Project Idea

Okay... this has been bugging me.

I wasn't talking out of my a$$ about Ti being hard to handle. If I don't know what I'm talking about, I try to make note of it (example: when discussing racing or handling techniques, if I say anything, I usually make a comment to the effect of "but I'm not a racer"). On the subject of working/machining materials, I have an uncle who owns his own machine shop. He's a second-generation machinist, knows his crap. He doesn't work with Ti, because it's more difficult to work than other metals, and he didn't want to invest in the equipment to do so.

Also have a family friend who's been a machinist for 20-odd years. Heck, about 5 years ago he bought a 6-axis CNC mill that his company was getting rid of, and he put it in his garage. He now tinkers with it, making custom parts for his cars and his Harley. He even started selling some of his custom Hog parts online. He's worked with Ti before and his opinion is that it's a pain to work with professionally --even a properly equipped shop has to be careful-- and as I stated earlier, it's practically impossible for the hobbyist.

I also got to know the machinist on campus at Embry-Riddle. He'd been around milling machines for... God, I don't think any of us knew how long. One of those grizzled old veterans. His opinion was it was "difficult" to work with in a well-equipped shop, and darn-near impossible in ERAU's more basic facilities.

As far as "Those who can, do, those who can't teach"... while I would normally agree with this sentiment, it does not apply to the professors at ERAU. I don't expect JD to have known this, but if he did, then that statement was insulting. All but one of them (in the College of Engineering) had a minimum of 10 years working in the industry before the school hired them, and the average was more like 20 years. The only exception (Dr. Hayashibara) had 10 years working for a subsidiary of Toyota as a mechanical engineer, before coming to the US and getting his advanced degrees in the Aerospace realm, and then he came to work at ERAU without significant aerospace industry experience. But... he did have 10+ years of experience working as an engineer in another specialty. These men and women came to teach only have they had proven for more than a decade that they could "do". Come to think of it, there were a few who were brilliant, but not great as educators... they could "do" far better than they could teach. I know most of academia isn't like that, but this is one of the reasons I went to Embry-Riddle. It's more about practice than academics.

Sorry about the rant, but I don't like being made a fool of. Johnny, I'm sure that wasn't your intention, you're a nice guy, but this was bugging me. I only spoke on this subject because I felt that I do, in fact, have a clue.

Okay, back to your regularly scheduled --and far less serious-- DMF hooliganry.