Hi FMJ1911,

Welcome - glad to have you here!

Great username, by the way! I'm with you on that score; although I've moved to JHP for defense rounds, I'll never give up my 1911.

We've got a couple of other interesting parallels, too. One of my grandfathers quit school in 8th grade to go to work after his father died and wound up being one of the wisest and most interesting guys I've ever known. Even 30+ years after his death, I still think about him all the time. A great man.

Many years ago, when I was still a relatively new pilot, a very senior instructor doing an aircraft checkout for me (in, as I recall, a turbine Bonanza) began his briefing with a simple phrase that he'd heard years before: "What one man can do, another can do." While there's sometimes a bit more to it than that in practice, the philosophy resonated with me.

Anyway…

Sounds as though you have a great machining and welding background. What are you working on at the moment?

Ken