[unofficial weekender] May seems to be going well…

[limburger 21711xp 0]

spending time in front of a screen for work is my job … I wouldn’t know anything else I’d rather enjoy doing to be honest.

Although I must admit that I don’t spend as much time writing software for fun as I used to do.

@ninjilly I’d say it only adds up because we either spend ages researching alternatives to avoid the hobby tax or we just settle because our supply needs are so low that bigger portions would be a waste of money.

It’s buying into a new part of the hobby that can start to add up as well, because a lot of the ‘extra’ tends to be ignored.

Doing ‘research’ for a mask I discovered several things :
– Amazon (and other webshops) are very bad at giving useful information about the products they sell …
Did you know that 3M sells half-masks in 3 different sizes ? (S, M and L)
I wouldn’t know if I hadn’t run into this tiny bit of potentially very useful info because getting a good seal is essential for these things to do their job. And that is kind of hard if your head/face is either smaller or larger than ‘average’.

– all of them appear to use propiety filters, making it impossible to buy ‘any’ filter …

– companies like to make life even harder so these filters also need not be compatible within their own brand

– the filter section is in several parts with the outer cover not always sold with the mask …

– From what I can tell the mask itself is ‘cheap’ (25 Euro without filters, 50-60 Euro = likely mask + filters).
Like printers it’s the disposable parts that really start to add up, depending on the type of filter …

– and of course they have dates … so you can’t keep them forever. I suspect part of it is science/physics (the things absorb stuff when exposed to ‘dirty’ air), but part of it must be because someone decided that all things need a date without thinking if it makes sense. Companies are of course happy to oblige, because it means more money for them …

– protection level ‘A2’ appears the one that is meant to stop spray paint and related

– protection level ‘P2’ is particles (possibly resin printers ?)

– ‘cheap’ filters are likely to be dust filters (meant to protect you during sanding and grinding), this is the type you’re likely to find at a DIY store.

– expensive filters protect against acid vapours (proper dangerous chemicals)

It really really sucks that Amazon has a nasty habit of recommending a ‘random’ filter that may or may not be suited for your purpose. And because they allow 3rd parties (often located in China … ) to sell on their platform they can neatly sidestep any responsibility when needed …
I’ve seen similar from the Dutch competitor to Amazon …

btw : if anyone knows more about this stuff feel free to comment. I think I now know enough to be dangerous.

[sundancer 42985xp 0]

Oh and don’t forget there are re-usable filters. If memory serves they are washable and just need to be treated with oil after washing because the main filtering agent isn’t the mesh but the oil that’s in it. But I might misremember that.

[sundancer 42985xp 0]

And because it’s Tuesday already I think we all can use some music:

[blinky465 17028xp 1]

@sundancer – I’ve been away from the computer for a couple of days, so only just got around to catching up on this thread. I didn’t notice the paint spillage as it must have happened as I left the room and didn’t go back in for a couple of days (we probably went away for a weekend or something).

And speaking of going away, we were up in lovely Stoke (on Trent) looking at a canal boat this weekend. The whole owning a boat and paying for moorings, for it to be sat in a marina for 10 months of the year (while we live down in Brighton) is just too expensive now (thanks to the magical combination of Brexit and covid, disposable income isn’t quite what it once was) so we’re joining a co-op and “sharing” a boat with about eight other people.

It’s actually a pretty cool way of getting back onto the canals (which I’ve really missed these last few years) without having to find about £300 a month for mooring fees (which I don’t miss).

[blinky465 17028xp 1]

I must have heard this song a dozen or more times on the “road trip” (five hour drive Brighton -> Stoke, then back again a few days later). Sharing is caring, right?

[blinky465 17028xp 0]

@limburger – the use by dates on equipment is more often to do with the packaging, rather than the quality of the goods inside. For example, once you sterilise something and put it inside a wrapper, it stays sterile; it’s the chance of the wrapper failing, rather than the goods inside degrading that makes companies put “use by” dates on stuff.

Is a disposable “covid mask” not good enough for airbrushing? It’s designed to trap tiny airborne liquid particles after all? Unless you’re airbrushing in an enclosed room rather than a vented booth, and for hours and hours at a time, do you need a top-of-the-range respirator?

 

[blinky465 17028xp 1]

that is a damn sexy guitar … and not soo expensive as well if my Google fu is correct.

It cost me just over £210 after taxes to get it shipped to the UK. About a hundred quid cheaper than I could find the cheapest 355-clone alternative (yes, the FireFly F338 is about the same price, and a pretty good guitar too, but they sell out within minutes of becoming available online!)

I checked out loads of reviews and this one got really good write-ups. It plays really nice too (it was a bit gritty at first, so I sanded the frets with 8000 grit paper and applied some lemon oil onto the fretboard and it’s super-silky now!). I’m no virtuoso – I’ve been banging out chords for nearly 30 years but only learned my first few leads this month; but it makes a lovely contrast to my Pacifica (which has a super-slim neck). I find a “wear” this guitar more on my hip than across my body and the wider fingerboard makes for easier string bending without catching on the ones above. I think it really is a nice instrument! (sounds great through an amp too).

And of course, it’ll look cool A-F when the jam nights start up again……

[sundancer 42985xp 0]

Stoke on Trent? Be honest! You went to see Mel the Terrain Tutor 😉

[blinky465 17028xp 0]

🙂

Maybe next time. I visited him not long after he’d moved into his studio at the Spode Works. There’s a really nice community of makers and artists around Stoke. It’s just a shame they had all their arts funding pulled in recent years (much like the rest of the country really). The boat mooring is about 4 miles (6.5ish km) from the potteries. I don’t know if he’s anywhere near the canal but if he is, we might just moor up for a few hours on the way past!

[limburger 21711xp 0]

Is a disposable “covid mask” not good enough for airbrushing?

Good question … and I don’t know.
It certainly isn’t tested to catch paint and such.
And it most certainly doesn’t cover your mouth and mask like a proper mask does.

However I dislike disposable anythings and the disposable covid-masks I’ve used tend cause my glasses to fog … so they’re not exactly useful to me.

// do you need a top-of-the-range respirator
It’s one of those things that you ‘need’, but so far very few sources tell you what you need to check.
So far I’ve only found one YouTuber listing his ‘preferred’ mask on his website and the mask listed was one of them I had found.

https://blackmagiccraft.wordpress.com/shop/

 

[sundancer 42985xp 0]

Is a disposable “covid mask” not good enough for airbrushing?

No. It’s better then nothing but they don’t “seal” around your mouth and nose. I use a mask that is a FFP3 with replaceable filters.

https://toom.de/p/ffp3-atemschutz-netzmaske-mit-5-filtern-wiederverwendbar/1400659

As far as I understand FFP3 is the last “low level” mask before you go full paintmask.

[crazyredcoatParticipant 13642xp 0]

I know it’s probably very bad for me, but I sometimes just put my shirt over my mouth and nose when spraying primers… I am not a smart man… 😛

[sundancer 42985xp 1]

It’s better then nothing 😉

[crazyredcoatParticipant 13642xp 1]

The retort my brain came up with there was ‘so are fishnets in the Arctic, but it doesn’t make it a good idea’. I think I may have finally gone insane, chaps…

[limburger 21711xp 1]

@crazyredcoat a tshirt ? fancy … I just held my breath … so yeah, I think getting a mask is a good idea.

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