How much time have you spent researching?

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bearriver
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How much time have you spent researching?

Post by bearriver »

I am posing a few questions for established members. Many folks think that a few hours of reading will give you all it takes to get started. I'm curious how this plays out in reality, exactly.

1) How much time did you spend researching before making your first drop?

2) How much time have you spent researching after making your first drop?

3) How much time do you continue to spend researching a week (or per day if daily)?

4) What conclusions have you made about the time you have spent researching this hobby?
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by bearriver »

1) Aprox 100+ hours over 1 year of time.
2) Aprox 500+ hours over 2 years time.
3) 7-14 hours per week, sometimes more.

4) Without my preemptive research I would have built a shitty still, and eventually scrapped it (See a world class distillation apparatus :oops: ). It made the difference between getting into a hobby I am passionate about, and giving up on myself. Everything I make these days is something that makes me proud to drink and share.
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by Maritimer »

1) How much time did you spend researching before making your first drop?

I got into this hobby because my wife and I were looking for ways to reduce expenses. That was in the winter of 2012. By the spring I'd become very confused, trying to understand distilling using HD as a source. Then I bought three books from the Amphora Society http://www.amphora-society.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow : The Compleat Distiller, Riku's Designing and Building Automatic Stills, and Zymurgy Bob's book, Making Fine Spirits. I'd advise anyone who wants to learn to get these books, at least. You'll waste hours trying to use HD as your source. My first drop was in September, so there was a good half year of research and building.

2) How much time have you spent researching after making your first drop?

Well, how can you stop? Researching distillation is more addictive that alcohol!

3) How much time do you continue to spend researching a week (or per day if daily)?

Researching distillation has revived another interest, mathematics. And to make the mathematics more interesting, I got Mathematica, which involves a lot of learning. So, indirectly, I spend a few hours every day.

4) What conclusions have you made about the time you have spent researching this hobby?

One of the problems that faces retirees is what to do with all that time? One thing to do with the time is to drink and the other thing to do is to think. Distilling is the perfect retirement pastime!

M
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by NZChris »

1) How much time did you spend researching before making your first drop?
This was pre-internet. Many hours with every library book I could find locally, then more again while at Massey University. Then more on materials. Probably over a year from the decision to build, to the first run.

2) How much time have you spent researching after making your first drop?
I couldn't come up with numbers. When making a new product, I would spend at least as much time researching it as I do in it's production. Making a repeat product, time is spent writing up the method making any changes needed using notes from previous runs.

3) How much time do you continue to spend researching a week (or per day if daily)?
Sporadic. When working full time it was almost zero for a couple of decades, only taking an interest if offered something unusual to ferment. One ferment makes nearly enough to last us a year and I was getting that from my own grapes and only doing occasional sugar washes or rums every couple of years for a top up. Now that I'm retired I'm probably averaging a couple of hours a week on researching for new products and techniques.

4) What conclusions have you made about the time you have spent researching this hobby?
It has made me a lot of nice product with bugger all failures. A lot of that, the result of only having reliable sources available, no youtube, no peers, no brew shops peddling distilling products.
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by MoonBreath »

1. 4yrs studying, drooling, wishing, wanting ..

2. Every single day.

3. Every single day ..Also rereading Compleat Distiller, Smileys Corn Likker, and MOONSHINE, all very good readn ..Also discussing and gleaning info and advice from LW, who I consider my mentor..Also, 2-runs per week is pretty good practice for anybody, especially when you backslop every run.
4. TIME WELL SPENT! :D
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by shadylane »

1. Started playing around with distilling before there was a internet.
Probably didn't spend much time on research.
2. Not sure, at least several thousand hours over the last 40 years
3. 15 to 20 hours or more a week.
4. When I first started, I had no idea how complicated the simple act of making shine could be.
The more research I do, the more I realize how little I know.
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by jedneck »

Short answer to all, Not enough.
welcome aboard some of us are ornery old coots but if you do a lot of
reading and don't ask stupid questions you'll be alright most are
big help
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by shadylane »

With the information that's available now.
I'd have made a lot fewer mistakes.
An hour of research is worth a month of mistakes.
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by ga flatwoods »

Much more than most but not as much as some.
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by S-Cackalacky »

1.) I think when new members come here they don't know that they don't know. That was probably me. I'm sure I pissed Rad off on more than one occasion. Fortunately for me it took 8 months to build a simple pot still and that bought me some time to do the reading and research and get over some of my dumbassedness. This place is like research boot camp for anyone willing to exercise a little patience and persistence. I was a complete distillation virgin when I came here, so that first 8 months got me to the point of doing a WPOSW sac run.

2.) I think after going through all the struggle of doing a first build and first ferment, I finally realized that the research was a permanent and ongoing thing. There's still a hell of a lot that needs to be done after the drop falls from the condenser. Then there's new recipes to work on and new builds and new methods to figure out and....... always something new to research and learn.

3.) I'm on here most every day. Some days I'm here for 2 or 3 hours. I enjoy reading the active topics and sometimes reading through recipes. Everything you pick up along the way is new knowledge that adds to your abilities as a hobby distiller. Now, I usually only do focused research for something I want to do and don't know how to do. I also appreciate the entertainment value found here - the liars bench, the HD novella, the History and Folklore section, etc.

4.) The conclusion I draw from all this is that it was worthwhile. This hobby took me in directions I thought I would never go. It affirmed the notion that success can be gained from failure and that a hobby can become a passion. And, the fellowship I find here is priceless.
Every new member should read this before doing anything else:
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by woodshed »

41 years :eugeek:
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by Soft batch »

bearriver wrote:I am posing a few questions for established members. Many folks think that a few hours of reading will give you all it takes to get started. I'm curious how this plays out in reality, exactly.

1) How much time did you spend researching before making your first drop?realistically, probably 40-60 hours. No where near enough. Most of it was how to build a still, not the whole process. I didn't discover this site until long afterwards.

2) How much time have you spent researching after making your first drop? thousands of hours, far more reading than actually stillin.

3) How much time do you continue to spend researching a week (or per day if daily)? 4-12 hours/week. Much more on holiday weekends when I'm away from home!

4) What conclusions have you made about the time you have spent researching this hobby?i learn something new every day. I don't know what I don't know!
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by DFitz »

bearriver wrote:I am posing a few questions for established members. Many folks think that a few hours of reading will give you all it takes to get started. I'm curious how this plays out in reality, exactly.

1) How much time did you spend researching before making your first drop?

2) How much time have you spent researching after making your first drop?

3) How much time do you continue to spend researching a week (or per day if daily)?

4) What conclusions have you made about the time you have spent researching this hobby?
1) Years
2) More Years
3) Still researching builds and recipes as I desire to try something new
4) Research brings on positive results which brings on experience, which is priceless
Last edited by DFitz on Thu Nov 27, 2014 6:31 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by Bushman »

Quick answer, more time than my whole masters program.
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by cranky »

1) How much time did you spend researching before making your first drop?
Damn, seems so long ago I don't remember. I did a lot of research back in the late 80s mostly on an old microfiche machine, those things gave me motion sickness back then that has only gotten worse over time, but I spent hours each day over months. Then a couple years ago I had a batch of wine that didn't want to ferment right and I thought about that research I had done 25 years ago and fortunately wound up here because I don't even think of youtube. That earlier research at least gave me enough knowledge to know I didn't know enough so I spent several hours a day for several months researching before I made something capable of running that failed batch of wine which turned out way better than most people seem to produce their first few times and I was hooked. It took another year of reading on here every day during any leisure time before I was ready to sign up and contribute.

2) How much time have you spent researching after making your first drop?
I'm afraid to even begin to calculate that. A LOT!

3) How much time do you continue to spend researching a week (or per day if daily)?
This one is hard to answer, I am on here almost every day researching or just reading one thing or another and trying to contribute where I can, contributing instead of just asking questions actually helps me to understand more.

4) What conclusions have you made about the time you have spent researching this hobby?
I will never know enough about it to consider myself a master, I will always be an eternal novice but even a novice can make better likker than you can buy.
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by HDNB »

1) How much time did you spend researching before making your first drop?

22 years ago, with very little research made a rum wash and used a pot, inverted lid floating bowl and ice...and produced some unfractioned, non cut swill. sipped an ounce or two and tossed the rest a few years later.

2) How much time have you spent researching after making your first drop?

22 years of thinking, two years of "light" research on web, 12 months of "light" lurking here...4 months of hardcore lurking here got me to my second drop. registered here then... six more weeks of harcore reading and hardcore experimenting and made a drinkable product.

3) How much time do you continue to spend researching a week (or per day if daily)?

start every day here. end every day here. sometimes when i want to kill someone at work, i spend a half hour or hour in the afternoon... just for "me"

4) What conclusions have you made about the time you have spent researching this hobby?

i have a forum addiction.
I finally quit drinking for good.

now i drink for evil.
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by BoisBlancBoy »

bearriver wrote:I am posing a few questions for established members. Many folks think that a few hours of reading will give you all it takes to get started. I'm curious how this plays out in reality, exactly.

1) How much time did you spend researching before making your first drop?I would have to say around 3-4 months.
2) How much time have you spent researching after making your first drop?At least a couple hours a day since I joined the site for sure.

3) How much time do you continue to spend researching a week (or per day if daily)?
Its every day, if I have some free time this is the place I come to so I can review or pick up on the latest topics.

4) What conclusions have you made about the time you have spent researching this hobby?
Everytime you think you have it figured out something new pops up, this hobby has its basics but is forever changing.
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by googe »

I don't set out to do research, I just read new posts on all forums, something new pops up all the time. you should not limit yourself to one forum if you want to learn, no matter how much you might like a certain forum there will always be info you can use.
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by shadylane »

googe wrote:I don't set out to do research, I just read new posts on all forums, something new pops up all the time. you should not limit yourself to one forum if you want to learn, no matter how much you might like a certain forum there will always be info you can use.
There's some interesting forums in other language's. Bing translate is my friend.
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by Riddlingrack »

I will say this. As a professional in another field, I participate in several other forums. None of them approach the depth of knowledge, encouragement, and downright passion of this "hobby" forum.

I've spent close to a hundred hours so far, in just the last 4 months. I still don't even know what still I'm going to build (leaning towards Brendan's component flute)

I think it was said best by saying I don't even know what I don't know. I'll keep reading.
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by InglisHill »

About a minute, on each......
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by Truckinbutch »

S-Cackalacky wrote:1.) I think when new members come here they don't know that they don't know. That was probably me. I'm sure I pissed Rad off on more than one occasion. Fortunately for me it took 8 months to build a simple pot still and that bought me some time to do the reading and research and get over some of my dumbassedness. This place is like research boot camp for anyone willing to exercise a little patience and persistence. I was a complete distillation virgin when I came here, so that first 8 months got me to the point of doing a WPOSW sac run.

2.) I think after going through all the struggle of doing a first build and first ferment, I finally realized that the research was a permanent and ongoing thing. There's still a hell of a lot that needs to be done after the drop falls from the condenser. Then there's new recipes to work on and new builds and new methods to figure out and....... always something new to research and learn.

3.) I'm on here most every day. Some days I'm here for 2 or 3 hours. I enjoy reading the active topics and sometimes reading through recipes. Everything you pick up along the way is new knowledge that adds to your abilities as a hobby distiller. Now, I usually only do focused research for something I want to do and don't know how to do. I also appreciate the entertainment value found here - the liars bench, the HD novella, the History and Folklore section, etc.

4.) The conclusion I draw from all this is that it was worthwhile. This hobby took me in directions I thought I would never go. It affirmed the notion that success can be gained from failure and that a hobby can become a passion. And, the fellowship I find here is priceless.
My answer already presented by my friend , S-Cack .
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by Brutal »

bearriver wrote:I am posing a few questions for established members. Many folks think that a few hours of reading will give you all it takes to get started. I'm curious how this plays out in reality, exactly.

1) How much time did you spend researching before making your first drop?

2) How much time have you spent researching after making your first drop?

3) How much time do you continue to spend researching a week (or per day if daily)?

4) What conclusions have you made about the time you have spent researching this hobby?
1- A year and a half. I was interested but it took me a long time to decide to jump in.
2- Hard to estimate but a damn lot over the last year and a half.
3- I am on the forums every day. I may only be able to read for a few minutes at a time or I might get lost in thought until the wee hours of the morning.
4- I think this is a subject you can learn about forever. Your creativity is the only limit. I enjoy just about every part of the hobby. The sounds, the smells, the mistakes, and the successes are all part of it. The only parts I don't like it the fact that it's illegal, and hauling heavy shit around. When I was younger that wasn't any big deal but it hurts now. Over all, I'll take it.
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by ShineRunnah »

1) approx 20 hours
2) too much to think about
3) at least an hour a day
4) I learn faster and gain better understanding by doing than just researching without any hands-on experience. Not saying it's best for everyone, only that it works for me.

It's obviously been a good route for my style of learning, as my first still worked very well and my first run produced some good product (not exceptional, but plenty acceptable for a first run).
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by hilbilly »

1. About 2 months. After discovering this forum it was about 8 - 10 hrs a day for almost 2 weeks reading everything I could on the Parent site and this site.
2. & 3. It's ongoing and will likely only end if I quit this hobby. Don't know if it's really research though, as it consists of reading all kinds of threads on this forum and occasionally some on another. Probably averages about 5hrs a week, depending on what else I have on the go.
4. The more I read and learn about this hobby, the more I discover I don't know shit. Apparently I'm not getting smarter in my old age. :eh:
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by SoMo »

I lurked for over a year sourcing materials and absorbing, accounting for a lot of hours. Knowing how to do before I could do. I've learned a bunch,still learning as it goes. Starting at sugar and moving to malts and enzymes.
Just realizing it truly is a journey. My conclusion sugar makes easy likker, grain makes great likker. Reading is fundamental.
Everything's better home made, everything!!
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by Tokoroa_Shiner »

Found the parent site and forum about 5 years ago. Waited until I was of USA legal drinking age ( I'm in New Zealand) before signing up start of this year. Spend every break during the day on here ( Tapatalk app for iPhone) I research everything. I have the unread tab open and read every one. I've read all but 430 threads on the forums. The oldest one I haven't read is from three weeks ago. ( been a bit slack lately lol)
Glad I found this site as since building my first still a few months ago I have made some good shine.
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by firewater69 »

I spent a couple of years researching before distilling anything. I have not stopped researching since. I read here & elsewhere daily, the knowledge of this forum & members is the cream of the crop. my first still build was a 2 cups style lm, my latest build is a simple pot with a coil condenser so i can run as a cm as well. I know i wouldn't have gotten this far without all you fine folks.
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by corene1 »

#1
Probably read 3 to 4 hours per night for a couple of months plus my father had told me a few things about it when I was young.
#2
At least 4 to 5 hours a week on new things plus several hours of re hashing old questions.
#3 This blends in with #2 Lets see I have been here about 2 years. 4 to 5 hundred hours . I never kept track of it . If I needed to know something I just read ask questions and try it . then keep accurate notes
#4
You never quit learning.
#5 My question to all the established folk here.
How much time do you spend on recipe development, and experimentation or are you happy to run the same thing all the time?
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Re: How much time have you spent researching?

Post by HDNB »

corene1 wrote: #5 My question to all the established folk here.
How much time do you spend on recipe development, and experimentation or are you happy to run the same thing all the time?
not going to be as bold as call meself "established" but i do variations on everything, everytime. i think me and Woodshed are burning the same candle from opposite ends.

the difference is...he is successful.

* on edit, i wanted to get back here before anyone read this (too late)...what i meant was i *try* to do some of the steps, most of the time.
Safety first, and always check the protocol, but i must admit to changing grain bills, sugar %'s and adding in different grains looking for a great flavour...hardly what you could call every step, everytime...more like the opposite.
*with respect for laying out the protocol and having the dicipline to follow it through to a known, quality, outcome.
Last edited by HDNB on Sun Nov 30, 2014 8:51 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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