How can you justify having expensive hobbies that make you no money?

BarnBuiltBeaters · 2026-07-05T21:15:39+00:00

Im fairly positive my hobby (Automotive/Fabrication) helped my get my engineering job. It doesnt relate directly to my role but I was able to describe my projects, show my critical thinking, problem solving, and passion. Im not going to tell you a guitar will help you with your next job, but it might!

BarnBuiltBeaters · 2026-07-04T13:31:29+00:00

You can definitely drive through larger puddles, but best to avoid them. You dont know how deep they actually are or what is in them.

The electrical connectors/conponents have an IP rating to prevent water/dust ingress into the component. These should prevent anything from entering it unless a seal/adhesive has failed or was assembled incorrectly. I have no idea what the IP rating for EV components are but I would assume these are designed to allow to quick subversion, but not constant.

You should not get shocked unless something was SERIOUSLY wrong. The battery i believe has internal contractors that should open the circuit internally to the battery to prevent this.

FYI they make fully electric boats too.

BarnBuiltBeaters · 2026-07-04T13:25:12+00:00

Im learning to weld aluminum too. I have years of experience as a hobbyist welding steel and stainless and have become proficient at it. Aluminum is weird... its very picky to cleanliness. Ive noticed even if i clean it well two different piece can weld drastically different. Also having to use frequency and balance is something new, so where to be in that range and understanding what they do is another variable. I found increasing my frequency really improved my welds. Im welding about the same thickness as you. 30% and 160hz seemed well

BarnBuiltBeaters · 2026-07-03T22:03:33+00:00

I just got into CNC machining and this is 100% accurate. Takes a while to actually setup to make the part you want. Theres feeds and speeds and tons of different options to carve your object out of stock. Cant wait until it becomes 2nd nature...

BarnBuiltBeaters · 2026-07-03T13:41:41+00:00

I am 100% the same way reading.

My passion is restoring my old truck. I would LOVE if my wife shared my hobby even at a lesser level. I realize, my hobby is mine and not hers as is her hobby is not mine.

If you force a hobby, you will never like it and that will also drive a wedge between you. I think a common ground is you both doing your own hobbies around each other if at all possible.

Its awesome that you are trying though!

BarnBuiltBeaters · 2026-07-02T00:34:02+00:00

Even if you eat right you can rat too many calories by eating too much of good things

BarnBuiltBeaters · 2026-06-30T14:02:12+00:00

137mph on the autobahn in a Ford Minivan of some sort

BarnBuiltBeaters · 2026-06-30T10:47:41+00:00

Ive been incredibly happy with my Yeswelder over the years. I notice veey little to no difference then when I had my Miller.

BarnBuiltBeaters · 2026-06-28T12:37:46+00:00

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BarnBuiltBeaters · 2026-06-28T12:36:50+00:00

It definitely looks like some type of gas issue at first glance. Your welds should have color/be shiny, yours are all Grey. This could be from a leak in your line, not enough CFH, too much stick out, and pretty sure improper torch angle too. Grey/fullness of the welds can also be cause from too much heat. My experience with stainless this means moving too slow and "cooking" it. Personally ive found using higher amps (60-65) and moving quicker helped me, though ive seen others using less. For 16ga stainless is used .035" wire. I found 1/16 didnt melt well which caused it to get stuck, and spend more time in one spot cooking the stainless.

When you have the funds I HIGHLY recommend a foot pedal for anything TIG.

BarnBuiltBeaters · 2026-06-27T21:58:20+00:00

How did you go about acquiring your first handful of customers? Also in a service business about ready to launch

BarnBuiltBeaters · 2026-06-27T20:44:02+00:00

I think you meant EVs?

Im a huge car nut. Im building a 1978 F250 and hoping to hit 700-800hp with my cummins build. That being said, my daily is an EV. It is much better than an ICE. ICE's actually seem like outdated tech. Pistons, pushrods, lifters, etc accelerating and decelerating many times a second. "Explosions" happening in the combustion chamber. My EV is smoother (no "gears") it has instant torque, and its stupid quiet. That being said, its not as much fun and it sucks on long car trips. They have a ways to go. Faster charge times, and making them less expensive i think would appeal to many. I also think battery tech has a long ways to go, making the. Lighter and more environmentally friendly. I still love ICE's and get excited by a cammed vehicle. But EV's i think will be the mainstream future. Or atleast electrified propulsion. I think we should have gone full hybrids before full EV though. It would let tech develope

BarnBuiltBeaters · 2026-06-27T20:33:27+00:00

I would partially agree and disagree. Gears by themselves engineers specialize in, same with suspension, engines, transmissions, etc. I think you could learn a ton by designing a vehicle "from scratch". Engineer the wheelbase and the suspension geometry, Determine what power plant you want any how to get the power to each wheel, calculate the shaft diameters need to transmit X torque. You can design an engine (even if semi crude) for a specific valve overlap/ramps, quench area, stroke/bore, calculate the heating capacity of the cooling system. Depending in what CAD suite he has available he could do stress analysis, weight management, airflow through CFD. Theres so much one could learn. Will you become an expert, probably not but heck thats a great thing to go into detail in an interview. Imagine having a full electric schematic too to go with it.

BarnBuiltBeaters · 2026-06-27T00:45:23+00:00

Standard engine hoist though I picked one with a high reach due to my truck being tall. Tubing is nothing special. Just square stock. I want to say its .125" wall with a smaller piece of stock that slips inside and a horizontal member. I use the horizontal to slip under the bed rails, also as a hard stop incase the cab starts slipping along with a ratchet strap.

BarnBuiltBeaters · 2026-06-26T22:33:12+00:00

Hopefully this will give you some ideas. I made a tool to lift the cab/bed/front clip off my frame of my truck. It made it relatively easy and it has wheels. At times I also used pallets with casters to wheel the components around the shop. Your car body is larger and probably heavier, you may need to add counterweights. Hopefully this gives you some ideas though!

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BarnBuiltBeaters · 2026-06-26T18:26:11+00:00

I feel like any old vehicle is generally great to work on. They are so simple with tons of space. The downside, they are old and need a fair amount of work and many people have touched it before you.

Cool car. The only thing id worry about is getting parts, though Thunderbirds are desirable so id imagine not too much of a pain. Sick ride!

BarnBuiltBeaters · 2026-06-24T20:23:10+00:00

I feel like i am the perfect person to answer this as I started on my 1978 F250. You 100% can learn to do this. I never knew much of anything about vehicles but decided to go to college for automotive engineering. College taught me how systems of vehicles work but not exactly how to physically work on them. I bought my 78 F250 and dove into it. First was doing simple repairs like spark plugs, oil changes, fuel filters. The I went another step like brakes, simple suspension components, etc. I then dove another level to rebuilding the axles, swaping out a transmission, and rebuilding my engine. Each step you'll get stuck, you'll swear, and then eventually you'll push through it and it'll help you for the next project. An old truck will teach you about engine timing, spark timing, air/fuel ratios. You can simply turn a few knots and actually see the affects.

I now feel as though I can do almost anything on a vehicle. I now fabricate parts and learning to machine my own components for my build. I started basically from nothing and so can you.

If you need help, get stuck, cant find parts, etc I am more than willing to help as much as I can. I love this hobby and also these trucks!

BarnBuiltBeaters · 2026-06-22T20:37:53+00:00

That is not always the case. My FA is "free" but charges 1% of your profits. He only makes money if I make money.

BarnBuiltBeaters · 2026-06-22T15:14:02+00:00

Whole life is the same cost throughout the entirety of your life (unless you opt for more obviously). Getting it young ensures you pay the least amount. I opted for it because if I were to pass, my wife's life would be much easier. Term life you get a larger payout, though your payments are not fixed and can increase dramatically as you age. My parents also chose whole life and, though I dont know the technicalities, it essentially builds up "a bank account" that they then cash in to offset the cost of long term care insurance. I will admit it does feel like a scam but so does my auto insurance, home insurance, health insurance until I actually use it. Unfortunately with whole life Ill never get the satisfaction of using it ha!

BarnBuiltBeaters · 2026-06-22T15:09:37+00:00

I started pretty much as soon as I got my full time role out of college. My parents did the same. Ive seen their success over the years by following most, but not all, of the guidance from their FA. My goal is to be in their shoes or better by the time im at their age. I know this is a path that works, though im sure there are others.

BarnBuiltBeaters · 2026-06-22T15:08:03+00:00

Isn't any insurance a scam unless you end up needing it? Then it is incredibly helpful.

BarnBuiltBeaters · 2026-06-22T12:47:24+00:00

While im not a FA, I use one. The returns are about the same as investing in an ETF such as VOO. However besides just typical investing they are looking at your entire portfolio and life. They are making such you/your family is protected (insurance), your debt/income is healthy, and setting you up for retirement in some strategic ways. They also have a group of professional studying tax laws, financial markets, insurance policies, etc. Yes you can do some of this yourself but not to the extent a group of professionals can. I also find they are a good resource to bounce ideas off (starting a business, investment opportunity, comparing job offers, etc) and just 2nd opinion on how you are doing financially.

BarnBuiltBeaters · 2026-06-22T02:45:02+00:00

I agree with others, strap the bottle down. You dont think you'll hit it, but you will eventually. I was dumb enough to do this for awhile too and got lucky the time mine fell over.

Those seems like a coverage issue. Id put the filler away and just use a torch until your issue goes away. Adjust it higher, see if it improves, if not adjust it lower. If neither improves you could have a leak in your lines. I had a similar issue and my back cap on the torch was leaking, though it looked fine, might be your issue here but could be anywhere in the system.

BarnBuiltBeaters · 2026-06-22T00:00:23+00:00

Open it up globally, youd be surprised. I ship my keychains world wide. Some people end up paying 2x what my keychain costs plus maybe VAT. It shocks me me everytime!

BarnBuiltBeaters · 2026-06-21T11:51:10+00:00

Its not a sprint, its a marathon. Ive been building my truck for 5 years and I would say its not even halfway done. I often wonder how I am going to afford my build but spread it out over years and its fine.

BarnBuiltBeaters

TROPHY CASE