casting aluminum plaques

[ArlyA]

Just got home from the local HS we've been working in. The school officials finally caught up with us and kicked us out! Of course due to the epidemic thing. Its located just a cross the street from our hospital and there is a chanced the school will get converted into a overflow infirmary. No welding shop for me in the short term..

 

[jmc]

Just got home from the local HS we've been working in. The school officials finally caught up with us and kicked us out! Of course due to the epidemic thing. Its located just a cross the street from our hospital and there is a chanced the school will get converted into a overflow infirmary. No welding shop for me in the short term..

Incredible HS shop. I assumed it was Michigan Tech. Are those DIY downrigger cannonballs near the finished plaques?

Several years ago, US politicians rediscovered apprenticeships and seemed interested in resurrecting them. Haven't heard much about it lately, though.

 

[ArlyA]

Incredible HS shop. I assumed it was Michigan Tech. Are those DIY downrigger cannonballs near the finished plaques?
Several years ago, US politicians rediscovered apprenticeships and seemed interested in resurrecting them. Haven't heard much about it lately, though.

HS means high school. Sorry to say the Mi tech is a not very good at Public relations so its very unlikely I'd ever get into a shop they operate.... Those iron balls are for denting art work the class sells to help finance their shop. Don't ask me much about that since I know darn little!!

 

[TMGT]

I buy a lot of the old equipment from the school systems at auction, based on what I've seen anything having to do with metal or wood working is pretty much gone in my area.

A little over a year ago I almost bought a casting bench with a forge and bunch of other equipment, ifni hadn't been laid up with a broken wrist I probably would have gotten it.

Either way my kids will get plenty of metalworking experience (and some woodworking too) I think too many people try to leave all of their kids education up to the school system.

 

[ArlyA]

I buy a lot of the old equipment from the school systems at auction, based on what I've seen anything having to do with metal or wood working is pretty much gone in my area.
A little over a year ago I almost bought a casting bench with a forge and bunch of other equipment, ifni hadn't been laid up with a broken wrist I probably would have gotten it.
Either way my kids will get plenty of metalworking experience (and some woodworking too) I think too many people try to leave all of their kids education up to the school system.

Most people don't have a home shop, or the skills to teach there kids this or that anyway. For all practical purposes, I don't have a home metal shop either but that's why we have school systems. We need to make sure our schools are teaching kids basic stuff like this.

 

[BrokenTrack]

Several years ago, US politicians rediscovered apprenticeships and seemed interested in resurrecting them. Haven't heard much about it lately, though.

I am a welding Instructor and can weigh in on this...

This is a HUGE deal right now. I work with 16-24 year olds and we are doing a lot with apprenticeship programs. Carpentry, Marine Pipe-Fitting, and Welding where I work (US Dept of Labor) all work towards sending the students from our classes where it is introductory to the trade, and transfer them on to apprenticeships where they can get better in the trade they choose. It really is a training/employee/union relationship that really is working out well.

At my level we do two things: introduce them to the trade, but also teach them "soft skills" which is basically being employable. It is things like safety, showing up on time, doing a solid days work for a solid days pay, anger management, achieving employer expectations, etc. We can all debate on why they dod not have that stuff already, but they don't, so someone has to help them with this stuff.

For me it is great because I worked at a shipyard where a lot of these students will end up. I know what the employer is looking for (US Navy) and can help the students get there.

The interesting part is, these students, right out of the gate will be making several more dollars per hour than I do as their instructor. I think that is great, my days of crawling around ships and submarines are over, but unlike when I started out, these students have a real chance of doing well in life. For many, apprenticeship programs will really help them get there.

 

[jmc]

Thanks for what you do, Broken Track. What type of organization are you doing that with?

Back when, the larger manufacturers often had their own accredited, in-house tool and die apprenticeships. I hadn't heard much about apprenticeships for a long time until some politicians started talking them up several years ago- probably envious of Germany's success with them. On an informal but important issue, all of the implement manufacturers must certainly be quietly doing a lot of fabrication training that will serve everyone well for decades. Hope they are recognized for that.

 

[BrokenTrack]

Thanks for what you do, Broken Track. What type of organization are you doing that with?

Job Corps...

It is hard to state "the average student" because really it varies greatly from student to student, but it is a fact, there is a lot of broken families out there, and a lot of times the sound upbringing we had pre 1990's is not there for a lot of kids today. But you cannot just take them out of foster care, or take them from a homeless shelter, and put them to work. There are barriers that must be addressed.

And to the shipyard's credit, it is a two-step process. We just introduce them to welding really: stick, mig and tig, but then they will get AWS certified, then move on to the shipyard apprentice program for a few weeks, and get specific NAVSEA weld trained.

But Job Corp does a lot for them. They get their high school diploma if they do not have it, get a drivers license, must meet employable skills beyond just welding ability, get 3 meals a day, room and board, daily pay. medical needs, get a career advisor once they are 70% complete, and that advisor follows them for 18 months past graduation. So they really get a good head start.

I grew up in a foster home, and became a foster parent myself, which is kind of why they hired me I think. I understand where they came from.

But the students are great, they really are. It is just the same issue that every teacher has, not enough time for all the paper work. I realize why it is there: people want to know how the kids are doing, and track their progress, and who knows the students better than their teachers, so really we are the only ones qualified to say, but it is hard to cram everything in an 8 hour day that is all.

 

[Big Barn]

Thanks for that Job Corp description B T. Sounds like a rewarding program for all.

 

[herm0016]

as a tech alum, they have some great shops and many of them are totally student run. Tech is a pretty unique place. if you want in, the best people to ask are the students that manage the enterprise program, They are student run businesses that do research for a lot of different corps like Boeing, Nasa, Caterpillar, Polaris, etc. I was on the board of one that worked on medical products.

 

[TMGT]

Most people don't have a home shop, or the skills to teach there kids this or that anyway. For all practical purposes, I don't have a home metal shop either but that's why we have school systems. We need to make sure our schools are teaching kids basic stuff like this.

I didn't have shop at home growing up, I also wasn't in the school system. My dad took me to adult education classes when I was growing up.

I never said schools shouldn't have the ability to introduce kids to skilled trades, it's a great way to find out a kids interest.

The problem I'm seeing is too many parents want to rely fully on the school system for every aspect of their kids upbringing.

Unforunantly I get to see a lot of this first hand.

 

[hosspuller]

50 years ago I had shop classes in an urban setting. I turned those into a professional career that paid well, supported a family and provides a good retirement. I supervised my prissy daughter doing maintenance on her car. Too bad her suburban high school didn't have shop classes for her. She surprised many boys with her knowledge. To the point... shop classes teach more than goofy projects. Countless urbanites have no concept of food production, manufacturing, or any of the processes that provide their life. And there is little chance for them to learn. Contra Biden... coding is no panacea for society.

 

[mcfarmall]

I was fortunate enough that my high school had an outstanding Industrial Arts program and our metal shop had an aluminum foundry. We could make giant schoolhouse/church bells, and many, many other items. I really enjoyed ramming molds, pouring, shaking out, making new green sand for the foundry, etc.. All that stuff is gone now that kids are being pushed into college and in front of computers.

I felt that having experienced the many different aspects of metalworking has made me a more rounded journeyman in my career. I feel sad that kids nowdays will likely never have that experience.

 

[BrokenTrack]

I had an interesting high school experience.

I realized as a Freshman, that if I did not take study halls, and instead took extra classes, as a Senior I would have all the classes I needed to graduate, and so I could take Vocational School all day. (Normally it was just half a day).

So as a Junior I went to Vocational School and took my first year of Diesel Tech. As a Senior I took welding in the morning, then Diesel Tech Two in the afternoon. A bunch of kids said it was "not fair". But it was. they could have done the same thing as me, it was just they wanted to throw spit balls and talk during study halls, instead of taking extra classes and doing homework at home. So it was fair: I just put the time in up front, to reap the rewards later.

I was bound and determined to be a Heavy Equipment Operator. But I really liked welding, and was good at it, so I ended up welding. For a year I was a heavy equipment operator, but I did not like it. I was BORED. So I went back to welding. Then I was a machinist, but the economy tanked in 2008, so I went back to welding: you can always get a job welding.

Like school I kept my eye on the prize, and did double shifts which for me on the railroad and tug boats, was staying out for 12-16 weeks out instead of coming home every 6 weeks. So at 42 I had enough money to retire.

But I never planed on getting cancer.

But after almost 4 years since working, I got this job as a welding instructor. It is good to pass on what I know to others which was in the construction, railroad and maritime industries. I got a wealth of experience to help a variety of students find their welding niche.

Interestingly, I am still going to school: to college to get my High Pressure Steam Boilers License.

 

[AnotherBueller]

I want to cast some plaques to commemorate Boy Scout Eagle projects. Any one know where I can get some letters / symbols to use in the sand casting mold to show who did the project and when? I've been looking for some years without success,when I saw this thread thought I'd ask figured with the vast knowledge base here someone might have something that would help me.