NAMES Show

Wow what a difference a day makes, I decided to go back a 2nd day to take a few more pics and pic up a plan or two. My 12 year old son touched one of the prazi lathes they had on display and the guy came unglued. Not a great start, but it seemed like 20 percent of the people were already packed up or getting ready too. The mood was much glumer than the previous day. I don't get it if I purchased a booth I'd want to make sure I had enough materials for both days or at least hit Kinko's over night and I'd want to get my money's worth out of the booth and keep it open till the last minute. They do give 3 hours after close to get out. Any body else have this experiance?

Russ Wizinsky

It is the same thing at hamfests (amateur radio shows). The exhibitors want to get an early start heading home because they often have a long way to travel. So they tend to start packing up pretty early on Sunday. Some figure they got enough exposure on Saturday, and don't even bother coming back on Sunday.

But the best deals are on Sunday around noon as the packing starts in earnest. The exhibitors are tired, they want to go home, and they'd just as soon not have to load everything up. So they'll often cut you a good deal.

Gary

I didn't make it to NAMES this year, but yeah, Sunday is not a good day to go, from previous experience.

Like trade shows in Taiwan- if you show up on the last day half the stuff is packed up by noon (and the little bu**rs don't bother completely setting up until most of the way through the first day).

Best regards, Spehro Pefhany

Even if you are not too near it's worth while. It's a bit over a 10 hr round trip for me, (from Owen Sound, Ontario), but I'm glad I went. I'll probably return next year. The displays were fascinating. I only caught one talk, the one on Stirling engines which was rather basic, but interesting.

Best of all, I found an Atlas milling attachment for my 10" Atlas lathe. Since that was the missing link, I also bought plans for the MLA-17 Diesel engine. I was making chips with my one end mill tonight as a test, but now the chip making will start in earnest as I try to build my first IC engine. :-)

Rob

snipped-for-privacy@aol.com (Russ Wizinsky - ProfessorWiz) wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@mb-m16.aol.com:

Gun shows are the same way

Gunner

No 220-pound thug can threaten the well-being or dignity of a 110-pound woman who has two pounds of iron to even things out. Is that evil? Is that wrong? People who object to weapons aren't abolishing violence, they're begging for the rule of brute force, when the biggest, strongest animals among men were always automatically "right". Guns end that, and social democracy is a hollow farce without an armed populace to make it work. - L. Neil Smith

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Hey Russ,

Not a good thing to happen. I do know that "things" had not gone real well for John (from Prazi) earlier. His shipment came in somewhat rough condition via Fedex Groan, oops, I mean Ground, and one wooden crate was crushed pretty good, and apparently a bunch of little stuff in the crate was missing too. And he was late arriving and short on assistance too, and didn't have the help he has had the past few years. But still, I don't recall a "DON'T TOUCH" sign, and no sense giving a future customer a lecture on manners.

I did watch a kid about 10 "fiddling" hard with one of the Sherline competition items on display, while his adult accompaniment just watched and talked to the Sherline rep. It was a truly amazing 1/4 (?? )scale bicycle, and the kid was being a bit rough with it. The Sherline guy looked quickly at Dad twice, who said nothing, so the rep said to the youngster that maybe he should come back in a little while when the model builder would be glad to show him some of the features, and what parts could be EASILY DAMAGED. Dad kept right on talking, but the kid got the hint. A nice bit of tact from Sherline I thought.

I like the displays that are "out-in-the-open" rather than under glass, but I can fully understand the owners desire to protect their pieces from even unintentional damage.

And I've got to admit that I didn't stay 'til the bitter end either. I heard that the weather was rolling in. I know it hit pretty hard around my home about 7PM Sunday evening. Maybe the "early risers" were just afraid to get their stuff wet. Not much fun driving in the rain, but far less problems than having to load in the rain, then unload and dry everything off to minimize damage as soon as you get home after a long show.

Nice that your son is interested too. Mine never was, and I never was in my Fathers hobbies either. I spoke to Don and Dennis Goodman and noted that they were at least one family with three generations all with the same interests (live steam railroading). There may well have been others too. I think that is just so great for a parent!

Take care.

Brian Lawson, Bothwell, Ontario.

That's true. But if you want to take pictures of some of the extraordinary craftsmanship, then Sunday being way less crowded makes picture taking far easier. I think the gloomy rain probably contributed.

Still, while the show has a certain sameness to it, it never fails to inspire me. And I think that's more the point for me than anything else.

The guy at the plastictool or something display made it up he cut him a piece some kind of steel about .08" thick and in one cut cut a .005" needle about

1/4" long from it. Both him and I were amazed. He really should have asked and usually does before touching something but I was showing him how sloppy the slide was on a cheap unit at harbor frieght the other day so he figured that it'd be ok. The big green button on the front was just an added attraction. He did say it moved nice and ran real quite.. Russ Russ Wizinsky