Owltech said:
"Happiness is a way of travel, not a destination" and the same goes for knowledge I suppose. To me buying equipment is like going to cinema just to see the closing credits - you miss the whole experience of learning and applying what you've learned.
I agree....and I love buying equipment.
And I'll admit, I've often approached projects by watching the closing credits. Then ultimately I watch the movie. But then I end up reading the book, then taking a tour of the movie theatre, making friends with the guy who runs the projector booth and finding out they have an extra projector and they'll give me that movie if I want. Then I realize that the movie is made of film, and x ray films have silver, is there silver to reclaim on this film?
...I'm in the process of building a cell. I understand the process. I understand the chemistry. I understand how many people have made it work with a pyrex dish, a strip of lead and a copper basket.
But I cannot bring myself even think about buying the acid until I've got multiple layers of containment, multiple levels of protection, multiple fume handling systems.
Concentrated sulfuric acid is scary.
I put the brakes on all my refining. Buying material like crazy, but not doing much more until I have everything as controlled as I want it.