kmccune
Well-Known Member
Truly, some have too much time to waste.
for starters it cost less to make than gas and would just make things we all buy go up in price including bicycles.
kmccune
Well-Known Member
There seem to be half the coal trains on the "cardinal line" now. You probably( if you are going to burn coal) should just burn the coal in situ, ask the good Folks on the Dan river.
Barbara Kingsolver wrote a short novel about the effects of burning coal, rather enthralling.
Burning coal and heavy petroleum are really "$#!++!"& in our nest, you stinkers what if you had to breathe the crap you are spewing into the only atmosphere we have( depend on, can't live without it)? Of all the Worlds science has discovered this is the only one we have found that can sustain human life
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kmccune
Well-Known Member
Ever hear of nanoparticles? while diesel can be cleaned up a bit, it results in byproducts that can even pass the "brain blood barrier" not to mention what it does to your lungs, this is the main reason the Europeans have jumped off the "diesel bandwagon?? What is more important to you health or black smoke( for that matter racket)? Highly refined diesel isn't that cheap to produce, the crap I used to burn in heavy duty trucks, one day would smell like asphalt, one day like ammonia, the next day almost like old diesel and we really do not need all the acid producing sulfur in the atmosphere either.
Catalyzt
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
My mom always thought my connective tissue disorder was triggered when we road through fields in Florida (riding from Jacksonville to St. Pete) that were sprayed with some insecticide in about 1973. I do have a dim memory of having to get off the bike and lie by the side of the shoulder because my back and lungs hurt. And the fevers started the next year.
Sorry about your dad, Tom. That sucks. My Dad worked for a summer at Los Alamos in the early 60s; we stayed in Tuscon, and that's where I learned to ride horses. Great summer for me, but he never said anything about the work he did. Not a word, whatever he was doing, he took it to his grave.
Never liked him, never got it. The smug, yuppie attitude sucked in the '80s and it sucks now, that was one of the reasons I left New York, a city I loved-- everyone was getting like that, kind of this upper-middle-class smarmy sense of humor that owes too much to the lock-jaw wasp elitism I thought we were done with in the mid '70s. (During the Giuliani years, I knew I'd made the right call, so glad I left, it's coming back now, but slowly.)
WOW. The statement that kids value 'likes' over their own genitals -- uh, no, Bill, actually, kids are signing off social media, or going digitally sober for months at a time. I do that, too-- as y'all have seen on this very website, where I disappear for a week or a month at a time-- and I learned it from 16 and 19-year-olds and holy crap it is so great! I ride more, reconnect with friends, etc.
And the bit about the dick saw? Not cool to make violent jokes about young people. Not cool at all.
The irony of all this is that the most progressive LGBTQI organizations, the ones with the most skin in the game, actually do not have 'woke' positions as defined by the right and left in the media. Loud and proud, come out ASAP? Uh, no, that can be very dangerous. Transitioning before puberty? Well, maybe that's what the boneheads on TikTok are advocating for. But at the organizations with a track record, the approach is more like, well, there are pros and cons, let's talk about that... for 26 weeks at a minimum, with a team of specialists. (At least as of 2015 or so.)
Methinks the straw men have taken on a life of their own.
Me, neither. It should not have taken so long for gas prices to get this high. I was expecting it to happen about 10 years ago. For tight oil (shale & tar sands) to be economically viable, estimates range from $75 to $100. And I think those estimates are low... you need to burn oil to extract oil, we have kind of a labor shortage, which probably means higher costs, so there's likely to be some kind of snowball effect, but... I'm way out of my depth here, not an economist!
The main reason is just air quality. Today in Los Angeles, the AQI is 103, unhealthy. And I can feel it. Yesterday, I didn't even want to go out on the bike.
I'm all for cleaner air but go about it the right and responsible way. Make truly better gas and oil and not this reformulated crap that we did that doesn't quite work right or Make EV's that are so much better that people would rather use them. That would mean things like more economical fuel and how that fuel made to be more environmentally friendly. Be more cost effective an so on. Bottom line go about by being better then competition not more deceptive.
PedalUma
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Petaluma, CA
One less car in front of you. This person has a business where he fulfills internet orders and runs the packages across a freeway to UPS. Now he will do that with his cargo bike because I made it electric today. He has large panniers for it. He is picking it up in 15 minutes. His trip to UPS crosses heavy traffic and faces high afternoon winds. It wouldn't be safe or comfortable with a regular cargo bike.
Attachments
I read an article where the reporter actually interviewed domestic (USA) oil drilling company owners. They quit drilling when oil prices plummeted. They pointed out that you can't just start back producing oil right away. It takes time to hire people, which is also a problem right now, keep them healthy, and then get equipment going.
It's kind of like the getting the band back together again--think Blues Brothers.
Around here, it's like people are getting into the dark corners of their outbuildings and dusting off every kind of motor bike they find. There's one that went by that looks like it was made for a little kid--it's small and has a very noisy high pitched motor on it. The electric golf cart that looks like a little car is also going around town. I bet motorcycles start selling like crazy and will be hard to come by.
It's kind of like the getting the band back together again--think Blues Brothers.
Around here, it's like people are getting into the dark corners of their outbuildings and dusting off every kind of motor bike they find. There's one that went by that looks like it was made for a little kid--it's small and has a very noisy high pitched motor on it. The electric golf cart that looks like a little car is also going around town. I bet motorcycles start selling like crazy and will be hard to come by.
tomjasz
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Minnesnowta
They were funny but the disasters behind domestic oil production are terrifying. The frackers were shut down here trying to denude farmland harvesting silica sand. Polluting the air and devastating local rivers with outflows from karst sands pits in MN and WI. Seems like Midicksafailen, generic penile engorgement drugs, goes hand in hand with coaly guys.
PedalUma
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Petaluma, CA
Point well taken. Among all the galaxies, this one is the only one that can support human life, are you pro-life? And it is only at one planet that revolves around a no-big-deal star 3/4's of the way out from the center where humans can live. Why s*it in our own nest, or bed? That is nutty. We live here. This is our home. Give Putin and MBS the finger and ride a bike.
Well, we have to use gas for a while because so many can't afford to switch over to an electric car, mass transit sucks or is not available in the hinterlands, and of course, the gubmint isn't able to make adult decisions right now.
Have been watching a youtuber--Andrew Ditton driving an electric car and pulling a travel trailer in Scotland. He's not doing so well. One charging station was broken down and the others "fill it up" to 80%. It seems to me that if you travel away from your home charger, you're going to spend a lot of time waiting. It's got to get better if more and more electric cars are going to be on the road.
Have been watching a youtuber--Andrew Ditton driving an electric car and pulling a travel trailer in Scotland. He's not doing so well. One charging station was broken down and the others "fill it up" to 80%. It seems to me that if you travel away from your home charger, you're going to spend a lot of time waiting. It's got to get better if more and more electric cars are going to be on the road.
tomjasz
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Minnesnowta
Is it time for a new mind set? Do we each need a cage to declare our independence and good old American self reliance. Full steam ahead.... regardless of the cost. Real costs we obfuscate the reality of?
while it’s nearly two decades ago, I couldnt get Clark County Nevada to approve solar water heater on my roof in a city with 300 days of sunshine.
FFS 2022! 44 billion for a “party line” (twitter sale) but nothing substantial for Americans, we’re u the dupes fueling the current gouging in every market.
While I maybe have a few tricks and giggles before the dirt nap, one of them isn’t watching this current bunch of idgets nuke the neighborhood.
Sorry to much of a proper single malt leads to delusions of politic prowess. Hopefully I remember to read this in the morning and delete if weirder than even I can tolerate.
How do low income people get to work if there is no public transportation? We have folks here who work in agriculture. They have some long commutes. How do they get to work? The big orchard has a lot of busses, but that's only one orchard. Do we return to the days of workers stuck in cabins with no transportation relying on the Company Store?
Self reliance is a myth. It takes people coming together to make change happen. That isn't going to happen thanks to all the hate that's been spewed.
I'm for a change but we have to figure out how to make it easier. We can't be destroying people's lives and acting superior to them. That's just sick and wrong.
tomjasz
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Minnesnowta
I walked, hitchhiked, rode a bicycle, ride-sharing, and used the local bus service.
I'm not certain why you picked public transport as a criticism? Sorry but I'm confused.
But, please read my post again. I thought I was mocking self-reliance and everyone owning a cage(car) and was instead suggesting a new mindset.
Please step back before implying or suggesting I'm somehow sick and wrong. You're clueless as to my/our civic and social activities. I've been dirt poor and eventually very successful. NEVER shun ANY worker and never preached your definition of self-reliance.
Take a chill pill.
Catalyzt
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
The related issue is that oil really is a finite resource, and we need to use what is left wisely and very slllooowwlly to run mission critical infrastructure. Tight oil is expensive and messy no matter what kind of gasoline you are making.
As for reformulated gas, I am with you part of the way on that-- I think. I haven't looked into the ethanol blends in a long time, but last time I did a medium-deep dive, the amount of water and land we need for the corn that creates the ethanol is not an efficient use of resources and has its own unintended consequences. And yes, it also is not great for cars-- and the higher the percentage, the worse the damage. The MX5's fuel pump failed at 37,000 miles, though the CRX doesn't seem to mind the stuff. Only non-maintenance mechanical problem the MX5 has had in six years. I'll always wonder if it was the ethanol that killed the fuel pump, but I have no way of knowing, it's definitely a wild theory. (The CRX doesn't really even need gas, I just give it to him as a treat because he's such a good boy.)
The detergent additives in high-end gas do seem to help. My cars have always run better on 76 and Chevron. I also always buy premium, even for the CRX. I have never believed that there is no difference in fuel economy, though I admit that is speculative. It always seemed to get slightly better mileage with 91 octane than with 89. As for the extra money, the car is so efficient, hey, who cares? I think it may burn a little cleaner, too, though the science on that is above my pay grade. For some cars that have a 'ceiling' on the automatic timing advance, mm, maybe 91 is really unnecessary. I think the CRX is old enough, and its little brain is small enough, so that it has no 'ceiling' that stops the timing from advancing to a more efficient setting. (Though now, I want to look into this. This may be an utterly false belief.) And anecdotally, mine is one of the relatively few I've heard of that routinely exceeds EPA estimates for fuel economy by a wide margin. It's rated at 47 highway, but 51 is not uncommon. Drivers who are more disciplined than me have gotten 55 with the car fully loaded. which means 58 is possible, and a few outliers report fuel economy in the low 60s.
I also agree that EVs need to be more practical. I think the first step is overhauling safety regulations-- and I know that's not a popular idea, but it's critical to save weight. The sheet metal in vehicles does not have to be as thick as is now. I kind of think that people should just learn to be more careful drivers at this point so they can drive lighter cars. Fewer distractions would help, and I personally, I don't think any car should have an LCD display-- particularly touch screen-- for any reason. It's also another point of failure, something else that will need to be replaced. For whatever reason, and I know it's not very scientific, but everyone I know who has been seriously injured in an accident was driving a heavy car that was supposed to be safe. I have wrecked the CRX in several complex accidents, and it's held up shockingly well, never had any structural damage, despite the fact that the body metal is so thin you can bend it literally by just bouncing the hood with your hand to test the shocks. Also, all eJunk must be optional! Blind spot monitors, backup cameras, navi, infotainment, even electric windows must never be standard equipment! I think manufacturers should be mandated by law to offer bare-bones models-- and if they did, people would buy them and the captive market for eJunk would be destroyed.
I would buy a bare-bones EV sports car with a 300+ mile range, provided it can also manage 0-60 in around 5 seconds or a little less and tops out at 130 with decent acceleration up to 100. But it will never be offered, so I'll probably drive the cars I have until my dirt nap.
We should stop pretending that the auto industry is being compelled to add all this crap because people are crazy about it. Maybe that was true, vaguely, 15 or 20 years ago, but generally, we just buy stuff because it's what's available, it's what's being offered. It's what we are forced to buy. People don't use touch-screen phones and voice recognition because they've been dreaming about it since they were little children, they use eJunk because they have no choice. The market doesn't respond to consumers' needs-- this is fantasy that was only true for a heartbeat in time after the industrial revolution. There's no reason to think the market would behave the same way indefinitely, when the power differential between industry and consumers has changed so dramatically, and now that scarcity of material is a real factor in product development and design. Also, with a mandated 'bare-bones' model, I think carmakers would be forced to rethink the way their cars are designed so that they were more efficient and reliable.
I absolutely do not have a problem with government's boot planted firmly on the throat of industry. That's how my own business operates. It's annoying, and there are some stupid rules I have to find loopholes for in some high-risk situations, and yes, that adds some risk for some patients. But it's WAY safer than the dark days when my profession was completely unregulated.
The only reason I bought the MX5 was because they offered a bare-bones model that didn't have any eJunk except for electric windows, which I despise, even though I have dual rotator cuff syndrome and it hurts to turn the crank. Literally, there was no car on the market that interested me between 1991 and 2016. And indeed, look where we are now, six years later: The most common point of failure for the ND MX5: eJunk. On Miata.net, countless tales of people's dashboards lighting up like Christmas trees, their cars developing bizarre intermittent problems and gremlins that take months to track down-- and it's always some unnecessary system that caused the problem, some digital gimcrack that, thankfully, isn't on the Sport.
Okay, rant off! I should buy a single-malt for anyone who had the patient to read all that!
PedalUma
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Petaluma, CA
@Catalyzt, I apply your approach to electric bikes. Bare bones. The tech is hidden. With the best ones the thumb sized display only shows power level and battery level. The one I am working on now has an IGH with a coaster brake and no visible wires or connectors. Simple. Remember the roll up windows on a Benz? Those were smooth and you could operate them when parked in the shade with the car off. And how about a radio with a heavy and smooth tuning nob instead of the digital crap?
Catalyzt
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
You are speaking my language! And about that Peugeot 505 turbo diesel: I believe it had a hand cranking sun roof! Great way to save weight and decrease maintenance! Love your builds, exactly my style.
I am looking forward to the day three or four years from now, when 40nm is no longer enough to get me up these hills, and if I can avoid the dirtnap between now and then and if you take the job, when I pack Seeker into the CRX and roll up to your neck of the woods to replace the battery and power plant, see what you can do with it. I bet we can drop a few pounds, add some power and maybe even some range, we'll see what's available if we get to that point.
The worst was my '99 MX5 -- I mean, I loved that car even though it didn't check all my boxes, but the electric window switches were in the center console. And our late Bichon X couldn't quite figure out how those worked-- but he did learn that by stamping and pounding on the console with his paws, eventually, he could get the windows to open. This created a series of problems-- the first being that he could leap out of the car, but the second was that the passenger side window motor BARELY worked. Basically, it would go down, but not up, when it was too hot, and I didn't want to spend $400 to fix it.
So, Catalyzt drives to work with the dogs-- who were allowed at work, though Zippy did get written up, the office actually had a separate employee manual for dogs with a progressive discipline policy-- and rolls down the driver's side window to swipe the card key for the parking lot. The INSTANT that my attention is diverted from my canine companions, Zippy stomps on the center console, rolls down the passenger side window, and is halfway out! I grab his leash and drag him back inside, park the car, and then spend 20 minutes in the hot sun trying to nurse the window closed so I can park the car.
what about a car with only a AM radio
Got me-- that would be a bridge too far! But an FM stereo radio with no bluetooth and a stereo mini aux in? I'm good to go. Prefer four speakers that I can access and replace myself.
I loved the AM radio on the old Pontiac Catalina-- driving down the I95 corridor, I could pick up stations from Ohio and occasionally a bit further west. Never knew what I'd wind up listening to on late night road trips. And it actually had a great mono system.
