I want a new hobby

[DADI03]

A skill I wish I had but I don't have the patience for is basket weaving. My papaw made his from scratch. from a tree to a basket. He also did caning. He was great at it.

 

[Old Ranger]

What types of blades would you recommend?

It really depends on what you want to do. what kind of wood you use. Palm tools are great for walking sticks. they are small and relatively inexpensive. I recommend buying a cheap set from amazon until you get the feel for it. I like to carve on cured dogwood the best. It's much more forgiving and you must carve with intention! There are some outstanding books out there that pretty much walk you through projects. Do enough of them and you'll get the hang of it. PM me sometime (I see you're in the D'ville area too) and I'll see if I can dig some up for you. Probably have some extra palm tools too.

 

[Old Ranger]

A skill I wish I had but I don't have the patience for is basket weaving. My papaw made his from scratch. from a tree to a basket. He also did caning. He was great at it.

I use to steam bend canes. It is a long process though. Fun too. But a lot of failures along the way

 

[MRH]

It really depends on what you want to do. what kind of wood you use. Palm tools are great for walking sticks. they are small and relatively inexpensive. I recommend buying a cheap set from amazon until you get the feel for it. I like to carve on cured dogwood the best. It's much more forgiving and you must carve with intention! There are some outstanding books out there that pretty much walk you through projects. Do enough of them and you'll get the hang of it. PM me sometime (I see you're in the D'ville area too) and I'll see if I can dig some up for you. Probably have some extra palm tools too.

Thank you I will do that. I enjoy reading very much so it will be a pleasure to learn that way.

 

[mountainmoped]

dwarf tossing
knitting
collecting string
street corner preaching
playing cornhole (with beanbags filled with corn--not the hide-the-weenie game)

 

[Old Ranger]

dwarf tossing
... (with beanbags filled with corn--not the hide-the-weenie game)

HAHAHA!

 

[Hussar]

Starting out it doesn't cost a bundle at all, and you do not need some big workshop to do it. Make due with what you have for a work space like a garage...

Basic tools to start up would be a good hammer, an anvil, heavy duty vice, forge, tongs, clamps, etc...They do make forges made specifically for blacksmithing but they can vary greatly in size and can get very expensive. My advice is devise your own forge.

Other tools can be picked up later on if you get more serious. Like a welder, grinders, drill press, etc...If you become quite serious then it will becomore more expensive, but if it gets to that point you won't mind so much.

There are books dedicated to blacksmithing and some pretty decent videos out there on youtube. I highly recommend reading some books.

Read up on it a little bit, watch a few videos and start with something small. Learn about forges (not difficult at all, I've seen guys using a grill), and how to tell when the iron is at the right temp to strike. It takes some practice but hey, that's part of the fun. I'm not saying blacksmithing is easy. It isn't, and I have tons to learn myself...It is an art and must be approached that way...Meaning it takes years to truly master. I do enjoy messing around with it, though, and I plan to dive in deeper, eventually.

Thanks for the write up. I'm gonna snoop around the Internet and try to learn some more about it. Is it something you can do in a residential backyard or is the smoke too much?

Volunteering is on my list. I just go out of state for summer and I don't want to start then just leave.

 

[IceColdEric]

I've never had to look far for hobbies.

Guns, competition archery, hunting, bass fishing, home improvement, wine making, silver, softball league, golf, frisbee golf, crabbing, hiking, rock climbing, rappelling.

Recently started planting blueberries and muscadines in small orchard so I guess add gardening to the list. Also, want to try knife making when I get my garage in working condition!

I've tried tons of stuff only constant I've had thru the years has been guns/shooting, hunting, and fishing!

 

[GAgunLAWbooklet]

A new hobby that's not firearms or exercise related... Hmm....

All I can suggest is that it be an INDOOR hobby. Something you can do all year long, regardless of rain or wind or snow.
Or a combination-- Radio Control vehicle? Aircraft are especially good for indoor work. In my experience you get 10 hours of building or repairing them for every 20 minutes of flying time.

 

[Realtor]

Cigars
Hunting
Fishing
Boating
Motorcycle riding
Atv'ing
Kayaking
White water rafting
Metal detecting
Gold mining
Geocaching
Scuba diving
Extreme couponing
Sky diving
Mountain climbing
Rock climbing
Bull riding
Start a YouTube channel in your niche
Donate your time to a kids sports team