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Ah yes, never thought of that one. A friend of mine had one in his office. It was pretty incredible the way the fish knew when he was about to feed them.
Originally Posted by rob taft
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06-12-2020 09:50 AM
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I believe I'm off the hook - most of them, at least. Goodbye desire, hello real need. No more antiques. No more axes to my collection ranging from Stone Age to the present. No new home audio stuff - nobody's listening these days anyway. Coming from a family of pro photographers in four generations, I should be drooling over cameras and lenses. Not so. My granddad used the same German camera from the 1920s until his death in 1946, the year I was born. My dad was a Rolleiflex man out in the field for decades, and used the same Sinars, Linhofs and Hasselblads in the studio until he quit. My son started with similar studio gear in 2004 but soon found himself making more money on a 3.38 megapixel Nikon Coolpix. My Nikon D5500 was stolen last year and I have tried to find a used body that would match my lenses. No need for anything more expensive or complex. The Sony Alpha I tried was laden with great features including a superb autofocus and 4K video but so cumbersome to use that I "lent" it to my 14-year old grandson who of course masters all the bells and whistles by now. Digital cameras have reached such a degree of perfection that it makes absolutely no sense to trade up every half year when something new is out.
Other examples: I compared my 15-year old Wilson tennis racket to my other grandson's racket from last year, and there's no difference in shape or structure, just in the marketing hype. Today I rode 35 km on my Vicini mountain bike from 1987. Shimano XT equipped - never serviced. There's a corner full of fishing rods, but I find no substantial difference between the cheap and more expensive ones. What matters is the warhead at the end of the line, where you are and how much play time you allow yourself.
There's no way a new guitar, amp or pedal would make me a better guitarist, only practicing and understanding the dynamics of the band I'm in.
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Surprised that nobody has mentioned wristwatches yet.
At the high end, depending on your viewpoint, you either get
a) A personal minature perpetual motion machine which is a testament to what human engineering and manufacturing can accomplish; or
b) A small object which costs as much as a car or a house, and which closely approaches the accuracy of a drug-store quartz watch.
Right now I'm sporting a Swiss Mil ETA automatic which runs 17 seconds a day fast, requiring me to set it back two minutes once a week. That makes it 99.98 percent accurate, or 0.02% inaccurate. To me that's a marvel and well worth the $60 I spent at ShopGoodWill.com. To a watch guy, that's just unacceptable.
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I once told about a new guitar for my motorcyclist friend in apologing manner (”I don’t know do I really need it or am I worth it but bought a new Les Paul Historic...”) and he said that ”That’s wonderful! Your acquisition is for creating and making music for people. Motorcycles are just for motorcyclists themselves. And they often kill their riders, who are somebody’s sons and daughters or dads and mums”.
I’ll try to remember this!
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Coffee stuff, no doubt. Tim Wendelboe changed my life!
I've recently been getting into watches... I was at a Seiko Saloon yesterday and was mesmerized by the turtle variants... I always hoped I wouldn't end up a watch guy
edited:
Originally Posted by Sam Sherry
Originally Posted by Sam Sherry
I'm wearing this old Fortis from the 70s:
... which is a wind-up and runs about 2-3 minutes fast per day, which is beyond unacceptable, but it's so dang handsome that I can't get rid of it. I love the dial! Perfect size imo, 35mm w/o crown
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Automobiles
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i like to rotate my ladies frequently.
that aside, i'm surprisingly resistant to the "latest/greatest" phenomena, and i try to make clever purchases that will satisfy my needs now, in the future and hopefully precluding the need for further purchases. but if you're mixed up in music production, photography, videography/filmmaking, it's sort of an inevitability. sometimes holding your breath and taking a huge leap of faith is your only option. but i try to mitigate the damage by getting things that will help pay for themselves, cover several bases or just try to borrow or rent instead.
the "buy less, buy better" applies to most all of my purchases, so things tend to cost a little more upfront, be it clothes, shoes or a car, but i get my damn money's worth out of them. i balance what i like with what i can afford; i don't spend money just to spend it or impress other people. but again, as an artist and aesthete at heart, i have to be careful, patient and ever vigilant. because i'm mildly broke.
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Microphones...
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Guitars, microphones, Leica M lenses, handplanes, handbags, sewing machines, etc.. the magic pricetag appears to be $5500 to $6500 each to obtain what might be considered top of the line performance minus frou-frou extravagance.
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Man, I'd hate to even get sawdust on one of those! Originally Posted by Jabberwocky
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I used to be on a woodworkers forum. Instead of NTD (New Tool Day) they called it NTG - New Tool Gloat.
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You must not know women who sew or quilt... Originally Posted by rabbit
My fiancee and I share similar interest in “machines”. She does quilt, but her recent main hobby is jewelry making. She has a nice workspace with a kiln and all her equipment carefully arranged and labeled.
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As far as pens, I always wanted a cool store-bought one—had a couple of Pellikans, all of which got stolen or lost, but ultimately I learned to roll my own... Originally Posted by oldane
Cosmic Gumbo is known for his wit here but don't laugh too early on this one. Fountain pen nerds (of course I'm not one, oh no) will know that fountain pen nibs comes in several variants of which one is "Oblique Stub" or "Oblique Italic" which again comes in obliqueness for right handed and for left handed persons. Those who can't live without knowing more about it that can google it.
As far as gear madness goes, I don't think that I'm too far out that route. A month ago I bought the first new guitar in 8 years - it was a Squier Tele meant for a customizing project just for the fun of it. My other expensive hobby is photography. I used Nikon DSLRs for many years but switched to Sony A7X four years ago as osteoarthrosis made it necessarey to go down in bulk and weight. The Sony A7X cameras takes my old Leica M lenses nicely and make a very compact and light setup possible. Very recently I bought a Sony A9 (which has been superseeded by the A9II and was offered at a reduiced price) and a Tamron autofocus lens as I simply couldn't follow my granddaughter (now 10 months old) with the Manual focus lenses. However, I'll continue to use my old Leica lenses for almost everything but fast moving subjects. I can't see myself taking big autofocus zooms with me on travels anymore. An A7X body with a 35mm Leica Summicron M type IV and a 90mm Tele-Elmarit in the pocket and I'm ready for a day in the city.
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I got into buying and rehabbing and selling vintage handplanes quite awhile ago. I generally acquired Stanleys. I had some very nice ones, but sold most of them to finance my habit. Originally Posted by Jabberwocky
I kept about 25-30 of them, which I use on a frequent basis.
I will say, though, anybody who spends $5000 on a single handplane, by definition, has too much money.
Last edited by Doctor Jeff; 06-16-2020 at 11:11 AM.
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I have ridden motorcycles for some 50 years and motorcycles don't "often kill their riders". The vast majority of motorcyclist deaths are caused by car drivers not paying attention etc. As with any moving vehicle one can easily get hurt or lose their life but like anything one undertakes in life one should understand the risks and rewards. Originally Posted by Herbie
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Yes, I too thought that my friend exaggerated a bit. I think he meant that playing guitar is safer than driving motorcycle. Originally Posted by rob taft
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Considering some of the joints I've played in the last 45 years of gigging I'm not sure I would agree with that statement! Originally Posted by Herbie
Thank you Rob Taft for pointing out the obvious. I hesitated to reply to Herbie's post as I am biased. In my experience motorcyclists are the safest and most defensive drivers on the road. Guess the best analogy is to firearms-they don't kill people by themselves. I've been riding for 45+ years as well. Understanding the risks, wearing the proper gear, understanding my riding limits and education (track days) have saved my butt more than once.
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ST, I totally agree with regard to riding a motorcycle making for a better and safer driver. It comes from being surrounded by folks who should be focusing on the road instead are eating, texting, doing their makeup etc. I have seen it all from folks with a laptop between them and the wheel, eating a bowl of cereal with milk while traveling 80 through rush hour traffic, the guy who had his right hand holding his phone to his ear and then thrust is left arm out the window i.e. he was driving with his knees.
I quit a couple of years ago and sold my last bike. Florida drivers are some of the worst in the US, couple that with cellphones, and the heat it just wasn't enjoyable. I like you don't venture out without the proper safety gear i.e. helmet, leathers, boots, gloves. When I see guys and gals with flipflops, shorts, no helmets, no gloves, no shirts etc I just cringe. Having hit the pavement a few times, I don't want my body being used as a sacrificial sanding block .
I loved the look and sound of a Ducati but they just didn't fit my large frame. My last bike was a tricked out VFR 800. Great V4 sound plus I could carry groceries.
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Oh dear! Get out while you still can. But if your are already addicted go to the Lange & Söhne website and study the finish of their movements. Have paper towels ready as you'll no doubt drool. Originally Posted by mr quick
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With respect, there are jerky car drivers AND just as many jerky bike riders. I have seen it all from bikers. Weaving in and out of traffic within a few feet of cars, often at ridiculously high speeds. Zooming between the lanes in jams and then cutting off cars. Not to mention going around 100+mph.They are just as bad as the bad car drivers. So PLEASE don't lecture anyone about how bikers are somehow above car drivers. Then there's this stuff: Originally Posted by rob taft
https://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na...519-story.html
There are stupid and bad apples on all kinds of motor vehicles.Last edited by Woody Sound; 06-17-2020 at 10:38 AM.
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Don't think the point was that motorcycle riders are "above" automobile drivers-just that the the very nature of riding and self preservation makes MOST motorcyclists more aware. Originally Posted by Woody Sound
Lane splitting is legal here in California, some abuse the privilege. I'm fortunate to live and ride is the Sierra Nevada mountains with zero traffic-however there are different hazards lurking so riding at 10/10's is seldom an option.
Of course there are "bad apples" operating all manner of vehicles.
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I did better than that: I bought George Daniel's tome on Watchmaking. It has kept me busy with watches in my imagination that I know I will never make. Originally Posted by oldane
Oh dear! Get out while you still can. But if your are already addicted go to the Lange & Söhne website and study the finish of their movements. Have paper towels ready as you'll no doubt drool.
There's a burnished-blue tool for every red-headed tool.
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Beautiful VFR Mr. Taft! One of my favorite bikes ever. I do love my Ducatis, however they can be finicky. Ironically I have been considering selling my 999S and getting another VFR-I had a 98 that I purchased new. Originally Posted by rob taft
ST, I totally agree with regard to riding a motorcycle making for a better and safer driver. It comes from being surrounded by folks who should be focusing on the road instead are eating, texting, doing their makeup etc. I have seen it all from folks with a laptop between them and the wheel, eating a bowl of cereal with milk while traveling 80 through rush hour traffic, the guy who had his right hand holding his phone to his ear and then thrust is left arm out the window i.e. he was driving with his knees.
I quit a couple of years ago and sold my last bike. Florida drivers are some of the worst in the US, couple that with cellphones, and the heat it just wasn't enjoyable. I like you don't venture out without the proper safety gear i.e. helmet, leathers, boots, gloves. When I see guys and gals with flipflops, shorts, no helmets, no gloves, no shirts etc I just cringe. Having hit the pavement a few times, I don't want my body being used as a sacrificial sanding block .
I loved the look and sound of a Ducati but they just didn't fit my large frame. My last bike was a tricked out VFR 800. Great V4 sound plus I could carry groceries.
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Recording equipment and Motorcycles
Duc MultiStrada
Duc Monster SR21000
Yamaha FJR1300 - for two up
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