From the Far East to Watford - Chinese manufacturers almost sunk one luxury goods firm but British..

Yahoo Finance UK ^ | 17th November 2013 | Piper Terrett

[the scotsman]

'After faulty stock made in China almost sank luxury goods firm Patrona, it decided to make its products in the UK and couldn't be happier'.

[MUDDOG]

Excellent point.

I see 3-D printing as analogous to the PC revolution -- it's going to bring manufacturing to the people.

I figure with 3-D printintg we're at about where PCs were in the late '70s -- on the verge of the big breakthrough.

[MUDDOG]

I see what you mean.

[Straight Vermonter]

I wish I could figure out how to invest for 3D printing. The printers will print themselves, the raw materials are just commodities. The only thing I can think of is a company that will license the designs to be printed.

[MUDDOG]

I know what you mean. It's like being on the verge of another PC revolution (and all that opportunity). I don't know how to take advantage of it though, other than benefit from it by being a user when it's ready for prime time.

Another decentralizing technology could be in electric power generation. "60 Minutes" had a story a while back on the Bloom box -- it generates electricity from natural gas. They're projecting getting it practical for an individual house.

[Timocrat]

The only thing I can think of is a company that will license the designs to be printed.

Yes I'm sure there's a Steve Jobs or Bill Gates in a garage somewhere cooking up plans to put a manufacturing plant in every home. I wonder if there's going to be a new market for raw material supplies e.g. for those used in Laser Sintering.

[bigfootbob]

Compost the cedar shavings & droppings regularly.

[bigfootbob]

The hatcheries place a small patch of wet nutrients on the bottom of the box. What really causes them distress are cold drafts.

[bigfootbob]

I see by the web address you are looking at the Bantams. Good choice for a beginner except the Bantams are small and so are their eggs. 2-1 smaller than a regular grade A eggs.

Any Bantam is a good choice for learning how to raise chickens. They are sturdy, in certain areas the Bantam will live and prosper without any care. Tough little guys. They are broody whereas the hybrid layers generally are not.

We’ve seen them roost in trees and never come into the coop for food and raise chicks. None of my laying chickens have ever set on a clutch of eggs long enough to hatch out.

Bantams are awesome to look at also, many come with perpetual bad hair days. Funny looking and the kids love to check them out.

[Zhang Fei]

Compost the cedar shavings & droppings regularly.

Thanks. There's a Latin American place in NYC I know of that slaughters chickens on demand. The smell is strong enough that it's detectable twenty yards away. They're probably not doing anything to control the smells wafting across the neighborhood.

[bigfootbob]

I forgot to add, when it is hot, I also throw some very finely ground lime down on top of the shavings. That also helps with the composting process.

I can’t imagine not trying to control the smell, it stinks and it isn’t very hard or expensive to keep the smells in check. I have people wanting to buy my compost also. As a matter of fact, when I moved to another home 20 or so years ago, the folks who knew me visited my vegetable garden area after I moved and removed the top 8” of soil and took it home.

There’s no sense in making neighbors suffer for a chicken biz, especially when every bit of the chicken and its poop can be utilized to make your land better or wallet thicker.

[gaijin]

I’m not fixed on bantams I would prefer large eggs and a type that doesn’t scream all night...? Whaddya think?

[bigfootbob]

I enjoy Buff Orpington’s for brown eggs. They aren’t night screamers or at least not here. My favorite are the South American Araucana. They lay pastel colored blue, green and rose colored eggs. Pre-dyed eggs from the Chicken.

They are very hardy birds too. They roost in trees in their native SA. They are widely available too. They are sometimes mixed with the Americauna which is similar, except the genuine Araucana do not have tail feathers.

Talk about beautiful Roosters, there isn’t a finer looking Rooster than the Araucana with its purples, reds, white and all the colors in between that show up. You do not need a Rooster to have eggs. We keep them because we like having one around. My one Rooster has a harem of 20! He does them all at least once daily...what a life.

The Araucana Roosters are noisy however. The one we have now starts his crowing an hour to an hour and one half before the supplemental lighting comes on at 6:00 AM.

A Black or Red Sex-Link Chicken would be a good choice too. They are quiet, prolific layers of brown & rose colored eggs and are very hardy.

I don’t think you could go wrong with any of those listed. They are easy to find also. They don’t make good meat birds however.

Growing meat chickens is a totally different experience. The most prolific meat bird grown today are the Cornish Cross Hybrids. Usually a cross between a Cornish and Plymouth or Rhode Island Red. They are not very endearing birds, but they sure taste better than commercial raised birds.

[gaijin]

You really helped me!!! Thank you!!!

^-^