It's been a while...

"BaconSandwich is tasty." (baconsandwich)
06/16/2020 at 22:53 • Filed to: None

I hope you are doing well. I’ve been meaning to get on here and post something sooner, but life has a habit of getting in the way. I thought it was in my own best interest to drop off Oppo for a while. In mid-March, I started working from home. I figured it’d be best to keep off Opposite Lock during work hours... and it kind of went from there. So it’s been about three months of working from home. A few things of interest:

- I’ve filled up with gas once since March 12th, I think. This is awesome. I normally fill up about every three weeks.
- My home computer is nearly 11 years old (first gen Core i7) and is probably about to bite the dust. This morning I had to roll back to a previous restore point. If I wouldn’t have had that restore point, I probably would have had to reinstall Windows 10 (again). I’ve been eyeing up a Ryzen 3600 system, but I’m really hoping the current machine holds together for a few more months until the Ryzen 4000 series come out.
- Since lock-down, Mrs. BaconSandwich and I have made something like 24 pies. We’ve given most of them away.
- The van is making some sort of clunking noise. I’m going to have to book an appointment to take it in, and I’m worried they are going to give me a hard time for not having done the brakes yet. I’ve booked off the week around Canada Day to do them.
- My parents made it back safely from Madagascar - just barely - just as the lock-down hit. I still haven’t been able to see them in person, though. They are too afraid to come down for a visit, as they are higher risk (they are older), and they don’t want to get fined. Or sick. Understandable. There’s a few active COVID-19 cases here in Lethbridge, and none in the area where they live. EDIT: You can read about their crazy journey home here:

!!! UNKNOWN CONTENT TYPE !!!

- I finished making another dining room chair (started it back in January). My middle daughter first asked for a fairy on it. I said that was too tough. Then she asked for a unicorn, but I vetoed that. Then she wanted an ice cream on it. I was down with that. Here’s the solid-maple beast:

Really, though, I hope you are doing well.

DISCUSSION (25)

shop-teacher > BaconSandwich is tasty.
06/16/2020 at 23:07

Glad to hear from you, and that your parents made it back safely. That chair is excellent!

BaconSandwich is tasty. > shop-teacher
06/16/2020 at 23:24

I tried to take photos of it along the way of it being built. It's not perfect, but like the guy from Babe says: "At'll do, pig. At'll do."

Chariotoflove > BaconSandwich is tasty.
06/16/2020 at 23:39

Good to hear from you again. That chair is awesome.

And now I want ice cream.

Goggles Pizzano > BaconSandwich is tasty.
06/17/2020 at 00:09

i7 is probably about to bite the dust.

Me: Literally . Now an open cabinet .

Nibby > BaconSandwich is tasty.
06/17/2020 at 00:40

glad to hear you and your family are well! so if you want some help or eyes on a parts list for your new PC let me know

and... i haven’t filled up since february lol

Nom De Plume > BaconSandwich is tasty.
06/17/2020 at 06:14

How was the ice cream cone formed?

Decent job on the chair.

Slant6 > BaconSandwich is tasty.
06/17/2020 at 07:47

How’d you make the ice cream cone? CNC? So me crazy router template? A Dremel and a steady hand?

OPPOsaurus WRX > BaconSandwich is tasty.
06/17/2020 at 08:18

Good work. i was using a chis el to carve out a little pocket on my fence project and was thinking it was kinda fun to use.

shop-teacher > BaconSandwich is tasty.
06/17/2020 at 08:44

Handmade things are never perfect :)

BaconSandwich is tasty. > shop-teacher
06/17/2020 at 09:12

I think that’s part of the charm. I figure we went from cottage industry, hand crafted items to “perfected” mass market, mass produced things. Now there seems to be a bit of a resurgence into the hand-crafted items, as they are more rare, and a sign that someone created some bespoke work for a client, which makes it special.

At least that’s what I tell myself.

BaconSandwich is tasty. > Nibby
06/17/2020 at 09:16

You lucky dog!

A friend of mine pointed me at pcpartpicker.com. I’m really hoping to hold out for a Ryzen 4000 series, but if that doesn’t happen, my current list is:
- Ryzen 3600
- Whatever cheapest X570 motherboard I can get
- 16 GB RAM
- 1 TB M.2 SSD
- Radeon RX 570 (whatever is cheapest)
- Fractal Design case
- Semi-modular power supply (whatever brand name is least expensive, without going too crazy)
- DVD burner
- A new copy of Windows 10

It clocks in at just over $1300 CAD. I was looking for a way to get it lower than that, and I could re-use my old video card, which would knock $180 off that, making it a slightly less bitter pill to swallow.

EDIT: Here we are: https://ca.pcpartpicker.com/list/kwZxMc

BaconSandwich is tasty. > OPPOsaurus WRX
06/17/2020 at 09:16

It can be surprisingly relaxing. Although maybe that’s just because I get out to the garage after the kids are asleep...

BaconSandwich is tasty. > Chariotoflove
06/17/2020 at 09:18

It’s hard to argue with ice cream at any time of the day (or night). Unless you are lactose intolerant. Or trying to lose weight. :(

BaconSandwich is tasty. > Goggles Pizzano
06/17/2020 at 09:19

I do periodically blow the dust out. So it’s not that bad. Although running Folding@Home for the last three months was probably a bad idea...

Nibby > BaconSandwich is tasty.
06/17/2020 at 09:22

if you wanna save money you can get used RX580 8GBs for around $110-140 USD... and get a name brand PSU like seasonic or corsair... don’t skimp on PSU. Hold off til ryzen 4000 if you can though

BaconSandwich is tasty. > Slant6
06/17/2020 at 09:36

Had carved. I’ll hopefully eventually post photos of how I did the chair.

BaconSandwich is tasty. > Nibby
06/17/2020 at 09:39

Used parts around here are probably quite scarce. Only one I see on Facebook marketplace is a pair of 7970s, and the person is asking $300.

shop-teacher > BaconSandwich is tasty.
06/17/2020 at 10:06

I think that’s true. Those who understand what a handcrafted item is and means, really appreciate it.

BaconSandwich is tasty. > Nom De Plume
06/17/2020 at 10:11

Carved it with a set of carving chisels. The back of the chair has a similar texture. My oldest daughter’s chair was similar. Her’s was solid walnut,with a rocket carved on the front. (Although I’ve learned a bit since then, so I think this one turned out better. Hopefully the next chair will be even better).

Nibby > BaconSandwich is tasty.
06/17/2020 at 10:22

lmao no

try asking reddit hardwareswap

Nom De Plume > BaconSandwich is tasty.
06/17/2020 at 13:32

The actual ice cream cone carving looks incredible. You should consider doing more furniture designs and learning new techniques.

BaconSandwich is tasty. > Nibby
06/17/2020 at 14:57

I’ll do some digging around to see what I can find. Worst case, I throw my old video card (Radeon 5770) back into my current machine, and move the 6950 into the new machine.

BaconSandwich is tasty. > Nom De Plume
06/17/2020 at 15:04

Thanks. I’ve done a few other carved items:

Kinja'd!!!

(A set of curtain hold backs I made Mrs. BaconSandwich for Christmas)

Kinja'd!!!

(Rocket chair for my oldest daughter)

Nibby > BaconSandwich is tasty.
06/17/2020 at 15:17

nah, you gotta use an ATI mach64

BaconSandwich is tasty. > Nibby
06/17/2020 at 23:05

I was thinking more an old ATi Rage Fury Pro. They still make motherboards with AGP slots, right?

On a more serious note, I have a coworker who will potentially sell me his R9 290 for $40. That seems like a steal of a bargain, but it also seems like a pretty power-hungry beast.