You've hit a nerve here Henry, judging by the length of the answers!
Don't think its strictly an American thing.? All the reasons people have given so far apply in NZ as well and by extension Canada and Australia.?
a) Geographic isolation breeds self reliance and a higher proportion of the people have to be self reliant. (If its going to get fixed, there is only me). This probably applies to Indonesia, India and most places in Africa and South America too!
b) Reasonably prosperous so have some disposable income to spend on things they want rather than things they need. (this opens up European countries).? Only Jerry has answered that he needed a 4x6, all the rest of us just wanted one.
c) Finding meaning in your life when jobs have less meaning than they used to, or are so stressful you have to relax some way. Mathew Crawford's book 'Shop class as Soul-craft' says it pretty well.? Harmony, Inner peace. This applies in most Westernised economies, probably less so where people live closer to the edge of real needs like food shelter safety etc
d) Engineering attracts 'Can do' people. Its either inherent, or (like me) someone (my dad) shows them early in life that they can make stuff they want (why I started doing it), or make stuff no-one else makes (why my son does it).?
Why a do people buy a 4x6 is slightly different topic.
If you fall into one of the above categories, then I think people specifically buy a 4x6?because
1) If you make things out of metal you have to cut it, all machines are at heart labour saving devices.? 4x6 is one of the best.? Next to the lathe and mill, it's the 3rd most used power tool in my workshop.
2) Its so versatile - horizontal and vertical bandsaw in one tool.? Cut straight, cut curves, angle cutting and able to customise the workholding for variety of jobs that need to be done in DIY shop, that production shops just don't do.?
3) 1/2"? blade 4x6 is the best metal-cutting saw for DIY/homeshop, with the best range of blades for whatever cutting you want to do.? Better than chop saws (too noisy & dirty).? Better than 7x12 or 9x12 (cant get fine tooth blades (high TPI)?to cut thin/small stuff most DIY shops do & blades too wide to cut curves).? Better than a cold-saw or reciprocating hacksaw (not versatile enough + too big footprint and/or space requirement)
4) Its one of the cheaper alternatives for doing the sort of cutting we do.
Its biggest drawback in my opinion is that its a pain-in-the-ass to setup and keep cutting? properly - in big part, that's why the 4x6 group exists! - jv
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