Random Thought Thread

Retired UPS Driver said:
I sure am sorry E, those worries, concerns and decisions just plain suck. If you ever want/need an empathetic ear, I’m but a phone call away, 24/7.
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Thanks, Mike. Been down the road before. But it's been ten years since the last time. She was the antidote to that one to some extent. I should say has been...not was.

I don't know how imminent anything is, I'm dealing with some cues right now. And I'm trying to make sure I read them right to do right by her in terms of timing everything so we can enjoy what's left time-wise, without letting her suffer needlessly. (She is not yet at that stage.) As I say, it's cues at the moment, and a very large sarcoma on her side.

That's quite enough about that. I appreciate the good thoughts from everyone but would rather get back to the knives.
 
Blues said:
That's quite enough about that. I appreciate the good thoughts from everyone but would rather get back to the knives.
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Blues:
I was wondering if you ever met Trace Rinaldi in your many knife contacts. I did not realize he had passed away. I had several of his knives including an Armageddon Set (I regrettably sold it as I found it to bulky to hike with). He was super nice to talk to and deal with.
 
beeinak said:
Blues:
I was wondering if you ever met Trace Rinaldi in your many knife contacts. I did not realize he had passed away. I had several of his knives including an Armageddon Set (I regrettably sold it as I found it to bulky to hike with). He was super nice to talk to and deal with.
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Trace reached out to me years ago because we had a mutual "nemesis" in the knife world who we both were very skeptical of. As I had a knife that had been built by said individual, he asked if I would send it to him for some analysis. I gifted him the knife with no strings attached to do as he liked.

Some time later on, unbeknownst to me beforehand, I received a package in the mail with a knife built by him. As I recall, it was my first knife in S30V.

It was a sad day when he passed. He was popular here on the forums.

RinaldiGambit_001.jpg
 
tokerblue said:
What about a paint job like this?

VQgVl4i.jpg
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8331091E-4B41-4F03-BCB8-E54288995535.jpeg
 
Blues said:
Trace reached out to me years ago because we had a mutual "nemesis" in the knife world who we both were very skeptical of. As I had a knife that had been built by said individual, he asked if I would send it to him for some analysis. I gifted him the knife with no strings attached to do as he liked.

Some time later on, unbeknownst to me beforehand, I received a package in the mail with a knife built by him. As I recall, it was my first knife in S30V.

It was a sad day when he passed. He was popular here on the forums.

View attachment 2325605
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Time flies by so quickly. I was having a brain-fart moment today trying to remember an old maker of very swoopy blades and handles (Rod Chappel) and saw that Trace had passed. I am glad you knew him because he was really one of the nicest makers I ever had dealings with. That is a great looking knife you have!
 
I'm going to post this here in the spirit of a public service announcement. It seems this thread is the best location, since I rarely, if ever, stray from the Carothers Performance Knives Forum into the deeper, darker parts of BF. I've developed an affinity for most of the posters here, and would like to pass on this somewhat expensive lesson in the hopes others will benefit.

The impetus for this post is that I was the victim of a theft from a vehicle on Friday in one of the Central Valley cities in California. I was there on some business, went to dinner with some friends that live in that area, and while I was in the restaurant dining, some creeper stole what I call my gadget bag. The irony is the bag was worth more than the contents, and most of the stolen items are replaceable, albeit somewhat expensive. But that's not the point, just the lead in.

Here's the part I think everyone should be aware of. I was in a 2016 Ford F450, but I believe this problem can be extrapolated to all Fords of many year models equipped as described below, and probably all common makes. My truck has a factory "alarm system". It can be armed/disarmed with the key, by using the one keyway located in the driver's door (locking the door also arms the system, unlocking disarms), by the electronic keypad that serves as the handle to the key (lock, unlock, remote start (if it had a trunk, a trunk release), an "emergency" button, etc., or by a keypad on the driver's door.

Probably a lot of you can identify with this scenario: you arrive at your destination, jump out, shut the door, push the "lock" button on the key fob, and head off to do whatever you are doing. I always figured this was as good as it gets, the vehicle is locked, the alarm system set, and if anybody does break into the vehicle the alarm will sound.

Sounds good, except. It turns out the vehicle's alarm system doesn't differentiate between unlocking the vehicle with the key, or forcing a tool (such as a screwdriver) into the lock and brute force turning it. Once the vehicle is "unlocked" via the driver door keyway, the alarm system doesn't differentiate between a key and a screwdriver, and disarms the alarm system. Now the perp is free to open the vehicle, do their mischief, and disappear while the alarm system stays quiet as a mouse.

Prior to Friday, I had assumed the vehicle was fairly secure if locked and the manufacturer's alarm was set. It ain't so. Perhaps this is common knowledge to all but me, but probably most everybody thinks as I did, that the vehicle is fairly secure.

The conclusion I have drawn is that the manufacturer's alarm isn't worth SH*T. An aftermarket alarm would have squawked in this situation, maybe scaring away the perp, or perhaps alerting me to problems with the vehicle. If the previously described scenario sounds familiar to any of you, be warned, it is a false sense of security.

Here's hoping someone else may benefit from my lesson. If anyone feels I'm instructing someone on how to break in via this post, feel free to report it. If the Moderators feel the risks exceed any benefit, I have no objection to the post's removal. I just wanted to share my experience and opinions.
 
JohnBarleycorn said:
I'm going to post this here in the spirit of a public service announcement. It seems this thread is the best location, since I rarely, if ever, stray from the Carothers Performance Knives Forum into the deeper, darker parts of BF. I've developed an affinity for most of the posters here, and would like to pass on this somewhat expensive lesson in the hopes others will benefit.

The impetus for this post is that I was the victim of a theft from a vehicle on Friday in one of the Central Valley cities in California. I was there on some business, went to dinner with some friends that live in that area, and while I was in the restaurant dining, some creeper stole what I call my gadget bag. The irony is the bag was worth more than the contents, and most of the stolen items are replaceable, albeit somewhat expensive. But that's not the point, just the lead in.

Here's the part I think everyone should be aware of. I was in a 2016 Ford F450, but I believe this problem can be extrapolated to all Fords of many year models equipped as described below, and probably all common makes. My truck has a factory "alarm system". It can be armed/disarmed with the key, by using the one keyway located in the driver's door (locking the door also arms the system, unlocking disarms), by the electronic keypad that serves as the handle to the key (lock, unlock, remote start (if it had a trunk, a trunk release), an "emergency" button, etc., or by a keypad on the driver's door.

Probably a lot of you can identify with this scenario: you arrive at your destination, jump out, shut the door, push the "lock" button on the key fob, and head off to do whatever you are doing. I always figured this was as good as it gets, the vehicle is locked, the alarm system set, and if anybody does break into the vehicle the alarm will sound.

Sounds good, except. It turns out the vehicle's alarm system doesn't differentiate between unlocking the vehicle with the key, or forcing a tool (such as a screwdriver) into the lock and brute force turning it. Once the vehicle is "unlocked" via the driver door keyway, the alarm system doesn't differentiate between a key and a screwdriver, and disarms the alarm system. Now the perp is free to open the vehicle, do their mischief, and disappear while the alarm system stays quiet as a mouse.

Prior to Friday, I had assumed the vehicle was fairly secure if locked and the manufacturer's alarm was set. It ain't so. Perhaps this is common knowledge to all but me, but probably most everybody thinks as I did, that the vehicle is fairly secure.

The conclusion I have drawn is that the manufacturer's alarm isn't worth SH*T. An aftermarket alarm would have squawked in this situation, maybe scaring away the perp, or perhaps alerting me to problems with the vehicle. If the previously described scenario sounds familiar to any of you, be warned, it is a false sense of security.

Here's hoping someone else may benefit from my lesson. If anyone feels I'm instructing someone on how to break in via this post, feel free to report it. If the Moderators feel the risks exceed any benefit, I have no objection to the post's removal. I just wanted to share my experience and opinions.
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There's really nothing much lower than a thief like that.
 
I’m in the same boat. Wondering while reading what CPK loss there would be. I’m glad there wasn’t one.
I am sorry for your loss of property and the inconvenience caused by this lowlife thief.
I’ve had windows smashed and stuff taken before and, for me at least, it’s usually not the stuff or the value of the stuff that was stolen that sticks in my craw. It’s the violation of something that is mine. That I worked for and bought, and somebody else felt they had a right to take from me.
I will also add that no vehicle is safe. There is always a way around any mechanism put in place to prevent theft on a vehicle.
The best practice is to not leave things in plain sight in your vehicle. They only go in if they can see an easy pay off.
 
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Having a vehicle broken into and its contents stolen is very upsetting...but regardless of the contents, I'm glad you weren't in the vehicle when some ne'er-do-well decided to have at it. That would / could have been so much worse. Glad you're here to tell the tale J JohnBarleycorn

ETA: I have a console safe I installed in my vehicle for any valuables, a firearm or my garage door opener for the short periods I may have to leave them while attending to this or that, (especially where firearms carry is prohibited for one reason or another). Always lock up your garage door opener, so that you don't provide some miscreant with a way to access your home.
 
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Blues said:
Having a vehicle broken into and its contents stolen is very upsetting...but regardless of the contents, I'm glad you weren't in the vehicle when some ne'er-do-well decided to have at it. That would / could have been so much worse. Glad you're here to tell the tale J JohnBarleycorn

ETA: I have a console safe I installed in my vehicle for any valuables, a firearm or my garage door opener for the short periods I may have to leave them while attending to this or that, (especially where firearms carry is prohibited for one reason or another). Always lock up your garage door opener, so that you don't provide some miscreant with a way to access your home.
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Wish more people would think like this. In my case we have a car that has the feature in the car itself (homelink or something). It used to occupy the garage, but it is now outside, and one of the first things I did was reset the home link so it wouldn't work anymore.
 
JBC, I'm also sorry for the criminal breaking into your truck causing you both financial losses and and emotional stress. Regarding aftermarket non-factory alarm systems, some of you may recall that there was a trend not so long ago as reported by our media that thieves were posting on SM platforms such as TikTok how easy it was to circumvent some Hyundai / KIA models factory alarm systems and steal them. Clearly, easy hacks for criminally minded to break in / steal vehicles by getting around the factory alarm systems is not just limited to your make & model and its system's flaw as you had described.

Also, many franchise dealers these days have started adding an aftermarket alarm system to their new vehicles by the name KARR, ranging in ~ $995 to $1295 as an add on to the MSRP and other (some legitimate, some sketchy) dealer / destination port additions. These KARR alarms are just junk which dealers use to add profit to their bottomline in cases that the manufacture frowns upon overt dealer markups better known as "market adjustment" these days! You will see these systems on many Japanese and Korean models if you visit Honda, Toyota, Subaru, etc dealerships. Buyer beware!
 
jlauffer said:
Wish more people would think like this. In my case we have a car that has the feature in the car itself (homelink or something). It used to occupy the garage, but it is now outside, and one of the first things I did was reset the home link so it wouldn't work anymore.
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I've kept my garage door opener and all official documents relating to the vehicle in the console safe for years. No sense making it easier for them. I also check my six when driving home from shopping or the bank or whatever to ensure that someone is not going to try to gain entry while the garage door is open.

Of course if they try, I plan to ruin their day in short order.

(That kind of mischief is virtually unheard of around here, but the odds are still greater than zero.)
 
And any of you folks who do have and are happy with your car safe, you probably did a good bit of research prior to buying one and could share some knowledge for forum members who need or might be interested in buying one. At least a head start or narrowing down with more individual research before purchasing.
 
Casinostocks said:
Elliott, you own a (5th gen?) 4Runner right? Do you use a Toyota factory option console safe?
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No, I purchased a Lock'er Down model several years ago online and installed it myself...(in something like five minutes total).

Very pleased with it thus far. Heavy duty, excellent construction. I know prices have gone up in the interim, but it's a good investment, imho.
 
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