How much time do you waste ...

T

Tony Zinzola

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Looking for tools?

I seem to spend about 1/2 my time looking for things. Especially that tool that opens the chucks on the Hightower lathe. I can never find the thing even if it was in my hand 30 seconds ago. I have another one on my milling machine and one on the inlay machine, but I never take them from there, instead I'll waste 30 minutes looking for the one I just had.

The other day I lost a whole butt section of a cue. Took me over 30 minutes to find it. The day before, I lost a point I was about to glue in. Took quite a long time to find that as well.

Seems anything that I drop falls through the invisible hole in my floor.

Just wondering if anybody else spends as much time wandering in circles looking for things.
 
Most of the time I waste is because of the job that pays my bills. Building cues I have to be efficient. I only have so much time a week to be able to work on cues. When I am in the shop the phone gets turned off doors get locked radio gets turned up wood chips start flying!!
 
I waste very little time looking for tools. Although my shop is a total mess, I know where everything is located at that time. The only problem I have is when someone else moves my stuff :mad: . I've also placed specific tools at specific locations ... as an example I have a 3/8 - 7/16 open ended wrench on my mill, another on my shaper, and another under the lathe. I find it much better to have multiple tools like this, one in every location where they are needed. And ya, chuck keys are everywhere too :)

Dave
 
I feel you tony. I lost that tool long ago. Dont know what happened to it Ive cleaned my lathe work space many times and it never turned up. I use the allen wrench that you use to put on the tool posts to open up the 3 jaw chuck now lol. I also have misplaced many parts when it comes time to use them. I will put a buttsleeve down and where the hell did it go I just start laughing, I look untill I get fed up start somthing else and O its right there it wasnt there 10 min ago.

Dustin
 
I spend tons of time looking for stuff. We have four or five sets of calipers floating around the shop and I can never remember where I set them. My son is the same way with calipers. My daughter keeps her calipers in a pouch on her bench and fusses up a storm anytime we grab them. She even made sure hers were a different color face than all of ours so she knows right away if we have them.
Tony,
We took a piece of Irish linen and tied it to a nail in front of our main Deluxe Cue Smith. Guess what we put on the other end of the string? Yep, you guessed it. The chuck key rod. :)
 
This thread reinforces my opinion that there are two kinds of people in this world, ones who lose things and ones who don't. If I had a dollar for every time I've helped my wife find her keys, I'd be rich (OK, she'd be rich:o ). Often my help is simply telling her where I last saw her keys. Why do I remember all this trivia and she doesn't ? Well, I think there are two kinds of people .....

Dave, one kind of person
 
Tony Zinzola said:
Looking for tools?

Just wondering if anybody else spends as much time wandering in circles looking for things.
Click to expand...

With me its an occasional thing. My workshop is a mess but everything has its place in the mess. I have gone through my tap collection 4 or 5 times, before I find the tap I know is in there.
 
OK I think you guys jinxed me.. I poseted about a drum switch. Well turns out the motor was blown right out of the box couldn't find a reset switch. So I thouhgt. After 2 days of flockin around I pulled the motor out and was going to take it back. Have it sitting on the floor by the door and I see a button in behind the fan shroud. Pull the fan shroud and ta-da a reset button. Pushed it and it clicked. Two days of bone head moves. about 200$ Finding the reset switch before you go off at the service desk.... Priceless... Hey jerky "HIT THE RESET BUTTON"
 
The other day I'm looking for the painters tape. You know it's the blue low tack stuff, it partly glows in the dark. I mean how can you miss it, even on a messy bench. I spent 30 minutes looking for the stuff and finally gave up. Went to the local hardware store and picked up another roll. 30 minutes looking 30 minutes getting another roll. An hour wasted.

When I get back to the shop, as soon as I open the door there it is right on top of the bench with the other masking tapes. I know I check there! Twice! Hell I checked there TEN times!

All I can figure is that either someone in the house used it and put it back while I was out or that I'm slowly going blind.

After asking confronting everyone I am being assured by everyone involved that I am, slowing going blind!

Paul
 
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Tony Zinzola said:
Looking for tools?

I seem to spend about 1/2 my time looking for things. Especially that tool that opens the chucks on the Hightower lathe. I can never find the thing even if it was in my hand 30 seconds ago. I have another one on my milling machine and one on the inlay machine, but I never take them from there, instead I'll waste 30 minutes looking for the one I just had.

The other day I lost a whole butt section of a cue. Took me over 30 minutes to find it. The day before, I lost a point I was about to glue in. Took quite a long time to find that as well.

Seems anything that I drop falls through the invisible hole in my floor.

Just wondering if anybody else spends as much time wandering in circles looking for things.
Click to expand...

I'm not a cue maker but I sure cam empathize with you. I work on hot rods as a hobby and I'm forever "losing" stuff. As far as the tools go I keep several earth magnets around so that I can lay tools on them and not get them lost beneath something else I'm working on. The lathe chuck key is stuck on a powerfull magnet which is on the wall just above the lathe. I have to do those kinds of things or it would drive me crazy looking for stuff.

I also have to make mental notes of where I'm laying something down. I don't like mindless behavior like absent-mindedly laying something down.
 
time wasted

most of the time i am looking for 8mm drill bit or else is the chuck it always seem to walk of by it on finding it in place i don't remember going there.

there was this time where i thought i have lost my chuck key ended up finding it in the toilet after 3 hour of finding
finding sucks
 
MINDSEYE153 said:
The other day I'm looking for the painters tape. You know it's the blue low tack stuff, it partly glows in the dark. I mean how can you miss it, even on a messy bench. I spent 30 minutes looking for the stuff and finally gave up. Went to the local hardware store and picked up another roll. 30 minutes looking 30 minutes getting another roll. An hour wasted.

When I get back to the shop, as soon as I open the door there it is right on top of the bench with the other masking tapes. I know I check there! Twice! Hell I checked there TEN times!

All I can figure is that either someone in the house used it and put it back while I was out or that I'm slowly going blind.

After asking confronting everyone I an being assured by everyone involved that I am, slowing going blind!

Paul
Click to expand...

You have a gremlin. I have one too. It's been around since I was a kid. It hides stuff and then puts it back right in plain sight. I don't mind much anymore. I have gotten used to it. I just wish it would stop moving my car around in the airport parking lot! :D
 
How about the lost pencil?............(hint....look in a mirror)
How about the lost glasses?..........(hint....look in a mirror)


<~~~has never lost anything...........;-)
 
ChopStick said:
You have a gremlin. I have one too. It's been around since I was a kid. It hides stuff and then puts it back right in plain sight. I don't mind much anymore. I have gotten used to it. I just wish it would stop moving my car around in the airport parking lot! :D
Click to expand...

Gremlins!! Yea... that's the answer!! I knew it couldn't be ME! I thought all my stuff had legs! Or could change colors like a chameleon. And it always gets worse when I'm tired or in a big a__ hurry.
 
Tony Zinzola said:
Looking for tools?

I seem to spend about 1/2 my time looking for things. Especially that tool that opens the chucks on the Hightower lathe. I can never find the thing even if it was in my hand 30 seconds ago. I have another one on my milling machine and one on the inlay machine, but I never take them from there, instead I'll waste 30 minutes looking for the one I just had.

The other day I lost a whole butt section of a cue. Took me over 30 minutes to find it. The day before, I lost a point I was about to glue in. Took quite a long time to find that as well.

Seems anything that I drop falls through the invisible hole in my floor.

Just wondering if anybody else spends as much time wandering in circles looking for things.
Click to expand...
Recently i bought 3 24 in wall magnets for tools,hung 1 in front of each lathe,think im going to find stuff easier now
 
Tony Zinzola said:
Looking for tools?

I seem to spend about 1/2 my time looking for things. Especially that tool that opens the chucks on the Hightower lathe. I can never find the thing even if it was in my hand 30 seconds ago. I have another one on my milling machine and one on the inlay machine, but I never take them from there, instead I'll waste 30 minutes looking for the one I just had.

The other day I lost a whole butt section of a cue. Took me over 30 minutes to find it. The day before, I lost a point I was about to glue in. Took quite a long time to find that as well.

Seems anything that I drop falls through the invisible hole in my floor.

Just wondering if anybody else spends as much time wandering in circles looking for things.
Click to expand...


lol ... i have thee same lathe and do the same thing... amazing!!!!!
 
I sometimes lose things for a while, but more times than not, my wasted time comes from dropping a tip, a small tool, a blade, etc., onto the fatigue mat only to have it go under the bench. It NEVER seems to bounce out towards the open floor. Always under the bench!

It's also a pain to have to get the tip you just put some gel on, pop out of your hand and go into one of the holes in the fatigue mat. AARRRGGGG!

Gene
 
Yep, that dog gone bar will drive you nuts looking for it. I even put a burl handle on mine and still lose it. What i end up using a lot of times is a t-bar that fits the t-slot bolt on the toolpost. It's about the perfect size.

I have a corner bench that sees almost constant use. cuelathe running one way and a benchmill on the other run. No matter how often I clean it, that whole corner and 2 wall benches end up in a mountain of 400, 600 grit, and papertowels. I have to swim through a sea of the stuff when going from one job to another to find what I need. And then there's the stuff that gets knocked off and disappears.;) :D :) Yeah I'd say i understand the feeling.;)



Greg
 
I'm real anal about where everything is...I have specific spots for this ans that...a box for all my taps and the drills that go with them...wrenches and other tools go on the lathe that are for it...never ever under the bed...I know I've probably thrown some tool away not knowing it along with the woodchips....>_<
 
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two things

Two things, put a handle on that little chuck tool that Chris provides so that you can see it or better yet, put brightly colored handles on the three more you make out of slightly bigger drill rod.

The other trick is to take a common two by four or six and drill a row of quarter inch, a row of three-eighth inch and a row of half inch holes all the way down the length of it. Put it on the back of the bench and every time you go to put down something that will fit in a hole, drop it in one. Much easier to find than laying in the clutter on my bench. I am another person that can not see things when they are in a pile right in front of me. Having to hunt thirty minutes to find what I just set down five minutes ago makes me crazy! When I need several tools somewhere else I just grab the whole two by four rack. Works for me . . . most of the time!

I don't like magnetic strips because they magnetize everything you stick to them and then the tools attract filings and chips.

Hu
 
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