onetrack

Good point. A local truckie came to me asking if I thought it was suitable for operating his road trains out of - because he liked it and wanted to buy it. I had to advise him he'd have to get the zoning changed, and get council approval, as it is currently zoned only for "light commercial" use, and not "transport" use. As it's right in town with houses to the left of the above photo, I couldn't see him getting rezoning approval. However, the truckie apparently found the owner and came back with a gloomy face, saying he told him would probably be looking for around $70,000 for it. I think the truckie thought he was going to get it pretty cheap. As the truckie has just bought a house in town, he might be a bit cash-strapped. When I spoke to the shed owner, he indicated he was going to put the block and shed up for offers, and I wouldn't be in the least surprised to see some real estate agent tell him he can get $100,000 for it.

Henry Ford was an a***hole of the highest order. He killed his own son - his only child - because of his arrogance, bullying, and constant belittling of him. Henry Ford's son Edsel died at age 49 from stomach cancer, and I have no doubt the cancer was caused by his fathers outrageous behaviour. Henry Ford specialised in employing "goons", thugs who beat up striking workers. Henry Ford was little more than a domineering, jealous, abusive thug. Elon Musk is not far behind.

I have owned my block for 5 years, and I've only seen the owner of the shed and block next door, just once in that time, about 3 weeks ago. And the only reason I saw him (and spoke to him) was because he's cleaning the block up to sell it. The bloke was so ignorant, that he didn't even bother introducing himself, even though I did. So I still don't even know his name. The shed belonged to his father, who died around 10-12 years ago and the place has virtually been abandoned since the owner died. I have zero chance of acquiring any power from his property.

Strangely enough, the blokes who installed our solar system claimed the solar panels they were putting up, produce more power as they get hotter. Someone is fibbing. Interestingly, research appears to show that solar panels contribute to increased urban heating during the day - but they cool the urban environment at night. How that works, I don't know. https://physicsworld.com/a/solar-panels-can-heat-the-local-urban-environment-systematic-review-reveals/#:~:text=A systematic review of 116,) systems%2C the study found.

Nev, the mains power is 50 METRES away from my block, not 50 miles!! My corner boundary is behind the small tree in the orange circle. The neighbour has power to his shed, he had it connected many years ago, possibly the late 1970's, and I'll wager it only cost him a minimal figure, back in the days before the CORPORATES invaded the W.A. State Electricity Commission, and the charges for everything went ballistic.

You East Coasters should be thankful you've actually got power suppliers to choose from. Here on the Left Coast, we have only one power provider, it's either suck up to them, or go totally off-grid. And a few people are doing the latter. I've just bought a 3 phase genset for my block in the wheatbelt, because I've got no power to the block. I already have a little 6KVA Kubota diesel, single phase genset. A major 3 phase power line is only 50M away at the nearby T-junction to my block, but it could cost $10,000 or $20,000 to get the power supplied to my property. I have to lodge an application to just get a supply cost quote, I have to pay nearly $2000 to start the application, it will take multiple weeks to get a quote, and if the quote comes back at a sum that makes me buckle at the knees, and I choose not to proceed, I lose $550 out of the application fees, just for not proceeding with the connection. If I do decide to proceed, it appears it will take 12 to 14 mths to get the power to the property. What a joke. The genset I bought is 50 years old (1974 build) and it's done about 100 hrs work in total, because it was a standby set in a big workshop under a house in the city. Developers bought the multi-million dollar property, and they were going to send this genset to the tip!! 😢 Talk about corporate greed and waste! Luckily the original landowner stepped in and grabbed it. It's powered by an air-cooled twin-cylinder Italian VM-Motori engine, a good little engine, very similar to a 2 cyl Lister. They're exceptionally reliable, but "old tech". Incredibly, VM-Motori still manufacture this engine, it's now called the VM-Motori SUN engine. The VM-Motori company has been a corporate football, it's had half a dozen owners in the last 30 years, although they originally commenced business in 1947. They were bought by General Motors in 1995 via their Detroit Diesel Corporation division. Then DDC was bought up by Daimler-Chrysler, who put VM-Motori under the Daimler Trucks of North America division. Then Penske Corp bought 50% of VM-Motori off DDC in 2003, and then bought the other 50% in 2007, making Penske Corp 100% owners of VM-Motori. In a staggering bit of corporate manoeuvring, Penske then sold 50% of VM-Motori to General Motors! In 2011, Fiat Powertrain Technologies (FPT) bought Penske's 50% shareholding in VM-Motori, and in 2013, FPT bought the remaining 50% of VM-Motori off GM, and FPT now fully own VM-Motori. VM-Motori are a large engine manufacturer, they make tens of thousands of water-cooled diesel car engines, and supply them to dozens of manufacturers. They even have factories in China. The generator is a Japanese-built Taiyo, these are the "Caterpillar" of generators, built like a Mack truck, and superb quality. The generator alone weighs 230kgs! I've picked this little 19KVA rig up for $3,700, and all I need to do, is install a power board with plug outlets on it, so it can be fully portable. It was originally hardwired into the power system. Fortunately, I just happen to have a new 20KVA powerboard on hand, it comes complete with generator gauges, amp, volt and frequency meters, as well as 3 phase plugs. This little genset uses about 2-2.5L/hr of diesel, and it costs me nothing when it's not running! Overall, it's a vastly cheaper option for 3 phase power for my big compressor and tyre changer and bandsaw, than a Western Power connection, where I would still have to pay a monthly power supply charge (which is around $25 month), even when I'm not using any power!

This sums it all up .....

Billy Idol showing what a hard life of drugs, sex, and rock/n/roll, does to your appearance!

Cooling system neglect will take most modern cars out of action faster than anything, it's reported that more than two thirds of breakdowns are cooling system related. Cars that haven't been driven much, generally have the most neglected cooling systems. But yes, the Astra timing belts were weak, and need early replacement.

Astra had so many models, it's nearly impossible to find anything on the Classic. But the general impression is they weren't too bad a car, even though they were designed and built by Opel. They were built in Belgium, so that's possibly an advantage in build quality. However, their weakness is the crappy timing belt, which needs replacing at 60,000 kays, and you're well advised to replace the water pump while you're at it. Also, there's a coolant hose at the back of the engine that can spring a leak, and you only find out about it, when the engine is cooked. Check the cooling system thoroughly to ensure there's no corrosion or dodgy-looking hoses (squeeze them to see if they're still pliable, and not showing signs of perishing). Ensure the coolant is replaced regularly, and the cooling system is properly flushed, and you'll eliminate 90% of the problems that will see you break down.

So, do we get more details, such as make, model, etc? - and is it red?

I've paid a grand total of just over $122 for electricity in the last 12 mths. But we got handouts (power credits) from the State and Federal Govts, so without them, our total power bill would have been much higher. I just looked up my power supply account, and we've still got $300 in credit with our power provider, Synergy. We don't spare anything by way of power use, we've got 3 reverse cycle air-cons (1 x 3HP and 2 x 1HP) and we use electricity for heating in winter (a column oil heater and the R/C A/C's on heat) - but we do have a 6.6kW solar system feeding into the grid, and we turn on the washing machine and dishwasher during the day.

The "free energy" from the sun and wind is not free, the huge costs of installing solar arrays and wind turbines has to come out of it, and those Danish turbine manufacturers don't exactly give their turbines away.

Well, at least we know Litespeed's still alive.

Power costs go up every year, regardless of where you live, so that might account for the "higher bill in the following year".

I have a Rheem gas instantaneous HWS, and it has no external electricity requirement. It contains a little "turbo-generator" (Rheems wording), which is simply a small, inline, water-driven turbine that produces electricity that ignites the gas upon opening a tap. It has no pilot flame, but has a backup 3.7V rechargeable battery, and it's been virtually trouble-free for about 11 years. However, a small solenoid crapped itself the year before last, and once again, it was a 5 min repair job, but I paid over $500 for the repair - obviously because that solenoid was a pricier item than an igniter. Interestingly enough, the Rheem repairman said it was the most common fault in my model, and he always kept a few on hand in the van. The HWS manufacturers eliminated pilot flames probably 15 years ago, as it was deemed a lot of wasted gas and unnecessary pollution.

The West Australian Govt Railways, and its former rail authority, the Dept of Works & Railways, had not a single tertiary-qualified engineer, until Ron Fitch, a UWA engineering graduate, was appointed to the WAGR - in 1929!! Yet the vast majority of WAGR rail lines and infrastructure were installed between 1880 and 1929 - without the oversight of any railways engineer! The men in charge of laying the rail lines were surveyors, and senior foreman, who all had practical skills in rail line construction - but not a one of them had any tertiary qualifications! Oddly enough, the W.A. Railway Workshops, initially established in Fremantle in 1886, and then moved to Midland in 1904 - which workshops were responsible for all West Australian rolling stock and engine construction and maintenance - appointed a Chief Mechanical Engineer in 1900! Obviously building, repairing and maintaining railways rolling stock and engines was regarded as VERY important job, that warranted the oversight of a Mechanical Engineer - but building the railways themselves, was obviously regarded as simply a foremans job!

My 93 yr old Italian neighbour, Barney, has a Rheem instantaneous (natural) gas HWS. It stopped working, so he came over to see what could be done about fixing it. His English isn't good, and he has zero knowledge of the "computer world" - and he's deaf as a post, too - so it's all hard work for him. I told him he could call Rheem, they have their own plumbers and repair vans, but it would most likely cost between $400 and $500, even if it was a simple part. If it needed more repair, it might be cheaper to replace it (it's a 2012 model), which he understood pretty well. I told him Rheem take $200 deposit out of your credit card just to initiate a callout - and their minimum charge is $260. Of course, he doesn't have a credit card, he only uses cash at all times! - and when I said they would send him messages via his phone, he decided that wasn't the way he wanted to go (he has a cheap mobile, but hardly knows how to use it, and he only keeps it "for emergency"). So he said he had a plumber mate down at the Italian club, and he'd ask him if he could fix it. A week later, I asked how he was getting on with it. He said his mate looked at the unit, figured out it was "an electric part" that needed replacing, and it would take 2 weeks to get the part, and install it. I was surprised, I told him Rheem parts were easy to get, and Rheem will repair it in a day or two. He said, "I don't think my mate wants to repair it, would it be easier and quicker to get a new one?" (a new replacement gas HWS is $1350 for a basic installation here, and it goes up if any difficulties are encountered). I said, "Rheem will repair it for you quickly, and as I said, it will probably be $400-500, do you want me to organise it?" He looked relieved and said "Yes, I'll pay you what it costs, and pay you as well!" I said, "I don't need any payment Barney, but I'll get it organised for you". I rang Rheem and inquired about parts supply, and they said they can supply almost any part needed for nearly all Rheem HWS's in use, and the worst wait would be 2-3 days. So I got them to put me through to Rheem service, where the (older) lady was very good. She took all my details down carefully and read them back, and advised the $260 minimum and $198 up-front charge (which I knew about), and initiated a call-out. I got a text with the job allocation number within minutes, and the next text was advising the job would be done the following day. The following day I got a couple of texts advising the repairers timing of arrival, and he arrived pretty much on time, in the early afternoon. He quickly diagnosed the problem as a U/S igniter (about a $40 part) and he had one in his van - but the model of HWS Barney had was a bugger to work on, because it was older and the igniter was buried deep in the HWS. He set to, and had to undo about 50 screws and pull off part after part, panel after panel and bracket after bracket. After about 45 minutes, he had the igniter out. He said the current models were a doddle to repair the igniter, and he would've had it done in 10 mins, if it was a current model. When I asked him about the life of a gas HWS, he bluntly stated. "10 years!". So he reckoned this one was past its use-by date! - but it still looked O.K. and didn't show any signs of corrosion. He pulled a new igniter out of his van and had it in and finished about an hour and 15 mins after starting the job. He signed it off and left, and the HWS was working spot-on. I went to my computer and there was the bill! - $339.13 in total - and the money was already gone from my credit card! I went and told a grateful Barney, gave him the invoice (the job was booked in his name and he would need the invoice for any claims), and he insisted on giving me $340 plus $50 for my trouble - despite me insisting I didn't need any payment, I just wanted to make sure he could have a hot shower! I think he got out of it pretty lightly, cost-wise, and he would've almost certainly have been ripped off by private plumbers.

I remember watching a snake at a highways edge once, back in the early 1980's. I was trundling along in my Mack and low loader, just picking up speed as I left the outskirts of a country town, and I suddenly sighted this snake in a strike pose on the RHS (gravel) road shoulder, from about 300 metres away. I was puzzled as to why it was preparing to strike, until I looked further, and saw a little bird crouching in mesmerised terror on the LHS gravel shoulder! However, the noise of my approach snapped the little bird out of its mesmerisation, and it took off, flying upwards very rapidly. To my amazement, this snake literally flew across the full width of the highway (highway bitumen seal is 8M wide), fully erect, just propelling itself along, sitting on the last 30cm of its body! It lunged at the departing bird and missed by quite a distance, the little bird was too fast. But that rapid movement of the snake across the highway, just virtually sitting on its tail, was amazing to watch, it took probably just over a second to travel around 10 metres.

Give it a couple of years and Colombians will be deporting planeloads of American refugees, all seeking to escape Trumps brutal and erratic decisions and executive orders, that will have led to poorer economic outcomes for most working class Americans.

Any tiger snake near me would be a dead tiger snake very quickly. The W.A. ones are downright nasty bastards, they rear up to strike, the instant they spot you. I've never forgotten one that chased me on the dairy farm when I was about 8, and my hatred of snakes is lifelong. They can move VERY fast for something without legs. I've seen a snake in the W.A. goldfields doing about 30 kmh, it was staggering to watch, and I watched it keep up that speed, for about 400 metres. I have no idea what kind of snake it was, I was too far away, but it was a thin snake, possibly a Gwardar.

I have never heard that acronym of Aunty Acid's, and I think it's probably something heard quite often in some American slums, and certainly not in Australia. To my mind, it sounds downright abusive towards offspring, and my parents certainly never spoke to me in that tone, or style of speaking.

Trump thinks he's the worlds great DEAL MAKER. He makes deals alright, but only to benefit himself, no-one else. Putin will offer Trump a "GREAT DEAL" by allowing Trump to do something like build hotels and golf courses in Russia, and that will immediately send Trump into high praise for Putin, and start him off parroting all the Putin diatribe, about how Russia fears for its existence against the war-mongering West, so it HAS to arm itself and try to "protect" its borders against the Nazis who want to take over Russia. Then Putin will be grinning like a fox, as Trump turns his invective and nastiness onto Zelinsky, and Trump will tell Zelinsky to hand back all that "illegal" Russian territory Ukraine has held for years. With a bit of luck, and with more backing from the NATO countries, Zelinsky just might tell Trump to shove his attitude and his outrageous demands.

Trumps dopey decision to can EV's and anything to do with them, is going to hand the global car market on a plate, directly to the Chinese - and destroy all of the U.S car manufacturing industry. If Trump thinks canning EV's and putting huge tariffs on Chinese cars is going to do great things for America and Americans, I've got some news for him. I wonder how long before U.S. car manufacturers start pulling him aside and saying, "you'd better drop this crazy idea of yours that oil and fossil-fuel powered cars are the future - because they aren't!" https://www.torquenews.com/17995/uss-end-ev-support-will-significantly-strengthen-chinas-aggressive-moves-dominate-ev-industry

ERROR CORRECTION: My memory is getting faulty. The Golden Eagle nugget finder in January 1931 was Jimmy Larcombe, not Larkin. As a postscript to the Larcombes life story, Jim Larcombe Snr purchased the Terminus Hotel in Lane St Boulder in July 1933, and after re-naming it the Golden Eagle Hotel, he and his wife moved in as owners and operators. However, Mrs Larcombes life was cut short in 1942 when she had a stroke whilst working in the Hotel. She was taken to Hospital, where she died shortly after. Jim continued to operate the Golden Eagle Hotel, but sold it sometime in the 1960's I think, and purchased the Foundry Hotel in Kalgoorlie. Unfortunately, the Golden Eagle Hotel started to fall into disrepair in the 1980's and then became abandoned as an operating hotel in the early 2000's. Then the 5.2 magnitude Kalgoorlie-Boulder earthquake of 2010 caused serious structural damage to the building, and it was then deemed by the owners to not be economically repairable, and was slated to be demolished. However, before that could be carried out, someone set fire to the hotel, leaving it a smoking ruin. What was left was then demolished, thereby reducing the number of historical original hotels in Boulder by one more.