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I was 40 last year. I have two daughters, the youngest was born before I turned 40, though.
For me, it's music tech stuff, mostly a Eurorack modular synthesiser. Bleep bleep!
A Surly.
Long hair and a big beard.
Tamiya - A Plasma Edge and loads of upgraded bits for the Lunchbox I don't yet own.
A new job.
I really think I need to try a bit harder......🙂
Nice Tracy! I'm a couple of years away yet but planning on just the same as you!
<p>35 at the moment, my main weakness seems to be airguns. I have a pile of "projects" to get dealt with, to be honest I seem to be more interested in working on them than shooting them. Eventually I plan on getting a router so I can make my own stocks, a perfect world would see a lathe too but that's never happening in this house. In the meantime I'm always on the lookout for a Falcon Praire CM with thumbhole stock in .177 for sensible money. Rosewood caps a bonus. Or a CZ 200 Green. Or a DIana 440TH. Or a Parker Hale Dragon. And so the list goes on...</p>
Apart from bikes, all music related - AKG headphones, Meridian DACs, lossless and Hi Res music and a myriad of ways of storing it for remote access. Really want a Rickenbacker 4003 bass guitar in Fireglo 🎸, but haven't worked out how to swing it yet... not easy to sneak under the radar!
Oh, just realised I have some guitars in storage that are performing well financially. Only way they ever will perform well the way I play.
Some of the desirable vintage guitars are worth more than my car. I can't justify the expense on the basis of my playing abilities either... being left handed also adds to the cost.
Not mid-life crisis as I've always been into them but now I'm over 40 I have a wee bit more money to spend on them...
Classic & old motorcycles, so far I have:
1966 Triumph Bonneville
1976 Yamaha RD200
197something Garelli Endurocross (first bike I ever bought aged 11 for £3.50)
1981 Honda XL185
1988 Suzuki RM250
2000 Suzuki DRZ400
2000 Yamaha R1
I was lucky in that I picked these up for peanuts over the years. Finding bargains is almost impossible now as everyone thinks their rusty heap of crap is a 'barnfind' legend worth a mint. They're not.
And a Subaru Forester full-fat turbo which is shooting for big power. It's a rolling project and whilst the current incarnation is good for around 330 or so BHP the long term plan is to put it somewhere around 450 - 500. Now that's a moneypit! But it's really good fun!
And I just bought an R53 Mini which I'm planning to hill-climb/sprint for a laugh...
So far, moving to Canada. I also want to finish off my geology degree but I haven't worked out the financials and logistics of that yet.
Bikes. I think I buy at least one new one every year. They’ve gone from being a halfords carrera Vulcan to high end full carbon exotica. And even then they have to be upgraded, cossetted and fettled almost every day.
Then there’s the clothing, equipment, tools, tool
boxes, work stands etc, etc.
I had had a clear out of old parts and bits I had upgraded recently. Made £2K on eBay and I’m in total denial about how much they cost new. The 2k has almost instantly been invested in new bike related stuff
I don't regard it as my midlife crisis car but my fiance does.... A 2006 Nissan Cube Conran edition. Bitter chocolate colour with red interior. I don't think it's a midlife crisis car as I needed something small that could accommodate all my work gear and was big enough for two young children at the same time. She thinks it's a midlife crisis car as it has bronze alloys, roof bars, shagpile carpets and a hula girl on the dashboard. Oh, and a Fox, a Troy Lee Designs and a Yo Eddy sticker on it. So maybe she's right. Maybe we're both right. As for it being a money pit I bought it off the back of a clean MOT but it goes in for the first service under my ownership next week so we will see...
I didn't expect it to be, but my midlife (40 and 11 days old...) appears to be the rather run down rather big house we've just bought.
I massively underestimated how much everything cost, had several experiences of dodgy/useless tradespeople and have been busy buying all the tools and teaching myself plumbing and electrics so I can do it myself....
So far I've rewired 5 rooms and fitted out 1 bathroom and fixed many assorted horrors, not bad in 18months, whilst working and having our second boy.
Wife seems deeply unimpressed. I proudly state I've removed all the 50;s wiring and the lighting for a room is now on the correct circuit, and now has an earth and meets current regs - she asks, it does the same right? And now you've made a mess and there is dust everywhere....oh well.
I plan on living to110 so I haven’t got there yet 😉
but when I do it will be a Mustang, preferably rhd current UK model but i’d settle for a slightly older lhd 2010 model
I'm turning 40 in a few weeks too.
As far as physical "stuff" goes, I've found I've gone the other way! I'm getting rid of as much as possible.
Ownership is overrated IMO!
I do have a 2nd child on the way in a few more weeks though, so I think i'll have enough things to spend money on.
Mine are as follows:
a fleet of 9 road, cx and mountain bikes which always need to have something upgraded!
13 hi end guitars 9 of which purchased since turning 40, 3 years ago.
several drawers full of cycling jerseys
a large collection of wris****ches
but i am doing more bike riding than ever, events, weekends away, local rides and overseas trips to the alps etc.
I think ive come to the end of the purchasing phase though and Im now trying to enjoy what Ive got as my bank account is looking a little sorry for itself
Three ski trips a year, while I still can
a cupboard in the Alps to call my own. And as many excuses a year as I can muster to be there.
I dont spend much on cars. We dont do expensive holidays to far-flung global destinations.
I do love walking/riding/skiing in the Haute Savoie though.
I had my expensive midlife crisis in my late teens/early 20's (Lancia Delta Integrale) , the older i get (now 45) the less i spend and i'm paring everything i own down to as little as possible.
Hmmm.. guitars!
I have a Tele, should I buy a Strat??
this thread reminds me how so many hobbies basically just boil down to collecting stuff!
Hmmm.. guitars!
I have a Tele, should I buy a Strat??
Nope you already have a real mans guitar.
I've just turned 40 and seem to spend all my money on a variety of things. The next likely expensive purchase for me is probably going to either be a ceramic bbq or smoker though.
Having said that I'm also taking paycut to go from a ~2 hour commute each way to an 8 mile ride each way to work, so if anything I'm investing more in myself!
my strat (affinity squire from 1999) is crap and needs to go (buzzy neck, tuners are worn, electrics dodgy, not worth spending cash on) hence my hankering for a tele and I'm a lefty too so not much choice other than very expensive or very budget. Strats need a really good amp to get the best out of them, which I don't have. My problem is I am better on other instruments and because I'm not doing gigs on guitar it all feels like a massive indulgence...
If my uncle lets me get my mitts on his Norton (stuck in his shed for the last 25yrs),I can see that getting a bit pricey.
my strat (affinity squire from 1999) is crap and needs to go (buzzy neck, tuners are worn, electrics dodgy, not worth spending cash on) hence my hankering for a tele and I’m a lefty too so not much choice other than very expensive or very budget. Strats need a really good amp to get the best out of them, which I don’t have. My problem is I am better on other instruments and because I’m not doing gigs on guitar it all feels like a massive indulgence…
Erm.. well Fender do a Player series and they are Mex built but with all the modern improvements. My Tele is a Player and has some s****y 58’ reissue pickups and a solid bridge (not the thin tin std stuff) and they do lefties in them £550 IIRC
I bought a Boss Katana 50 amp to go with my Tele and so far I love it. You still get the sound profiles at low volumes which considering my (lack of) ability is a god send.
The Tele and Amp weren’t a MLC purchase, it’s something I’d been toying with over the last year..
It would be a blue-printed Honda RC30, but fortunately I can't afford to buy one. Meanwhile the Corrado does its best to fail in expensive ways, but seems to be appreciating at the same time, so it's a sort of zero sum horror show 🙂
As I accelerate into my 40s, this is an itch I'm really struggling to avoid scratching
this thread reminds me how so many hobbies basically just boil down to collecting stuff!
And strongly held pointless opinions!
Nope you already have a real mans guitar.
Push bikes, guitars, motorbikes, houses, records and hifi. Too many and I need to reduce.
I have a Tele, should I buy a Strat??
Yes. Yes you do. Everyone does sooner or later, I'm not there yet but I was looking at the Hendrix Monterey signature thinking hmmmmmmmmmmmmm
(I have an array of SGs and valve amps, and a Jaguar so I sure don't need one, but still...)
@bikebouy, i cant pm you. I have an old Ossa which need rehoming.
Can you PM me? or email breninbeenerATgmailDOTcom
Not quite reached mid-life crisis territory yet but I did own a 1977 VW T2 for 10 years, the last welding bill was more than I paid for it!! I've never added up what it cost financially but every one of the memories is worth it ten times over.
tjagain 7 bicycles
Crikey, that's pretty materialistic. You must have worked long hours to afford that!
On my second MLC - the first was about 10 years ago, got into motorbikes, bought a Fireblade, soon realised i would likely kill myself so flogged it and not owned one since!
Nowadays its road bikes...just about to drop the bomb on a Cannondale SystemSix.
Oh yes and ive taken to learning French as i hated it at school. I blame the terrible teacher we had at school. I kinda did the same with Physics a few years ago. We had a truly abysmal teacher back in the day and Physics was a total mystery to me. I enrolled in an OU course - maybe self directed learning is more my style, and until they increased the prices, was banging along rather nicely with Physics and Astrophysics at Level 2. I wont pay their mental prices though that they charge these days. I'm not doing OU, but im doing Duolingo French and have a personal tutor for lessons...it turns out once again i'm actually not bad at it. If only shit teachers were weeded out in the good old days as quickly as they are now.
Other MLC money pits are gadgets..i love them. Drones, gaming PCs, all that jazz
Ive also grown a beard, lost 5kgs in weight, started doing Duathlons and generally look after myself a lot better now than i did 10 years ago.
If my uncle lets me get my mitts on his Norton (stuck in his shed for the last 25yrs),I can see that getting a bit pricey.
Looks in great condition, shouldn't cost too much to run 😉
mine is a 1998 mazda MX-5. First of the fixed headlight Mk2 version, 1.6 and sadly no slippy diff. Currently on sorn, MOT ran out and it is rusted underneath like something you just pulled out of a lake.
It only cost me about a tenner in insurance, so currently it is just sitting on the drive with a flat battery while I'm contemplating what to do with it. The welding work would cost £1000+ and the car is worth about £500 at the moment.
Anybody wants to buy themselves a nice little project let me know 😀
My son ..he came along 15 years ago when I was 46..and gets more expensive as the years go by ..although he has got himself a part time job 3 evenings a week !😁
Personal indulgences ..mountain bikes, related gear & trips ..nice cars .
Triathlons.
Did Ironman Wales last year. By the time I'd paid the entry fee, a hotel for the weekend, and a weekends worth of food for me and the missis, plus replacing kit that I wore out doing the long training, and the couple of weekends there for course recces, turned out almost £2500 for the one race!
Then there were the build up races.
Then the brownie point gaining treats.
😳 £2500 for one race?
Did you enjoy it ?
🤪🕺🥊
er... my business. Something I'd been aspiring to do for a good few years, but I took the leap a couple of years ago and frankly if the other half didn't have a good job we'd be struggling... Beyond that, a small dog's medical bills.
I'm idly pondering buying an old banger of a car as a project though, because you can never burn through too much money...
Mine is a 1998 mazda MX-5. First of the fixed headlight Mk2 version, 1.6 and sadly no slippy diff. Currently on sorn, MOT ran out and it is rusted underneath like something you just pulled out of a lake.
It only cost me about a tenner in insurance, so currently it is just sitting on the drive with a flat battery while I’m contemplating what to do with it. The welding work would cost £1000+ and the car is worth about £500 at the moment.
Anybody wants to buy themselves a nice little project let me know.
Why not turn it into one of these:
[URL= http://www.mevltd.co.uk/kit-cars/mev-exocet ]MEV Exocet [/URL]
Or one of these:
[URL= http://www.greatbritishsportscars.co.uk/cars/zero-mazda/ ]GBS Zero[/URL]
Whyte, Enigma, Stanton............
Some of you boys are ****ing useless, it’s supposed to be a <i>money pit</i> ffs!
I’ve a (butterscotch blonde) Vintage Hotrod ‘52 tele that I run through a ‘68 Custom Princeton Reverb amp...
and my strat (US HSS) I upgraded with a prewired BKP scratch plate and my MIJ tokai with Mule pups.
try harder.
🤣
Peak bike was achieved pre MLC and is now on the decline......I've probably no more than 20 now🙄.
Passed my motorcycle test in May after a lifetime of threatening too and have an old runner and a cash pit project waiting to be started. Next year will probably see the old runner traded in for something newer.
Also bought a snowboard last year and booked a holiday after more or less a 20 year hiatus.
So one reliving my youth and the other something I always meant to do when I was young.
@bikebouy - yep it was ace. 45mph winds, sideways rain, one of the toughest courses on the ironman circuit made even tougher.
Worth it for sure.
The support all round the course is bonkers. We went to support this year as it is so good.