Hi everyone. I am feeling like I’ve lost any direction after getting laid off earlier this year (was working as an analyst in telecom and very recently landed a much lower position in healthcare data entry due to necessity). I already have several hobbies but I am either burnt out on them or they have lost their luster (similar to how life has lost its luster for me this past 6 months).
I would really love to learn a new skill, preferably using my hands to create something while challenging my brain. I’m willing to take classes, study, practice, and buy some equipment required for the skill.
Please tell me about your skill/hobby that gives you purpose. I’ve kind of exhausted google search which always returns the same 20 or so craft suggestions like “make custom invitations for weddings”, and while that sounds good for someone, it may not be good for me.
Current hobbies: Music composition and gardening,
EDIT: trying to move away from hobbies that involve me sitting in front of a computer. I already do that way too much.
I really want to get into casting, because it’s crazy how much stuff you can make. Machining too, but that requires a lot of equipment. If you want to use metal casting to make machining tools, David Gingery’s works are a classic.
Machine is a very fun hobby, but be very careful when using high power tools. Mills, lathes and surface grinders can easily bite yah. As my shop teacher once said “If it can cut metal it can cut you!” “Metalworking tools are not toys, treat them with respect and they will respect you back” “Follow the MSDS procautions and shop rules, ie no long sleeves or gloves near rotary equitment and dont roll up sand paper on the lathe”
It is very rewarding being able to show people the part you made and solving problems feels great too!
Casting can also be dangerous. It’s not too surprising, when glowing hot molten liquid is involved, but it’s not necessarily intuitive. Any excess moisture in the work area is a potential steam explosion, including the water in porous concrete you might not think about. Materials weaken at high temperatures, and thermal expansion of metal when you’re going up that high is more than a detail. To deal with that, use PPE, your brain and Murphy’s law. They say to assume everything in a metalworking shop is hot unless you know for a fact that it isn’t, for example.
Machining is also cool because you can get microscopic precision with pretty standard equipment, and quite often need to if you want something to make something like a smooth-rolling bearing. That makes it a lot more of a science than more common skills like woodworking.
I did not know about water expantion being a hazard when casting. Wow go figure. Casting is pretty neat, ive had a few buddys cast alumium and its hot as balls when pouring into a mold, but has alot of compontents that you really dont know unless your into it. Like water expantion, thats pretty cool thanks for sharing!