Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations (Archived)

oldfarmer50 · June 2020

ab348 said:
Anyway, on to other things. Excavation finished, footings went in this morning. Wall construction starts tomorrow.

How deep is your frost line up there?

ab348 · June 2020

No idea, but 4 feet is standard for deck post footings, etc. This is the standard for walls and the like. Sidewalk slabs aren’t 4 feet deep either.

venture · June 2020

sda said:
We are getting ready for this. Not looking forward to all the noise and two unhappy dogs as we don't have any where to take them. Insurance claim, thankfully.

Waiting for my roofer to start. They are behind because they were shut down for so long. A pile of money.

venture · June 2020

@roadburner

Got the Cub Cadet today. I messed with it a little. It didn't arrive until late in the day. I'll put it thru it's paces tomorrow.

It's really yellow.

jmonroe1 · June 2020

dino001 said:

tjc78 said:
I look back on the traveling I’ve done and realize I did a lot of questionable things I wouldn’t do now.
C'mon, we are all above average drivers, aren't we? No faults, no errors, courteous all the way. Agility of a cat, reflexes of a humming bird.

Hmmm, I think you have all of us confused with one particular poster buddy in here.

jmonroe

dino001 · June 2020

So I finished my kitchen project. New cabinets, countertop, backsplash, sink, Induction range, bottom level vinyl panel floors. First order end of January. Took way too long, the cabinet guy missed one cabinet, took over two months to get it, it was in the middle of the Covid mess. Still small corrections left, but it’s 99% done, so call it finished.

Before:

After:

driver100 · June 2020

ab348 said:
But that heavy traffic has to stop and wait for a traffic light. Wouldn’t a left turn arrow serve the same purpose and give a similar result? It seems to me that it isn’t an interchange at all, more like a signalized intersection.

It's timed to allow maximum number of cars to get through or get onto the highway without waiting while the advanced green is tying up straight thru traffic. It is ingenious....much better getting onto the highway directly than turning in front of waiting traffic.

driver100 · June 2020

ab348 said:
Anyway, on to other things. Excavation finished, footings went in this morning. Wall construction starts tomorrow.

Are you building a moat?

venture · June 2020

dino001 said:
So I finished my kitchen project. New cabinets, countertop, backsplash, sink, range, bottom level floors. First order end of January. Took way too long, the cabinet guy missed one cabinet, took over two months to get it, it was in the middle of the Covid mess. Still small corrections left, but it’s 99% done, so call it finished.

Wow. What a difference. Very nice.

driver100 · June 2020

jmonroe1 said:

dino001 said:

tjc78 said:
I look back on the traveling I’ve done and realize I did a lot of questionable things I wouldn’t do now.
C'mon, we are all above average drivers, aren't we? No faults, no errors, courteous all the way. Agility of a cat, reflexes of a humming bird.
Hmmm, I think you have all of us confused with one particular poster buddy in here.

jmonroe

He would love to drive here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k4pJD2bIRSQ

suydam · June 2020

dino001 said:
So I finished my kitchen project. New cabinets, countertop, backsplash, sink, Induction range, bottom level vinyl panel floors. First order end of January. Took way too long, the cabinet guy missed one cabinet, took over two months to get it, it was in the middle of the Covid mess. Still small corrections left, but it’s 99% done, so call it finished.

Before:

After:

Very nice! I’m hoping to have that done this fall, since our big trip got canceled and refunded. If we can ever have people in our house again.

andres3 · June 2020

venture said:
@roadburner

Got the Cub Cadet today. I messed with it a little. It didn't arrive until late in the day. I'll put it thru it's paces tomorrow.

It's really yellow.

Now that's a young man's color!

andres3 · June 2020

Another color that screams "fountain of youth."

oldfarmer50 · June 2020

sda said:
This was very peaceful and beautiful about a week ago. Heavy rain, thunder and lightening minutes before.

That’s nice. Did you find the gold?

stickguy · June 2020

nice looking job Dino. I watch too many HGTV rehab shows. Would love to do a full redo now (if not build from scratch) but not looking like I can get the wife to move soon. will revisit all at the end of 2021. If I get some traction with that, will give me an excuse to get a PU to replace the TLX! And of course, shortly after,, a toy to drive instead of the PU.

abacomike · June 2020

fintail said:
Speaking of traffic circles and FL, I remember this one in Hollywood - unfortunately, heavily regulated with lights, as Florida drivers would turn this into a demolition derby if given free rein (and I think it is still an unpopular feature):

I have driven through there many times. It's in the western part of Hollywood, FL, about 25 miles south of me.

ab348 · June 2020

driver100 said:

Are you building a moat?

My anti-social tendencies made that a temptation but the permit process was too tough, and besides, alligators don't do well in our climate. So I settled for half of a moat.

qbrozen · June 2020

sda said:
We are getting ready for this. Not looking forward to all the noise and two unhappy dogs as we don't have any where to take them. Insurance claim, thankfully.

What was the claim all about?

I don’t know if I could ever afford to reroof our house.

tjc78 · June 2020

Our back roof is all new from the addition, need to get the front roof done in the next two years or so. It’s at the end of its lifespan.

venture · June 2020

driver100 said:

jmonroe1 said:

dino001 said:

tjc78 said:
I look back on the traveling I’ve done and realize I did a lot of questionable things I wouldn’t do now.
C'mon, we are all above average drivers, aren't we? No faults, no errors, courteous all the way. Agility of a cat, reflexes of a humming bird.
Hmmm, I think you have all of us confused with one particular poster buddy in here.

jmonroe
He would love to drive here:

Are we allowed to call that a Chinese intersection?

driver100 · June 2020

dino001 said:
So I finished my kitchen project. New cabinets, countertop, backsplash, sink, Induction range, bottom level vinyl panel floors. First order end of January. Took way too long, the cabinet guy missed one cabinet, took over two months to get it, it was in the middle of the Covid mess. Still small corrections left, but it’s 99% done, so call it finished.

What a difference! Like the sleek new look.....and I really like drop in stoves........why do they still put that panel on the back from the 50s?

driver100 · June 2020

abacomike said:

fintail said:
Speaking of traffic circles and FL, I remember this one in Hollywood - unfortunately, heavily regulated with lights, as Florida drivers would turn this into a demolition derby if given free rein (and I think it is still an unpopular feature):

I have driven through there many times. It's in the western part of Hollywood, FL, about 25 miles south of me.

Then there is St Armand's Circle in Sarasota where you can stand and watch the Bentleys and exotic sports cars go by:

snakeweasel · June 2020

Michaell said:

kyfdx said:

snakeweasel said:

kyfdx said:

snakeweasel said:
On a related note what do you guys think about divergent diamond interchanges?
Is that where the lanes crossing the freeway swap sides?
Yes it is, it's like we ceded the bridge to the UK.
It seems to work better... but, it's a lot like a roundabout. If you aren't a local, the first couple of times are intimidating. There are a few of these in the Fort Wayne area.
We have one of those DDI here in Denver. It makes total sense, once you understand why you switch to the other side of the road. but I suspect a majority of drivers would have their brain lock up.

I'm not so sure about that, we have one near me and now it seems to take longer to go through the interchange now than it did before.

driver100 · June 2020

snakeweasel said:

Michaell said:

kyfdx said:

snakeweasel said:

kyfdx said:

snakeweasel said:
On a related note what do you guys think about divergent diamond interchanges?
Is that where the lanes crossing the freeway swap sides?
Yes it is, it's like we ceded the bridge to the UK.
It seems to work better... but, it's a lot like a roundabout. If you aren't a local, the first couple of times are intimidating. There are a few of these in the Fort Wayne area.
We have one of those DDI here in Denver. It makes total sense, once you understand why you switch to the other side of the road. but I suspect a majority of drivers would have their brain lock up.
I'm not so sure about that, we have one near me and now it seems to take longer to go through the interchange now than it did before.

Even if it does take longer....and I don't think it does, there are probably fewer accidents as you enter the highway without crossing in front of oncoming cars. Gets high volume of cars onto the on ramp faster and smoother IMHO.

snakeweasel · June 2020

ab348 said:

driver100 said:

Are you building a moat?
My anti-social tendencies made that a temptation but the permit process was too tough, and besides, alligators don't do well in our climate. So I settled for half of a moat.

My mother like to tell about how my grandfather, living in the far south side of Chicago in the 20's and 30's, had a pet alligator. He had a fenced in area in the backyard with a pond and everything. Every fall he would get it and take in into the basement and put it in a bathtub for the winter and every spring bring it back out. Once it got to big he gave it to a relative who had a farm in Indiana where the poor thing died within a year.

ab348 · June 2020

driver100 said:

Even if it does take longer....and I don't think it does, there are probably fewer accidents as you enter the highway without crossing in front of oncoming cars. Gets high volume of cars onto the on ramp faster and smoother IMHO.

I have to wonder how many, ahem, older drivers bear right after the crossover traffic lights and go the wrong way on what they believe to be the correct side of the road.

This design seems to be the brainchild of a traffic planner with a drug problem.

snakeweasel · June 2020

driver100 said:

snakeweasel said:

Michaell said:

kyfdx said:

snakeweasel said:

kyfdx said:

snakeweasel said:
On a related note what do you guys think about divergent diamond interchanges?
Is that where the lanes crossing the freeway swap sides?
Yes it is, it's like we ceded the bridge to the UK.
It seems to work better... but, it's a lot like a roundabout. If you aren't a local, the first couple of times are intimidating. There are a few of these in the Fort Wayne area.
We have one of those DDI here in Denver. It makes total sense, once you understand why you switch to the other side of the road. but I suspect a majority of drivers would have their brain lock up.
I'm not so sure about that, we have one near me and now it seems to take longer to go through the interchange now than it did before.
Even if it does take longer....and I don't think it does, there are probably fewer accidents as you enter the highway without crossing in front of oncoming cars. Gets high volume of cars onto the on ramp faster and smoother IMHO.

Prior to it becoming a DDI I was able to pass through the interchange without stopping regularly, since it has been modified I cant even remembering not stopping there.

ab348 · June 2020

The wall construction crew was here bright and early this morning. Man these guys are going to earn their money today and tomorrow. It is supposed to be two very warm days for these parts and some of the stones they need to jockey around are really large and heavy. It makes me feel achey just watching them.

ab348 · June 2020

Speaking of stone walls, I had a funny conversation with my cheapskate brother on the subject this week. He has lived in the same house since the late 1960s, having bought it just a couple of years after it was built, a typical 3-bed/1-bath bungalow/ranch style of the day. Aside from paint and floor coverings inside and various paint color changes outside it is largely original, so you can tell he is not much into hiring people to do renovations/upgrades. He is a great guy in many ways but he hates spending money despite being quite comfortable, trying to repair and re-repair things well beyond the point where most people would get something new.

The lot his house is on slopes down from left to right as you face it, with his driveway on the low side. He told me this week that he is finally getting that repaved. I don't know how old the pavement is but it has always had some dips and humps in it and the pavement had become quite deteriorated. This is costing him $5K which he believes is a relative bargain compared to what his neighbor recently spent. I suspect that fact is what motivated him to spend the money - he likes getting what he considers good deals on things. Hopefully the job will be OK, because he often gets burned buying the cheapest thing possible even if it is not suitable.

He has a walkway from his front door that makes a 90-degree left turn at the front steps and then travels down a slope towards the driveway. There are 3 or 4 steps down from the end of it to the driveway itself, as there is a near-vertical bank where the front lawn meets the driveway. I had forgotten that there used to be a low rock wall there when he bought the place. It disappeared long ago and ever since he has tried covering it with bark mulch every year, without much success because it is so steep. He seems to have abandoned that the last few years as the area is now overrun with wild strawberries. The last time I visited I noticed how shabby it all looked. The original concrete walkway across the lawn had been replaced by him with 24"x24" concrete pavers at some point, and the steps down to the driveway were uneven and treacherous-looking.

This week we were talking about my wall project and I suggested that he could have a small one built to deal with the drop down to his driveway, which would be a big upgrade to the outside appearance, even more so if he dealt with the awful steps as part of that. He pooh-poohed the idea instantly, reminding me that he used to have a rock wall there. I asked him what had happened to it. His answer was that he needed some stones to fill in an old ditch, so he demolished it in the late '70s for that purpose. I just shook my head. Some folks cannot be helped. Money is certainly not his problem these days, but spending any of it still is.

graphicguy · June 2020

driver100 said:

abacomike said:

fintail said:
Speaking of traffic circles and FL, I remember this one in Hollywood - unfortunately, heavily regulated with lights, as Florida drivers would turn this into a demolition derby if given free rein (and I think it is still an unpopular feature):

I have driven through there many times. It's in the western part of Hollywood, FL, about 25 miles south of me.
Then there is St Armand's Circle in Sarasota where you can stand and watch the Bentleys and exotic sports cars go by:

Wow...I ate at that Tango place 3 or so years ago. And, you’re right. Part of the entertainment is to watch all the exotics drive by.

graphicguy · June 2020

@roadburner ...was thinking last night about you. Did you ever get that Sony TV you were thinking about?

explorerx4 · June 2020

It looks like the NSX club is having a meeting there.

jmonroe1 · June 2020

snakeweasel said:

ab348 said:

driver100 said:

Are you building a moat?
My anti-social tendencies made that a temptation but the permit process was too tough, and besides, alligators don't do well in our climate. So I settled for half of a moat.
My mother like to tell about how my grandfather, living in the far south side of Chicago in the 20's and 30's, had a pet alligator. He had a fenced in area in the backyard with a pond and everything. Every fall he would get it and take in into the basement and put it in a bathtub for the winter and every spring bring it back out. Once it got to big he gave it to a relative who had a farm in Indiana where the poor thing died within a year.

That’s what happens when you don’t take baths in the fall and winter.

jmonroe

driver100 · June 2020

For you "brave" DIYers......someone sent me this video...could be helpful one day;

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QsyxpydEkZE

driver100 · June 2020

ab348 said:

driver100 said:

Even if it does take longer....and I don't think it does, there are probably fewer accidents as you enter the highway without crossing in front of oncoming cars. Gets high volume of cars onto the on ramp faster and smoother IMHO.
I have to wonder how many, ahem, older drivers bear right after the crossover traffic lights and go the wrong way on what they believe to be the correct side of the road.

This design seems to be the brainchild of a traffic planner with a drug problem.

It sure is creative and seems crazy......you could miss your turn the first time and get confused, but, once you have done it, it really makes sense, and seems easier to turn right onto the ramp, rather than try and get through an advanced green.

driver100 · June 2020

snakeweasel said:

driver100 said:

snakeweasel said:

Michaell said:

kyfdx said:

snakeweasel said:

kyfdx said:

snakeweasel said:
On a related note what do you guys think about divergent diamond interchanges?
Is that where the lanes crossing the freeway swap sides?
Yes it is, it's like we ceded the bridge to the UK.
It seems to work better... but, it's a lot like a roundabout. If you aren't a local, the first couple of times are intimidating. There are a few of these in the Fort Wayne area.
We have one of those DDI here in Denver. It makes total sense, once you understand why you switch to the other side of the road. but I suspect a majority of drivers would have their brain lock up.
I'm not so sure about that, we have one near me and now it seems to take longer to go through the interchange now than it did before.
Even if it does take longer....and I don't think it does, there are probably fewer accidents as you enter the highway without crossing in front of oncoming cars. Gets high volume of cars onto the on ramp faster and smoother IMHO.
Prior to it becoming a DDI I was able to pass through the interchange without stopping regularly, since it has been modified I cant even remembering not stopping there.

That may be true if you are going straight through....which is usually the less used route. But if most cars are going from the city road and are turning onto a highway ramp it really is easier....you turn onto the ramp, without that annoying advanced green everyone tries to race through....and the pre-DDI way, one set of traffic has to wait each way while advanced green cars make their turn in front of them.

oldfarmer50 · June 2020

driver100 said:
For you "brave" DIYers......someone sent me this video...could be helpful one day;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QsyxpydEkZE

There’s your problem lady, you got engine snakes.

graphicguy · June 2020

Another one for @roadburner ....right up your alley....

https://thekoreancarblog.com/2020/06/18/kia-motors-america-quietly-launched-stinger-gt-indigo-edition/

stickguy · June 2020

making a mental note to not go to Zimbabwe

graphicguy · June 2020

I obviously have some time on my hands, today....

https://youtu.be/BI01elp9kxM

stickguy · June 2020

graphicguy said:
Another one for @roadburner ....right up your alley....

https://thekoreancarblog.com/2020/06/18/kia-motors-america-quietly-launched-stinger-gt-indigo-edition/

now that is a gorgeous car. Seems to have all the right features too (other than no ACC, but I can live without that).

sda · June 2020

qbrozen said:

sda said:
We are getting ready for this. Not looking forward to all the noise and two unhappy dogs as we don't have any where to take them. Insurance claim, thankfully.
What was the claim all about?

I don’t know if I could ever afford to reroof our house.

Combination hail and wind damage. I feel very fortunate as the roof is original to the house when we built it in 04. I am paying out of my pocket a modest difference to upgrade to architectural style shingles which will improve the appearance. I think we plan to sell in the next few years.

jmonroe1 · June 2020

stickguy said:
making a mental note to not go to Zimbabwe

That and don’t buy a used silver Ford SUV that grew up in Zimbabwe.

jmonroe

fintail · June 2020

Let him know that he should spend it now, or his heirs will blow it all on jetskis and electronics

Hearses don't have luggage racks.

My grandma is the original owner of a mid century ranch probably similar to that. It's on a slight hill, the large (for this area) ~1/4 acre lot has a rock feature too. The house itself has been maintained to a tee and much of it is like a time capsule, tons of original finishes, most fairly pristine. Several years ago she was lamenting the cost of a new kitchen, and I told her not to touch it - the time warp original kitchen might actually attract someone these days.

ab348 said:
Speaking of stone walls, . Some folks cannot be helped. Money is certainly not his problem these days, but spending any of it still is.

ab348 · June 2020

driver100 said:

It sure is creative and seems crazy......you could miss your turn the first time and get confused, but, once you have done it, it really makes sense, and seems easier to turn right onto the ramp, rather than try and get through an advanced green.

If you turn right you'll be going the wrong way.

stickguy · June 2020

nice looking car. If they want to make a deal I can't refuse next year, I suppose I could live with another barge!

interesting he mentions it being lighter. That would be a plus.

I really want to see the rumored compact car that is supposed to be in the pipeline. Probably lots of the same goodness, for less money and smaller footprint.

jmonroe1 · June 2020

sda said:

qbrozen said:

sda said:
We are getting ready for this. Not looking forward to all the noise and two unhappy dogs as we don't have any where to take them. Insurance claim, thankfully.
What was the claim all about?

I don’t know if I could ever afford to reroof our house.
Combination hail and wind damage. I feel very fortunate as the roof is original to the house when we built it in 04. I am paying out of my pocket a modest difference to upgrade to architectural style shingles which will improve the appearance. I think we plan to sell in the next few years.

Talk to @stickguy, that’s just about the time he’d like to move south.

jmonroe

stickguy · June 2020

I'm in! Thanks JM. looks like a nice house

stickguy · June 2020

good video. Nice to see Acura getting back up off the mat. really turning over the product line. The new MDX due out shortly will be a big plus. That pretty much does just leave the ILX replacement, which the Acura guy really did confirm. If it is the spiritual successor to the Integra, but not too hard core (say, comparable in size and concept to a VW GLI?), that definitely would attract my interest.

jmonroe1 · June 2020

stickguy said:
I'm in! Thanks JM. looks like a nice house

Yeah and that’s just one of the garages. Looks like you’ll be moving on up to the east side.

jmonroe

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