On Mon, 31 Jul 2017 07:56:41 -0400, Frank Krygowski
wrote:

On 7/31/2017 2:49 AM, John B. wrote:
On Sun, 30 Jul 2017 22:44:16 -0400, Frank Krygowski
wrote:

On 7/30/2017 10:30 PM, John B. wrote:
On Sun, 30 Jul 2017 12:17:55 -0700, Jeff Liebermann
wrote:

On Sun, 30 Jul 2017 13:14:42 -0400, Frank Krygowski
wrote:

I remember when the pre-Rodale _Bicycling!_ magazine had an article by
Fred DeLong on how to anodize bike parts at home. IIRC, he used a 12V
car battery as a power source. Not that I ever did it.

"Anodizing Aluminum Bicycle Components"
http://www.nonlintec.com/anodizing/
There are some additional interesting links near the bottom of the
page. Mo
http://www.bryanpryor.com/anodizing/
http://astro.neutral.org/anodise.shtml

"Tutorial: Polishing Bicycle Parts"
http://theradavist.com/2009/10/tutorial-polishing-bicycle-parts/

Not to be snooty but I've been polishing things for a lot of years
now, with the proper equipment :-)


Those were the days a person could frequently learn something from a
bike magazine. Now it's mostly which bike you MUST buy this month, or
which shorts make your legs look sexiest.

Hmmm... I should read some of that. After a triple bypass operation,
where the surgeons borrowed a vein from my leg, I could use some
advice on sexy leg fashions and camouflage. Riding with one leg in
shorts, and the other in full length pants, doesn't seem to attract
the ladies.

In some societies scars were a compliment to male beauty.


Drivel: The same thing happened with Home Power Magazine:
https://www.homepower.com
Originally (1987), it was full of do-it-thyself articles. However, as
grid tied solar became more popular, it's now mostly product reviews,
code compliance, and politics. I still subscribe, but I sometimes
wonder why I bother. The price of success is pollution.

A friend recently recommended "Popular Mechanics" magazine. A
publication that once printed articles about building your own 60 HP
Ford powered midget racer and how to build an arc welder out of an
aircraft alternator, and now publishes articles entitled "does it hurt
to pee on your lawn".

But I do believe that the "modern" (would one say?) type of articles
reflect the interests of the readers. How many people would leave the
comfort of the air conditioned Television Room and the 60 inch TV to
actually get their hands dirty building a midget racer.... or an arc
welder? (Or even know what an arc welder is?)

But the thought comes to mind, are Modern Americans actually intent on
discovering whether one should "pee on the lawn", or not? Sufficiently
so that a national magazine would publish an article concerning what
dirty little boys used to do, with no lessons whatsoever?

One 30-something man that I know is remarkably unschooled in technical
or mechanical things. He recently started reading Popular Mechanics.

I must say, it seems to work for him. IMO, the magazine is better than
it was about ten years ago. It seems to have lost some of its macho
attitude, and seems to have added a bit more on how to do things. It's
inspired him to do a few fabrication projects that turned out pretty well.

I can't comment on the magazine as the last previous issue that I had
read was perhaps 15, or more, years ago. As my memory was of a
magazine perhaps 1/2 inch thick with all kinds of detailed how to
build, articles and the issue I read told me how to nail triangular
molding at the edge of a ceiling (something I'd know since I was a
kid) I gave up in disgust. The "pee on the lawn"issue I read after a
friend recommended it the other day and I've now book marked the site
for occasionally reading.


He seems to like the articles where they disassemble some mechanical
item (like maybe a pressure washer) and explain what's inside. And the
final pages now feature something a dad can make with his kid, which is
a good thing. They've added some stuff that appeals to "foodie" tastes,
as well.

One of the problems is that I've been working around mechanical
devices since I was about 12 years old and while a pressure washer
might be a mystery to some I can pretty well guess what must be inside
the thing by seeing what it does.

Well, some of us here are A) pretty damned old, and B) very experienced
with mechanical and/or electrical things. It's unlikely a mass market
magazine is going to teach us much.

Bicycling parallel: I've got a foolishly large collection of bicycling
books. Back in the 1970s, there weren't as many on the market, but I
bought every one I could find.

Gradually I realized that I was learning less and less from each one,
simply because there was less and less I didn't already know.

It has reached the point that when I recklessly buy a bicycling
magazine at an airport, to have something to read on the flight, I
soon curse myself for forgetting just how awful they have become.

I remember when bike magazines were full of such things as the proper
way to adjust the seat angle and fore and aft position or the saddle
height - so that sitting on the seat with the pedal down the heal
should rest on the pedal with the leg straight. Or the handle bar
position so that when in the drops the handle bars should obstruct
your view of the front axle.

In retrospect they weren't all perfect suggestions but they were close
enough so you could ride long enough, in reasonable comfort, to decide
for yourself how you wanted the bike set up.

Now the magazines seem to recommend the XYZ fitting machine where, for
only $100, you can have your bicycle fitted to your exact physical
dimensions.
--
Cheers,

John B.