre too, could they be machined. Could I machine plaster or jesmonite?
<starts sketching notions for custom frames>
<throws away frame sketch and starts doodling home-made CNC machine>