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6 hours ago, GoatmasterGeneral said:

Yes exactly. This happens several times a week and it drives me out of my fucking mind. Except I'm usually staring at the insides of my eyelids for a good while and then after 60 or 90 minutes I'll probably pick up my phone and look at it for a bit, check my texts or check the weather or check here on the forum to see if anyone's posted anything interesting.

Have you ruled out sleep apnea? I've had a lot of sleep issues and have had pretty bad insomnia at times. I've seen a sleep specialist that helped with "sleep hygiene".

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5 hours ago, KillaKukumba said:

I'm going to start figuring out bike mechanics for myself. I have the time, providing I don't totally thrash the bike, and I have the tools. I might not get into wheel building but the basic repair and service I'll attempt until I prove to myself that I am wrecking more than I fix.

 

It's not so hard with a few basic tools. Lots of resources on Youtube. I used to race as a poor college student and maintained my own bikes (never built wheels though as that requires a bit more and special archaic magic that always eluded me). If you're somewhat mechanically inclined and have the patience, very doable.

1 hour ago, markm said:

"sleep hygiene"

This. Works wonders but takes a lot of discipline.

CDC - Sleep Hygiene Tips - Sleep and Sleep Disorders

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7 minutes ago, navybsn said:

It's not so hard with a few basic tools. Lots of resources on Youtube. I used to race as a poor college student and maintained my own bikes (never built wheels though as that requires a bit more and special archaic magic that always eluded me). If you're somewhat mechanically inclined and have the patience, very doable.

This. Works wonders but takes a lot of discipline.

CDC - Sleep Hygiene Tips - Sleep and Sleep Disorders

Yeah, I've used a bunch of book resources. It does take discipline.

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5 hours ago, navybsn said:

It's not so hard with a few basic tools. Lots of resources on Youtube. I used to race as a poor college student and maintained my own bikes (never built wheels though as that requires a bit more and special archaic magic that always eluded me). If you're somewhat mechanically inclined and have the patience, very doable.

 

The main thing these days is getting the right tools for the job. Most workshops, tool shed etc have things like allen keys and screw drivers, maybe even torx drivers, but cassette and BB tools do need to be specific to the bike. Most brands seem to stick with one of about three designs but you need to know which design that is. I remember about 30 years ago making a cassette tool by welding together a cross that fitted into the grooves, not really the best option these days.

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On 4/12/2022 at 7:49 AM, Dead1 said:

As long as those Senators are sabotaging and delaying government legislation I am ok with them doing it.  

And I don't care that LNP didn't break a promise.  They were promoting a violation of basic human rights. 

 

IMO Australian politics is beyond broken and Australia as a country is edging to beyond fucked with none of the rich elites wanting to fix anything and instead just looking at more ways to get rich off the poor.

 

I wouldn't care if I didn't have a kid...

 

 

At least you have two parties. In the UK we only have 1 who wins most of the time(conservatives) No matter what they do they get voted in because the opposition parties(labour and lib dem) are so weak.  With the cost of living crisis I forsee two possibilities for us. 1 the government gets voted out which would be great☺️ 2 the same political party stays in power with the population turning against themselves as result of all the cuts to services the government makes and price rises 😞 maybe I'm just too pessimistic 

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If I could get one thing that I don't have the room or money for, it would be a full size table saw. I'd also love a good drill press and a table-mounted router... could also use an electric brad nailer. And a bunch of C clamps, too, please. I did shop work for years and I miss it. I've got some DeWalt and Porter Cable hand tools that do fine, but if I had to buy my cordless stuff over again I would buy Milwaukee.

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51 minutes ago, blaaacdoommmmfan said:

Been using the SDS plus drill at work again. I used the chuck converter so I could use it as a standard drill. I find having the extra weight is handy for drilling through metal compared to the standard combi drill. 

What are other peoples favourite power tools. 

Also what brands do people go for. 

We've used Makita tools almost exclusively on the farms for years. In power tools the drop saw is relatively new because the old one threw a blade not long back and twisted the shaft and screwed the motor beyond viable repair. The circular saw is a 9 1/4 inch that's been around for about 10 years, the planer and thickness would be a similar age. In the battery range the drill drivers range from 2005 models to 2017, there is blowers, a grinder,an impact driver, a chainsaw,a hedge trimmer and a rivet gun.

When it comes to welding I'm old school I still have a Black and Decker arc welder which my father bought in about 1985. My brother has both TIG and MIG welders so I can afford to be old school. There is also a 200mm bench grinder that's so old the name wore off it. There's a Black and Decker Drill press, a Honda air compressor, a cheap GMC (I think) bandsaw and a wood lathe that's been in my family for 3 generations.

However if I had to pick a favourite it would be the Triton work table and it's accessories. They aren't the same these days because the Triton company went bust and was taken over, but their original work tables are brilliant. for woodorking large and small. I think the original table and accessories cost us about $3500 in the 80's but it was well worth it for all the jobs it does and all the tools it fits. I actually burnt the motor of the original Triton saw out about 3 years ago, but because they were made right any saw straight off the shelf locks straight in.

Actually I take that back, the most important tool in the shed is the potbelly stove in case it gets too cold in the winter :)

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Milwaukee make the best power tools, bar none. Their cordless nailers are a godsend (this coming from a carpenter who uses these things everyday). Makita make some pretty good stuff, my reciprocator saw is a Makita and it's badass. DeWalt are a step down but serviceable, I like their mitre saws. Black and Decker are hot garbage.

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There is only about five factories in the world that make all the leading brands of power tools these days anyway.

AEG, Ryobi and Milwaukee all come out of the same factories, sharing all sorts of things from parts to R&D and they are owned by TTI in Hong Kong

Stanley/Black And Decker own and make brands like Stanley, B&D, Sidchrome, Dewalt and Irwin

Makita is one of the few companies that makes a wide range of tools that is not made by a subsidiary company. Not that that makes them better.

Not every brand uses the same parts as it's sister company just because they are made, assembled, or even designed in the same place, but they do share many similarities. They are all made to a price point but that price point doesn't mean expensive is always better, it means one name is more expensive than the other.

There is an Aussie bloke (and I'm sure he's not the only one), who does pull down videos on YT. He pulls down all the leading, and not so leading brands to compare what's in the case. He started doing it because people kept asking if Aldi Supermarket tools could be trusted, but he moved on to all brands and some of the results he found were quite interesting.

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Bought a DeWalt compact sawzall last summer and then their compact table saw earlier this year and I love both of them. Milwaukee vs DeWalt seems to be an ongoing debate here that will probably never end and it can transcend generations even, like Ford vs Chevy. Both have their advocates and detractors.

Problem is all the batteries suck. Made the mistake of buying two 5 amp DeWalt batteries off Amazon last year for $159 and they both crapped out within about 6 weeks. Put one on the tool and all the lights start blinking like Christmas lights. Left me wondeing if maybe they were Chinese knock-offs even though they do have what looks to be the legit DeWalt logo on them. Or maybe some unscrupulous cocksucker bought all the rejects from the manufacturing plant that failed quality control and is selling them on Amazon for cheap.

I will say that Milwaukee cordless nail gun is pretty cool once you get used to the weird sound it makes. Main advantage seems to be it's just nice not to have to listen to the compressor growling all day. I don't own one myself but this guy Vince I had working for me last year had one. All his tools and packouts were Milwaukee, everything of his was red from top to bottom including the bluetooth speaker, he was like a walking Milwaukee ad.

I have a Hitachi framing gun, saw it on an end cap display at HD for $99 two years ago and at that price I couldn't resist. It's still going strong. Mitre saw is a Rigid which I probably wouldn't have bought for myself but it was a gift 2 years ago and it's been pretty good actually, no complaints yet.

Hitachi NR90AES1 Framing Nailer, 2-Inch to 3-1/2-Inch Plastic Collated Full  Head Nails, 21 Degree Pneumatic, Selective Actuation Switch, 5-Year  Warranty (Discontinued by the Manufacturer) - - Amazon.com

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You're dead right, batteries are very hit and miss and it doesn't matter what brand you have. I've got Makita's that have lasted more than 10 years, but I've also had one last less that a year. While pretty much all the 18V batteries are simply 18550 cells not all over them are easy to rebuild. Makita and Ryobi are easy and just require replacement cells from Ebay. A little bit of research will yield good and bad cells and which ones are worth buying and with the good, reliable and tested cells costing little more than $20-30 for a set it's well worth doing.

Chinese rip offs, where you can get them are, also very hit and miss. One of the biggest problems is that even when a seller names the cells there is no real guarantee that their batteries have those cells in them. But at well under half the cost of genuine batteries sometimes the risk is worth it.

I've got nothing other than my own experience to back it up but I regularly charge every battery in the house whether it's in use or not. From the TV remote to the car, to the tractor battery. AA's AAA's etc only get charge when flat or every three months. The tool batteries get cycled for about 20 minutes once a week, unless they've been used, and all the AGM's, lead acid, gel batteries for things like the house, cars, camp fridge, tractor etc are all plugged into a solar panel 24/7 when they are not in use. In the last decade I've had one Makita battery die and a few AA's but I haven't had a car or tractor battery go flat, or need replacing in more than 20 years.

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When I worked with my hands for a living as a mechanic, it was all S-K. Quality shit at a reasonable price that lasts. Still have the majority of them. One off or limited use items are harbor freight (Chinese) stuff which is actually good most of the time. Power tools, I have an assortment. Hitachi table saw which I would upgrade if I had a legitimate need. Rigid circular saw. Bosch drill & impact driver. Yard tools are EGO. I mainly look for what do I have and what batteries do they take. For instance, I need a sawzall. It will be a rigid most likely because I have multiple batteries already. My routers are all corded, but if I were to go cordless it would be rigid or Bosch. You get the idea. I've had gems and lemons from every brand over the years. So these days I stay within certain brands for the reasons mentioned. If it were a radical departure or a corded tool, everything is fair game. I have a good assortment of pneumatic tools as well like brad nailers, cutoff wheels, grinders... Paired with a giant compressor which is major overkill for my needs.

Currently I need a biscuit joiner, a track saw, and a sawzall. Not sure need is the correct term, but definitely what I've been researching to purchase of late.

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On 4/14/2022 at 12:14 AM, zackflag said:

Milwaukee make the best power tools, bar none. Their cordless nailers are a godsend (this coming from a carpenter who uses these things everyday). Makita make some pretty good stuff, my reciprocator saw is a Makita and it's badass. DeWalt are a step down but serviceable, I like their mitre saws. Black and Decker are hot garbage.

The plumber at work uses alot of Milwaukee stuff. He loves the brand as much as you do. That's fantastic you rate them so highly and from a tradesman I respect what your saying. I bought DeWalt as always a brand my dad rated plus it's not so expensive. And bought other tools by DeWalt as they can all use the same batteries.

I work for a water company doing maintenance checks and I occasionally drill concrete and fibre glass and metal to secure doors and bolt plates/cones etc to make areas safe but I'm impressed how good they are these days. Plus if needed I can always get more power but the 18volt have been fine for what I need so far. I know some plumbers who have 54volt gear as 18volt stuff was not powerful enough. 

 

 

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I hate Florida. Too damn hot and muggy for me outside, too cold for me inside in the A/C which my son-in-law keeps set as low as it can possibly go. Wish I would have packed some long pants. At least I remembered to bring a blanket to put over myself in the evenings. It's not too bad at night, their dogs (an all-white German Sheppard and a ginger Pitt Bull) join me on the couch and keep me warm.

Still better than being in Australia I suppose, it's only 83° (28°C) here at 6:30 pm, if I was in Australia it would probably be 38°C. I see back home right now it's 45° (7°C) that's much more to my liking. I also see it will be a bit hotter here next week, glad I'll be home before then. Planning to stop at Casa de Navy in Pensacola on the way home (if I can confirm with him before Thurs) they're expecting mid 70's there Thurs evening and that's not bad at all really. 

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It's not always 38 degrees here. We are just really good at working out what bugs people enough to keep them away. For some all we needed to do was keep telling them that every animal here will kill them. Others needed to hear that it was the cute and cuddly ones that would rip out your eyes, or a spider would crawl in their ear, or a snake would come out of the toilet bowl. For others it was enough to know that we made Fosters beer here. But for you it was the temperatures. The weather wasn't really that bad, we just have a remote control hole in the ozone layer that followed you around making you think everywhere you went was too hot to bear.

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Well I did make the mistake of coming to Sydney on Boxing Day and staying til Jan 30th. At least a third of that time was 40° or higher. The other 2/3 of that time it was only 35° to 39°. Next time I will be sure to come during Rugby season when it's not so hot. It'll probably have to be July/August when our kids get their summer vacation from school.

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Last time we did a 5 week round trip to Sydney with a 9 day side trip to NZ and back in the middle. Next time we'll probably do more like 3 weeks in NZ (Auckland & Tauranga) with a little 5 or 6 day side trip to OZ and back. Just don't think I could stand to be around my mother-in-law any longer than that without my late wife there as a buffer tbh.

Would be fun to meet up with Doc though if I thought he could be bothered to get off his arse and make an effort. Canberra is not all that far from Sydney but it's far enough that it'd be a hardship for me to tey and get out there without a car. We know how diffident the ole Doc can be so I won't hold my breath that he would even care to come out and slum it with the loudmouthed Yank in Sydney. He did say he'd take me to a rugby match though so who knows.

But with any luck I could find a way to get together with Carlos again, maybe we could meet up and see another Aussie band play at one of his local Marrickville Inner West pubs like we did last time or have some hipster lefty lattes together or something. He's quit forumming with us several years ago now but I still run into him on FB every once in a blue moon and I do really like the bloke. 

My wife has a coussie in Perth as well, might like to see if I could figure out a plan to get out that way to see her and then look up Fernando while I'm out there but that probably won't happen. 

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As long as we know the dates we can organise the heat wave!

Forget Sydney and the rugby. Sydney sucks and rugby is just a bunch of guys in tight shorts feeling each other up, you have the internet for that. See places like Perth it's much better and the heat is different, although you'll probably still hate it.

My outlaws are in Perth, we drive across there every year or so (4200ks each way), I don't really get along with all of my wifes sisters. I tolerate them for my wife's sake but the reason we drive and don't fly is so that I'm never trapped in a house with them.

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1 hour ago, GoatmasterGeneral said:

Would be fun to meet up with Doc though if I thought he could be bothered to get off his arse and make an effort. Canberra is not all that far from Sydney but it's far enough that it'd be a hardship for me to tey and get out there without a car. We know how diffident the ole Doc can be so I won't hold my breath that he would even care to come out and slum it with the loudmouthed Yank in Sydney. He did say he'd take me to a rugby match though so who knows.

But with any luck I could find a way to get together with Carlos again, maybe we could meet up and see another Aussie band play at one of his local Marrickville Inner West pubs like we did last time or have some hipster lefty lattes together or something. He's quit forumming with us several years ago now but I still run into him on FB every once in a blue moon and I do really like the bloke. 

 

Yep, mate. If you come to Sydney again I will get off my arse and drive to Sydney to hang with you and if it's the right time of year we will go to a game.. And Carlos and you and my son and I will go to a gig or two and a pub or two. Except maybe not the son as he is off to London for a few years later in the year.

And it's 'league' or 'the footie.' Rugby is what the toffs play at private schools (and Islanders, but that's another matter) and what toffs and would be toffs watch. I may be a highly educated, refined and diffident professional, but I am a Westie and a leaguie. Parra matters.

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