KenshiBiker

I also have a thing for fountain pens. Lately my daily carry has been a Namiki Vanishing Point, but others over the years have included an Omas Arco, Pelikan M800, Parker Duofold, and a Nakaya Equilibrium. They all get to serve some time in the "rotation". Oh, I also have a Pelikan desk set that includes the City Series (Chicago) FP and RB.

Used to do archery as well - shot a takedown recurve. My wife did me one better, she used to shoot a longbow. And as you can probably tell from my username, I also practice kendo (iaido too).

On the kitchen front, I also use a Kitchenaid, primarily when baking. I took a long look at those Shun Ken Onion knives and came close to pulling the trigger on the Shun Bob Kramer series, but then I decided to just bite the bullet and go for the regular Bob Kramer knives so I got on the waiting list.

I also have a thing for mechanical watches, currently wearing a JLC Reverso Grand Date, and have a Glashutte Original Panomatic Lunar sitting at home waiting for its turn in the rotation. Couple of other beater mechanical watches as well.

Oh, I'm also old enough to have learned to use a slide rule and have a couple of them at home - don't really use them too much any more, but I keep thinking about it. I figure between those and my log tables I should be able to plot a succesful lunar launch - heck, they did it back in the 60s didn't they.

Finally, I keep thinking about getting back to the mug and brush shaving. I need to find a good razor though. Last time I was in SF, there was a shaving shop in the San Francisco Centre Shopping Mall; maybe I'll try there.

Fun thread.

Thanks,

KenshiBiker

wahoonc

Still cook from scratch. Got about 6 chickens in the freezer that were still on the hoof last Sunday Somebody asked me if they had names...ahyup! Chicken Noodle Soup, Chicken Pot Pie, Fried Chicken and Chicken Dinner. Much better tasting than anything you can buy at the store.

Aaron

rugerben

I love These guys if you are looking to get into proper shaving. They have great products, average prices, and fanastic service. If nothing else, their articles in The how to and why section of the website are worth a good read. They are a lot of help in figuring out just want you want and need (regardless of where you end up buying).

cpb282

- I own a 43 year old car.
- I own and use rangefinder film (35mm) and TLR (120mm) cameras.
- I listen to vintage music -- old bluegrass, Johnny Cash, Rush (before they got progressive) and pre-1990 Beastie Boys
- I drink gin.

There are many more retro-grouch tendancies, those are but a few.

luker

I use a sharp rock to shave. A really old sharp rock.


My legs, of course.


Gin is good.

nine14six

I can make a spiritual connection with sports cars with non-computerized engines, non-ABS brakes, and manual transmissions. Wood, cold-molded and hand laid-up fiberglass boats made before material cost cutting was the design mantra. Mechanical watches. Straight up jazz played through analog stereo equipment (although I'll admit to being an iPod convert). Quality side by side shotguns. Furniture from the 17th century to the 1950's. And of course, steel bikes with friction shifting.

I use all kinds of modern stuff, but it's just stuff.

Ned_Detroit

Mostly I'm just a retro-grouch about bikes, can't seem to get the hang of index shifting, especially with brifters and dual tap shifters, and I find the domination of cycling by high tech racing bikes both road and MYB, lamentable. I really don't care much for the esthetics of carbon fibre bikes, and the propagation of innovations like threadless headsets and splined bottom brackets, and full suspension, into more mainstream bikes is annoying, they offer few real benefits for most non-elite riders,and add cost and complexity, and in the case of threadless headsets make bike fitting more complicated. I imagine some bikeshop owners love that though as it enable them to sell expensive fitting services.
I love film cameras but went to (mostly) digital because it was way cheaper and almost all of the custom labs have disappeared and I often needed to convert pics to digital anyway. I still use manual focus most of the time though. As for shaving, I'm a dyed in the wool electric fan, I'm just way too dysfunctional and stressed out in the morning to trust myself with a sharp blade against my face. I like having my nose and ears attached to the rest of me
In the kitchen I rely on sharp knives to dispatch vegetables and hardly ever use the microwave, I almost never eat fast food and avoid chain restaurants as much as possible.
I'm definitely not an early adopter, I really don't see the sense in paying large corporations to do product testing for them. However, if I can find a real benefit in something new I'm not averse to switching.

John E

wife: 58 years old, married 35 years
(She was my college sweetheart and is still a genuine keeper!)

furniture: My 25th anniversary present to my wife was the 100-year-old Parisian dining room sideboard which graces our dining room.

musical taste: mostly "Bach to Rach.," i.e., Baroque through Romantic periods


There are several ways in which I live like a savage:

TV: over-the-air antenna
(My 1974 house is not even wired for cable TV. As long as I can receive KPBS and UCSD-TV, I am happy.)

TV: 27" CRT (2)
(I'll replace each with a flat screen eventually, but probably not until it dies. I had a 19" monochrome set until 1989.)

refrigerator: 21 years old
(Due for replacement, primarily for energy consumption reasons. It's a Whirlpool; Consumer Reports is right about the reliability.)

calculator: Pickett slide rule and HP-67 in my office
(To be fair, I also have an HP-48 and an HP-49 at home.)

car: 1988 Dodge Aries K station wagon
(OK, it's no longer mine, but my neighbor is still happily driving it. This is the first time one of my cars has reached my 20-year goal. I hope to keep the 2001 VW Passat wagon with which I replaced it for several more years.)

stereo system: 1982 Sony amplifier, 1993 Cambridge Soundworks Ensemble speaker system
(OK, the speakers are not AR-3AXs, but they share the Henry Kloss pedigree.)

rugerben

nine14six- you're talkin my kinda language.

nine14six

Bang bang, reload. Repeat.

Amani576

I guess I'm too young to be retro-grouch by any means. I grew up with all this new fangled stuff you guys seem so adamant against, though, I grew up in an 80-year old house, and prefer architecture that predates planned communities and all that crap. I also prefer tube-amps to solid-amps for the warmness in the sound they have (though, for "green" sake, solid amps use less power). I only have one bike that's younger than me, and it's too small for me anyways.
I prefer cooking with knives and iron cookware over anything else (thanks to my mom). Umm... Music sucks nowadays, most music older than me is infinitely better than some of the crap that comes out now, though, some is still great.
I prefer things simple, concise, and to the point. I don't like to talk unless it either needs to be said, or I feel like joining an interesting conversation (so I'm quiet very often).
I prefer keyboards with true switches, not membranes, that clickety-clack that Model M's make are great (I have one and love it). Though, I'm too into new geeky stuff to have old computers.
I prefer people knowing what they intend to buy, and not asking around because they're so nit-witted they can't figure it out or do research on their own. I see so many people buy, or be sold into things they simply don't need because they don't know any better and don't seem to care. I despise the sheer apathy towards one's own life and belongings that exists today. Planned obsolescence works (money wise) on paper, but makes sheep out of the populace.
I prefer open idea and creative systems to this modern closed system we seem to have nowadays.
I think people should shut up and deal with their own problems instead of whining and wanting other people to protect them. There's too many pansies walking around without any sense of responsibility on their shoulders.
Man...
I am pretty grouchy...
Maybe I am fit to be around all you guys.
-Gene-

conspiratemus

Great thread.

Only one other poster mentioned making bread by hand. Each fall, when daylight saving time ends, starts the cycle of mixing, kneading (to ABBA music!), rising, loaf-making (3 in a batch), rising, and baking...then the quality-control tasting, the best part: cutting into a hot loaf, laying on a smear of butter, and enjoying with a glass of Shiraz.

Every Saturday morning through the long winter darkness the whole house smells of rising dough. We buy no commercial bread from November through April. But of course, once we go back on DST, the weekend mornings are for tandem-riding before it gets too warm and the roads too busy. No time for bread-making.
But this year's batches have been so good, and so well-received by my wife who does just about all the other cooking, that I think next spring will be the year I don't stop when the clocks go forward. I'll find some other time-waster to chop instead.

-Les

revelstone

vivitar slr camera with flash, 600mm lens, 2x lens, filters. plus smaller shorter lenses for different shots. steel frame bikes, commuter bike is 1980 centurion with bullhorn handle bars. listen to a radio with a dial thats just a red line on a knob, with extending antenna, and a 9 volt battery. have LPs, but no turntable, my last one broke, and i just can't find one for cheap. (my favorite price). i care nothing for what's "in style". for that matter i don't think i know what is "in style" and would most likely be put out by anyone trying to take the time to tell me what's "in". i drive a 1989 isuzu trooper cuz i like the look of them, it gets 17 mpg, and i only paid 400 cash. i'll be dead before i even consider paying 20 or 30 thousand for a car. and i really hate having to throw something away just cuz it's broke. used to be people wouldn't buy something brand new unless they knew they could fix it if it broke. now everything is disposable. next it will be disposable people. on the plus side, with any luck, i'll be dead before things get real bad. another 40 or 50 years, and i'm outta here.

PlatyPius

Ditto.

Also:
I live in a house built sometime around 1840. ( https://oldhousegazette.com/house/89.php )
We don't have a dishwasher.
Or a food processor.
Our stove is a 1940s Robert Shaw.
Until a year ago, our fridge was a 1950s Frigidaire with the rounded top (still have it...it's at Mom's house...still in use.)
My townie/cruiser is a 1950s Rutledge.
Lugged steel is STILL the best frame material.
As a general rule, I don't listen to music. Noise is annoying.
I think wool jerseys are cool.
I've never owned an iPod.
I still wear jerseys that I bought from Performance 12 years ago.
I have lamp oil lanterns on the walls of my office/guestroom (where I am now).

rideroli

lugged steel racing bikes, tube stereo equip., manual focus film cameras (nikon s-1 , spotmatics) ,old woodworking tools & equipment (still keep& use a well tuned wood plane in my jobsite toolbox)......when it comes to aquiring new things i'm typically drawn to something old ,of notable quality,
rather than something new and possibly engineered as disposable.... kinda retro grouchy

phillyrider

My house was built in 1899 and I have a 66 VW bug in the garage for sunday rides. Lately, I've been into 1920's light fixtures. Design is a draw.

For newer things - I look for interesting design. I went into an Apple store the other`day and quickly realized I'm a bit of a geezer.

redneckwes

Threads like this are why I love the C&V

I'll add, vintage 50's Marlin and Stevens/Springfield 22's

My '68 Chevy C-10.

My '49 Farmall C and '51 Farmall H.

and the Ca 1900 12" Sebastion metal lathe that is now in my garage.

ollo_ollo

Not as retro as I used to be, but I'm still pretty grouchy according to my kids:

I did photography in the aerospace industry back in the 60's & 70's then did some animation & presswork in the 80's but saw the changes coming & went into the collection business until I retired. I no longer do film photography since I went digital about 8 years ago. Got rid of nearly all my 35mm, large format & stereo cameras but kept a stereo viewer & still have a Retina IIIc that no one wanted. Sold my Browning 12 gauge but still have some sidearms including a Colt Combat Commander. I traded my 1956 Massey Harris for an 86 Mitsubishi diesel tractor. I ride Brooks saddles on lugged steel, also have a fillet brazed frame. My Torelli is tig welded but I like that they smoothed the welds so it looks fillet brazed. I have a Shopsmith that's so old, the manual talks about helping the war effort (WWII) by making my own stuff. My bandsaw is more than 50 y.o. old but my cabinet saw is only 18. I gave all but a couple of my hand planes to my son who gets more retro all the time. He works as a computer programmer but builds guitars & furniture in his basement and heats his home with a wood stove. Don (edit Forgot to mention: I wear a Seiko self winder, have a closet full of vintage bamboo fly rods with several models of the Pfluger Medalist reel & the wife of 48 years, who is a world class cook & homemaker)

sailorbenjamin

Cassette tapes. Never scratch, fit in the center consol. Buck a piece at the goodwill. CDs suck.

Rober

I really still cook. We cook everything ourselves and never, never eat out (commercial food is just so bad for you, and such a waste of money). We do have a really nice stove though (a Wolf) and all the other kitchen things to make good food with.

I am really retro-grouchy about mechanical things. I still use a portable Remington typewriter from the late 40s once in a while, I have a collection of old cameras including a Pentex MX that I still use. I have tools my father gave me including a basin wrench from about 1930 that has saved many sinks (but I have "modern" power tools - I don't trust the old ones). Old silverware (1916), very old knives, and a workhorse of a sewing machine (a Sears Kenmore - for real!) from 1948 that will go through anything and that I can hardly lift by myself. I have a Cold War florescent desk lamp and a stapler from 1950. Old Chinese rugs and furniture, old lamps, "Old Hollywood" style thick velvet curtains on rings.

Oh, yeah - we live in a 1915 bungalow and I drive a 1982 (barely retro) 280ZX in the summer - I'm too chicken to drive it in the ice and snow though.

And, of course, bikes!

roseskunk

great thread. it's funny reading it on my mac g5... i wonder how you guys even post on here... not too many computers were around in the 'good old days'!

i'm definitely an old grouch. man we should all get together somewhere... let's see:
several vintage stereos, the best sounding being the fisher 400 running dynaco's in my library. a mcintosh system in the living room. hmmm, maybe 6 others... my music is all classic jazz and classical. i wear mechanical watches, my IWC pilot's and omega "moon" are two of my favorites. books, lots and lots of books. no television. i have a closet full of old cameras, hasselblad, leica, nikon, etc, but i also own a canon 1Ds and soon a 5D mark2. oh, a full beard too, i've had one for 35 years. usually once a year i cut it off. a baker's dozen bikes, all steel, and a dozen that are vintage. old tools. 9 year old toyota. i used to drive old land cruisers and in the 80's had two 1960 triumph tr-3s. man those were fun cars! i prefer cotton and wool. and old scotch. dead architect's furniture. i collect knives, used to be old pocket knives but now it's customs, and just one maker... i consider him to be the best in the world. and yeah, i carry one of them every day. use it too. oh, trains to planes. backroads as often as possible. old diners. old dogs. old guns. and usa made filson. bamboo rods. old friends. that's enough. can i be in the club?

jeffieh

I collect old suburban wooden bungalows. And love literature, just so long as it's pre WW2 (Waugh, HV Morton, Dickens, Hugo). I'm extra grouchy when the kids don't put away their stuff too.

swtools

1964 Raleigh International owned since new, still my main ride. Alexander rotary valve euphonium, owned since 1970 (I hate compensators), full beard, 1964 Porsche 356C & 1987 Ford Econoline E350, 1939 Monarch 10EE metal lathe, 1964 Deckel FP2 milling machine, 1940's straight edges used for machine tool restoration & hand scraping. Pascal, Prolog, Lisp and Ada are my favorite programming languages. I could go on...

Mike Mills

nm

Longfemur

Leave me out of the retro-shaving thing, Ok! I can get my retro kicks in many ways, but shaving doesn't figure into it. Get me out of that bathroom in the quickest, easiest way possible. Shaving is a chore, not a pleasure to be cherished.