E-Mail 'JWR's Recommendations of the Week:' To A Friend

12 Comments

1. Re: Whole house fan

   One thing regarding fitness, health and survival that I wonder about is people’s ability to adapt to temperature variations.

   With more and more of our work time and living time conducted in climate controlled environments that keep us at a constant 72 degrees, I wonder how well people will adapt to the lack of air conditioning and central heat that would be associated with loss of the electrical grid.

   I feel like just in my 57 year life I see people less able to deal with cold or hot temperatures. I feel like back in the 70’s when I was a teenager people young and old were able to work and function better in the cold and heat. Could be my imagination but that is the way I remember it.

   I also wonder if some of the current obesity, diabetes and other health issues that are arising are partly related to are bodies not being forced to adapt to different stressers including temperature extremes. Not the only cause by any means but a contributing factor. There are some in the health and fitness world that are exploring this issue.

2. Necco Wafers. My favorite candy and the best comfort for a sore throat.

3. The Red Book is good, but if all you want is metal content, get an old copy. Also consider a set of “The Standard Catalog of World Coins” (multiple volumes by dates in 100 year increments)…Again get used copies. Numismatics is all about grades and what the market wants, but identification and metal content does not change! I.E. just how much gold is in that Swiss 20 Franc coin? While you’re at it, pick up a vintage Ohaus 4 beam balance scale… The Cent-O-Gram (311 gram X .01 gram) is a great NON ELECTRIC scale. Armed with these tools you are well on your way to knowing just what you have.

4. RE: The Simple Coax Dipole Antenna

   I’ve made and field test piles of these compact, very light weight, and cheap and easy to make dipoles for many friends. If only hung from a tree at an arm length, the range of a hand held in dense forest increases an additional mile. When hung at least 15′, the range increase is 2-3 miles.

   Although not the most efficient radiator as it has an impedance bump, under field conditions, it proves to be useful. It’s kind of like having 4WD. Go in using 2WD and should one become stuck, only then use the 4WD to get out. If one ventures just a bit too far, this will get them out. It is also hard to see, and rugged, and can be hung semi-permanently in a tree over an OP (observation post), or a point where a patrol may be at the edge of radio range. And it lends itself to horizontal polarization, reducing an RF footprint by 20 Db’s. Even if only 1 watt is good enough, a horizontally polarized antenna, greatly improves security. And if detected, you will sound as if you are further way than you actually are. And horizontally polarized antennas have a bit better range in heavily forested areas, that may allow one to reduce power.

   Here is an how to make video:

   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tafy51yUzQo

5. Wow, we have a lot to choose from today. Now, to find some time for sitting and checking it out.

   In the meantime, if you want to see “how they did it before the 20th century” in the northwoods, look into this: https://www.google.com/search?q=pioneer+park+historical+complex&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&client=firefox-b-1

   There are exhibits of early 20th century technology as well. All fascinating.

   We stopped in there on our way through and wished for more time. Very comprehensive tool collection, information on some of the tools’ uses, and an entire building devoted to the CCC which built the infrastructure for many of our state and national parks.

   The fire prevention/suppression info alone was worth my time.

   Carry on

6. I forgot in my earlier post to endorse the recommendation of an atlas. Little lines on paper helped us get where we were going w/o the guidance of satellite-informed systems.

   Carry on

7. I like maps. I can read a map. I hate GPS. I have it in my car. It came with the car. It’s off by about 250 feet. I’m sitting in my driveway, I’m trying to set “home” in the GPS. It tells me to go 250 feet due west to be at my home. I’m sitting in my driveway. It’s off when I use it.. It’s slow to respond, it’s too quiet to give meaningful directions. It would have taken me in circles if I let it. Now that I own the car, I need to find someone who can install a hard wired switch to turn the GPS off. I’d also like to have one for the on-board Bluetooth, the on-board WiFi, and the built-in microphone for the hands-free use of my phone. There are software switches, but those are easy to get around. Oh, and don’t forget the Sirius Satellite Radio, I’d like a hard switch for that too. I love the car, but it’s way too connected for my taste.

   The car I had before this one didn’t have GPS, but it had GPS. There was a button on the dash panel that said “Where am I?” It gave the GPS coordinates. So, even without GPS it still had GPS. Speaking of SiriusXM, one of their services works just like OnStar, and they can talk to you without your phone. That means they can also listen in on your conversations if they want to, even if you let the SiriusXM subscription run out. I love most modern technology for the things you can do with it, but I’m really beginning to hate modern technology for the things it can and does do to you.

   The next car (truck) I get is going to be very old.

8. Charles K. Just curious, why your next viechle ? You know all the negatives of what you have now, but you seem willing to let the powers that be collect what ever they collect for how many years??? Take the thing back, take your hit on the buy back and find an old viechle that doesn’t spy on you. Besides if you don’t get what you really want now, you might not be able to get it later. Just my humble opinion.

   1. VCC, that is exactly why I keep my 1999 V10 truck fully operational for heavy work, and keep my 1985 4×4 3/4 ton pickup for rough duty. Neither has good gas mileage, but I keep them on good running condition and neither has tracking devices built in.

   2. Truth is, the car I have, a 2016 Ford Flex, just fits my wife. She has physical limitations that make it difficult for her to get into a car, let alone a truck, that is either too high or too low. This Flex is my last new car. I should have kept my 2010 Flex. In some ways I liked it better than the one I have now. My other vehicle is an older Explorer, it is too high for my wife. It is no where near as connected. It’s just fine for me.

      The next car, or truck, will be old. I may have to build it up from parts to make it do what i want it to do, and to make it accessible for my wife. The good news is, it won’t cost any more than buying a new car, and it should last until I rot or it does, which ever comes first.

9. National Geographic has a book about survival skills. It has short chapters, very easy to read, and has excellent advice. I saw it at Barnes and Noble.

10. Hello Mr. Rawles I would like to thank you for including my video on using a radiator fan as a whole house fan in your weekly suggestions. I have since installed a PWM controller on the fan so that I can run it at any speed. I chose to use a radiator fan because my battery bank is 24 volts. I’ve tried to run as much as I can straight from the battery to avoid the inverter (or a buck converter) being a single point of failure. Here is a link to the follow up video. https://youtu.be/S4C9g98IAdc Please feel free to contact me should you have any questions comments etc.

Comments are closed.