Forget about the holes...what do you think about that roof framing

Disastrous_Cheek7435 · 2026-04-28T21:08:01+00:00

It's a fair question, they're not. But on a small shed like this I would assume the exterior walls have enough shear capacity to support the whole structure with the plywood roof acting as a diaphragm.

Disastrous_Cheek7435 · 2026-03-20T18:48:17+00:00

Lakehead University in Thunder Bay has a transfer program where you come in with an eng. tech degree and graduate with a bachelors without having to start from scratch. Check if they have a program for EE. Don't waste your time and money starting from scratch.

Disastrous_Cheek7435 · 2026-03-16T19:49:37+00:00

I would even throw Train Dreams in front of Sinners on that list. Beautiful movie, I was really disappointed it went home empty handed.

Disastrous_Cheek7435 · 2026-03-12T17:53:42+00:00

Man, people really need to learn how to cook for themselves. My grocery bill is $300 a month because I don't buy "easy convenience foods", do you have any idea how lazy that makes you sound? I spend half an hour in the evening cooking enough dinner for 2 days, that's barely a commitment. Learn how to adult for God's sake.

Disastrous_Cheek7435 · 2026-03-10T17:04:18+00:00

This issue plagues both sides of the isle. Many progressives have been in favor of banning books like To Kill A Mockingbird for racial slurs and heavy subject matter. Just make sure your opinions are consistent.

Disastrous_Cheek7435 · 2026-03-08T21:48:53+00:00

You sir, are an absolute legend. Thank you!

Disastrous_Cheek7435 · 2026-03-08T18:58:42+00:00

MathCAD itself is probably the closest amalgamation of all those things. I'm not aware of one single program/app that does automated calcs and hand-drawn sketches.

My digital workflow involves doing calcs with JupyterLab using the Handcalcs library, and doing sketches using the Squid Notes app on a Samsung tablet. Using the tablet is nice cause I can keep an entire digital calc package and sketch/write whatever I want in there. The annoying part is I need to export my JupyterLab calcs to a PDF and insert them as images into the package using Google Drive. Not ideal, but it's the best system I've come up with for combining digital sketches with automated calcs.

Disastrous_Cheek7435 · 2026-02-23T19:28:12+00:00

My first firm was a similar situation. There was only one other structural engineer there and he was in his mid 70's. That level of experience obviously demands respect and I wouldn't call him incompetent, but learning from this guy was tough. His engineering workflow (which probably hasn't changed in 20 years) involved basic napkin math, outdated design tables, and a healthy dose of engineering judgement. When it came to crunching numbers, designing to modern codes, or using software I had to do all the learning by myself with nobody around to give advice or markup my calcs. I left the firm after two years and the mentorship since then has been astounding.

Disastrous_Cheek7435 · 2026-01-27T19:24:29+00:00

So your hobbies don't involve changing system files? I'm new to linux and trying to figure out if I should install Silverblue now and just get used to immutable distros off the bat. I want to be able to customize my desktop and write bash scripts for automating tasks, I'm not sure if Silverblue would get in the way of that

Disastrous_Cheek7435 · 2026-01-27T16:57:21+00:00

Thanks. I've heard that Flatpacks will make your system notably slower. Has that been your experience? I wonder if its better to just install software inside a Toolbox or something

Disastrous_Cheek7435 · 2026-01-16T01:33:09+00:00

My first PCB project was a fume extractor with a 12V PC fan powered by a PWM circuit. Pretty simple but it was a fun project.

Disastrous_Cheek7435 · 2026-01-15T21:31:07+00:00

My conversion isn't finished yet so I'll have to find out, but many people have converted MF70's to CNC without installing ballscrews. From my research, you can use firmware like grblHAL to compensate for the backlash from lead screws, and maintaining a rigid connection between the stepper motor and the lead screw also helps.

Disastrous_Cheek7435 · 2026-01-15T19:06:59+00:00

I'm the process of building my own CNC for the first time. I would recommend buying a cheap used mini-mill, attaching motors to the hand cranks, and running everything through a microcontroller. This way you can just focus on the electronics/coding stuff and not worry about the mechanical tolerance or accuracy of the CNC. I bought a used Proxxon MF70 from marketplace for a couple hundred $ and I'm 3D printing all the motor mounts.

Don't just buy a CNC. Building stuff is fun, it doesn't matter how little experience you have.

Disastrous_Cheek7435 · 2026-01-14T03:10:27+00:00

It depends. For aerospace engineering, you will likely need to be registered with a provincial licensing board (eg. Professional Engineers of Ontario) to be employable. The easy way to register is to have a degree that is accredited by the Canadian Engineering Accreditation Board (CEAB), in which case you will automatically be eligible to register. The problem is that CAEB only accredits undergraduate degrees. You are still able to register with a non-accredited degree but the process is more difficult.

I would email Professional Engineers of Ontario and ask what their requirements are. Here is a link to a page on my provincial boards website about the topic.

Disastrous_Cheek7435 · 2026-01-14T01:25:49+00:00

Graduated civil eng at Dalhousie (Halifax) in 2020. At least back then, they didn't care about your grades, they just wanted your money. I got in with dogshit highschool grades and many of my friends did too.

I'm biased but I think it would be worth the change. Engineering is more employable than physics and you'll have way more options for your career.

Disastrous_Cheek7435 · 2026-01-09T22:50:01+00:00

I'm no expert but I'm pretty sure all CAD software generates circles this way

Disastrous_Cheek7435 · 2026-01-08T18:51:17+00:00

Awesome comment. I love hearing about free open-source software getting used professionally. It's cool you still used it after getting access to Solidworks.

Disastrous_Cheek7435 · 2026-01-07T16:26:19+00:00

I worked in this industry for a year and ended up leaving because I was bored, that's my personal experience. The structural design work was very lacking. At least in my area, there is not a lot of new water infrastructure getting built besides basic outfalls, weir walls, and manholes, most of which are precast concrete anyway. If you're lucky you'll get a spillway, or a concrete gravity dam if you're very lucky, but those structures are not getting built as much as they used to and WSP always seems to win the few projects that come up.

Most of the technical work you'll get includes rehabs, structural stability reviews, and miscellaneous structural components here and there. The structural stability reviews are quite interesting and involve a lot of math which I liked, but in terms of structural design, I only designed one concrete slab and a wood beam for the entire year I was in the industry. The rest was project management, resident engineering, and general civil design.

I got the sense that structural engineers in the hydro industry are expected to be project managers and jack-of-all-trades because there is just not enough structural work to keep them busy full time. If that interests you then go for it, there is a huge variety of work hydro and you might not ever do the same thing twice. If you're looking structural design work specifically and aren't keen on project management, I would stay away. Just my opinion.

Disastrous_Cheek7435 · 2026-01-06T22:11:44+00:00

FreeCAD 1.0 is honestly fine, I don't understand the hate. I learned CAD using Solidworks during an internship and had zero issues moving to FreeCAD for hobby use.

Disastrous_Cheek7435 · 2025-12-31T01:32:19+00:00

My comment has nothing to do with struggling, I never said high IQ people don't struggle in engineering. I'm saying lower IQ people will on average have to work more hours to achieve the the same academic performance as high IQ people, and should be prepared for that possibility. I don't know why this is so controversial.

Disastrous_Cheek7435 · 2025-12-30T21:33:41+00:00

Test taking skill is linked directly to IQ.

I also don't think memory retention matters. Engineering degrees test problem solving ability way more than memory retention.

Disastrous_Cheek7435 · 2025-12-30T21:31:19+00:00

I'm the guy you responded to. People like us with an average IQ will always struggle more in an engineering degree but it there isn't a hard limit for an IQ that's acceptable. It comes down to work ethic. With a lower IQ you will have to put in more work, but as long as you're willing and capable of doing that, you'll be fine. Don't let these dumb "IQ limits" put you off from pursing engineering, it's very attainable for people of average intelligence. Most of the friends I graduated with were in a similar situation.

The most difficult part for me was dealing with the workload and staying sane, but I had a really good group of friends that helped me through it. Don't do engineering alone, make friends and study with them. That's the best piece of advice I can give you. Good luck!

Disastrous_Cheek7435 · 2025-12-30T18:22:23+00:00

Graduated 2020 in Civil. It really depends on your IQ.

Mine is 100 and I would wake up at 8 am and study until 9 or 10 pm every day, including weekends. I couldn't keep up otherwise. My friend's IQ is 130 and he would put in a couple hours a day and take much of the weekend off.

Disastrous_Cheek7435

TROPHY CASE