Quit My Job . . .

[jimmbo]

It was a paycheck, nothing else. I would leave my Company phone and Laptop, locked up, and wouldn't think about the Place till the next Day. I changed my Home Phone Number and never updated the Company Records, as I didn't like be disturbed on my time

 

[tpenfield]

I retired 8 years ago, one of the best decisions I ever made. I was executive vp for a large Fortune 500 company. Very high stress, high anxiety, long hours but also high salary and bonus. 50 to 60+ hour weeks were the norm and lots of business travel which gets old quickly. I actually liked my job but it was just overwhelming in so many ways.
Told my wife I was retiring and she was ecstatic. A couple weeks after retirement she said I was a new person, happy, jovial, relaxed, no longer uptight, got my old personality back. I had numerous offers from various corporations but said no to all.
Had no desire to seek another job. I have so many interests that 24 hours a day is not enough time to pursue them all. I’m an avid fisherman, hunter, boater. I love gardening (growing my vegetable garden), reading, seeing movies, dozens of social activities. We travel numerous times a year around the states and the world. And the list goes on and on. We planned our retirement financially well so no problems there. We actually have more after tax income than when I was working.
I think one of the keys to a happy retirement is having interests and hobbies and real plans of things you plan to do. I find people who don’t have these generally are not happy in retirement. I have a friend and neighbor who retired as a VP/CFO from a large engineering company. Really had no hobbies or outside interests. After 2 years he was back working as VP of operations for another engineering firm. He just turned 70 and has been back working for 3.5 years now. And that’s just fine but it’s not for me.
As I tell people I’d rather watch paint dry than go back to work.

Absolutely right . . . if you don't have outside interests, then you probably will be bored in retirement.

My last boss was the CFO, and been CFO at another company, he had retired for about a year or two, then back at it at 70 years old. I don't think he needed the income either . . .

 

[tpenfield]

RF pleated material?

Yes . . . Pleated (channel fabric) with mesh undersides. Relatively small job, which is good to get started.

 

[tpenfield]

The upholstery business is gaining some traction . . . I finished the BW bow seats and have booked a Chris-Craft 28 full cockpit job. Also may book a Cruisers 328 full cockpit job soon.


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In addition to my IT Consulting gig and working on fixing up the house, the Admiral now thinks I am working too much . . .

 

[Lou C]

That’s the same thing that happened to me when I “retired” in 2017. The school district that I worked for 30 years hired me to do 2 part time jobs. Did it till Covid closed the schools.

 

[bruceb58]

Looks good!

 

[Baylinerchuck]

They really look good. I’ll be asking for advice when I start mine….. WOG was recommending a Consew machine and before that I was looking at the sailrite machines. I have a lot of other projects in mind that will make it worth while owning a good machine.

 

[bruceb58]

They really look good. I’ll be asking for advice when I start mine….. WOG was recommending a Consew machine and before that I was looking at the sailrite machines. I have a lot of other projects in mind that will make it worth while owning a good machine.

I have a Consew 226R. Other than the smallish bobbins compared to Tpenfield's machine, it's an excellent machine. I found mine on eBay many years ago for $300 which was a steal. It was listed with the wrong model number and I was able to drive over and look at it before bidding on it. It was also set up for 240V but was an easy swap for a DC Servo motor.

I do a little upholstery but I mainly use mine for boat covers.

 

[OhioRiverFloater]

The upholstery business is gaining some traction . . . I finished the BW bow seats and have booked a Chris-Craft 28 full cockpit job. Also may book a Cruisers 328 full cockpit job soon.

View attachment 372147
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In addition to my IT Consulting gig and working on fixing up the house, the Admiral now thinks I am working too much . . .

You do good work, you should have no problem making a career out of this as long as you don't get board doing it.

 

[tpenfield]

It occurred to me as I was making the cushions that I'll probably need a second machine at some point as a spare/backup in case my Consew 206RB craps out. . . . as bullet proof as the are.

As I accumulate some 'retained earnings' I'll keep an eye out for anothewr machine . . . Consew or Juki . . . most likely.

 

[bruceb58]

It occurred to me as I was making the cushions that I'll probably need a second machine at some point as a spare/backup in case my Consew 206RB craps out. . . . as bullet proof as the are.

As I accumulate some 'retained earnings' I'll keep an eye out for anothewr machine . . . Consew or Juki . . . most likely.

This guy has a lot of used machines and will ship. He is on the higher end if you can't find one locally but he will have gone through the ones he sells thoroughly.

I have done some messaging with him on Facebook and he gets back to you with questions immediately.

Collier Equipment Inc. | Lexington AL

Collier Equipment Inc., Lexington, Alabama. 4,653 likes · 4 talking about this · 90 were here. Buy’s and Sell's NEW & USED Industrial Sewing Equipment & Related Products, Custom Sewing Automation

www.facebook.com

 

[tpenfield]

Looks like I have filled my winter -> early spring months with upholstery work, having booked another boat seat job.

The Admiral and I have been wanting to clean out the basement and various storage areas of all the 'junk' that has accumulated over the past 30 years. On Wednesday we got a 30 yard dumpster and filled it up (pretty much) over the past 2 days.

With the basement now cleaned out, I have plenty of room for my 'upholstery shop'. Just need to build a couple of racks to store the rolls of vinyl and maybe add a cutting table.
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As for the rest of the house . . . This global warming thing has worked out well this year, as we have been able to paint the house in 65-70˚ weather further into the Fall months than expected. I am getting good at rebuilding windows, and in the process have swapped many of the windows over to PVC sills and trim. This weekend is going to be in the mid-70˚s, but we have had a enough painting for a while.

There is some roof gable & soffit trim that needs to be replaced, but I have reached out to a home improvement contractor to give me a price on those things. Of course most of these folks are really busy trying to get outside work done before the cold weather does arrive. I may end up having to do the work myself.

Then there is my IT consulting job, which is about 1 day per week, but not regular hours. I sort of have to be watching my email and responding to things each day.

 

[Baylinerchuck]

Question for you as I’m just entering the upholstery realm on my boat. How much do you use reverse? I found a Consew 225 that’s like new for $500, most likely less. I don’t think these have reverse. There is also a 205RB-1 for $1100-ish that looks new. I’m just curious your thoughts. BTW, your fab area looks amazing. I should just bring my whole boat to you…..but then again the fuel from the MD line would cost more than the upholstery

 

[tpenfield]

@Baylinerchuck - Reverse is pretty much a must. You will use reverse twice on each seam The starting stitches and the ending stitches (to lock the thread).

The the Consew 226 has reverse as does the 206RB. I'm not a fan of the earlier versions of the 206RB, as the controls are not as nice. You will also want to make sure the machine you get can go up to 8mm (or 10mm) stitch length. I have seen some machines that cannot go much over 5mm.

 

[bruceb58]

Question for you as I’m just entering the upholstery realm on my boat. How much do you use reverse? I found a Consew 225 that’s like new for $500, most likely less. I don’t think these have reverse. There is also a 205RB-1 for $1100-ish that looks new. I’m just curious your thoughts. BTW, your fab area looks amazing. I should just bring my whole boat to you…..but then again the fuel from the MD line would cost more than the upholstery

Do NOT buy a 225...you want and need reverse. No easy way to lock your stitch when you start up.

I have a 226.

 

[bruceb58]

Also, if you just doing upholstery and not boat covers, the larger bobbin of the 206RB isn't as big an issue although I do use a 226 with it's smaller bobbin on my 226, I just prefill a lot of bobbins before I start my project.

 

[bruceb58]

Also look at Juki 1541 (with or without the S) or the Seiko STH-8BLD3

This is the machine I have and this is actually near me. Bet you can get it way less than $900

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I bought my 226-R2 for $300 off eBay and I was able to pick it up. I was lucky...it was up for bid and they had the wrong part number listed.

 

[tpenfield]

I'd like to pick up another machine at some point, but everything is about double the price of 3 years ago when I bought the 206RB-4. I paid $500 for the machine and accessories. I swapped out the clutch motor for a servo motor and did some gear (belt) reduction.

@Baylinerchuck - In my research, I posted this thread about the 'good' machines to consider. The list is a few posts down on page 2 . . . I did notice the Consew 225 on the list, but you can ignore that model, given it has no reverse. Either the machine Bruce has or the one I have would be good . . . Look for 'needle feed' aka 'compound feed' in the features/spec's.

https://forums.iboats.com/threads/diy-upholstery-canvas-repair-advice.726280/page-2

 

[Baylinerchuck]

I'd like to pick up another machine at some point, but everything is about double the price of 3 years ago when I bought the 206RB-4. I paid $500 for the machine and accessories. I swapped out the clutch motor for a servo motor and did some gear (belt) reduction.

@Baylinerchuck - In my research, I posted this thread about the 'good' machines to consider. The list is a few posts down on page 2 . . . I did notice the Consew 225 on the list, but you can ignore that model, given it has no reverse. Either the machine Bruce has or the one I have would be good . . . Look for 'needle feed' aka 'compound feed' in the features/spec's.

https://forums.iboats.com/threads/diy-upholstery-canvas-repair-advice.726280/page-2

Thanks to you and Bruce. This is great advice.

 

[Baylinerchuck]

Also look at Juki 1541 (with or without the S) or the Seiko STH-8BLD3

This is the machine I have and this is actually near me. Bet you can get it way less than $900

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I bought my 226-R2 for $300 off eBay and I was able to pick it up. I was lucky...it was up for bid and they had the wrong part number listed.

CA would be a bit of a trip for me, lol. Does the machine that’s pictured have a servo? It looks like a constant speed motor /clutch Machine.