Singer oil and its many uses

In a previous post, I was talking about lubricating your chain with Singer oil. I have been using this oil for years. It is easy to get and relatively inexpensive here in Singapore…costing about $1 per bottle. Originally meant to lubricate Singer sewing machines, people have used this oil for a variety of purposes. I have used this oil for years to lubricate my bicycle, to lubricate the hinges of doors, to protect my chrome handlebars from rust, oiling my rusted bearings…in fact…many other uses! I have a bottle in my toolbox and one on standby if that bottle should finish. Get a bottle today. very useful to have around the house.

Get a chainbreaker if you ride a bike

A chainbreaker is a very, very useful tool to have if you ride a bike and want to degrease your chain. As a rule of thumb, you should degrease your chain every 6 months, or even more frequently should you ride constantly. Some chains do not come with master links so a chainbreaker is needed to dis-assemble it. Once you have “broken” the chain, soak it in some diesel in a glass jar. I find old glass jam jars the best for this. After soaking in the diesel for a few hours, with a few shakes to loosen out any dirt or grease on the chain, take it out and re-assemble it with the chainbreaker. After that, lubricate the chain with your favourite lubricant. I happen to like Singer oil the best. After that, you are all up and running!

Nokia 101 dual SIM phone

I needed a new phone, just in case my Samsung C3212 croaks…and I can feel it. Some of the buttons have a very funny feel to them so I know the end is indeed near. Also, this phone, supporting the dual SIM functionality that my Samsung had, will come in handy when playing back music for events. My Samsung did not have a way of plugging in audio cables but this one does. I tried the sound just now…fabulous! It worked out really, really good. So for a little less than $40 Singapore dollars, looks like I have bought one helluva phone!

JTS US-903DC wireless microphone system

A couple of days back, I got the chance to use this at a wedding event. I must say that I am pretty impressed with this. The sound was nice and clear and I can safely say that this would be a great, affordable wireless microphone system that bears serious consideration. What I also like about it is that it has a built-in battery charger! Awesome! Useful if you are using nickel-metal-hydride rechargeable batteries in your mics. Features of this microphone are, according to the website:
Preset 4 groups each of 16 UHF channels.

• (Phase-locked Loop) synthesized technology ensures stable RF transmission and reception.
• Diversity technology prevents dropouts in the RF link.
• Lock-on function mode.
• LCD indicates channel frequency, RF/AF level.
• Equipped with both XLR balanced and Ø6.3mm unbalanced outputs.
• Built-in charger: holds 4 AA batteries.

The only bugbear of the system was the fact that when the hotel, where this event was taking place, had their own wireless mics activated, it caused interference on one of the microphones. This was easily fixed by selecting a different frequency. Worth a look at I think and from what I can see, it looks like it is a good, value-for-money wireless microphone system.

Cadbury Bubbly chocolate

When I went to Australia some weeks ago, I became hooked on this chocolate. I bought a couple of bars of them and promptly munched my way through them. Very novel chocolate design is all I can say.

CEE Form socket adapter

I have said in a previous post here that I feel like changing all my plugs to CEE Form 16A IP44 plugs. I started with this one. It is always useful to have one in your toolkit, should the need arise when you need to tap power from somewhere. I bought a new plug today and fixed it up to a spare 13A plug that I found. Instant adapter. Slowly but surely, all the plugs in my rack are going to be CEE Form plugs. No issues with water and fuses…well…maybe except for this plug attached to the CEE Form plug!

Canvas tool bags

I have done many installation jobs in many a place. In most cases, I have come across contractors who keep their tools in canvas bags like the one I saw above. I was thinking to myself…what is so great about these bags? I only found out when I bought one. They are strong and resistant to tearing and ripping. That is why back in the day, soldiers backpacks were made of canvas, because of its long-lasting durability. Also, check out the carrying handles. They are stitched around the whole bag which means that they will be strong enough to carry heavy loads if need be. It is pretty cheap too…costing me only $8! Maybe I should get a few more of these. $8 does not hurt the pocket very much…

The Pioneer DDJ-WeGo controller is now mine

I did a write-up of the Pioneer DDJ-WeGo controller some time back, almost a year ago when it first came out. When I got this controller, I had some issues trying to install it on my Dell laptop PC. What was irritating about it was the fact that the software, VirtualDJ 7 LE that was shipped with my controller, could not run after it was installed. I had to resort to registering the software on the VirtualDJ website and then downloading a newer copy. Only after that, I was able to make it work. I also downloaded a copy of Serato Intro and tried it out as Serato Intro could work with this controller as well. But I notice that when I played MP3s through Serato Intro, it sounded flat whereas when I played the same file through VirtualDJ, it sounded pretty good. I am pretty pissed as to why Pioneer shipped a version of VirtualDJ that was not working. Bloody irritating that is all I can say. But alls well that ends well. Looks like I have a pretty good controller. Now to find a case for it. I bought it because of its size but unfortunately, I cannot find anything that will house it like I managed to house my Hercules DJ Console MK4. Oh well, I will find something soon. I love this controller. It feels nice, the sound sounds great and I like it. This will take over my Hercules when it croaks. And I also got a Decksaver for it too!

Comfort Citycab taxi prices are exhorbitant

Look at the price above for what I paid for a taxi ride from my mother’s place to my place. Its true, I called a cab but back then, booking fees only cost about $2.50. Now its going up. Look at that. Booking fees are now $3.30. And there is also a peak hour charge of 25%. Apparently, peak periods are from 6pm to 12am. And guess what? After 12am, the midnight charge kicks in. A normal taxi ride only cost me about $13 last time if I booked it. Look at it now. These bloody cab companies…conniving, over-charging bastards. And it is not to say that their drivers are not without blame. Just the other day, I made a post of TransCab drivers picking and choosing their passengers. Talk about bad service. And look at this bill now. $16. And peak hours? At 10pm? Bloody profiteering bastards.

You know, in other countries, take Australia for example, cab-fares are expensive but cars are cheap. Here, taxis, which are part of public transport, have high fares and cars are expensive too! Bastards. No wonder people are saying Singapore is getting expensive. As far as I am concerned, taxi companies here need to seriously improve their service BEFORE raising fares. I had one of their Comfort taxi BLATANTLY ignore me when I tried to flag it down on Sunday! Bloody bastards. I wonder what excuse they gave this time?

Microsoft Security Essentials

When this was released in 2009, I kinda pooh-pooh’ed it because I knew only too well how weak Microsoft’s Antivirus was from the old days of Windows 3.1. But when my Avast Antivirus started flagging my Brother printer’s software as a virus, that is when I decided to go for the install of this one. It provides baseline security, not the best but it works…and is pretty zippy too! If you know what you are doing, this should be good enough. I run it, so does my wife and some other customers of mine. I like it, no matter what anyone says.