Your "odd" hobbies?

[Studey]

I'm very involved in self defense training, both combatives and shooting. I run a local training group as well.

I also have a small business specializing in premium custom kydex. Not exactly a hobby, though it did start that way...

These two things occupy most of my time and coincide incredibly well.

[JD Spydo]

Oh Yes!! I do have another hobby other than my obsession for Spyder Knives. When I was young and my favorite Uncle died he left me all of his fishing equipment. What I immediately noticed was that all of the rods and reels were made by a German company "D.A.M. Quick" which at that time I had never previously heard of. I had always used American made fishing rods & reels and at that time I was mostly a ZEBCO fan. Oh I had some Shakespeare tackle too but mostly ZEBCO was what I was born and raised on.

Shortly afterward I got to using the D.A.M. Quick fishing reels and I was immediately converted and they have been my all time favorite fishing reels since that time. My other odd hobby is collecting, using and repairing D.A.M. Quick fishing reels and rods. If many of you are not aware of the super high quality, German made rods and reels made by D.A.M. Quick then I urge you to check them out on the web. Now the company is still in business but most of the rods and reels they make at this time are all made somewhere either in China or Korea.

The German made D.A.M. Quick fishing reels are truly an engineering marvel and extremely fun to fish with. Just in the same way I was drawn in by Spyderco that German fishing equipment company also showed me some super high quality gear. High Quality items have always been a big fascination to me since I was even a youngster. I know it seems like a strange hobby/obsession but if you ever fished with one you would see why I got hooked on their older, German made units.

[Blerv]

Flashlights, making copper bracelets, and knives. All fairly odd :). I'm buying a turbo Miata this summer too to keep things interesting :p

Just drop an LS in it. You know you want to :D

Oh of course. It's just that $20-30k to do it right that stands in my way. :D

there's a drop-in kit to put a Honda V6 in the Miata... much cheaper, doesn't change the cars handling and still gets you around 300hp!

I'm pretty sure you still get near 50/50 when you put in a beefed up rear end in there. You could also go all out and get an aluminum engine block and save a bunch of weight. In the end the power and torque are well worth it.

Yea the LS swap is by far the best. You pick up like 50-70 pounds over the iron block BP engine. Plus it's thinner than most due to the OHV design. Most modern V6's are wider than old big blocks thanks to the massive heads.

There is a Honda 4cyl swap (K20/K22). Prob is you get like 200 hp and the kit is like 10k. I can get the same power from the factory turbo and more with an upgrade with way more torque while being emission friendly.

Edit: I just looked up that V6 swap...very cool :D. If I had a first-gen it would probably make more sense due to ease of smogging.

[DutchBlades]

If many of you are not aware of the super high quality, German made rods and reels made by D.A.M. Quick then I urge you to check them out on the web.

I'll be sure to take a look at them
Been a Shimano guy for as long as I can remember, but it can never hurt to look around!

[JD Spydo]

If many of you are not aware of the super high quality, German made rods and reels made by D.A.M. Quick then I urge you to check them out on the web.

I'll be sure to take a look at them
Been a Shimano guy for as long as I can remember, but it can never hurt to look around!

Hey I'm in no way going to knock "Shimano" because I have friends that use their equipment and swear by it. We also here in the USA have a fishing reel company by the name of "PENN" who also makes some very respectable equipment as well. I've seen the guy on "Animal Planet" channel on the show entitled "River Monsters" use a lot of Shimano reels so I know they are in the upper tier of fishing equipment without a doubt.

There is a guy named Alan Hawk who has written a very thorough review on the D.A.M. Quick model 5001 reel. You might find it interesting. Also just do a GOOGLE search on the company and you will be intrigued I can assure you. JD :spyder: O

[TargaMonteSS]

Raising poultry and fowl and building chicken coops. That hobby is growing in popularity latly like you wouldnt believe

[remnar]

If many of you are not aware of the super high quality, German made rods and reels made by D.A.M. Quick then I urge you to check them out on the web.

I'll be sure to take a look at them
Been a Shimano guy for as long as I can remember, but it can never hurt to look around!

Hey I'm in no way going to knock "Shimano" because I have friends that use their equipment and swear by it. We also here in the USA have a fishing reel company by the name of "PENN" who also makes some very respectable equipment as well. I've seen the guy on "Animal Planet" channel on the show entitled "River Monsters" use a lot of Shimano reels so I know they are in the upper tier of fishing equipment without a doubt.

There is a guy named Alan Hawk who has written a very thorough review on the D.A.M. Quick model 5001 reel. You might find it interesting. Also just do a GOOGLE search on the company and you will be intrigued I can assure you. JD :spyder: O

I don't have anything against any of the reels mentioned here but I sure love my Abu Garcia center drag spinning reel and Ambassadeur C4.

[JD Spydo]

If many of you are not aware of the super high quality, German made rods and reels made by D.A.M. Quick then I urge you to check them out on the web.

I'll be sure to take a look at them
Been a Shimano guy for as long as I can remember, but it can never hurt to look around!

Hey I'm in no way going to knock "Shimano" because I have friends that use their equipment and swear by it. We also here in the USA have a fishing reel company by the name of "PENN" who also makes some very respectable equipment as well. I've seen the guy on "Animal Planet" channel on the show entitled "River Monsters" use a lot of Shimano reels so I know they are in the upper tier of fishing equipment without a doubt.

There is a guy named Alan Hawk who has written a very thorough review on the D.A.M. Quick model 5001 reel. You might find it interesting. Also just do a GOOGLE search on the company and you will be intrigued I can assure you. JD :spyder: O

I don't have anything against any of the reels mentioned here but I sure love my Abu Garcia center drag spinning reel and Ambassadeur C4.

No argument here either "remnar" because both those reels have had a good reputation for quite some time. I have friends that own both those reels you mentioned. There are a lot of good fishing reels out there but you've got to be careful buying anything new because a lot fishing reels that once had a good name are now made in some third world **** hole and the quality is horrible on a many of them I've looked at. It's gotten to the point to where in many cases you're much better off watching the auction sites for people selling the older good stuff rather than taking a chance buying something new.

As far as I know the two you mentioned had a superb reputation years ago but I have no idea what their new stuff is like. You've really got to look hard for quality at this present time IMO.

[twinboysdad]

I don't think I have anything too out of the ordinary. Everything I collect are things that are pretty commonly collected, like '80s toys for example. I have a bunch of squished pennies from those penny souvenir machines. Probably the weirdest thing I have are a couple animal skulls that I've painted...I like to make art out of non art type things.

Those skulls sound like they could look pretty amazing!
Have some pictures of them to share?

Only of one, a deer skull. The other is a cat skull but it's nothing special, just painted with glow in the dark paint.









It's a bit macabre but it seemed like a good idea at the time LOL.

Dude, that is awesome and we should go into business together. I can send you tons of cull buck skulls, you paint them, and we sell them to hipster dive bars all over the country! Of course we may have to settle with getting paid in Pabst Blue Ribbons but hey, free beer! That really is cool and I think you could sell them on eBay for realz

[SpyderNut]

Knifemaking is my "odd" hobby and I find it to be both educational and relaxing. As a part-time knifemaker, I enjoy designing and handcrafting both folding and fixed-bladed knives. I like to experiment with different steels and have made knives from ATS-34, D2, CPM-S35VN, CPM-M4, and CPM-S90V. For handle materials, I prefer to use various man-made and synthetic materials, such as domestic and exotic woods, titanium, G-10, Micarta, and carbon fiber.

Here is a picture of the last fix-bladed knife I completed. This is a one-of-a-kind custom hunting knife that I designed and made for my father-in-law using a piece of whitetail deer antler that my father-in-law found on his personal hunting property. The blade steel is 0.125" thick CPM-S90V and features a full-tang construction. The grind is full flat and it is roughly 0.12" behind the edge. The guard is solid brass that was hand-filed and fitted to the handle. The blade is approximately 5" and the overall length is close to 10". The display case is made from solid American walnut. The last photo shows the Lil' Lionspy as a reference for size.

[DutchBlades]

Knifemaking is my "odd" hobby and I find it to be both educational and relaxing. As a part-time knifemaker, I enjoy designing and handcrafting both folding and fixed-bladed knives. I like to experiment with different steels and have made knives from ATS-34, D2, CPM-S35VN, CPM-M4, and CPM-S90V. For handle materials, I prefer to use various man-made and synthetic materials, such as domestic and exotic woods, titanium, G-10, Micarta, and carbon fiber.

Here is a picture of the last fix-bladed knife I completed. This is a one-of-a-kind custom hunting knife that I designed and made for my father-in-law using a piece of whitetail deer antler that my father-in-law found on his personal hunting property. The blade steel is 0.125" thick CPM-S90V and features a full-tang construction. The grind is full flat and it is roughly 0.12" behind the edge. The guard is solid brass that was hand-filed and fitted to the handle. The blade is approximately 5" and the overall length is close to 10". The display case is made from solid American walnut. The last photo shows the Lil' Lionspy as a reference for size.

That's a sexy knife :eek: Wouldn't mind owning one of those!
Any other pics or a website showing them off a little?

[SpyderNut]

That's a sexy knife :eek: Wouldn't mind owning one of those!
Any other pics or a website showing them off a little?

Thanks DutchBlades. I appreciate the kind words. :) This was a fun (yet challenging) project.

I am still working on a website that will feature some of my finished knives and I am hoping to have it up and running soon.

Michael

[Echo63]

My weird hobby (in addition to knives and flashlights) is treeclimbing.

This is me about 10m (30ft) up (not overly high, but a nice place to stop and take a pic)

[3rdGenRigger]

My weird hobby (in addition to knives and flashlights) is treeclimbing.

This is me about 10m (30ft) up (not overly high, but a nice place to stop and take a pic)

Looks like you're using proper safety equipment...definitely something I like to see.

[RexGig0]

Raising poultry and fowl and building chicken coops. That hobby is growing in popularity latly like you wouldnt believe

If I can convince my wife to move to a more-rural area after I retire, it would be nice to keep a few fowl and poultry again, for the first time since the Eighties. She is, already, interested in Dorking chickens.

Whether we move, or stay where we are, I would like to build an aviary, of the walk-in size.

My wife is already active in CERT, Community Emergency Response Teams. She is at a Hurricane Conference in Houston, today, which is part of that. CERT has official status within the Incident Command structure that includes FEMA and government entities. I have helped her with CERT events and classes, though I have not become a member, because I wear a police badge for a living, so during disasters and other emergencies, I am subject to duty-related assignments.

By the time I retire from policing, I may (or may not) have enough physical impairments to discourage me from wanting to become an actual CERT member. I am likely to become active in another of my wife's hobbies, amateur radio, which is used as communication by some CERT folks. (She is KE5KIJ, if I recall correctly.)

I am not thinking that photography is an "odd" hobby, but I like some older cameras, both film and digital, that are definitely not main-stream today, and like using some quite old lenses on modern cameras. I started serious photography in 2010, with pre-owned 2006-era equipment. I added newer equipment, but also bought several older cameras and lenses, too. One 20mm Nikon lens is pre-1977.

[BostonTom]

I love Shimano reels too. I've had good luck with Pinnacles. Those two brands for spinning reels. The field gets much bigger for bait casters because they are stronger by design.
I don't know if anyone is into it but my real hobby is keeping and breeding aquarium fish. I keep mostly wild caught Cichlids from West Africa and some lake Tangynikan stuff. Its a real challenge just keeping some of the fish healthy. Very rewarding when I get some rare species to breed. West Africa has many soft water lakes, streams and rivers. Lake Tangynika has incredibly hard water due to the mineral content. The PH is as high as 9.0..
All or the vast majority of wild caught fish I keep come from German collectors. West Africa for the most part is a dangerous place but the Germans go there and collect wild species. In general, aquarium fish are much more popular with Europeans. For some reason, the fish usually go to the Czech Repblic before coming into the States.
I've kept saltwater too. The past 15 years or so there has been a lot of people keeping reef aquariums. I still like the freshwater fish and plants best...

[Echo63]

My weird hobby (in addition to knives and flashlights) is treeclimbing.

This is me about 10m (30ft) up (not overly high, but a nice place to stop and take a pic)

Looks like you're using proper safety equipment...definitely something I like to see.

Yea, gravity sucks, so i use a bit of friction to slow it up a little :)

Thats actually an older setup, i mainly use a RopeWrench now, instead of the Petzl Rig.


That tower looks like its a long long way up......

[harronek]

I posted earlier about how Spyderco had killed off my leather sheath making hobby with their excellent pocket clips .
Well a friend of my wife's is having a birthday soon so I decided to kick start my hobby again to make her a SAK sheath to clip inside her purse .






Ken

[SpyderNut]

Beautiful work, Ken. Love that sheath.

[farnorthdan]

That really is some nice work Ken, the stitching is perfect, how do you keep it so straight and spaced just right?