T. Hobby Prices Compared to Previous (Other) Hobbies Prices

[Liquifin]

Just a thought that finally got to my head. Before the T. hobby takeover in my life, my previous hobbies was more money consuming than my entire T hobby. Sure there are some expensive T.'s in regards to the T. hobby. When people talk about how expensive the T. hobby is, I ask to myself "This isn't anything compared to my older hobbies". The best example is the fish hobby, specifically the Koi Fish Hobby. I remember my family having some young "possible" 4'' Tancho Koi for like $80-$150 each. And man was it time consuming and money driven, my other 2 hobbies after that (figure collecting and computer building) were way more expensive than the majority of the T. hobby. So just a thought for those with other other hobbies or previous hobbies. What are some other hobby prices in comparison to this hobby?

 

[cold blood]

Yeah, my other hobby is fishing...vastly more expensive...good rod...$150-300....good reel...$100-300....and to bass fish effectively, each rod combo is geared toward specific techniques, and you want multiples of everything...heck I'd bet i spend more on plastic worms alone every year than ive spent in all my time in the t hobby.

 

[Minty]

Playing an instrument (guitar in my case) can be wildly more expensive, but it's also fortunate that you can get a cheap acoustic guitar for less than £60, if you just want to jam at home. I've spent thousands on guitars and equipment over the years, while I'm not sure I'll ever reach that level of spending with tarantulas. Along with my love of playing music, I love going to gigs, and ticket prices for the biggest acts can be quite expensive.

There's obviously the Euro/American differene with T pricing as well, but I imagine it's the same with most hobbies. A season ticket for my football club can be purchased for betweem £300-500. Whereas I looked up season ticket prices of the Anaheim Ducks, which had some for $8000+.

I've only recently taken up golf and golf lessons, but clubs can set you back a few grand, along with membership fees, green fees, lesson fees. My clubs/bag/accessories were about £2000. Lessons were £60 an hour. Driving range is £5 for 100 balls. A round at some of the local courses varies between £15-60. Membership fees are £500+ per year.

I think being a hardcore gamer would be pretty expensive, depending on how much you invest in a computer, or how many games you buy for your console(s). I haven't gamed for years though.

So the tarantula hobby, can be relatively cheap in comparison. I spend £50 a month to feed my dog, another £12 to insure him for vet emergencies, another few quid for treats etc, and whatever the costs of petrol are, when taking him out for walks. My birds cost about £25 a month to feed, while my tarantulas cost about £6 max a month, to feed.

 

[jrh3]

Yeah, my other hobby is fishing...vastly more expensive...good rod...$150-300....good teel...$100-300....and to bass fish effectively, each rod combo is geared toward specific techniques, and you want multiples of everything...heck I'd bet i spend more on plastic worms alone every year than ive spent in all my time in the t hobby.

I agree, you need a crankin rod, a frog rod, a rod for shakey heads, a rod for flippin. But its worth every penny, when you get to weigh-in knowing you have a 20 lb sack on a 18 lb lake.

 

[The Grym Reaper]

DJ-ing was pretty expensive, my 1210's cost me around £500, £100 for a half-decent mixer, replacement styli were £40 a pop, £200 for a sound system, £50 for headphones, not to mention the small fortune I spent on vinyl over the years.

 

[Garetyl]

Bird keeping. Just don't. They practically (and sometimes actually) eat your money.

 

[Minty]

Bird keeping. Just don't. They practically (and sometimes actually) eat your money.

What birds are you keeping?

 

[Garetyl]

What birds are you keeping?

Budgies, lovebirds (peach face, Fischers, black masks, and a hybrid), a cockatiel, and a conure my mom caught outside. I love them to bits and pieces, but they are brats. Proper caging goes from 300+$ and up, and I need to buy two more cages.

 

[cold blood]

I agree, you need a crankin rod, a frog rod, a rod for shakey heads, a rod for flippin. But its worth every penny, when you get to weigh-in knowing you have a 20 lb sack on a 18 lb lake.

yeah, you know what im talking about.

 

[Minty]

Budgies, lovebirds (peach face, Fischers, black masks, and a hybrid), a cockatiel, and a conure my mom caught outside. I love them to bits and pieces, but they are brats. Proper caging goes from 300+$ and up, and I need to buy two more cages.

Ah yeah, I keep budgies too. We have 7 budgies in a large vivarium. It was £300, with about 8 other cages. I also keep a kakariki. I'd love a conure, in the future.

 

[sourpatchkid]

Live Poker at the casino... I was a break-even player, but I can't even begin to put a dollar amount towards the amount of stress and anxiety. Ts are definitely less expensive by comparison

 

[Teal]

Well, if we are going by the actual definition of the word "hobby"... then mine is reading. I spend 30-100$ or so a month on books, depending on how many I find at the used book store each visit (used books are 3-5$ each).

My entire life revolves around animals... competing, hunting, training, breeding, etc. Which is all vastly more expensive than the T hobby for me... my taste in Ts is pretty mild lol

 

[Zevil]

I am a casual gamer but the money that goes into the rig and accessories is so much more than what you spend in tarantula keeping. Plus, games don't come free either.

My chameleon has been siphoning my money since the day I got him, which is quite a sum too.

 

[The Grym Reaper]

Plus, games don't come free either.

Yeah, about that...

 

[nicodimus22]

Tarantulas are a drop in the bucket next to photography with good gear. That's a hobby where you drop something and it can cost thousands to repair or replace.

 

[checkmate]

I was pretty big into backpacking until my last job sucked most of my free time. And I was always into the "buy it nice or buy it twice" mentality (and still am to a certain degree) so I paid more for the good stuff.
-Packs - I have several packs of different capacities depending on how long I'd be out or what gear I had to carry
-Clothing - thermals, base layers, cold weather, waterproof, headgear
-Footwear - hiking and/or mountaineering boots, snow shoes, microspikes, crampons
-Sleeping - tents, bivy sacks, sleeping bags (bags rated for lower temps are typically heavier), sleeping pads (inflatable or foam)
-Extras - stoves, maps, toiletries, gaiters, ice axe, bear canisters, flashlight, water filtration, food, etc.

Once you're set, you pretty much just pay for gas/travel, permits, food, etc. and you can always find used gear that's in pretty good condition at REI Used Gear sales or Craigslist. I used to buy the cheap stuff until the cheap stuff failed on me mid-trip.

 

[CyclingSam]

Mine is cycling: Surprise! It is very expensive and way to easy to justify. It is an investment in health of course. Then there is the N + 1 equation where you always need N + 1 bikes. Department stores and big box stores are off limits because they only sell children’s toys, anchor weights, and death traps. A middle of the road road bike will cost anywhere from 2k to 3k. For mountain bikes, it’s anywhere from 2.5k to 4K. Then there is cyclocross, gravel, and fat biking. Gear and maintenance only makes it worse.

I’m pretty sure my bike habit keeps my wife’s attention off the Ts, which is good. Haha!

 

[MintyWood826]

I dream of buying a fountain pen with a gold nib, but I can't justify spending a couple hundred dollars on a pen. Yet, haha. Have any of you actually written with one? Are they worth it compared to pens with steel nibs?

 

[Serpyderpy]

I'm not really sure I had anything that constitutes as a hobby before I got into invert keeping, maybe horse riding but that was mostly while I was younger and it wasn't me that was paying for it. Still, £20 for an hour of horse riding every friday for eleven years tends to add up quite a bit, and if it were me that was paying it I suppose all of that accumulative would be more than what I've spent on the hobby, but yeah, it was eleven year's worth and probably isn't a fair comparison.

I think the tarantula hobby isn't too expensive, although I don't have to put up with absurd shipping fees nor do I really go after the rare ones. I think what makes people think the hobby is expensive is mostly due to how people want to own as many species as they can, so reasonable prices add up quite quickly into something much more dear.

 

[Rigor Mortis]

Is collecting vinyl a hobby? I think it is... anyway my turntable was $600, obviously you can them far cheaper than that but the cheaper ones are prone to ruining your records quicker. My speakers were a Christmas gift thank goodness but speakers can be astronomically expensive depending on how picky you are about sound. Not to mention I need to replace the stylus on my turntable every year and half or so, that's $70 every time. Then the records themselves can get insane if it's a rare pressing. The most I've spent on a record is about $180 I think, but I have several I've spent over $100 on. Typically I won't spend more than $10 on a single record if I hit up the record store but if I'm buying online I go ham and buy the expensive ones.

So yeah..way more expensive than my tarantulas.