u/otchris

Back in 2022, I bought an Apex Pro with the idea of adding my own butcher block island top to use as my desk. Here are a few thoughts/experiences of using this as my desk over the last 4 years.

I bought the Apex Pro with Smart Paddle and I got the extended foot size to accommodate the 72"x39" top. I also bought the 3inone power unit.

Assembly of the frame was fairly straight forward, though everything is HEAVY. I was able to do a lot of stuff on my own, but I think it would have been safer to have help. (Any 2 people should be able to handle this larger/heavier desk.)

With the kitchen island top installed, this desk is incredibly stable, even at full height. I'm only 6', so even standing, I'm nowhere near maxing out this desk. If I really try I can rock the desk a little, but during normal use it never moves. Even when I lean on the desk or bump into it.

The desk moves pretty silently and quickly. FWIW, between the butcher block top, my computers, monitors, and accessories, I must have 120+ pounds (~54kg) that these motors seem to lift with ease. It also is pretty smart about detecting obstacles. I have a rigid desk skirt installed and if that gets caught on the trash can as I lower the desk, the desk stops before anything gets crushed.

The Smart paddle in normal use is super easy to use. However, I needed to refer back to the documentation to either set or reset the memory on heights. The paddle is shockingly durable! I've smashed into it many times with my chair and it's still working just fine.

So far, I'd say 10/10 for the Apex Pro frame with the smart paddle. This is a well built product and it's an excellent value!

As I mentioned, I also got the 3inone power unit. While it works as advertised, I found it just doesn't really fit with how I setup my desk. I ended up switching to a single wide spaced power strip screwed to the bottom of the desk. I think it's a cool idea, but it just didn't quite fit my needs. For $250, it's hard to recommend just as a "see if it works for you", but if you think it sounds good it probably is worth at least trying it.

I was at the gym today and found out that I can add music to the queue via the RockBot app. They don’t have the entire catalog, but they had a few songs.

If you were at my local Planet Fitness and you heard Wolf Totem, you’re welcome!

UPDATE: I got 6 addresses so everything is spoken for.

My 2 previous giveaways went very well and I got rid of a ton of filament. However, as I was cleaning my office I found a bunch of filament samples. I don't want to throw them away so I boxed them up and will mail them to the first 6 people that DM me their US addresses and include the title: Gimme them samples!

• Box contents are a random assortment of samples. I think all are PLA, but there may be some PETG as well. Honestly, I didn't look too closely.
• I'm handling shipping so all I need is your address. US only.

Thanks all!

Note: I used the free model flair since I'm giving this stuff away. A coil is a model, right?

We had wine with steak tonight and something I’ve noticed is that 4-5 ounces of wine seems to impact me FAR more than a 2 ounce pour of whiskey. Anyone else red experience this kind of thing?

With whiskey, I at most get a little tired. But with wine I get tired AND weepy. Plus it seems to happen with far less wine than alcohol can really account for.

It’s not a problem or something I need to change. It’s just a funny little observation and I’m curious if anyone else experiences the same.