Does anyone else have any really strange hobbies?

Albatrosdva

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Ok, well in my introduction I mentioned I had studied flintlock era firearms for a number of years. I've always been a strong believer in collecting on a budget. That being said, I like to buy projects and restore them instead of spending top dollar for something and then being afraid to play with it after.

My latest project I am working on is a Dutch musket, ca 1740s. It really just came to me as a stock with an incorrect barrel. It has the brass butt plate, and that's it. But it is an original almost full length stock so it seems worth restoring to me. So I started making the side plate.

You'll notice that the original cut out was badly filled in and a different style side plate was put in at one point. I'm putting it back the way it should be.
 

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Sorry the pictures flipped. I had them all sitting flat in my files before I posted them.
 
That takes a bit more technical knowledge than my part time hobby of camo painting used rifles and shotguns, but KT is certain that we both derive a great deal of satisfaction in a job well done! Always interesting to see what people find to put their spare time…and money into! :D
 
Yeah mine is metal detecting...everyone who finds out that I do it thinks its strange.....
 
really neat, you do good work for sure...


& I wish I have originals too

I used to play around ML before I got old LOL

1st pix was a kit I did, I learn how to wire engrave & put some on the rifle, I called it Sun-Ridge

The 2nd is a original that I made rod for & some of the stock was broke off, fixed it, & spring gone, etc. not a shooter too old. A friend bought a cabin & fixing up a Fire Place & found it inside the fire place. got lucky Huh He was sure excited when he gave it back like that.

The next pix is my flintlock while hunting deer. I seen this old cedar tree over a cliff and had to take a pix. If the rifle falling off that tree, it would have been about 90' down. I guess I would have taken another kit I guess LOL

When I was in the army, I set my son up with that pix about 1972 or so. I think he still has it
 

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Here’s one of mine, anyone need a plumber?
 

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I chase wild ladies, The one part that I have never ever perfected is the catching part. Most can out run this old man and the fact that I will probably forget why I started the chase anyway.:)
 
Here’s one of mine, anyone need a plumber?

Dude...I had one of those on my garage roof for a while during my CB days. 2 element quad? I used a 2x2 for a beam and I think plumber's strap to hold the pvc pipes to it, and smaller pvc inside the bigger pvc to get the spans I needed. I don't recall if I had the rotator up there or not. Fun stuff. I recall talking to someone 15 miles away clear as day, not bad for an antenna hacked together and a cheapie 12V car CB radio! How far have you gotten? Caught any skip?
 
Dude...I had one of those on my garage roof for a while during my CB days. 2 element quad? I used a 2x2 for a beam and I think plumber's strap to hold the pvc pipes to it, and smaller pvc inside the bigger pvc to get the spans I needed. I don't recall if I had the rotator up there or not. Fun stuff. I recall talking to someone 15 miles away clear as day, not bad for an antenna hacked together and a cheapie 12V car CB radio! How far have you gotten? Caught any skip?

KT had an uncle who lived in Port Arthur TX who had a high power set up in his truck. Would go down by one of the docks and talk to folks in south Canada and Michigan! Only chatted for just a few minutes, to prevent the “booster police” from triangulating on him! And very irregular schedule, too! :laughing::laughing: I understood when he was broadcasting many local folks could not get tv service…this was when everyone was on antennas!
 
Dude...I had one of those on my garage roof for a while during my CB days. 2 element quad? I used a 2x2 for a beam and I think plumber's strap to hold the pvc pipes to it, and smaller pvc inside the bigger pvc to get the spans I needed. I don't recall if I had the rotator up there or not. Fun stuff. I recall talking to someone 15 miles away clear as day, not bad for an antenna hacked together and a cheapie 12V car CB radio! How far have you gotten? Caught any skip?
TM yes it is a dual quad. I have yet to wire in the connector and find a rotator and get it up another ten feet.

I’ve been talking on a $10 speaker wire dipole that I made. When skips running I’ve made contacts about 800 miles away using the factory 4 watt radio. Otherwise, about ten miles locally.
 
I’ve talked over 800 miles cross country on this antenna and 4 watt radio…technically that’s not legal but it’s an ‘accident’ that happens now and then :cool3: Not bad for $10. Beats a cane pole for bluegill fishing too :lol:
 

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I’ve talked over 800 miles cross country on this antenna and 4 watt radio…technically that’s not legal but it’s an ‘accident’ that happens now and then :cool3: Not bad for $10. Beats a cane pole for bluegill fishing too :lol:

Bet you need a bit of lightning protection with that tenna. A buddy got his desk top and receiver burned up real bad with a similar setup.
 
Bet you need a bit of lightning protection with that tenna. A buddy got his desk top and receiver burned up real bad with a similar setup.
Very true! Although the mast itself is plastic, in this case I’d need an in-line lightning arrestor for the coax, the arrestor connected to ground. In my setup I just disconnect from the radio itself as I have no lightening protection. When I was a kid I had a huge aluminum yagi on my folks roof, never grounded and no strikes in three years time. Lucky.
 
The ground in a coax has enough strength to carry a large charge strait into the house even though it is not connected to the radio. Lightning only seeks least resistance to ground and if the path is coax and it is on a desk with grounded equipment (third conductor in the AC plug) then a 8 to 10 inch gap will get jumped.
 
For a while back in the 1990's I was doing gravestone rubbings. There are many old gravestones with interesting sayings on them. Some cemeteries forbid this hobby but not very many so there were plenty of gravesites to search. I eventually lost interest and gave it up.
 
Albatrosdva, your hobby sounds like a profitable one! Thanks for starting an interesting thread.


I have a rather odd hobby myself. I take this metal rod and swing it around for hours on end; and when the rod beeps, I get down on the ground to retrieve whatever minuscule metal thing set it off; then at the end of the trip, I come home with a handful of coins, some pulltabs, and a sore arm....

Aside from metal detecting, which arguably is among my strangest pass times, I also enjoy old-fashioned letter correspondence with friends & family, as well as keeping on ongoing journal. My first journal entry was shortly after my eighth birthday, and 12 years later, I'm half-way through my seventh volume. Once in a while, it's fun to flip through my old journals to re-live the events that have shaped my life and recall the ways that God has blessed me. I like to think that someday, Lord-willing, I'll have children/grandchildren who will enjoy reading my memoir, with it's collection of memories, life lessons, and personal devotions.
 
Another one almost finished. Listening to Mexico and Jamaica recently.
$25 in parts.
 

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Cool hobbies!

Mine include:

Cornhole
Metal Detecting
Poker
Pickleball (Something my wife and I both enjoy)
 
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