He is not correct. The Maker Movement has nothing to do with vendors, sales tactics, or age groups.
DIY stands for Do It Yourself. The Maker Movement is focused on Do It Together. Collaboration and sharing of ideas is their mantra.
DerbyDad03 was heard to mutter:
Been there done that a few times. Makerspace has been around for a long time. We have a few Makerspace locations in our area. Great idea. "Train your mind to test every thought, ideology, train of reasoning, and claim to truth."
For those of us with experience and skill having all those tools on day 1 would be great. On the other hand, I can see it being overwhelming and frustrating for those with little experience or skill... hopefully management would keep it from being dangerous!
For the record, I cannot justify a wide belt sander either but having access to one occasionally would be nice. ;~)
We have one here in Tulsa. It seems to be well supplied with equipment that a lot of people don't have at home. It is good for DIY projects. The one here in Tulsa also has a Mini-Maker Faire every year. Any DIYer who wants to can appear there and show off what they are doing. I showed my DIY Book Scanner last year. The basic thing is that they are encouraging people to learn how to design and build what they would like to have, instead of waiting for somebody else to do it for them.
Since I was showing I really didn't have time to look around at what other people were showing, but they had all kinds of things. Robotics, drones, wool spinning (one man had a home made spinning wheel, that was a neat wood working project), art cars, I don't know what all. The public library had a booth showing off the fact that they are providing support for DIYers. The main library here even has an audio mixing suite.
Bill
I had a two month membership with a local one here in the Bay Area (i.e. SF ), probably the first one in the nation.
The way it works is like a gym membership, you sign up for a time period (d ay, month, year). The local one has specific times for you to use a piece o f equipment. If you want to use the tablesaw on Wednesday from 1-3, you hav e to check the calendar to see if it is open. You then reserve it and it's yours for that time.
Be aware, it is highly likely that the tools are not in "great" shape in th at they might have nicked blades, or dull ones. If someone was cutting cons truction lumber before you wanted to cut your precious walnut, don't expect a great cut.
I used the CNC machines (all Shopbot) - which was great. Everyone used thei r own drill bits, which helped to make sure that you are cutting with a fre sh tool. Also, prior to using the equipment, the Maker space makes you go t hrough a safety class. They have no way of knowing if you are familiar with the equipment or not. My membership gave me one free class, but I had to t ake another to actually use the CNC, as the first was in learning how to ma ke a file to drive the CNC.
These are great spaces and if you need a specific tool, like a CNC, perhaps something you should look into. Many places have tours you can sign up for and they will answer all the questions about use, etc. A member of our clu b, used the facility to make some great wall hangings and one an award at o ur annual show.
Oh, if your local Maker space is like the one I joined, it has other tools
- like laser cutters, metal tools (drills, lathes, etc), water jets, plasm a cutters, etc. A million dollars goes into acquiring all the tools, etc. t o open a space like the one I joined. Others might not be so "rich".
Good luck
MJ
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SF), probably the first one in the nation.
(day, month, year). The local one has specific times for you to use a piece of equipment. If you want to use the tablesaw on Wednesday from 1-3, you h ave to check the calendar to see if it is open. You then reserve it and it' s yours for that time.
that they might have nicked blades, or dull ones. If someone was cutting co nstruction lumber before you wanted to cut your precious walnut, don't expe ct a great cut.
eir own drill bits, which helped to make sure that you are cutting with a f resh tool. Also, prior to using the equipment, the Maker space makes you go through a safety class. They have no way of knowing if you are familiar wi th the equipment or not. My membership gave me one free class, but I had to take another to actually use the CNC, as the first was in learning how to make a file to drive the CNC.
ps something you should look into. Many places have tours you can sign up f or and they will answer all the questions about use, etc. A member of our c lub, used the facility to make some great wall hangings and one an award at our annual show.
s - like laser cutters, metal tools (drills, lathes, etc), water jets, pla sma cutters, etc. A million dollars goes into acquiring all the tools, etc. to open a space like the one I joined. Others might not be so "rich".
, a teacher or just a user.
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I attended the Open House last night.
Basically everything you said is exactly how it works, except for the $1MM seed money. Everything that they have was either donated or built by the members/commun ity.
Last night happened to be both an open house and the night that the overall Safety Orientation was being held, so I took that as an opportunity to get an in-d epth tour of the space. I would still need to be "certified" to use the individual pi eces of equipment.
If I joined, I would get a key fob and could come and go as I please, 24-7. Apparently there are some tools that you might need to reserve if you wanted to use th em at a popular time.
The tools are certainly as you described: well used. e.g. If I fix the 15 Y O Delta miter saw that's out in my shed and then donate it to them, it will be a significant upgrade over the POS Craftsman they have. (Maybe I could use their 3D printer to make a new end cap for the motor. That's all it needs.)
On the other hand, they have a 52" 3HP Saw Stop table saw that is technica lly "on-loan" from the president of the chapter. (If you trigger the stop, you are respon sible for the cost of a new one. They said it has been triggered 3 times in 4 years. Once was wet wood, the others were fingers.)
The layout was cramped. Ripping a long board on the table saw might not be possible. It would certainly require moving a huge wood storage rack (Eagle Scout pro ject) as well as some other stuff. The same for the planer and jointer. My last project w as a bed frame. Ripping, planing or jointing the rails would have been a problem, which is the reason I would have used their shop. Another example is the vertical panel cutting saw don ated by a local cabinet shop. The 10' (?) miter saw station would have to be moved out into the aisle before the panel saw could be used.
I asked about daily usage, for a fee. The only option is to pay the $40 for a month, quit, join again, etc. The next time a project comes along that might require the use of their planer, jointer etc. I'll have to stop by, do a detailed evaluation of what it would take t o position them as needed and then decide.
Another room contained a few 3D printers, a couple of milling machines incl uding a huge Bridgeport, a laser engraver, stained glass work area, a Raspberry Pi station, ham radio, etc.
At this point, I don't think I can justify a $40/month membership fee, alth ough it might be worth looking at the schedule of training sessions for the 3D printers, the CNC router, laser engraver, etc. Perhaps joining for a couple of months just to get exposure to those technologies would be worth the cost. Maybe I really could make the part to repair my saw.
Opposite of what I would think a community group shop would be. I envision a warehouse with tools in it. Every tool has 10 feet of empty space aroun d it. Working in a solo, one man shop that is cramped is one thing. Since you are the only one there, its easy to keep track of everyone and their m ovement and where the tools are. But having several people at once in a cr amped shop space does not sound safe. Kind of like having three cooks in a tight, narrow kitchen all trying to use the stove at the same time. Dange r.
On Friday, January 27, 2017 at 1:43:34 PM UTC-5, snipped-for-privacy@yahoo.com wrote :
be possible.
on a warehouse with tools in it. Every tool has 10 feet of empty space aro und it. Working in a solo, one man shop that is cramped is one thing. Sin ce you are the only one there, its easy to keep track of everyone and their movement and where the tools are. But having several people at once in a cramped shop space does not sound safe. Kind of like having three cooks in a tight, narrow kitchen all trying to use the stove at the same time. Dan ger.
I agree. They did mention that one of the founding members had recently pas sed away and the family had donated his house to the organization. They are working on getting all the paperwork In order so that they can sell the house. He intimated that o nce the house is sold, there is a strong possibility that they may move to a larger space . Earlier he had mentioned that the wood shop is probably their most popular activity, so ma ybe more space will be dedicated to it if they move.
If you want to talk about "danger" I should mention the dust collection sys tem. The 4" PVC duct work for the table saw runs along the floor and cuts across one of th e 2 aisles in the shop. It has the black and yellow hazard tape on it, but you have to step o ver it to get to the planer, jointer, table saw, etc. I'd consider it a trip hazard and plan to let them know my feelings. They indicated numerous times that they want feedback from their members and that all feedback goes before the board for discussion. I hope they'll accept feedback from a non-member.
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sion a warehouse with tools in it. Every tool has 10 feet of empty space a round it. Working in a solo, one man shop that is cramped is one thing. S ince you are the only one there, its easy to keep track of everyone and the ir movement and where the tools are. But having several people at once in a cramped shop space does not sound safe. Kind of like having three cooks in a tight, narrow kitchen all trying to use the stove at the same time. D anger.
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I just imagine these type of operations in a Morton building. In my part o f the world these are the metal farm buildings with metal siding/walls and roofs. Farmers put them up for machinery storage. A big Morton building w ith lots of tools in it all spaced out. Your description of your shop oppo rtunity does not sound good. I'd recommend staying away. The desire, beli ef from the organizers is there. But the execution of it is wrong.
Checked into a local one here in Houston a couple of years back when I was intrigued with the idea, and possibilities, of 3D printing for home modeling/remodeling.
Reminded me, painfully, of the early days of homebrew computer clubs back in the 70's ...
Good idea - mainly for access to hard to come by HARDWARE - but frustrating in that they almost always end up being run by those with a liberal, condescending mentality, typical of the urban, crowded rat syndrome, environment in which they reside.
Good luck in finding a better one in your area ... IME, these things generally end up frustrating/stifling for any talented, creative self starter.
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