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Re: acquiring start-up equipment
Thanks for the following info:
~
~ There are classifieds in the back of _Signs of the Times_, and in fact I got
~ several items (cannon fire, ribbon burner, blower, lots of odds and ends,
~ 50 lbs glass, etc.) from one of those advertisers. It so happened that I
~ needed to travel to his city anyway, so I (a) got to pick out all the stuff
~ piece by piece, (b) saved a bundle on shipping costs, and (c) got instant
~ delivery. And at the moment I must say the cannon fire assembly on its stand
~ looks quite majestic in the living room.....!
~
Any idea what one should pay for some of the above equipment?
~ I also have been to a neon (and other sign materials) supplier in St Louis;
~ they gave me tons of helpful information, brochures, spec sheets, catalogs,
~ etc. They also happened to have _Neon Techniques and Handling_ (highly
~ recommended by me as a beginner and by everyone else I've asked) and Mr.
~ Fishman's video (also highly recommended by me). They don't carry fires
~ and plant equipment, but they did say that they often hear about used equipment
~ or are asked by customers to help find a buyer. If you have a supplier
~ anywhere within a reasonable distance, you might check them out.
~
Everyone I have talked to also recommends the Mr. Fishman video.
~ Also, it seems a lot of neon stuff _has_ to be purchased from "authorized
~ distributors" anyway, so it's probably not too early to start lining up
~ sources. The place I went to actually makes deliveries way out here in
~ the middle of the state, and of course they can ship stuff UPS as well.
~
~ I will say at this point I can understand why neon isn't delved into by the
~ average hobbyist; not so much the expense, but more like the ..er..mass of
~ it all. I feel fortunate in that I have a large shop-type area in my base-
~ ment I can use, and it's about as close to anywhere else to the sources of
~ gas and electricty. Even so, just building a suitable bending table and
~ accommodations for the fires, getting all the new gas plumbing in, engineering
~ an air piping system, running circuits for the blower and stuff, and
~ all the other smaller tasks all adds up to a large project that takes a lot of
~ planning and work, makes major physical alterations to my house (not sure
~ if anyone's discussed the spousal consent factor yet), but turns out to be
~ not terribly expensive. I figure working on some of the small stuff here and
~ there on weekends will just about get me to where I can have a bending plant
~ in operation AFTER taking a whole week of vacation to put it all together.
I luckly have a large workspace as well, and I can do any structual mods
I wish, even burn it down (shut my mouth).
~
~ I also figure that if I can do all that, go through a few tons of glass
~ learning to bend and assemble it properly, and actually get to where I
~ can produce saleable materials, buying a bombarder and pump and the rest
~ of the stuff won't look terribly difficult by then.
~
~ Cheers,
~
~ JD
I guess after 10 years of practicing (which it will take), I too will be
ready for the next step.
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Bruce A. Bowling
Staff Scientist - Instrumentation and Controls
The Continuous Electron Beam Accelerator Facility
12000 Jefferson Ave - Newport News, VA 23602
(804) 249-7240
bowling@cebaf.gov
http://devserve.cebaf.gov/~bowling
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