Tank birthday, 47+ years

[Paul B]

I may have to make my beret mechanical.

In a couple of weeks the gallery is having a "Meet the Artist" event. They call me an artist so I am supposed to go and get met.

I never considered myself an artist, More of a tinkerer. I feel an artist makes beauty or at least duplicates it. My creations are not beautiful. They are more of a conversation piece so you look at them, have a conversation, then head over to the wine and cheese. :cool:

 

[Rybren]

I may have to make my beret mechanical.

In a couple of weeks the gallery is having a "Meet the Artist" event. They call me an artist so I am supposed to go and get met.

I never considered myself an artist, More of a tinkerer. I feel an artist makes beauty or at least duplicates it. My creations are not beautiful. They are more of a conversation piece so you look at them, have a conversation, then head over to the wine and cheese. :cool:

Paul, you are, indeed, an artist. A steampunk beret would be great.

 

[dbraun15]

Nice...you don’t give yourself enough credit! How much do these sell for at the gallery?

 

[Paleozoic_reefer]

@Paul B love your steam punk projects!! Out of curiosity; how did you get into steampunk?? We go every year to Comic-Con San Diego and every year we see more and more steam punk cosplay (that gets better and better) thanks to 3D printing!

 

[Paul B]

Nice...you don’t give yourself enough credit! How much do these sell for at the gallery?

These elaborate ones sell for about $3,000.00 or just a bit over.









This one I think is $2,500.00


But there is really no money to be made on them. I do it as a hobby.
That first glass one cost me about $300.00 in parts. The "heart" of the thing is a Model A Ford carburetor. Not an off the shelf item. The glass dome was about $100.00 and the plumbing parts I had to solder into those shapes. There is also a lot of electronics not seen in all of these.

The gallery gets exactly half of the entire price so if it sells for $3,000.00, I get $1,500.00 and if it cost me $300.00 in parts and 30 hours labor, figure it out.

I think this sold for $700.00 But it was strictly a sculpture, no electronics.





These sold for $900.00 but I kept this one as my favorite.



These maybe went for $800.00 or so.



They cost a lot to build.

 

[Mortie31]

These elaborate ones sell for about $3,000.00 or just a bit over.









This one I think is $2,500.00


But there is really no money to be made on them. I do it as a hobby.
That first glass one cost me about $300.00 in parts. The "heart" of the thing is a Model A Ford carburetor. Not an off the shelf item. The glass dome was about $100.00 and the plumbing parts I had to solder into those shapes. There is also a lot of electronics not seen in all of these.

The gallery gets exactly half of the entire price so if it sells for $3,000.00, I get $1,500.00 and if it cost me $300.00 in parts and 30 hours labor, figure it out.

I think this sold for $700.00 But it was strictly a sculpture, no electronics.





These sold for $900.00 but I kept this one as my favorite.



These maybe went for $800.00 or so.



They cost a lot to build.

Those angler fish are outstanding Paul

 

[reefin_with_the_fam]

This thread has gotten me all conflicted now and much to chew on especially on the no QT aspect. Obviously you are doing something right, and it appears to just be letting nature be, imagine that lol. I started QTing my fish after a few losses, however I am not 100% sold that it wasn’t just because of this LFS that I no longer go to and the fact that most of their fish they were selling appeared to be in poor health to begin with.
I’m wondering, is all you look for is a healthy fish at the store and just allow nature to take over?

what about fish losses with velvet and brook? How have you gotten through those? I haven’t read all 264+ pages so please forgive me if it was buried somewhere in there lol

amazing to hear of a reef going for so long!

 

[dbraun15]

You do incredible work. I do a lot of woodwork on the side and understand the “no money to be made” aspect. I sell my pieces for a few hundred dollars, but have a lot of time invested. It’s stress relief and I enjoy doing it. Really like your creativity.

 

[Paul B]

Out of curiosity; how did you get into steampunk??

I don't remember. I always liked mechanical things, gears, springs, levers etc.

Those angler fish are outstanding Paul

Thanks, I get a lot of offers for them and they sold right away in a gallery in upper Manhattan. They take to long to build and it is delicate work especially the ones with the Plasma globe inside. Fitting in all the electronics along with a dozen LEDs, transformers and other stuff is time consuming. Each tooth I had to cut out of brass individually.

what about fish losses with velvet and brook? How have you gotten through those? I haven’t read all 264+ pages so please forgive me if it was buried somewhere in there lol

I don't have any fish loses from velvet, ich, brook or anything else. Those things are "caused" by quarantine.
Fish from the sea are immune and it is our job to keep that immunity so that the fish can take care of itself.

I have not lost a fish to any disease in probably over 30 years as I can't remember.
I feel quarantining is the stupidest thing us Geezers invented when we didn't know any better.
Yes, I used to quarantine and medicate using copper. I still have my Log book from the 70s. I killed more fish than StarKist Tuna. ;Wideyed

I mean if my fish don't die, Like Duh, I must have found the big secret but most people don't believe it and figure I am living in fantasy land on another planet. Those are the people who start the threads that start out with a title:

"Getting out, everything for sale"

Of course I like to look for a healthy looking fish but it doesn't matter if it has a few spots, as long as it doesn't look like it will croak on my way home.

This hobby is very easy, we make it hard by trying to fix every little thing by adding a chemical.
Medications destroy the gut bacteria which gives the fish it's immunity.
But I am old and tired of preaching which is why I wrote a book. It's here Below this post. 100% of the profits go to MS research in my wife's name.

 

[Jeeperz]

Those fish are awesome, wish I could afford to buy one, especially one that lights up. I am a welder/fabricator but I don't have an original creative bone in my body. I used to draw by looking at a picture or outdoors and basically copying it, was pretty good at it but couldn't come up with anything to draw from my own mind.

 

[Paul B]

I am a pretty lousy painter myself. I do try to draw Supermodels but I wouldn't call myself an artist on this planet. ;Wideyed

I can do some Sesame Street.












But that is a cartoon and kind of easy. I did air brush my wife in the Vargas style when she was 18. But I am not that good and wish I could really "paint". But I wouldn't put my attempts on here .



I did that from this picture that I took in a mirror.

 

[RayDRoot]

47yrs, that's amazing. Congratulations

 

[Paul B]

I just trimmed a bunch of sponge again. It slowly creeps up around the corals and I don't notice it as it is very sneaky.
It is also not that easy to trim as the fireclown keeps biting me and to cut the stuff where it is on rough rock is not simple. Then I reach in to tear it off but like corals, it is slippery.

I probably threw ouit a pound of the stuff.

I like it and it is probably a fantastic filter just a little agressive like I wish Christie Brinkley would be with me. :rolleyes:

And when I tear it off the rocks, there are dozens of bristle worms under it. So many I can hardly see the rocks. I must be really overfeeding.

 

[beaslbob]

Paul

you're and artist.

That way any screwup is just artistic license.

 

[atoll]

Strange isn't it Paul, some guy will do a post about disease, QT and the like, or ask about QT. He will get loads of "helpful" answers with a list of meds and stuff to try etc. Then it often goes like this. A couple of days later. "My fish died, I did all I could to save it but in the end the disease was just too much for it I am gutted, blah blah blah"
If you mention your methods to keeping healthy fish that spawn and live long lives then I mostly get ignored. I don't even get abuse etc anymore. I am the mad scientist who is either a lair, lucky or an idiot.
They probably think all 3 of me. I mention your thread on here and tell them am far from the only one who does similar things to keep healthy in QTd fish but still no response.
I might get a PM on Ultimatereef the largest UK reefkeeping forum asking for more info. They don't post about it on a thread for fear of being classed another nutcase to be even considering not QTing.
Now and again somebody will PM me on there asking are you atoll on R2R.
People just can't get their head around the concept of not QTing and why my fish live as they do.
Mind you some people can't think outside the box you can that is why you can make those amazing steam punk sculptures.
I am sure some people seem to think our methods are way to simple and that if you are not spending lots if $ on keeping fish or on medications etc then it can't be right. Our methods are quite simple and that causes confusion me thinks.
People ask to see pic's of my tank I am sure so they can often ridicule it but when I post them often there is no comeback. Maybe that's a case of tails between the legs, I don't know. Still, we will carry on doing what we have been doing for years with the same old boring results hey lol.

 

[atoll]

Did it jump or was it pushed.
My wife found one of my yellow wrasse had carpet surfed this morning. I have a D-D jump guard fitted but the are 20mm gaps where it goes round my Radion rail arms.
This is about the only way I loose fish. Me thinks a little DiY to close them up is required.

 

[Paul B]

I am the mad scientist who is either a lair, lucky or an idiot.

I am sure many people think of me the same way. I am not sure why the majority of hobbiests try so hard to make this difficult. I don't get it. Well, I do and I think it has something to do with taking the easy, safe way out.

Quarantining is by far not easy but I feel they think that is a safe way to go and it makes sense. After all if you eliminate all the disease causing organisms, your fish should be safe, right?

That is probably right in the short sense. But I have been asking for probably 15 years to see any old quarantined tank where the fish are spawning and only dying of old age. So far I have not been able to find one. I wonder why as this hobby has been around almost fifty years.

A friend of mine is a manager of a LFS and he tells me that most people are thrilled if they can keep a fish a few months.
Thats aweful.
I truely believe a quarantined fish is only half a fish with no immunity and can't live a normal life. It seems so simple to me.

Every one of my fish look exactly like a fish in the sea looks. You know what I mean, with that "sheen" on their scales and colors that you normally don't see on captive fish. Only older people in the hobby will be able to see that.

My Ich magnet Hippo tang looks like velvet. The material, not the disease. :cool:

It is a vibrant Royal blue and you very rarely see them look like that in captivity. I see it because I have kept many of them and almost all the fish I have ever kept I swam with in the sea.

Most fish I see in tanks look horrible and the owner doesn't even realize it because they just don't now better and think that is the way a fish is supposed to look. In most cases, it is not.

I am sure I can spawn any fish if my tank was big enough. Hippo tangs, manta rays. Ray Charles, Martha Ray etc.

I am almost giving up trying to explain it because I am playing Russian Roulette. It's a long game :rolleyes:

 

[Paul B]

My yellow wrasse did that last week. ;Wideyed

 

[Paul B]

Yesterday on the way home from taking my wife to a Dr. on the side of the road I see this huge sign
"Aquarium". So of course I swerved, almost killing us by turning over my Jeep to get to this store which I didn't know existed.

It is 50 minutes from my house and not hard to get to. I can't believe that I never knew it was there.

I went in and there was this very nice Asian Girl there starring at a couple of yellow tortoises .
I love turtles and used to keep them even before I kept fish when Eisenhower was President.

He was the Commanding General for the US during World War Two, which for you kids was a big disagreement between this German guy with a silly mustache and the rest of the world. They were so mad at each other that they kept sending Mean Emoji's at each other, but those Emoji's tended to blow up.

Japan, where Sushi comes from also didn't like us much.

Anyway, The girl was very nice and we discussed tortoises. (I will make any excuse to talk to females anyway)

I told her on an Island we went to last year "Mustique" they are allover the place. Here is one of them.



Of course here in New York we have these Eastern Box Turtles.

I saved this guy by helping him across the street here.



I know there was a point to this story.

Oh yeah. This store, which I forgot the name, was pretty good. Nothing looked sick, tanks were clean, no dead fish, nice variety, decent prices, it has it all and I can't wait for my wife to go back to that Dr. so I can go back.
I almost bought a small tassled filefish, but they grow a little bigger than I want.

I bought a Rainsford gobi to try to pair it with my old one,but they seem to be ignoring each other.

I can't get a picture of either one of those because they live on the side of the tank picking stuff out of the algae on the glass and I can't get there with a camera.

 

[Paul B]

OOOOOHhhhhhhhhNNNNOOooooooo. I was sneaking around my tank, looking for something to clean, re-build, re-design or just hide from my wife and my biggest fear materialized. :oops:

Well, not my biggest fear as that would be if Christie Brinkley, Angelina Jolie and one of the Victoria Secret Supermodels all came to my house to help me clean my tank and I was at the foot doctor getting a toe check up.

But my other biggest fear would be losing my Female Blue stripe pipefish, Patti.

I looked on the floor, and OMG, there she was, all dry, dusty and stiff. NNNNOooooo, not Patti. I raised her from a tiny little pipe and she was almost at the end of her normal lifespan anyway. Oh Why did little Patti jump out

I didn't want to flush her, I figured I would give her a proper burial so I found a little box and went to pick up her stiff body. ;Bored

I bent down and she looked like a crooked piece of wire as I gently picked her up.

I looked at her little pointy face into her beady little eyes and noticed.....

Those aren't eyes and that isn't a face. As a matter of face, that isn't even a fish. It's a blue piece of crooked electrical wire left over from wiring the tank.

I turned around to look at the tank, and there was Patti, smiling as usual. If she had eyelids she would be batting her eyelashes at me.

I really need to wear my reading glasses when I work around the tank. :D

Here she is pregnant, cute little Mother, isn't she. :p

(Yes, did post this before, I think, but it is a true story.)