Car marketing has reached top cringe now. You have the same group of YouTubers doing the same reviews of cars in the same location in the same garage within hours of each other. It’s just odd

I think youtube has just thrown a light on the “first look” / launch / review marketing cycle. Back when it was magazines and TV it just got put out there in the next issue or at some point in a series. Now it’s all embargos and if you follow a few channels they all drop the same thing at the same time, like the Volvo EX30 this morning. No-one wants to be later or just skip it until they can actually have the car a few days to do their proper review.

Before covid it was lower level but similar for some of the MTB channels. Some very similar videos from being flown to a launch and all riding the same route on the same bikes.

I tried ep4 with my kids last year (7 and 5), they didn’t like the early Darth Vader bits so leaving it a bit longer.

Look up “machete order”, it makes a good case for going 4, 5, 2, 3, 6 as a way to get the good Skywalker story without Jarjar and the other nonsense in 1.

The thing is, it’s not actually possible to legally buy or even watch the original Star Wars films anywhere, only the bastardised “Special Editions” that have been increasingly **** with over the years. So if you must watch them, do the kids a favour and do it properly, by which I mean obviously buy a Laserdisc player & whatever kit you need to hook it up to a modern telly, and source the originals on LD. (or just BitTorrent the LD rip 😃)

If you don’t mind downloading then seek out Harmy’s Despecialized Edition, they’re an amazing fan-made version of the original trilogy using the best available sources and an awful lot of work to have a high quality version that’s as true as possible to the originals.

+1 for the Decathlon ones for garden use, my kids get a lot of use out of it. Pick up some spare arrows, and don’t leave them out overnight, something (maybe foxes) like chewing them enough to break the sucker on one of them.

Quite a bit of what’s being sold now had to be specced and signed off during the component supply madness period, so some choices are just what they could get in time that met the budget and other requirements.

There’s a lot of snobbery based on how things were a decade or more ago. I’ve got Deore and NX on my bikes and happy with both. In the ebike group they all seem to want to bin the SRAM DB8 brakes but they’ve been fine for me.

Every bike I’ve ever bought I’ve swapped the wheels on within a few months though. Seems to be the prime place to shave cost and particularly if you buy towards the bottom of a spec range they can be downright unsuitable (like the i19 rims on a Cannondale trail bike I bought in 2015).

Had a Golf GTE for a couple of years on lease and it was good as our only car – works well as a short-range EV for local running about, preheats in the winter, never got less than 42mpg on petrol (long motorway run, not charged). VW group put that powertrain in lots of things now, a Passat or Octavia or Superb or Leon estate with it would do nicely.

The combo of a Leaf e+ (for most journeys) and an old petrol JDM Honda Stepwgn (for camping holidays, bikes, tip runs) does us nicely at the moment but if we were back to just one car again it’d probably be one of the above.

Currently anything post 2006 and petrol is considered fine for the ULEZ and CAZ cities so even if you didn’t go for a hybrid then a petrol that’s a couple of years old should easily last you for 10 years even with tightening restrictions.

I like to imagine the welsh snagging guy’s great-grandfather going around all the London 1930s semis at the time pointing out all the shoddy ways they were thrown together.

Most new build estates are crap because the companies are trying to squeeze as much profit out of it as possible.

Likewise, easy to sort out yourself – I just moved ours a few feet as it was in the way. It’s technically owned by Openreach but don’t do anything silly to it and no-one will care.

But if you’re getting fibre at some point soon then that’s a totally different line which will make your copper line redundant.

+1 for that Youshiko one (but mine’s an old 7dayshop branded version). The testing and refresh stuff is great for batteries that have been sat around for a while or completely discharged by the kids.

I’ve made a knife and an axe at https://www.vlakvarkforge.com/ – was good fun.

Did this gin school the other week, you distill your own 70cl gin with whatever botanicals you like. Plan to stay there or nearby, they’re quite generous on the tasting bit. https://www.pinnockdistillery.com/ginschool

Would the canoe fit inside a layout like the Jerba Sanna?

I think there’s a lot to like about these backwards pop-top designs and not just having a toilet. Much more usable kitchen if you want to be inside in winter, and if it’s just you then can leave a single bed made up rather than needing to pack away each day. You can also use as two separate singles rather than pushing together into a double.

re: compact motorhomes, my parents rented a Rollerteam T-Line 590 which is under 6m and worked really well. Drop-down bed so you can leave it made up and just raise it out of the way. Can sleep an extra two under for occasional use. Bit tight on weights though (as many are). They’ve also owned an Autotrail Tracker EKS which is a little longer, two big benches that can be used as two singles or turned into a big double.

There are very convincing fakes these days. The counterfeiters figured out how to clone the H2 chip that Apple use so you get all the right popups and controls on the iphone. They usually sound a lot worse and the noise cancelling doesn’t work.

They’re one thing I’d only buy from Apple or somewhere like John Lewis.

Been happy with Zen, decent UK support and while the only things I’ve needed have been openreach-related (initial install then a digger taking out the whole street’s fibre) they were good about liasing and keeping me informed.

Cable run is usually the same way your copper line gets to your house. You can apparently get the cable entry to wherever you like but you’ll have cable clipped to the outside of your house by someone who doesn’t care too much about how it looks. I went for the most discreet place at the front, then ran my own cat5 from the ONT to my router under the stairs.

I think you’re best off sorting out your own wifi than something that might tie you to a provider. In a stone house (or any that blocks signal nicely) ideally run some cat5 and have multiple access points from Unifi or similar. Mesh might work but you’re still fighting to get signal through walls even if it is shorter runs between access points. The trouble is that faster wifi on higher frequencies doesn’t pass through materials as well – and if you connect to 2.4ghz for better range you won’t get near the speed you’re paying for on fibre.

We have the Apple legacy contact set up (and anything of use is backed up into icloud), and we have similar in Lastpass – there’s a delay/notification system but we’d be able to get in after a few days.

Irrelevant for bank accounts, etc – you don’t need to be able to log in to online banking etc. In fact, you shouldn’t be doing anything like that unless you’ve got probate and the banks have processes for this. What is a good idea is just to summarise the accounts you have to make that easier.

Wife has been through a few, the cheap wooden ones don’t last. Currently on one like this which her work provided for wfh, holding up well so far and the gas adjustment is good. https://www.officefurnitureonline.co.uk/posture-deluxe-metal-kneeler-chairs.html

If it’s one of the BT freeview/youview boxes then they go on working and recording just fine without a subscription, I used one for many years. You can’t get to the BT channels but the rest all works just fine.

I doubt they’ll want it back and even if they did you can get another off ebay for very little.

Honda Stepwgn, 2006 vintage. 29er hardtail:

Two 27.5 trail bikes:

If it failed the MOT with a “dangerous” fault then you can’t even drive it home, it’s unroadworthy. If you’re scrapping it then you’ll have to get someone to transport it away.

If it failed with “major” then the expiry date of the old MOT still applies, you can drive it about until then.

Review the notification settings on your phone. Lots of apps just send them to make sure you don’t forget about them. Of those that are left, many can be put into scheduled summary (it’s an Apple thing, I’m guessing there’s an Android equivalent?) so you just see them all later in the day.

Looks to be streamed on youtube too if you have an issue with the Red Bull app.

For those in the US, I think it’s only available on ESPN+.

I used to have a pair of rainlegs when I was riding my Brompton most days. Far less faffy to put on than overtrousers, take up less space in a bag, keep the tops of your legs dry which is the main thing – proper mudguards stop most of the splash upwards. That plus a jacket is all you need for shorter urban stuff.

Those are the sort of thing Id quite like Simon but it looks like when they go you have to bin them rather than replace the lamp although that might be for the majority of these things now.

Given they’re under a tenner (under £20 for the biggest) and rated for 20,000 hours are you that fussed? Even thinking about environmental factors I think they’re better than a fluorescent tube (longer life, no mercury) plus use less energy.

Rewatched the bit of Matt Jones’ video (2:30 in https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pi9R_Akb5vo ) and I think he landed about here:

If you’ve got mains, these are good. Various lengths/outputs in the drop-down. https://www.toolstation.com/v-tac-led-weatherproof-fitting-ip65-6500k/p82982

I think it can be the opposite, the low fuelling costs take away one of the reasons to go smaller.

Battery size is a big factor – a Model 3 standard range is lighter than a 320d, but the long range / AWD version adds over 200kg. Going from 58kwh to 77kwh ID3 adds over 100kg. I’m hoping as people get their heads around range and charging (and there are more big hubs on key routes) that the norm is for smaller, lighter batteries rather than the demands for ever more range.

I was going to swap the DB8s on mine straight away but better pads and a bleed and I’m pretty happy with them.

are the kindle fire tablets any good then?

Kids have the HD8, got two refurbs last year for under £40 each. Absolutely fine for netflix/disney/BBC, you can put in a MicroSD for more storage for offline downloads. Rubbish for games, while you can get things like roblox on there it runs awfully. There’s a few of the apps available they use in school, Mathletics and the like which run OK. Obviously just the amazon store for apps unless you go hacking about with it. Parental controls can be a bit inconsistent, often when something like Netflix is running it won’t cut in so need to keep an eye on time myself. Can’t complain at the price really.

Replaced our old shared/family ipad with a 9th gen (the very cheapest they offer now) and it’s massively better for games as well as the better app store etc.

Heard good things about the Fire Max 11 (which is £159 now) if you don’t mind the Amazon experience.

The Amazon devices (and Ring, Blink, etc) are probably the same prices they’ll be on black friday.

These Retevis walkie talkies are excellent for family camping, scouts, etc.

Forgot it had started – I’ve been watching Leo on youtube for ages ( https://www.youtube.com/@Hand-i-Craft ), he built a substantial workshop in his garden, (literally) single-handed. He has a lot of clever techniques to get things done.

The middle tasks can be interesting but you always feel like the competitors would rather be back working on their main piece.

Used the granny a few times on previous cars when staying at friends or holiday cottages but with more range these days and more having proper charge points I’ve not needed it on this one. Always thought of it as a worthwhile emergency thing – everywhere has a 3-pin plug.

Type 2 lead is worth having IMO, when away you sometimes find a 7kW in a carpark and a slow top up to 100% while you’re doing something else can make a journey back much easier. Always plenty around secondhand as cars get sold or written off, I paid £60 for a barely-used extra one to leave on my untethered chargepoint.

Don’t know what screenwash they put in those but the extra low freezing point stuff is worth putting in for winter, there isn’t a hot engine next to the bottle to keep it from freezing.

Been trying the Octo-aid app but I think it’s ios only, seems good for checking that your tariff is the best for your usage.

Agile saves us plenty just charging the car when it’s cheaper and doing washing / drying / dishwasher out of the peak 4-7pm period. And that’s with gas heating and hot water.

The older ones maybe. Same £320pa for a random 2018 Shuttle and panel Transporter that I checked.

If you are looking for Euro market stuff for passengers & bikes I think the better value is in the minibus versions (VW Shuttle and equivalents). Take out the rearmost seats and heavy tint on the rear windows. The camper conversion lot don’t like them as poptops and furniture are trickier than a bare panel van.

+1 for the Japanese MPVs. If you’re not doing big miles then mpg doesn’t matter much, anything petrol and 2007 on is ULEZ/CAZ compliant, and they’re much better in the back than a combi van – proper AC and opening windows.

Prices coming down in japan has me tempted to import another, my current stepwgn is ULEZ complaint so easy to move on and I quite fancy a later one or maybe an Alphard/Vellfire.

I heard it likened to buying a new PC in the 90s – there was always something better and cheaper just around the corner, but if you wanted one you just had to jump in and stop looking at what you could have got instead in 6 months.

I’m not sure you’ll see deals as good as they currently are for a long, long time. Happy to have someone else test the first wave instead.

I did similar in my bathroom but by adding a bit more material to the top of the joists. 306 laser level aligned to the highest point then went through putting a bit of 2×3 on top, marking where the laser was, then cutting on the bandsaw. Boards back over the top (insulate while you’ve it all up). 1930s house so it was about 20mm off at worst.

Mike Boyd tested this concept a little while ago: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5uDM3fPeNFM

Are you downloading the CSVs? For London I get incoming back to Feb 2018 and outgoing back to May 2019.

Download Historical Pricing Data

Easiglide Neverstick, we have a few pans and they’re holding up well. Can get from JL. https://www.johnlewis.com/browse/home-garden/cooking-baking/cookware-ranges/eaziglide/_/N-5q5hZ1z0ot0w

Extra 20% off now with code CLEARANCE20. Takes down to £40.99 delivered.

https://www.evanscycles.com/clearance/extra-20#dcp=1&dppp=60&OrderBy=rank&Filter=276_1323775%5EMTB%20Flat