Other Hobbies

We're all Star Wars fans, sure - why else would we be in a Star Wars based club? - but what else are in your interests?

I have a few hobbies:

Swords/Weapons
I'm not the stereotypical sword collector - I don't have a katana. I collect the United Cutlery Lord of the Rings stuff. I currently have the following list:

UC1264 Sting (Frodo)
UC1265 Glamdring (Gandalf)
UC1267 Narsil (King Elendil, the sword that breaks when cutting the One Ring from the hand of Sauron)
UC1278 Ringwraith
UC1300 Scabbard for Sting
UC1370 Herugrim (King Theoden of Rohan)
UC1385 Staff of Saruman
UC1417BL Scabbard for Glamdring (Blue)
UC1423 Eowyn of Rohan

I'm planning on grabbing a few more now that UC has started to discontinue production. I'm looking at:

UC1266 Witchking (Leader of the Ringwraiths)
UC1298 Hadhafang (Arwyn)
UC1299 Strider (Aragorn's before Anduril was reforged)
UC1372 Legolas' Daggers
UC1381 Legolas' Daggers Scabbards

I've also started going after the flags/banners released by a German company. They are authentic reproductions of the items seen in films.



Disney Treasures
I'm missing one, but I have every other one of these limited edition sets that have come out. If you're not familiar with them, go check on Amazon for Disney Treasures. Each 2-DVD set is jammed with cartoons or shows for whatever the subject is. I've watched completely through a few of them, but it'll take me weeks to get through them all.

If you're into animation (I mean really into animation, the type of stuff that was made when the artform was invented) then you should look into obtaining them.

DVD's
I'm really into getting DVDs in general too. I have over 300 movies & TV shows - counting boxed sets or multi-DVD packs as 1 each. I have a decent amount of Sci-Fi (surprise) but I really like war films, comedies, classic films (like Citizen Kane and Bridge on the River Kwai) and some older (70's) horror flicks like The Shining, The Exorcist and The Dead Zone.

The only thing that I really 'collect' is empty alcohol bottles. I'm weird, I know. Other then that, I have a pretty small knife collection. I carry a Benchmade 551 Griptillian and have a Buck 112 (it's a smaller version of their big hunting folder), a Smith & Wesson boot knife, a Columbia River Knife and Tool First Strike Tanto.

No $500 custom knives...yet...but that's about all I can actually buy on a student's budget.

As a former smoker I now collect quality ash trays, mostly from restaurants. My most prized piece is from the champagne makers Perrier Jouet. It's just like their bottles: green glass with gold and enamel leaf overlays. They're all socked away in a drawer atm, but I do tend to "procure" them now and again when a particularly nice one crosses my path. My other hobbies are mostly athletic -- hiking, cycling, inline skating, screwing, etc. And writing, of course. That's my biggest hobby because it's not paying the bills atm.

I actually collect stone and wooden turtles. Most of them are from Korea and are made of some light green rock (I'm not quite sure what it's called) and I have one from the Phillipines that's made of wood. I also play violin and play in usually around four concerts a year with the orchestra I play with and my chamber music group. Another weird thing about me is that I like to program the TI-83/84+ calculators. I've only been doing that for two years, but it's really fun when you understand what you're doing. I also enjoy throwing cards... playing cards are harder to throw than plastic ones, but they sometimes spin faster which makes them go further. Yea, I'm weird. Lol.

I actually collect stone and wooden turtles.  Most of them are from Korea and are made of some light green rock (I'm not quite sure what it's called)


Jade?

Oh and an update:

I just bought this.

I hate to say it but I'm much like your typical mom. I cook, clean, and keep the bills paid. I don't really collect anything but I have an affininty for pearls and loose stones. I like to travel too so whenever I have the opportunity, you can find me driving around town to some distant location. Besides a little gaming here and there, I do a lot of writing and designing. I design anything from fish tanks to computers to interiors.

Jade?

Oh and an update:

I just bought this.



I'm jealous!!!!!!!!

Oh, my hobbies: reading...I love to read! Mostly Fantasy books, my fav author is Dennis L. McKiernan, and some Sci-fi like Orson Scott Card (love!). My two absolute fav authors are Tom Clancy (I've been reading him since I was 10...his books are so much fun to read!) and John Grisham (love love love!). Obviously other people agree with me becuase several of their books have been made into movies. I also read lots of Christian stuff, my fav author being Phillip Yancey (I'm going into a religious field so its a given lol). Its way too hard to pick a favorite book but I'll mention one of mine: Cry, the Beloved Country by Alan Paton. I read it for my World Lit class Senior year in high school and I underlined most of the book becuase I found it to be so poetical and beautiful.

I play the Saxophone, currently I play the Baritone Sax in Concert Winds (my college band) and the Alto Sax in my Sax Quartet. It is the best instrument EVER! LOL Jk, but I do love to play it. Music is the language of my soul, I like almost everything from Classical to Hip-Hop.

I love to travel! The Phillipines was beautiful! And I hope to go to Italy for a year soon to learn Italian.

And last but not least: Video Games!!!!!! Not as much of a gamer as my brother, I still have an XBox in my college dorm room as well as all my PC Games. I'm super excited about Heroes 5 which should be coming out soon, damn them! At the moment I'm playing Diablo II and Jade Empire.

I cook, clean and keep the bills paid too. I am not, however, your typical mom.

I like to shoot, arrows, bullets, whatever.

I like to fight, fencing, mixed martial arts "reality fighting," etc.

I like to paint. I have several traditional paintings as well as Warhammer armies I have painted.

I like to write but usually that is just a means to an end.

I like to drive fast on real crooked roads where one mistake totals the vehicle.

I suppose the pattern is that, whatever it is, I am all on it.

Oh yea, Star Wars, but that is more of a philosophy or way of life than a hobby.

And the there is the mother of all pursuits, and she knows who she is.

Heh... I do a lot, when i have the time.

Swords are a passion. My dad got me into them at a young age, and i have a very nice collection of quality blades, some antiques. I'm more than passingly familiar with Muso Shinden Ryu Iaido and pretty good at the Nami Ryu heiho. Hand to hand is no slouch either, although it's harder to corner my style into a category unless you are familiar with Systema.

I enjoy medeival faires, and can usually be spotted in armour or garb at those (depending on how hot it is that day...plate armour on an 80degree+ day is a good way to get heat stroke).

I like to target shoot, and have gotten pretty good with my berettas. My friends all joke that if we are ever invaded (by communists, aliens, or zombies), that they're getting over to my house as soon as possible, thanks to the armory i've accumulated over time.

There's other stuff there, too, but I don't do those much anymore.

I love Renaissance Fairs! I grew up going to them, so much fun!

Muz, do you mean the Russian martial art Systema? I've heard some about it but not too much, and I've never run into someone who knew it before.

One other hoby of mine that I forgot to list is shooting. I'm too poor to own any guns myself, but I lust after a 1911 and an M1A, which is more or less an M14 without the full auto mode (that tends to jam like all hell anyway, so no loss). Besides that, I've shot an MP5 before but I probably wouldn't buy one because they aren't very left hand shooter friendly (bolt release is on the left side, I have to use my trigger hand to hit it and the fire selector is perfectly placed for the right thumb)...it was still fun to shoot though

I've always wanted to learn how to swordfight as well as learn archery...I think it would be loads of fun

I've always wanted to learn how to swordfight as well as learn archery...I think it would be loads of fun



Ditto.

And it seems that the LOTR swords are really getting discontinued fast. I'm not really in the position to go all out on buying them before they're all really hard to find, so I'm not sure if going to stick to some of the oddball ones or the more famous ones.

I did manage to snag the Legolas daggers and scabbards for $350 less than list, which is great. Most people sell them for $50-100 less than list.



And Hadhafang just arrived today. It reminds me of Dooku's saber the way the handle curves.

The banner issue is a whole other animal. The guy I ordered it from in Canada seems to be screwing me around. It's supposed to get here tomorrow. Will it? Probably not. He's failed on one delivery date and I imagine he'll miss this one too. The thing that really sucks about this item's availability is - I can either get it from this guy or someone in the UK, and the 2nd banner (that I intended to buy from a store in the US) is no longer in stock... except with this guy in Canada.

Crix: Yep, systema...It's more Aiki than aikido...very fluid and smooth...loose... kinda hard to explain unless you've done it. ANyway, yeah, the MA i do is based off of systema, aikido, and with a fair bit of kickboxing thrown in there for good measure. Although i'm one of those people who won't 'compete' because i feel that fighting isn't a game. (which gets me some guff from the BJJ goons)

And yeah, i've got a reasonably rounded firearms battery...and the lefty conversion on the berrettas was one of many reasons i popped for them.

It would be nice if all these like minded individuals got together and trained.

I know we all live all over Hell and back but I am glad to see that we have more in common than I would have thought at first.

As for the BJJ goons, I fight with them all the time. I agree that fighting is not a game but it is hard to get good at it if one does not get in some fights. I know both sides of the argument there.

The M1A is a superb weapon. Many consider the 7.62x51 (.308) cal to be an antique but I do not. I am aware that it is still being used by many when they have the choice. The 1911 will never die.


I have been doing Tae Kwon Do for thirty-two years and Aikido (including Aiki sword and Iaido - Muso Shinden Ryu and Shinden Munen Ryu) for twenty-five years. I have been doing Greco-Roman wrestling for longer than all that. Together, they all work pretty well.

As for archery, I use a simple bow, no compound bow for me. I shoot for the heck of it and hunt with it every year. I sit on the balcony and fire out into the yard.

The M1A is a superb weapon.  Many consider the 7.62x51 (.308) cal to be an antique but I do not.  I am aware that it is still being used by many when they have the choice.  The 1911 will never die.



Amen. I can almost garentee that the people who think that .308 is an antique have never fired an M1A. The feeling is just great. I haven't (and don't really want to) seen a person hit by a .308 round, but I have a feeling that they won't be getting up for a while after that hit. Same goes for .45. I know that you can get more shots per mag with a 9mm, but unless you're a perfect shot you're probably gonna have to hit them more then once to keep them down. You don't get back up from a center of mass shot from a .45

1911s are more or less left hand friendly, too. Sure, you have to reach a little for the mag release, but it isn't bad and I've pretty much gotten it so I can hit the button with the knuckle on my index finger. Then the slide works no matter which hand you use.

I read you loud and clear, Baron. I'm just not into the octogon crap. I'd rather keep my face the way it is, if i can help it.

Mind you, i understand and love 'full resistance' training , but i absolutely abhorr the ringdweeb mentality of "if you ain't won, you ain't nobody" that often comes from the Gracie nutriders.

I've not seen much of Shinden Munen Ryu... around these parts, the curricula is almost entirely Muso Shinden and Muso Jikiden Eishen...but then again, the teacher i visit is a big figure in the midwest kendo foundation, so his focus is on the shinai. The Nami Ryu i had to go outside the box to find.

I love my berettas... been thinking of getting the brigadiers (chambered in .40 cal), but the cheap parabellum round keeps me at the range more frequently. And they'll do the job well enough for the government, so it works for me.

Besides... as my late grandfather was fond of saying, 'the only thing a handgun is good for is to fight your way to your rifle."

I've not heard anyone complain about the .308 being an antique... guess i just have good company... a lot of ex-military around me up here in deer country. My rifle's not so serious, as i'm in the 5.62 with my AR. gah, I guess i use lighter ammunition on both counts.

but i do have a fun single-action cowboy gun in .45 long colt that'll change your religion if you're not careful with it. Does that count? heheh

I'm not into the guns so much. I have one old Colt rifle that was given to me by my great uncle, and honestly I can't tell you what it is exactly except that his has a hexagonal barrel.

In my LOTR weapons hunt, I just bought this for $50:

Muz:

A lot of the new guys (under twenty-five) think the 7.62x51 is antique because all they know is the AR (5.56x45 NATO or .223 cal) variants.

Those that know me will tell you that I have often said the same things as your grandfather about pistols. The irony is that after all us old guys saying that all those years, when the first person shooter games came out they all proceeded (DOOM Dark Forces, etc.) on that very premise. Art imitates life?

As for the saying you quoted, "If you ain't won....." I am fond of saying that if you haven't had your a** beat you have not been doing it long.



Kaine:

My favorite LOTR sword is the one that the ringwraiths use. I have wanted one of those. I believe that particular weapon would transfer over nicely to a mixed Aiki-sword and Jo technique.

You mean this one?


It's actually one of the worst ones they made for the collection. The blade is very thin and wobbles if you try to swing the weapon around. It's really made to be hung on the wall, unlike many of the others that look great as a costume accessory that could possibly do some damage.

Most of these are exactly like the film versions, but a few have been a little disappointing. Sting, the High Elven Longsword and Hadhafang have painted-on details around the handle. Gandalf and Saruman's staves have to be assembled by screwing together the long handle in the middle.

I can understand the cost difference in painting the details as opposed to using metal inlays, and the shipping nightmare it would be to send a 6-foot pole through UPS, and it's not like I DISLIKE these pieces - it's just that I don't like them as much as, say Glamdring or Herugrim (my 2 favorites BTW).

Just do a Google Image search for UC1265 and UC1370


[EDIT] Just a note: I don't have the High Elven Longsword yet, but I'm on the list for the last shipment from United Cutlery. UC1373

Yes, that is it. I am sorry to hear that it cannot be "played with" although I appreciate the information.

Heh - I spend way too much money sometimes.

Here's what I picked up THIS PAST WEEKEND. The file names are screwed up for 2 of them but the images are all correct.

Elven Knife of Strider: $70 (MSRP $310)



Helm of King Elendil: $120 (MSRP $500)


Sword of Strider: $109 (MSRP $350)


Theoden's Hall Banner #2 of 5.

I bought #1 last month and it just showed up last week.

The Strider one is way cool.

Yeah - I only hope I can get the scabbard for a decent price. Everyone charges $100 or more.

Yay for Thread Revival!
This past weekend I picked up this, though it doesn't ship for another week.


And now here's the whole story for this freaking monster...

It's not a limited edition item, but UC only made a handful (when compared to something like Sting). A sword dealer I usually do business with (where I got my 1st LOTR sword and about 1/3 of the rest of my collection) sent out an e-mail a couple months ago stating he was getting these in, but that it was a very limited shipment. I told him to reserve one for me, and to send me a bill whenever.

Sometime last week he sent out another e-mail saying he has filled all the preorders and that he was selling the last 4 he had on eBay. I threw him a note asking "WTF?!?" about my preorder. He never sent me an invoice, so I was never put on the list officially. I went to his auction and he was asking DOUBLE the price he told me before. It had the option to give the seller a "best offer" - a chance to bargain with them. I put mine in a just over the original price. He declined.

The auction went through its run with no sales, even after he knocked $30 off it. When it ended, he relisted. It was $30 more than my previous offer. I waited for a day or so, but when I saw 2 of the 4 were sold I snapped. It was like a gut reaction to just hit Buy It Now, confirm, confirm, etc.

So, I might have paid about 50% more than the original preorder but at least I didn't have to pay his full asking price.

That is the coolest sword I have ever seen, I guess I don't get out that much.