Well folks this is it,
This is my 1000th post on these forums.
It has to be said I have enjoyed making every single one of them.
I have picked up many a thing and learnt loads from you folk whilst making these.
I remember my very first day here and how daunting it all was.
The pics that are posted of your turned things are absolutely amazing and something I still aspire to.
For the newcomers, don't let the skill level of others put you off from posting,
If turning is a new hobby then show your finished products next to some of the best, and be proud that your are turning with the best.
Remember your pen IS good enough to be displayed on here so display them with pride.
If you look through these forums you will find that probably every question possible has been asked one way or another, Do not let that stop you from asking it anyway, sometimes for a newcomer you will find it difficult to understand the answers given, when that happens tell us what part you do not understand. Every single person on this forum have all been novices at some point and can relate to what you need to know, some of us (OK me) are still very much novices and a year on still ask questions.
When a new comer to turning first joins here, they tend to ask tons of questions. There is a good chance you will not remember all of the answers given and will spend time searching all of your posts, whilst that has it's commendable points you will eventually reach a point where you have too many posts to sift though, filling in the tags of your posts will make it easier providing you remember what tags you used. Providing you do not ask the same question every day, you will find that most people on here do not mind if questions are repeated.
There is a lot to learn with pen turning and many kits are out there, There are some extremely knowledgeable people here and every single kit manufactured in the past 60+ years would have been made by some members here, we also have some people who no longer use kits and make pens. It is with that knowledge that a new comer must arm themselves with and ask any question confident it will be properly answered. I have yet to see a question go unanswered.
Never think your question is a foolish one and, as importantly, never think you are foolish for not understanding the answer. As already indicated we tend to ask a lot of questions at the start of our membership here and ask fewer and fewer as time goes on, very few people are master turners or can turn in quantities during the first few weeks, most believe they can self fund the turning from the get go. To give yourself the best possible chance of achieving this aim you will need to both ask questions as well as understanding the answers.
I have yet to see a bad pen on here, many a time I think the pens that I do are not really good enough to be displayed here, When I think like that I get my first pen out out compare it to my latest and see how much better I am, my pens and EVERY handcrafted pen others make are more than worthy to be shown on here. As newcomers we must try not to compete against those with decades of experience, it is difficult to do that but we/you must only go at your own pace, involve yourself with the forums and try to get in the habit of logging in daily and catch up on what others are asking. Get into the habit of posting your pens and such, it is such a good feeling when your peers are complimenting you, remember the person who is saying they like your pens are experts in pen making, they get nothing for complementing your works they say they like it because they like it. Enjoy that feeling and trust me it does not go away.
Only go at your own pace not the pace you think everyone here wants you to go at. We all have fluctuations and none more than when we are new, we sadly lose the keenest as we make more, we become a lot more self critical and that brings with it it's own set of problems, happily that is where this forums helps solve it, ask questions, see who else has gone through the self doubt and the like, you will be surprised at how high it is.
Having made 1000 posts I feel I can say the above to newcomers (to the hobby) with confidence, after making that many posts I can hold hand on heart and say my pens are so much better, I still have a long way to go and I still have a lot to learn, So what will I do differently whilst making my second thousandth? The answer is simple I will do nothing differently, I shall still ask plenty of questions and post photo's of things I make, I will still get frustrated when I ruin a blank, I will still get angry with myself when I mess up a pen due to my own fault and rushing things.
To all you great folk that have supported me in my hobby over this past year I thank you, I thank you for answering my questions (yes I know what I am like), I thank you for commenting on my pens when I post an image and above all else I thank each and every one of you for just putting up with me.
. . :thanxs:
This is my 1000th post on these forums.
It has to be said I have enjoyed making every single one of them.
I have picked up many a thing and learnt loads from you folk whilst making these.
I remember my very first day here and how daunting it all was.
The pics that are posted of your turned things are absolutely amazing and something I still aspire to.
For the newcomers, don't let the skill level of others put you off from posting,
If turning is a new hobby then show your finished products next to some of the best, and be proud that your are turning with the best.
Remember your pen IS good enough to be displayed on here so display them with pride.
If you look through these forums you will find that probably every question possible has been asked one way or another, Do not let that stop you from asking it anyway, sometimes for a newcomer you will find it difficult to understand the answers given, when that happens tell us what part you do not understand. Every single person on this forum have all been novices at some point and can relate to what you need to know, some of us (OK me) are still very much novices and a year on still ask questions.
When a new comer to turning first joins here, they tend to ask tons of questions. There is a good chance you will not remember all of the answers given and will spend time searching all of your posts, whilst that has it's commendable points you will eventually reach a point where you have too many posts to sift though, filling in the tags of your posts will make it easier providing you remember what tags you used. Providing you do not ask the same question every day, you will find that most people on here do not mind if questions are repeated.
There is a lot to learn with pen turning and many kits are out there, There are some extremely knowledgeable people here and every single kit manufactured in the past 60+ years would have been made by some members here, we also have some people who no longer use kits and make pens. It is with that knowledge that a new comer must arm themselves with and ask any question confident it will be properly answered. I have yet to see a question go unanswered.
Never think your question is a foolish one and, as importantly, never think you are foolish for not understanding the answer. As already indicated we tend to ask a lot of questions at the start of our membership here and ask fewer and fewer as time goes on, very few people are master turners or can turn in quantities during the first few weeks, most believe they can self fund the turning from the get go. To give yourself the best possible chance of achieving this aim you will need to both ask questions as well as understanding the answers.
I have yet to see a bad pen on here, many a time I think the pens that I do are not really good enough to be displayed here, When I think like that I get my first pen out out compare it to my latest and see how much better I am, my pens and EVERY handcrafted pen others make are more than worthy to be shown on here. As newcomers we must try not to compete against those with decades of experience, it is difficult to do that but we/you must only go at your own pace, involve yourself with the forums and try to get in the habit of logging in daily and catch up on what others are asking. Get into the habit of posting your pens and such, it is such a good feeling when your peers are complimenting you, remember the person who is saying they like your pens are experts in pen making, they get nothing for complementing your works they say they like it because they like it. Enjoy that feeling and trust me it does not go away.
Only go at your own pace not the pace you think everyone here wants you to go at. We all have fluctuations and none more than when we are new, we sadly lose the keenest as we make more, we become a lot more self critical and that brings with it it's own set of problems, happily that is where this forums helps solve it, ask questions, see who else has gone through the self doubt and the like, you will be surprised at how high it is.
Having made 1000 posts I feel I can say the above to newcomers (to the hobby) with confidence, after making that many posts I can hold hand on heart and say my pens are so much better, I still have a long way to go and I still have a lot to learn, So what will I do differently whilst making my second thousandth? The answer is simple I will do nothing differently, I shall still ask plenty of questions and post photo's of things I make, I will still get frustrated when I ruin a blank, I will still get angry with myself when I mess up a pen due to my own fault and rushing things.
To all you great folk that have supported me in my hobby over this past year I thank you, I thank you for answering my questions (yes I know what I am like), I thank you for commenting on my pens when I post an image and above all else I thank each and every one of you for just putting up with me.
. . :thanxs:
