Author Topic: What's your brew, as in life trade  (Read 11894 times)

Offline K2-K6

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Re: What's your brew, as in life trade
« Reply #15 on: June 03, 2017, 10:23:22 PM »
Have you got one of those car dealer sheepskin coats and an old copy of Glasses guide to prices Julie.  :)

Offline Nurse Julie

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Re: What's your brew, as in life trade
« Reply #16 on: June 03, 2017, 10:25:10 PM »
Have you got one of those car dealer sheepskin coats and an old copy of Glasses guide to prices Julie.  :)
Plenty of old Glasses guides at home here but no, never had the sheepskin coat
LINK TO MY EBAY PAGE. As many of you know already, I give 10% discount and do post at cost to forum members if you PM me direct.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/julies9731/m.html?item=165142672569&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.m3561.l2562

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Offline kevski

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Re: What's your brew, as in life trade
« Reply #17 on: June 03, 2017, 10:25:51 PM »
Double life indeed strange mix there Julie
Strange mix for some maybe but I never wanted to be a Nurse. I had hoped to do a Mechanics apprenticeship at the local Honda dealer in Tunbridge Wells but they wouldn't take me on because I was 17....and female (this was in the late 70's!!!) anyway, the hospital was opposite the bike shop so I went over and applied for Nurse training and got accepted. I was buying bikes and selling them whilst doing the Nurse training to get extra money and it carried on from there. So it all seems very normal to me

small world julie, I lived in Medway then, and was sub contracting at the old powder mills at Leigh that's where I copped the mercury poisoning in the mid eighties, was always in and out of Tunbridge Wells.
« Last Edit: June 03, 2017, 10:28:36 PM by kevski »

Offline Green1

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Re: What's your brew, as in life trade
« Reply #18 on: June 03, 2017, 10:28:18 PM »
Couldn't wait to leave school. Got a job at Thomas & Betts making emergency lighting for plains and ships incredibly boring
5am starts but good money  got the job because my Mum and Aunt worked there. My Aunt (Aka the Witch) sacked me after three months for being too efficient.  ???
Then went to collage for three years as an apprentice carpenter. Told the lecturer what I thought of him just before qualifying so no paperwork to say I'm competent. Been self employed since working as a decorator/carpenter running a joint decorating business with my dad. I don't think I can do it for much longer as its hard to manage more than four painters at one time (you need to hold there hands and tie there laces for them)       
Current bikes
Honda CB750k1 Valley Green Metallic
Honda CB750k1 Candy Gold
Honda CB550k Candy Jade Green
Honda CG125
Aprilia Pegaso 650
Moto guzzi 1200 sport
Kawasaki EX650R (Mine until dave pays for it)
Kawasaki ZXR400 J

Offline Nurse Julie

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Re: What's your brew, as in life trade
« Reply #19 on: June 03, 2017, 10:29:00 PM »
Gosh, not a nice poisoning to have Kevski. Tunbridge Wells is my home town and Cleares was the Honda dealership.
« Last Edit: June 03, 2017, 10:31:31 PM by Nurse Julie »
LINK TO MY EBAY PAGE. As many of you know already, I give 10% discount and do post at cost to forum members if you PM me direct.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/julies9731/m.html?item=165142672569&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.m3561.l2562

LINK TO MY CB400/4 ENGINE STRIP / ASSESSMENT AND REBUILD...NOW COMPLETE
http://www.sohc.co.uk/index.php/topic,14049.msg112691/topicseen.html#new

Offline Orcade-Ian

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Re: What's your brew, as in life trade
« Reply #20 on: June 04, 2017, 05:45:43 PM »
It always amazes me how we all came from such diverse backgrounds but ended up at the same point with our hobby (I know for some it's still their only income stream)
I loafed about at a very good Technical Grammar school in Hull and only came out with 5 GCE's - failed Inglish  ;) and got a grade 1 in German.
5 year Aeronautical apprenticeship followed by a couple of Service Engineering jobs and then Lab Tech at the local College.  Off to teacher training college in Huddersfield and then 20 years teaching engineering at Southport College - met my Wife there who was catering manageress (no wonder none of my clothes fit!)
Seconded to a Spinal injuries Unit for 3 years but stayed 12, involved with devices for upright mobility of patients with spinal cord injury and electrical stimulation of paralysed muscle.
Used a recumbent pedal tricycle belonging to the patients for Lands End to John O Groats to raise money for another project in the unit and realised that doing bugger all was infinitely better than work so I retired early and we moved to Orkney.
Into cars, especially Jaguars and classic Minis and still have too many bikes - still hauling a 1500 GoldWing around at 68.

Offline RGP750

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Re: What's your brew, as in life trade
« Reply #21 on: June 04, 2017, 06:13:39 PM »
Started a Patternmaking Apprenticeship in 1970 and never looked back.
Even now i'm lucky i just love the job.
Started Dial Patterns Ltd in 1988 and still going strong lots of work but one of the dying trades.
Maggie shut the collages in the 80's "because we didn't need manufacturing" now we are in dire straights
re patternmakers. In 1970 approx 17 patternshops all employing about 10+ people in Kent and Sussex
now two of us total 8 employees and none under 58, 2 years and Dial Patterns will be gone as well :(
Diverse work from Brighton seafront railings to Bently cylinder blocks, Triumph cylinder head to Audi auto union crank case
and anything in between. Never gets boring.
Live It :) :)
1972 500/4
1973 CB175
1972 CB175
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Offline Orcade-Ian

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Re: What's your brew, as in life trade
« Reply #22 on: June 04, 2017, 06:33:26 PM »
You are leaning against an open door RGP with the bit about Maggie and she even had advisers telling her the folly of dismantling the training boards but we will get our collars felt if we get too political.  When I first started teaching I felt that I was imparting useful knowledge to young 'uns, it changed first to child minding, then to zoo keeping just before I jumped ship.
My lifelong friend from Hull, who I often meet up with for motorcycle trips served his apprenticeship as a patternmaker - company (Rose, Downs & Thompson) now closed of course but he still turns out some excellent artifacts in wood in retirement.
Ian
« Last Edit: June 04, 2017, 08:43:16 PM by orcadian »

Offline Moorey

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Re: What's your brew, as in life trade
« Reply #23 on: June 04, 2017, 07:31:16 PM »
21 years as a colliery mechanic until closure then 12 years as a services engineer at a factory that produced personal care products until made redundant again. Then went self employed in engineering working mainly in the chemical industry. Now retired due to big C. It gives you a different outlook on life   :D

Offline matthewmosse

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Re: What's your brew, as in life trade
« Reply #24 on: June 04, 2017, 08:26:48 PM »
I did art and desighn in tec collage after school, 18 months in a rather grotty factory building circuit boardss, then went to work in the care sector, did a years blacksmithing at anothe tec collage ( Hereford) whilst funding myself in the care job as a flexi, a year of that was enough witha 30 hr week caring and full time collage plus a cleaning job in collage too, so I wound up settling into another care job for 12 years whilst building up a workshop and expanding my hobbies of anything mechanical, then got severly pigged off with 7 years of pay freeze and cuts to working conditions so jumped ship to engineering based on my skills demonstrated in my hobbies, got laid off after 18 months supposedly because I was part time due to childcare issues which they accepted when taking me on, personally I reacon it was a lot more to do with me making a fuss when tod to shot blast a 27 ton trailer for the company director and I found the brakes were well shot and wasn't happy the deathtrap was being tarted up with a coat of paint to get sold on, brakes and cracked A frame un fixed. Spent the next 12 months being self employed doing anything from lambing and farm work, to tractor repairs and building rennovation, decorating and groundworks. It aint as well paid as some things but at least its honest which the engineering place wasn't and the care company who took my old place over were not. I'm building up a stock of small machinery thats modified to do specialised jobs and re engining old rotorvators in my downtime so hopefully inproving my cv engineering wise as I enjoyed that when we were not bodging dangerous junk.
Interesting that there are former pattern makers on here, one of my lathes is a pattern makers lathe, though probably a bit older than anything anyone in industry anytime recently would have used, mines a 1914 Oliver lathe, I bought it based purely on the gap bed being big enough to accomodate a cb500 wheel, tyre fitted and all to skim and re line brakes, as my other lathe needs the hub stripped bare to do the job, still got to get a chuck to fit this monster but the fact its fitted for metal and wood turning meant I added wood turning to my hobbies.
Got a 500/4 with rust and a sidecar and loadsa bits. nice and original and been round the clock

Offline RGP750

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Re: What's your brew, as in life trade
« Reply #25 on: June 04, 2017, 09:34:37 PM »
Still use a Wadkin Lathe that can take 8 foot diameter on the back of the head stock
 and 10 foot bed and a gap bed that can take 2'6".
When i finally close it will probably end up in the scrap, very little call for it now :-[
1972 500/4
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1972 CB175
1959 BSA Super rocket
1927 960cc Matchless 'v' twin
1969 750 K0

Offline SteveD CB500K0

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Re: What's your brew, as in life trade
« Reply #26 on: June 04, 2017, 09:56:04 PM »
Hmmm.   Not a craftsman  :(

Electronics Engineering degree at Sussex and 6 years at Racal Communications in Bracknell as a design engineer. We made communications systems (radios) and jammers for the Royal Marine Commandos (they took them to the Falklands - we were dead chuffed).
15 years at Nortel Networks as Project Manager and Operations Director. Traveled extensively to Europe, Middle East and USA but got sick of the high pressure lifestyle and my kids were growing up without me.
So I quit and went self employed.
Now I do project management for software implementation. Currently working for a company that makes zero maintenance security doors for electricity substations. Putting in a quotation and order management system.
I also design websites (eg www.tvam.org) and host a few of them (including this one)

I keep saying I'll retire when the next contract runs out...
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1971 CB500K0

Offline matthewmosse

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Re: What's your brew, as in life trade
« Reply #27 on: June 04, 2017, 10:54:49 PM »
That Wadkin sounds awesome, but sadly many of these great bits of kit probably will wind up un wanted, my oliver was off ebay and was silly cheap at something like £80, I'd love somit like the Wadkin, at least the headstock threads would be something obtainable when it came to getting faceplates and chucks.
Must be a good feeling making something thats played a role in a historic event like the Falklands. I remember being fairly chuffed to find out a drive / controller unit that I was part of making the circuit boards for was used to lower Piers Bosnan down a dam face in the starting sequence of Golden eye if I recall correctly, been a while since I watched any bond movies.
Got a 500/4 with rust and a sidecar and loadsa bits. nice and original and been round the clock

Offline Rozabikes Tim

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Re: What's your brew, as in life trade
« Reply #28 on: June 04, 2017, 11:26:13 PM »
Great post idea this, loving it.

Well like many of you I too am an engineer - of curtains! :P

Left school after 6th form with pretty poor A levels, after messing about too much. Went on to college to do Applied Biology but unfortunately with a similar attitude. Passed year end exams but not course work. Chose not to repeat the year and went to look for  jobs a lab technician using my science  background. No idea how but somehow landed a job (100 applicants!),  at what was Derby College at the time, in the Textile Technology / Fashion and  Design department. Although I saw myself as "macho biker"  and fabrics were for girls, I found the scientific theory behind them fascinating and eventually qualified as a Textile technologist via good old day release.

Moved from the academic environment to work in quality control of clothing fabrics for an M&S supplier in Telford (when we actually did such things in the UK). Moved back to Derbyshire early 90's to set up a fabric quality control department for an upholstery manufacturer. Eventually the role morphed into buying responsibility as well, giving me a wider knowledge. Eventually left, taking voluntary redundancy to go it alone in retail of curtain and upholstery fabrics. Grew this from a market stall business to opening our current shop in Bakewell, which will celebrate its 20th year of trading this November.

Although I love my daily work I am rarely happier than messing about with house renovation, especially woodworky bits and of course fiddling with Japanese 2 wheel relics!

One day I'll have the time to restore it, not just talk and dream....

Offline AshimotoK0

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Re: What's your brew, as in life trade
« Reply #29 on: June 05, 2017, 06:06:47 AM »
Left school at 18 and did combined sciences degree in physics and chemistry with the intention of becoming  a  science teacher. Gave up that idea after qualifying and worked in a bakery for 6 months, 12 hour shifts but great money , where I also met the now famous playwright Richard Bean ..(who later wrote a play about our night -shift antics on the bread plant called 'Toast').  Found a 'proper job' working for R&D in large manufacturing company in Hull and stayed there for twenty years eventually running the electronics R&D department. Asked to relocate to either Rockford Illinois or Harold hill, Romford in 1997,as the company were pulling out of Hull to move to South Wales. Took redundancy instead (Rockford ... USA home of Bridgestone Mcycs) gets to -40°F in winter (also -40°C) in winter so no thanks! Set up my own electronics design & small scale manufacture 'Smart solutions (Hull) and did that for 10 years ... very varied and interesting ..one day I would be garbed up in white clean room gear working at GSK in Harlow, the next on a sewerage farm in Yorkshire. Decided I was too isolated working from home and fed up chasing payment from people, so went to work for my brothers engineering company in Hull 3 days /week and carried on my own business the other two. He got me to design a new pilot operated safety valve, which I did but he then sold the company for many millions of £ to an Italian bunch so I left and went to work for my mate 3-days /week designing water hydraulic  control systems. Still doing that and my own business the other two days. Very happy working there ...best job I have ever had. He got me in last year and asked me what the best bit about working for him is. When I told him .."use of a bead-blaster"  he wasn't impressed though ;D ;D
“Alright friends, you have seen the heavy groups, now you will see morning maniac music. Believe me, yeah. It’s a new dawn.” Grace Slick, Woodstock '69 .. In the year of the Sandcast.

 

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