nomadpete

I'm not so sure. This anecdote os old news and possibly no longer appilcable but it indicates that big manufacturers can an do make production line changes for different markets...... Back in the days when Nissan was a Japanese product, I wore out an engine and found that there was a cheaper and quicker alternative to rebuilding it. There was, at the time, a thriving industry whereby low mileage second hand engines were being brought from Japan. I paid the man and drove out with a nice strong motor that afternoon. However, the motor started using oil and by 100,000k it was blowing smoke. Turned out that the emissions rules in Japan at the time required all cars to get emissions tested after a couple of years from new. Fail the test, and scrap the car. I learned that allegedly Nissan and probably others fitted soft rings that bed in more quickly, in order to meet emissions test out of the showroom. But they would not make the mileage that Australians do. Also, the inlet and exhaust manifolds and all plumbing was not transferrable to the identical Australian block. And (so I was told but couldn't verify), different for european or US markets which all had/have different emission laws. I bought standard rings and bearings and put them myself. My point is this, modern production lines can and do change a lot just to suit the destination market, even a market as small as ours.

Hey I'm no expert. Jointing? Mitre saw and epoxy. Yes tassie oak is heavier than slash pine but is is only trim and only big enough to stiffen the 1/8" plywood. I don't think it will impact the GTM. And apart from using up waste timber, I avoided a trip to the hardware store which always seems to cost more than planned. Mostly because of impulse purchases, but that's a different argument

I'm just learning how to use my camera at night. this 20 second exposure was from my front deck. And they said there was no aurora that night. Sadly, it wasn't bright enough to see with the naked eye. The camera doesn't lie (but it can exaggerate) On the rare clear night, the stars are lovely.

Now I live in Taswegia, I have a wardrobe full of windcheaters, spray jackets, cardigans, jumpers, raincoats, oilskins, snow vests, greatcoats, driza-bones, hoodies, merino layers, and a few others I cannot name.

OME, Bananabenders don't need a name for it. I lived in Qld for 35 years without owning one.

Have you ever heard of a politician's brain overheating? My positive today.... I am making new doors for the caravan galley cupboards. They had to match the old ones which were simple three ply with a picture frame edge made from pine bullnose moulding. The big green shed wants a kings ransom for similar piece of wood. So I grabbed some left over tassie oak floorboards and ran them through a thicknesser and router. Bingo! Quality product with a bonus of great satisfaction from the achievement.

I wouldn't buy a new Hilux based on that. Like many products, 'they just don't make em like they used ta!'

There is some merit in making yourself a fire resistant chraging area for your rechargeable tools. Some people repurpose an old steel locker, but I think anything that stops you from charging your lithium batteries on a flammable surface should do. Even a simple steel shelf with a steel panel against the wall behind it would be good. I have made up a timer that is set to shut off the mains after the max recharge time. It prevents overcharging which is the biggest single cause of battery fires.

Bring on Mars. Is Elon selling tickets yet?

Nice day for it?

Do camels hump?

Litey, are you collecting that rainwater?

I might have guessed - you sure have got around a lot more than I. Cold as a stepmother's kiss. Wouldn't know shyte from clay. I'll report back after I visit a couple of old mates (and lubricate the memory cells). They'll probably regale me with all the verses of The Ballad of Ivan Skavinsky Skavar. But I won't share THAT on a G rated forum.

Not very much related to Trump, but my mother was a nurse in Brisbane during the war. She spoke of two major drunken brawls in Qld. One of which resulted in overcrowding of Casualty in the hospital. The word was that hundreds of US and ADF servicemen were involved in that one. Of course there is high probability of exaggeration by participants and minimisation by authorities. But the animosity ran deep and lingered for a lifetime.

Sad to see. Our legislators often appear to be incompetant when attempting to convert good intentions into robust meaningful laws.

Random thought of today.... This morning before sunrise, I was attending a MVA. Whilst trying to get motorists to slow down (blind corner, 100kph limit), we concluded that the media is implicit in normalising irresponsible driving. We should stop reporting crashes as "accidents" because very very few are accidental. Undesirable, for sure. But this, like every other motor vehicle accident I have attended, was the result of careless driving. Yes, the road was wet. And his tyres were low on tread. But neither CAUSED the 'accident'.

Back then, a late Saturday night out ended at 8pm when the waiter started stacking chairs on the tables around me, turned off the lights and started mopping the floor. By 8.30 everyone had gone to bed in Brisbane and even the council had switched the traffic lights off. Aaaaah the good old days.

Faster than a speeding bullet.... "Quicker than blowing the froth of a beer at five minutes to closing time"

That one sounds like it was from personal experience. Brissy was none too sophisticated back in the 70's when I moved there. "Yessir, we have all kinds of wine here. Red AND white."

Or useless as a hip pocket on a tee shirt. Or many variations of that.

Careful Nev. My mum and my aunt had a bit of trouble with that in '42. And added 'they' were over fed as well as over paid and over sexed. They reckoned that the yanks wouldn't even land in New Guinea until the mess got ice cream delivered.

Crack a couple of tinnies over a Barbie, with the storm n strife and the billy lids.

Yeah, it smacks of rank hypocrisy- small wonder that good ole Yew Hess Hay doesn't get much respect globally.

Here comes Blisters. He always shows up after the work is finished.

I'll start off with Busy as a bee..... "Running around like a fart in a bottle looking for a corner to sit in"