Ive made a few small jigs, forgot to make them and grabed one up and made somethen else out f it...more than once...when I realize what Ive done.... sometimes it dont really mater sometimes...fuc....!!!! Im the same way when Im drawing something out to make it...no referance at all as to what it is.sometimes it's just a mod or addtion that I may needs to make....and the next time I pick up that pad...I havent a clue what all that scribblening ,diagrams&specs,& dimensions are for...one day I may learn to wright down what the fuc...Im drawing out. or just righting the specs or #'s for it to make it. you cant fix stupid. and when you have short term memory issues.... it's dam frustrating.
I use a lot of forged pistons for small jigs, cut off the skirts & you have a nice round slug to work with. I have many for different things. much cheeper than buying the soft c5 machinable collet stuff and never having the right one on hand that you need to make somethen. old cam shafts make nice drivers, but a bitch to cut off the lobes. the bearing journal is the main parts I use to make special driver's. I dont seem to recycle much scrap at the recycle place, I use most everything I can. hell even a small 4 cylinder block can be repurposed as a "tombstone" on your mill oh so much cheaper than buying a 18" tall one. I did buy 2 cast iron 24" serface plates, never found any thing that I could use for that. and got a deal on a aluminum 12x10 sine plate...less than what it would cost me to buy the cast aluminum plate to make one. sometimes you need to use your head befor buying material to make something, always check to see if you can find one withen 10-20% of the materials, just easyer that way and not another projetct to get to. Im also bad about buying stock for something and not labeling it all. it's all in a box, but...that righting what it is for seems to escape. me. I for some stupid reason think I will remember it...and I cant. (memory issues are radiation related. Or the anesthesia. All my old memory's are there without a issue.it's new stuff that get lost.) a mind is truly a terrible thing to waste...and loose.as is memory's.. I can not take 2 wires off a switch and remember witch went where in 5 min or less. cell phone is a big help...sometimes.when I remember I cant remember.