Christmas time coming up. Gift discussion thread

[nicer20]

Picked up an air fryer/oven combo for wife. She wanted one - I am still awaiting any "air fried" recipes. Being vegetarian she hasn't figured out anything yet.

[nicer20]

Hopefully it is not too late to respond to this thread

As Loring said in the opening post I am married, old and "particular" (aka nerd). So I gave myself a gift of a 3D printer !! Just finished assembling it - now various adventures await !!

[capncarl]

Toaster style air fryer is great for left over pizza. Toasts salted pecans great in 8 minutes.

[dbhost]

I have a combination unit air fryer / toaster oven. I cook 90% of my at home meals in / on it. I cook / crisp up chicken tenders to stir with General Tso's sauce for cheap at home General Tso's chicken. Beats takeout... Pretty much anything that can be fried in a deep fat fryer can be air fried...

[LCHIEN]

My wife got an 8 qt air fryer.
Anyone uses an air fryer and can comment on what its best for? Someone said its better than a microwave for reheating food.

[dbhost]

So I finally got around to installing the type V coupler's employees on my hozeus and at least my automotive tools. I still need to swap out on my nailers and spray guns but I have enough plugs for that.

I ran into an issue. My synthetic hoses more or less died. Need new ones. I got a new 3/8 nylon hose from Amazon that is so far so good...

[capncarl]

That don’t make no sense. If you give somebody something then they git something! It’s two sided and there should be no more shame talking about what someone gave you as what you gave gave someone

[tfischer]

Heh I started a gift thread 6 or 8 years ago here and was pretty much publicly shamed because everyone who replied "reminded" me that Christmas was about giving, not getting lol. Problem was, my family was asking for ideas so they could participated in the "giving" part so I came here to ask what some low-cost things might be I could share with them.

In any case, I got a nice set of Grizzly carbide-tipped forstner bits that I picked out for myself when I was down in Springfield visiting my sister in the hospital. My wife wrapped it and called it my gift lol. That was my one woodworking-related gift this year.

[Jim Frye]

Five years ago, I got an electric riding mower and since it was pretty expensive, it was meant to suffice for several years of presents. It turned into another hobby for me, so it rewards me on almost a daily basis. At 75, I have everything I need and nothing I don't (apologies to Zac Brown). Our children still come up with thoughtful and creative gifts that I am grateful for. This year SWMBO & I updated the kitchen with new countertops, a tile backsplash, and a butcher block island top and this spring we'll paint the island. That's our Christmas present to each other.

[Dedpedal]

I got 29 different beers and a metal detector wand that I bought myself on Amazon. I’m pretty solid on tools. About the only things that would really twist my nipples would be more space.

[dbhost]

Depends on where in AR, but Ar to Dallas with the way the weather has been is a long and potentially slippery trip. Be very careful!

[dbhost]

Debi after last year getting me the compressed air piping system, made me promise not to get the high flow type V stuff I wanted until she could get them for me as a gift.... Well, things changed, so in a manner of speaking, she did gift me the Type V high flow sets. Enough to swap over everything. Anyone need an obnoxious amount of Central Pnuematic type M I believe they are couplers and plugs?

I am still working on the truck camper build, and one item I needed was a furnace / heater that had an actualy thermostat. I got a gift card from friends and got myself a 5KW Vevor Diesel parking heater. Basically a cheap Chinese copy of the Webasto heaters from Germany at something like 1/12 the price...

And probably the best present so far came from her brother. And that is that losing my wife didn't mean losing my in laws too... We talk on the phone, and do some online gaming at least once a week.

Loring did have a point, and I have been doing upgrades. But generally speaking I have more tools than I have time, energy, or inclination to use. I will be building the drill press stand and lathe bench soon (2 different items). I have checked, and double checked the heights and I think a flipper for the bench top drill press would put the working height a touch high, but not annoyingly so.

My old drill press is being donated to a friend that had a large number of mechanics tools, including his floor model drill press stolen when he moved out of his old shop building.

My new Metabo 12" slider is working out great. I need some final touches on the extended support tables as only the front sides are anchored down. And I need to redo the dust hood and ducting for the dust collection but I have a very good idea of what I am doing now. My old Chicago Electric 12" slider along with my non folding support roller stands are going to a friend of mine and his just getting started up shop build. So I am regifting my surplusses.

[capncarl]

Sounds like with all of your driving, hope you have time to visit.

[leehljp]

Wife and I have no need for anything in particular. I have all the 18V tools I can use. The mid-teens weather at mid-day in N. MS have us sitting at home just enjoying the moment. WARM inside. Drinking a cup of coffee. Looking at the sparse snow that came last night. Going to visit one daughter with another daughter there in AR on Sunday and cooking 20lbs shrimp with potatoes, corn on the cob and cajun link sausage for 12 people (and 3 don't like shrimp. To N. Dallas on Monday to visit our youngest daughter and 5 grandkids for the week. Back home Friday.

Enjoying everything!

[capncarl]

My wife and I, both 70 11/12ths, both know it is useless to try to buy each other Christmas and birthday presents. That’s a whole chapter of what not to buy. We agreed a long time ago to share something we both agree on to improve the house or something we both like. This year we had our garage and patio room floor epoxy coated. It’s some We had both wanted for years. Whenever either of us wants or needs something it’s usually purchased then, when it’s needed, not wrapped up under the tree.

Yesterday I spent about 1 hour wandering around every isle of Rockler, (it’s about 250 miles of of I75 & I85 maniac crazy traffic to visit our oldest for Christmas) I conveniently route us to go right by a Rockler store or Highland Hardware. Funny how that works. After wandering back to the Festool Kapex several times a clerk said, you are going to buy that saws aren’t you? My reply was not today that he car is packed full of luggage and Christmas stuff and there is no way I’m going to unpack everything it in the store parking lot to wrestle a washing machine size box in the car and repack it again!

We always ask if there is anything special the grandkids want, and usually don’t get an answer so they get their choice of me picking them out a sweater and gloves or a gift card. Wonder why they always seem to want a gift card?

A noteworthy gift is the Bird Shelix planer head for my woodworker sons Dewalt 735. It’s out of a yard sale find 735 where the owner installed it and couldn’t get the planer to run. Another story for a different thread.

Merry Christmas