Foo - Expensive Hobbies...

Hey I got thinking today there are two or three things that seem to have a very steep price tag for entry level that can be regarded as hobbies.

1. Cycling
2. Autoracing
3. Etc.

I have a new one... musical instruments

Many of you don't know but I am a rather good musician (open to interpretation :lol: ). I am an oboeist (you know that high pitch out of tune squeeky thing that gets all the solos in orchastra settings). Well oboes are no cheep instruments by ANY stretch and the entry barrier is very high to own one (like many other musical instruments. A instrument that is considered full conservatory (meaning has all the keys) start at about 2500 missing a few trill keys and 3500+ with all trill keys. I just purchaced a buffet greenline professonal wood carbon fiber interlaced oboe. Price tag - 5250 + tax retail 6700 dollars :eek:

http://www.adagio.gr/images/products/090703053502buffet_greenline_l.jpg

I am also into photography... 4 - 5k is not out of the question for pro quality body and lenses.


What kind of stuff are you interested in that have a high dollar entry barrier?

Oh my this one gets me in trouble. haha. I'll not say amounts in a forum that comes up on a google search. <wink>

Aside from cycling

Ham radio
Magic (I'm a Magician) supplies/puppets
Astronomy

OOOouch that's enough

Chris

Whoa! Nice horn!


Guitar can bee expensive for a quality instrument. Face it, its easier to play a quality instrument than it it is to play a cheap one.

I have divested myself of many of my expensive hobbies like skiing. Florida is not the best place for a skier. I sold off all my hunting equipment when I moved down here, too. Actually the hunting is very good around here. I just don't have the time.

I have a fishing boat sitting in the yard that I have used once this year. I would sell it, but it would upset my elderly father.

I still spend way too much money on woodworking tools.

One hobby that is incredibly expensive is legally shooting machine guns. Due to the massive background check and registration process required since 1934, legally aquired machine guns have never been used by a civilian in a crime. Nonetheless, in 1986, ronald reagen allowed congress to pass a law that no new machine guns could be registered to civilians, but the 177,000 or so already in the system could still be bought and sold.

The very newest machine guns available for legal sale are 19 years old, and as more people want them, they become exponentially more expensive. Most machine guns now cost 20 times there original value, often more, and the prices will continue to go nowhere but up. A Tommy gun that would have cost 300 bucks in 1980 is considered a real bargain today at 18 grand. I call that being raped by politicians. I email, call by phone, and write my rep's all the time about this, but it seems it will never do any good.

Interesting you say that... why would "I" want a machene gun... ammo costs are so huge right now... so I blow 10 dollars in rounds in 30 seconds... :eek:

Actually, you could spend a lot more than that. An m2hb shoots bullets that cost $4. each.

Paintball. When you figure in everything from guns to clothes to face masks...it can get expensive.

Yeah...sweet oboe. My friend teaches French Horn...don't see too many of those around these days. Anywhoo...she has a student who got a brand new georgous horn. I wish I could play an instrument. I sing...but that is, as you say, open to interpretation as well.

women...

women...

Trying to say something... yes me are needy and expensive but... :o


I wish I could play french horn... it is the most beautiful brass instrument but the hardest... funny, someone had to oboe is the hardest wind instrument to play... :rolleyes:

I've scratched my head in the past trying to figure out why I don't have a cheap hobby like collecting rocks.

- Cycling (saving some scratch for a road bike, rollers, roof rack for the car, etc)
- Photography - (pining for a DSLR)
- I'd like to take up scuba diving after trying it out in Greece last year
- Buying things for the cars (E39 bmw and '71 vw beetle)
- Motorcycling
- Kayaking (only been a few times, but it's a blast)

Still, I don't spend much money as it is since I'd go broke otherwise. Some of these just require a large initial purchase (buying a bike, kayak, camera) and then some smaller accessories/upgrades later, while others are ongoing things. *shrug*

I've scratched my head in the past trying to figure out why I don't have a cheap hobby like collecting rocks.

- Cycling (saving some scratch for a road bike, rollers, roof rack for the car, etc)
- Photography - (pining for a DSLR)
- I'd like to take up scuba diving after trying it out in Greece last year
- Buying things for the cars (E39 bmw and '71 vw beetle)
- Motorcycling
- Kayaking (only been a few times, but it's a blast)

Still, I don't spend much money as it is since I'd go broke otherwise. Some of these just require a large initial purchase (buying a bike, kayak, camera) and then some smaller accessories/upgrades later, while others are ongoing things. *shrug*

Some things sure nickle and dime us to death... I am thinking my 1958 vw beetle... that is a money pit!

Cycling, anything aviation and woodworking. All of my hobbies are expensive. (At least my wife thinks they are)

That's why I've not started wood working. Computers and gaming can be a pretty expensive hobby, staying on top of the latest games, graphics card, memory and of course storage for all the pr0n.

Sailing is my other hobby, though we sold our boat when our boys were born. I learned that the splash something makes is the inversely proportional to it's cost. It is easy to spend several thousand just to have sails made for a 20' boat.

Dogs are an extremely expensive hobby that I've had to put on hold. A weekend seminar with an international level Schutzhund trainer can set you back $300 just for registration. Fly there or drive half way across the country, motel, meals, etc. Then there's buying the dog (good GSD pup is over 1K but most wash out, promising green dog can set you back 3 to 5K, titled dogs can go for up to 50K depending on where they've competed). TRaining club 2X a week, usually an hour or more drive each way in the dog mobile (station wagon, truck, SUV). Only the best food for your athelete, good raw diet or high end kibble can be about $1/day or more before supplements (which easily doubles that). Then there's tons of equipment: crates, tracking harness, agitation harness, electric collar, prong collar, leashes of all lengths and sizes, etc.

If I had the time for a SchH dog I'd easily blow 2 to 3K a year competing at the club/regional level if I was careful with my money. I'd really like to try a ring sport, but those are so rare in the US I'd have to add another 1K for travel and I wouldn't have a local club so I'd have to go to more seminars (more $$$). I've seriously considered moving to Europe at some point for a few years so I can train with some of the top competitors without having to do as much travel.

Saxophones. Two Selmers, one soprano, one tenor -- but it's an amortized cost, since you pay for them once and they produce jazz for years.

(I also do classical, which is even more expensive -- mouthpieces = $. And I don't like Rascher mouthpieces. Do not even begin to speak to me about them.)

Cycling
Women
Beer
Wine

Not necessarily in that order

************.... Just ask Pee-Wee Herman ;)

...The very newest machine guns available for legal sale are 19 years old, and as more people want them, they become exponentially more expensive. Most machine guns now cost 20 times there original value, often more, and the prices will continue to go nowhere but up. A Tommy gun that would have cost 300 bucks in 1980 is considered a real bargain today at 18 grand...[/QUOTE]

Check this site out:

http://www.marstar.ca/fullauto/index.htm

Read it and weep, all prices are in Canadian dollars... just say you're making a movie ;-)

The high cost of entry has kept me away from a lot of hobbies, too, namely kayaking. I'm going to try to build my own skinboat someday, which will hopefully cut down on that cost.

************.... Just ask Pee-Wee Herman ;)
:roflmao: it took me a few seconds to get that one .

Hookers.....won't be able to afford them much longer. ;) :p :D

Sounds like just about anything can turn into an expensive hobby... Though clearly there are some different categories listed above. Cycling isn't really on the same level as auto racing or sailing; I'd argue that airplanes are probably at the top end. The last time I flew, maybe 10 years ago now, it was over $20/hr. And that was for a small, cheap plane. It only goes up from there.

Check this site out:

http://www.marstar.ca/fullauto/index.htm

Read it and weep, all prices are in Canadian dollars... just say you're making a movie ;-)

The high cost of entry has kept me away from a lot of hobbies, too, namely kayaking. I'm going to try to build my own skinboat someday, which will hopefully cut down on that cost.
a .50 cal Browning for $2600 canadian? That's like $10US! :eek: amazing...


One of my neighbors made his own kayak over the course of a year. It was pretty amazing watching him working on it during the weekend and seeing it take shape.

Welding. Basically, I'd do a lot more of it if I had more money for materials. I've gotten pretty good at cruising around on the night before trash day, pillaging people's trash, though.

The last time I flew, maybe 10 years ago now, it was over $20/hr. And that was for a small, cheap plane. It only goes up from there.
Riding horses is $30 or more per hour for lessons (it can be as cheap as $15 hour but that's extremely rare, $45 an hour is more common than $15). I loved it, but that's just too much and I don't have the time to spend at a barn for a work/ride arrangement.

Riding horses is $30 or more per hour for lessons (it can be as cheap as $15 hour but that's extremely rare, $45 an hour is more common than $15). I loved it, but that's just too much and I don't have the time to spend at a barn for a work/ride arrangement.

good example. expensive to acquire, expensive to use & expensive to just keep around.

It's amazing just how many people that compete with dogs used to ride horses. I think that when horses get too expensive dogs are the next logical step. To fly a dog across the country it's generally under $200 as excess baggage. To send a horse across the country just doesn't even compare, and competing on another continent is pretty much impossible for the average horse person.

Dogs are expensive, but compared to horses they're a bargain!

Oh yeah, if you wanna do something other than western pleasure or hunter/jumper the cost gets freakin unreal! Where I used to live it was almost an hour drive to the closest dressage instructor, and lessons were expensive with limited availability (the woman had another job and gave lessons for fun). Maybe when I retire and buy a crapload of land I can get a nice warmblood and have fun, but no desire to spend the money it takes to be competitive. I'd much rather compete with dogs.

Ham Radio - I'm in the process of building a K2 right now. Gotta sell my '817 and inrad filter to make way for the Elecraft wonder (and let me tell you, so far it's a breeze, got 4 hours in it and got the brain board and front panel done.)

Cycling has turned out to be expensive in money, and also in time. As I've gotten better I've been loving the club rides and I have not met a finer group of people on two wheels or not, but wow it can sure be a time-hog. Right now as the horrible cold Bay Area winter closes in, I'm experimenting with RUNNING. Yep, I might end up being one of those running dweebs "with the shorts their Mom gave them when they were 14" lol. I went to get proper running shoes and the shoes and fitting cost me about $80, I was gobsmacked. Oh yeah and I picked up a head band, for that ultra dorky look, $2.50.

I may pick up one your some of you guys' expensive hobbies, woodworking! I found a place nearby called The Sawdust Shop and it may be downhill from there lol. I want to learn the mad skillz to make nice wooden AM radio loop antennas.

Meanwhile, my road bike is going to go for sale, and I'm going to keep the fix for now.

I'm going to be poor the rest of my life:

Music: $6000 for a flute, and I'm looking to upgrade to a $14k model in a few years. About $500 in maintenance, music purchases, and accompanist fees. ~$1000 for lessons.

Biking: Not too expensive yet (total just under $3000), but it'll get there.

Flying: $100/hour, plus schooling costs. Also, y'know, buying a plane (maybe. eventually. if i win the powerball :D)

14k for a flute? What brand? I believe 6k but 14? :eek:

My english horn I will get some day is about 8k, if I want an oboe de amor add another say 6k. Now I would be lucky to play bassoon... 14 - 15k for a decient model!

Hey (joking) Sex Reassignment is an expensive hobby... 50 - 60k !

If you're going sex reassignment then I'm going to go ahead and say my brother has you beat - his hobby is being the best dressed gay man on the planet. I could see him spending 6 figures a year on pants. I've seen him give up eating for a month to afford a pair of flip-flops. D&G!

EDIT: upon rethinking it, if you combined sex reassignment with becoming the best dressed woman on the planet, you could easily outclass him. I don't suggest that route. I'm all about thrift store chic, though.

The flute is a Berkart, I played it a few years ago and fell in love with it. I've played a $33,000 flute, made out of white gold. It wasn't very good. Pretty, but not good.

If you're going sex reassignment then I'm going to go ahead and say my brother has you beat - his hobby is being the best dressed gay man on the planet. I could see him spending 6 figures a year on pants. I've seen him give up eating for a month to afford a pair of flip-flops. D&G!

Reminds me of that song "Sunset Strip Biotch by Eve6.

A line from the song:

This outfit set me back....3 paychecks and a cadillac.

Saltwater aquariums. Mine is 220 gallons.

$2000 for the tank, $2000 for good rock, $400 for lighting, $2000-3000 for filtration equipment, $1000 for the livestock, $300 dollars for an RO unit, and then you have to buy the salt at about $10 dollars for 50 gallons worth and do partial water changes regularly. With energy prices now it might cost you $50 per month for electricity.

You can race cars pretty cheap if you autocross. Use your existing car, the loaner helmet, and pay the thirty dollar entry fee. Cheaper than some of the entry fees I have had to pay for bike races.

machine tools! I had to sacrifice a car to get these projects up and rolling. The cost of the machine itself is alright, a few hundred. But then you spend that 150-200% more on tools. Then i converted to CNC, that was the cost of everything all over again.
Was it all worth it? Yep!

You can race cars pretty cheap if you autocross. Use your existing car, the loaner helmet, and pay the thirty dollar entry fee. Cheaper than some of the entry fees I have had to pay for bike races.

As far as racing goes autocross isn't too expensive, as long as you keep the care in stock class. Depending on what your driving tires can get pretty expensive.

Hi-fi Audio.

Actually it's only expensive because some people are stupid nough to pay $20,000 for a single channel 40w amplifier..... as well as pay the price of a new car for a pre-amp.

Pretty much for an entry level 2-channel hi-fi, you are looking a starting price of about $1000 (about $500-600 on speakers, rest on gear...add mroe for stands/racks/etc). I avoided that by making my own speakers, so I'm at the $800 mark instead. Before hitting the "no gain all BS" price levels, you can easily hit the 5-digit mark for two-channel. For home theater it goes up quite a bit more.


edit: by the way, I dropped $350 on a headphone setup for my computer....that's proof enough that hi-fi is pricey...

Flying: $100/hour, plus schooling costs. Also, y'know, buying a plane (maybe. eventually. if i win the powerball :D)

Yep, flying. ~$6000K or more to get your license. Maybe $3500 for a sport license but you can't really do much with that. Then $100/hour or more to rent one. Buying? $20,000 and up, $50,000 for something that can carry 4 people with a little speed. Insurance, maintenance, tiedown fees (or hangar if you REALLY want to spend!) etc etc etc. THEN you start adding the toys we all love: GPS ($7500 or so), moving map display (~$9000), charts and/or subscriptions to databases, weather service and so on and so on and so on.

But damn, is it fun!!

Yep, flying. ~$6000K or more to get your license. Maybe $3500 for a sport license but you can't really do much with that. Then $100/hour or more to rent one. Buying? $20,000 and up, $50,000 for something that can carry 4 people with a little speed. Insurance, maintenance, tiedown fees (or hangar if you REALLY want to spend!) etc etc etc. THEN you start adding the toys we all love: GPS ($7500 or so), moving map display (~$9000), charts and/or subscriptions to databases, weather service and so on and so on and so on.

But damn, is it fun!!

It doesn't get much more fun, but it sure does get expensive. Then, once you get your private license, you'll probably want to get an insturment rating which will cost thousands more.

Sure if you want to fly around in single engine 4 seater.
But then you'll end up with that $8,500,000 turbofan that seats 12.

If you people think dogs or music's expensive? $50000 for a title? Pleeease. Try formula 1. $1,250,000 for a blown motor, $300,000,000 a season. I can might have to lay off mika next year...

No train enthusiasts out there?

from an email:

Hello Brendon,
Thanks for your enquiry re locomotives.
Locos vary in price from about $4000 for a small battery electric to $6000 for a small 5" gauge steam loco.
Once you get into the larger 7.25" gauge locos a mid size powerfull battery electric is around
$12000,
A mid size steamer is around $15000 - $30000 and a really exquisite large steamer is from $50000 - $150000 NZ dollars.

Yes thats right and they are small enough to run on rails about 7 inches apart...

This picture will give you an idea as to the size (small and large) of the engines, and the size of the track.

Ham Radio - I'm in the process of building a K2 right now. Gotta sell my '817 and inrad filter to make way for the Elecraft wonder (and let me tell you, so far it's a breeze, got 4 hours in it and got the brain board and front panel done.)
Sounds like we have another QRP'r on Bike Forums. I've known Wayne and Eric for years through the NorCal QRP Club. I just finished my Elecraft KX-1.

K4DRD

Motorcycles.
Ive had them my whole life and had four at one time a year ago.
One day I just woke up and said "This isnt fun anymore".....just
sort of burnt out on them. I still have a dirtbike stashed in the back of
my garage for post revolution travel, but all the expensive, money suckers
are gone and Im glad.
More fundage leftover for guitars now, too !! :D

It's amazing just how many people that compete with dogs used to ride horses. I think that when horses get too expensive dogs are the next logical step. To fly a dog across the country it's generally under $200 as excess baggage. To send a horse across the country just doesn't even compare, and competing on another continent is pretty much impossible for the average horse person.

Dogs are expensive, but compared to horses they're a bargain!

Oh yeah, if you wanna do something other than western pleasure or hunter/jumper the cost gets freakin unreal! Where I used to live it was almost an hour drive to the closest dressage instructor, and lessons were expensive with limited availability (the woman had another job and gave lessons for fun). Maybe when I retire and buy a crapload of land I can get a nice warmblood and have fun, but no desire to spend the money it takes to be competitive. I'd much rather compete with dogs.

Ha! You're talking my language. I compete with my Weimaraners in hunting events which require horses. I have the entry fees of the competition along with the expense of carting around the dogs and the horses! Obedience, rally, agility, and tracking are so much cheaper! My next Weim will be beauty and brains thus I'll have to get in the show ring too or else hire a handler!

Jeni

Skiing on fine powder snow:
Lift ticket = $53/day
Condo=$200/night
Lobster dinnner for 2 with wine=$150
Disco fever=$75 (went home early)
Equipment=$1000 for basics only
4WD Lexus=$65,000
Oakley MP3 shades=$175
I'll stop here, you get my drift.

Mountain Biking and Skiing. The amount of money you spend on one day at a ski resort is amazing. All the gear you need adds up as well. Mountain Biking also is expensive, with the upgrades you will eventually get for your bike and all the gear you need all adds up.

Scooper if you can build a KX-1 you can for sure build a K2, it's really soft going after all the componant mashing and measuring in the KX-1.

I have a little noise gen kit coming my way since I helped Wayne and Eric pack up at Pacificon and did a bunch of the annoying stuff like disassembling those plexiglas stands of theirs. I got the little 1uV/50uV sig-gen kit with my K2 and built it, it's fun esp. to do silly theremin effects with by putting your finger near/on the xtal and variable cap. I got the balun kit too, but I don't know yet if I want it 1:1 or 4:1 so it's staying unbuilt until I decide, or I'll just get another and build one of each!

Elecrafts, they're addictive!

Skiing on fine powder snow:
Lift ticket = $53/day
Condo=$200/night
Lobster dinnner for 2 with wine=$150
Disco fever=$75 (went home early)
Equipment=$1000 for basics only
4WD Lexus=$65,000
Oakley MP3 shades=$175
I'll stop here, you get my drift.
This one's completely irrelevant. You can get to your ski resort in a $1K AWD Subaru just as well as you can in a $65K Lexus, has nothing to do with skiing. ;)