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I thought I'd post progression photos of my motor being rebuilt. It's a plain 1600cc, DP, dual carb setup. I have a hunch most users here are seasoned wrenches but there may be someone on the fence about pulling their motor and performing  a rebuild.

We all have to start somewhere and hopefully seeing how simple it is to work on a VW motor will provide a little inspiration. 

Here are a few photos taken before I head over to the machine shop. 

SpeedsterMotor_01SpeedsterMotor_02SpeedsterMotor_03SpeedsterMotor_04SpeedsterMotor_05SpeedsterMotor_06SpeedsterMotor_07SpeedsterMotor_08SpeedsterMotor_09SpeedsterMotor_10

"All I need are big dreams and open highways..."

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Yes, great looking shop! I can only dream of having that much space. I am confined to almost (note the word almost) a full half of a smallish 2 car garage in our townhouse, sharing my side with the family lay down freezer- next time we buy an upright! But then I'll lose space on the tool board on the wall; hmmm. When you have such limited space available everything is a trade off. And I don't have a clue where I'm gonna put the table top milling machine...

.Although a lot of the guys here do varying degrees of maintenance/repair work on their cars, not everyone has rebuilt an engine (or even pulled it) and you'll have a bigger audience than you think. And even the guys that have will be watching. We all like engine ****! Will you be doing the cleaning/measuring/assembly yourself or will it be someone else? Do you know what the final combo (or specs) will be?

And am I correct in it's George? Al

Yup, that shop wins the "Shop of the Month Award" from the PCCA!

pcca

At this house, I built the absolute largest garage I could fit into available space without running afoul of the town's Building guys so ended up with a 26' sq. 2-car-plus-shop so I'm comfortable, but not a lot of free space.  Would love a sandblasting cabinet (I know of one for free) but no place to put it.  

 

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Last edited by Gordon Nichols
Robert M posted:

I told my wife that after we are both retired I want to look for a four car garage with a small house attached to it. As of now I have a two car garage with a large house on a large lot that I can't put a big shop on.

Two miles from me sits an very large stone ranch style home about half a mile from the end of an airstrip (KEKN)  There is a hanger on one side of the home that has the same stonework , about the same size as the home . I told my wife it we win the Lottery that will be our summer WV home.... I will have the hanger area enclosed to store 20 or so cars and still have plenty of room .

 

Last edited by Alan Merklin
Robert M posted:

I told my wife that after we are both retired I want to look for a four car garage with a small house attached to it. As of now I have a two car garage with a large house on a large lot that I can't put a big shop on.

I had this opportunity, and blew it.

In 2006, I build a giant house in a 1-street subdivision about a mile east of town. In 2009, I built a 1500 sq ft barn with a heated floor and a 14' x 18' overheard door behind the house. My kids got married and moved out within a year or two of building it, so my wife and I were rattling around in a 7 BR, 4-1/2 bath house.  We housed everybody and their uncle (3 different displaced families for 6+ months, students from church for entire school years, etc.), but Jeanie always felt weird living in the "big house". I did not. I always patronizingly told her if somebody pulled in my drive and made me an offer, I'd sell it.

In 2015, a friend did just that-- drove in the drive and made me a decent offer. It's a long, strange story, but the bottom line was that I sold with no plan where I wanted to go. Lots of cash in hand, free as a bird.

Anyhow, my dream idea was to build a carriage house-- 4 car garage downstairs, loft above. It would have been no problem in unincorporated Tazewell County, but Jeanie wanted to live in civilization, and we'd done it my way for 30-ish years, so... we built where she wanted to live (in town, in an older neighborhood).

The thing is: most municipalities lack imagination and frown on unconventional ideas. If I'd have known then what I know now, I might've pushed harder, but what I ended up building was not at all what I had in mind. I'll post pictures of the shop when I finally get it finished, but suffice it to say, I'm squeezing 10 lbs in a 5 lb sack. Many, many hoops were jumped though for a shop space that is very, very nice, but quite a bit smaller than what I moved out of. Jeanie's got her dedicated parking, free of metal shavings. I've got a shop that has a 2-post lift, and will hold 3 vehicles in a pinch. Space is tight enough that I hung a 2-stage, 80 gal Quincy compressor from the 12' 8" ceiling above the blast cabinet. You've not yet begun to spend money until you start doing crap like that. The cost per square foot was staggering.

The guy that bought my place is in high cotton, however. He put two 2-post lifts out in the barn, and uses the 3-stall garage on the house as a garage (where's the fun in that?), and is happily frolicking around in a house with 2x the floor space as what I built for similar money.

I've done it both ways now and my observation is this: fitting a working shop on a smaller footprint is exponentially more difficult than just having a nice (normal) garage attached to the house, and a big, beautiful, dedicated out-building as a shop. Squeezing stuff in a small space is expensive and super time-consuming. Good luck with the zoning for more.

There's a reason Americans like big stuff. Turns out, it's just easier and better.

Last edited by Stan Galat
Alan Merklin posted:
Robert M posted:

I told my wife that after we are both retired I want to look for a four car garage with a small house attached to it. As of now I have a two car garage with a large house on a large lot that I can't put a big shop on.

Two miles from me sits an very large stone ranch style home about half a mile from the end of an airstrip (KEKN)  There is a hanger on one side of the home that has the same stonework , about the same size as the home . I told my wife it we win the Lottery that will be our summer WV home.... I will have the hanger area enclosed to store 20 or so cars and still have plenty of room .

 

It's funny you mention that. There is a housing community 3/4 of a mile from us that is a fly-in community. There is an airstrip that splits the community and all of the houses have hangers for garages. The majority of them are fairly large houses. I need to drive through again and see if any of the smaller houses are for sale just so I can get a hanger.

ALB posted:

Yes, great looking shop! I can only dream of having that much space. I am confined to almost (note the word almost) a full half of a smallish 2 car garage in our townhouse, sharing my side with the family lay down freezer- next time we buy an upright! But then I'll lose space on the tool board on the wall; hmmm. When you have such limited space available everything is a trade off. And I don't have a clue where I'm gonna put the table top milling machine...

.Although a lot of the guys here do varying degrees of maintenance/repair work on their cars, not everyone has rebuilt an engine (or even pulled it) and you'll have a bigger audience than you think. And even the guys that have will be watching. We all like engine ****! Will you be doing the cleaning/measuring/assembly yourself or will it be someone else? Do you know what the final combo (or specs) will be?

And am I correct in it's George? Al

Hi Al, my original plan as of 2 hours ago was to rebuild the 1600cc motor the Speedster came with and putt around for the rest of the summer. At the same time I would be identifying any other mechanical issues that popped up. 

I've now decided to install my 1776 motor instead. This motor came from my 1967 MicroBus. I will be performing everything except crankcase line bore, thrust cut and the heads valve seat and fly cut. Basically all the machining required will be done by a machine shop. The case will cleaned at the machine shop too.  

I'll try to post any somewhat VW specific mechanical processes along with tools that are handy for wrenching a VW motor. I'm very fortunate that I have 2 friends who have owned VW shops and probably a combined experience of 80 years. They have taught me a lot and continue to do so. 

Thank you for the shop compliments fellas. When my wife and I looked for our retirement home a nice shop was high on the list. My wife has her own 2 car garage with a full loft so the shop is all mine The size is 30x60 with 3 large roll up bay doors, I use 25% of the space for music and chilling out area. The rest of the shop is for wrenching. I'll post more shop photos later.

Let's see your shop/garage! 

By the way, it's called the "Manetarium, Fortress of solid dudes". LOL!!

@vdubuslife- So George, what's in the 1776? You know, camshaft, heads & porting, carbs, compression; you know, all that stuff- I need to know EVERYTHING! Guys, I have to train another one! When you rebuild the 1600 will it stay a 1600 or get bigger and have more power? I've always thought a great Speedster engine would be a 74 mm stroke crankshaft (original 356, 5 mm longer than 1300/1500/1600 VW) with 356 length rods (2? mm shorter than VW rods), either 90.5's, thickwall 92's or 94's with (depending on budget, cam and power you're looking for) either ported stock valve size (35x32mm) or big valve (40x35) heads and some 40 mm IDF's or Dellorto's.

When I said I could only dream of having that much space I wasn't kidding- I present to you...

                                                                                                                                The Speedster Lair!

The Speedster lair

 

Yup, that's my almost half of the garage, along with the paint/work stuff in the corner, bicycles and ladders (which you can't see) hanging from the ceiling. And the pic doesn't show the lay down freezer in front of the car. There is a beer fridge on the other side in front of the family/wife's car, though...

Yoda out (for now, but you know back I surely will be!)

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vdubuslife posted:

Let's see your shop/garage! 

By the way, it's called the "Manetarium, Fortress of solid dudes". LOL!!

Ha, I like the name. I'm using 1/2 of the garage to do the engine/chassis work and bodywork in the tarp covered extension to my tool/kayak shed out in the backyard. Dr. Clock named the yard shop "the Blue Lagoon Palace" but my wife just calls it temporary, for some reason. 

It's only survivable because we live in the rain shadow of a 10,000 ft volcano and it's dry most of the time. We all struggle with the limitations we encounter, eh?IMG_20190627_072028IMG_20190627_071850

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This is my slightly stretched 2-car plus shop.  The sewer line for the house goes right behind the shop and the shop foundation is literally within (shhhhhhh......) three feet of it, so this is the biggest footprint I could have.  Nice place to putter, though.....And Kathy’s car was out during the photo op.

IMG_0102

Now you can see why I keep saying I have no more space for more tools......

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Gordon Nichols posted:

This is my slightly stretched 2-car plus shop.  The sewer line for the house goes right behind the shop and the shop foundation is literally within (shhhhhhh......) three feet of it, so this is the biggest footprint I could have.  Nice place to putter, though.....And Kathy’s car was out during the photo op.

IMG_0102

Now you can see why I keep saying I have no more space for more tools......

Are you sure you did fool us with an optical illusion on Depth in that pict 

It is a good size to do stuff 

 

My La-Bore-a-tory (as my wife calls it) is only 26 X 26 X 9. I need to work on cars outside in a wall surrounded parking area.  But all bench work is inside.  Some of you have commented on my color choice and I agree. It is very much "So Cal" colors. Sea Foam Green, Lavender, and Burnt Orange trim in small places.

The glass doors on the cabinets turned out to be quite a nice thing ! It's like having shelves that don't collect dust but you can see what's on them thru the doors when you're looking for something. In other words you don't need to open every door to see what's on the shelf.

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Ray:  I have about 8' - 9' in front of Pearl when she's parked, giving me a nice area in which to work and large enough to fit a lawnmower or my bicycle on a work stand.  For larger projects and woodworking, I wheel my table saw and vacuum out into Kathy's parking space and have at it and for really big projects I work out in the driveway (and usually draw visitors in from the street).  The quad electrical outlets are all split - 2 outlets go out with the lights, the other two stay on all the time (all ground faulted).

I'll let Chris know about this thread to get photos of the Five Cent Racing Water-Cooled Division's Galactic Headquarters on here.  He has the outline of a few auto race tracks embossed into the benchtops and a more colorful set of cabinets than me.  He also has a lift (that fits kiddie-size electric cars).

WOLFGANG posted:

30x40' steel barn - 19.5' at center and 14.5' at eves.  Now I need to section part off and put storage space above a small air conditioned hurricane evac living area (45 miles inland from Gulf).  Also need some hanging (steel cables) storage shelves for light items.

front door 6-28Nov 10 2014 494

Wofgang,

Now THAT'S what I'm talking about. Live in your house, park your cars in the garage, work in your shop. It almost always takes a second piece of property, but it's just the best possible solution.

Since I play with cars and do woodworking I want two shops like Wolfgangs. Never happen where I am now but will in the future. Don't know where yet but stepping on Needles and smelling human turds from 30,000 homeless in LA County is getting to be too much. I have always loved the climate in SoCal but the Dems have gotten too liberal and allowed this state to go downhill to the point that it's time to get out while property values are still high.  We pay the highest state gas tax per gallon in the US  ($0.54). Everything out here is expensive and well taxed both coming and going. I pay for the water coming out of my tap and what goes down the drain as well. I paid school tax all my life but never had kids. I paid the maximum contribution possible to Social Security all my working life but got my retirement benefit cut in half because I have other retirement income that pays more.  It just goes on and on.  Sorry for the rant. Couldn't help it this morning. Out of coffee.

We have been looking in Oregon, Nevada, Texas, Arizona, and now Florida next month. I would like .5 to 1 acre. That should be enough to have a really nice "La Bore a Tory"

Gordon Nichols posted:

Bruce:   Take a look at Beaufort County, SC when you're on the East Coast.  We found it  far better suited to what we wanted than Florida at way less $$$.  The town of Beaufort, SC, has a great car club, too.  3-1/2 hours north of Daytona.

Bruce, Gordon is right, Beaufort County, SC is a great area plus less than an hour away the wonderful Hilton Head Island Motoring Festival & Concours d'Elegance is held each fall.  On top of that less than three hours away the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance is held in March.

Last edited by Cliff Presley - Charlotte, NC
aircooled posted:

Since I play with cars and do woodworking I want two shops like Wolfgangs. Never happen where I am now but will in the future. Don't know where yet but stepping on Needles and smelling human turds from 30,000 homeless in LA County is getting to be too much. I have always loved the climate in SoCal but the Dems have gotten too liberal and allowed this state to go downhill to the point that it's time to get out while property values are still high.  We pay the highest state gas tax per gallon in the US  ($0.54). Everything out here is expensive and well taxed both coming and going. I pay for the water coming out of my tap and what goes down the drain as well. I paid school tax all my life but never had kids. I paid the maximum contribution possible to Social Security all my working life but got my retirement benefit cut in half because I have other retirement income that pays more.  It just goes on and on.  Sorry for the rant. Couldn't help it this morning. Out of coffee.

We have been looking in Oregon, Nevada, Texas, Arizona, and now Florida next month. I would like .5 to 1 acre. That should be enough to have a really nice "La Bore a Tory"

I agree Bruce. Just find me this weather anywhere else and I'd be gone.

I’m with you @aircooled .  The time California becomes “the place I used to live” can’t come soon enough!

We don’t have any place in mind yet, but we’ve seen a fair amount of the USA in the last few years.  I’ve found northern Alabama / Tennessee is very affordable (maybe 10% the cost per acre compared to the California Republic) and there are plenty of places to drive for hours on end.  We also like (in no particular order) Maryland, Idaho, Montana, and parts of the Pacific NW all for different reasons!

My only “issue” with the east and north-east is the humidity.  I spent the last week in Florida and it was terrible, but keep in mind I’m used to a “dry” heat.  Twenty years ago my In-laws bought their dream home in southern Florida.  They made it all of 14 months before they moved north!

One of the great things about this site is no matter where you land, there is probably one or more SOC member relatively close!

In a vain attempt to bring this thread full circle: no matter where I end up, I’d really like to have a shop as nice as @vdubuslife (and plenty other SOC’ers as well) has!

As the California retirees travel to the East, the housing prices soon follow. We were thinking  about the Reno area in Nevada, but a lot of the Bay area money did the same and there are no deals to be had there. I may end up in Tennessee or some other nation where my retirement dollar can be maximized. As far as my Government pension, I have read that the California Gov't has been seeking ways to tax your pension before it gets to you at your new address! I am a prisoner of this wacky state! 

Brian

Come to West Virginia where people truly care for one another. It seldom gets above 85 degrees in the summer, cools way down in the summer evenings, the mountain vistas are unreal and even in July & August you need to have a jacket with you... endless road trips through the twisties, steam trains through the mountains , waterfalls, and you get to enjoy a unique winter wonderland where snow can arrive in alarming quantity too . Did you know they make road snow blowers that are big enough to launch deer tangled into the power lines ?  Beautiful homes are inexpensive and taxes are cheap too. Word has it there's some old guy in that college town of Elkins that resto's some kind of speedster replica's. 

Last edited by Alan Merklin

Thanks Art.....Yes thats true. However, what I mentioned is called WEP Windfall Elimination Provision. and another called GPO Government Pension Offset. The first one is what cut my SS pension. There are two bills now pending pending our do nothin Congress.  Senate Bill 521 and HR 141 which would repeal them. The WEP alone penalized 249,000 in California alone, plus another 99,000 in GPO. I really don't think Congress will repeal such a windfall to the government on a National level. A lot of people wish they would though.

I currently receive retirement income from 4 sources. I was diligent all my working life to make sure that when I pulled the plug I would have enough to have fun in retirement. Because I did that I am now being penalized because I had a "windfall" when I retired. I am not wealthy by any standard. I still have to budget for the big expenses. OK, thats enough crying. I guess I'll go sort out my nuts n bolts now.

Bruce

 

 

 

 

 

 

I am told that if I move out of California to a state that has no state tax, I will still pay the Calif. state tax on my retirement.  If I move to a state that has state taxes, I do not have to pay Calif State taxes, only the state that I'm living in.

Here's another lovely funky factoid .....I am a naturalized citizen of Mexico. If I move to Mexico to live 100% of the time, renounce my US citizenship, I am liable for Federal taxes for TEN YEARS after renouncement. That also includes any income I make in Mexico as well.........Our Federal Government has some long and heavy duty meat hooks !.............Bruce

Alan Merklin posted:

Come to West Virginia where people truly care for one another. It seldom gets above 85 degrees in the summer, cools way down in the summer evenings, the mountain vistas are unreal and even in July & August you need to have a jacket with you... endless road trips through the twisties, steam trains through the mountains , waterfalls, and you get to enjoy a unique winter wonderland where snow can arrive in alarming quantity too . Did you know they make road snow blowers that are big enough to launch deer tangled into the power lines ?  Beautiful homes are inexpensive and taxes are cheap too. Word has it there's some old guy in that college town of Elkins that resto's some kind of speedster replica's. 

My wife is from Norfolk and we did take a driving trip through West Virginia my first time out  (91'). Beautiful country and truly a step back in time. Even rode on the Cass Railroad to get my train fix in. So much history. In Cali, if you saw something from the late 1880's you were dumbfounded. 

Brian  

I'd say something about retiring to Maui but I suspect it only works well if you've got relatives out here and were lucky enough to save enough dough to retire in California.

Plus you've got to put up with nice weather year round, white sand beaches, colorful tropical fish, a 10,000 ft mountain for when you want cool temps or snow and a diverse group of people who are really filled with the aloha spirit (mostly). It also sucks not to be able to drive over to Carlisle.  Don't shed tears for me, I'll get by somehow but if anyone decides to join us, we can form a car club...

You Kalifornia guys crack me up. Every blue state in the union has the same set of troubles plaguing the Golden State, but you think you're the only ones. 

Illinois just doubled the gas tax to $.38/gallon-- it goes into effect midnight Monday, but that's kind've deceiving, because we pay sales tax on it too (9% in most places, or about $.36 more per gallon), so total state tax dwarfs California's. Sales tax varies by municipality and county, but 8-9% is average (it's above 10% in some places by Chicago). There are extra taxes on hotels, restaurants, etc. We've taxed pensions and SSI draws for years. The income tax went up 33% a couple of years back, and Springfield just voted to put a graduated income tax (to stick it to the "rich") on the ballot for 2020. The owner of a $300K home can expect to pay (at minimum) about $6000/yr in property tax (figure 2% annually, and your about right).

We've got legalized (and taxed) video gaming in every bar and grill in the state, off-track betting, and now a bunch more casinos. We've got a state lottery that was so poorly run a private company is leasing it from the state. All of this was to pay for "education". Peoria Public Schools graduation rate is 71%, so all those dollars are doing a bang-up job readying our children for life in the information age.

We just legalized recreational weed, apparently so that when Jan. 1 rolls around and all this goes into effect, we'll all be able to get stoned and feel happy about it. Weed will be heavily taxed as well. The stats are a bit old, but the murder clearance rate for Chicago dropped from over 70% for 1991 to under 34% in 2011. Nobody sees nuthin'.

We just enshrined (state funded) legal abortion up until the moment of birth into law, made smoking or vaping before your 21st birthday illegal, set state taxes on a pack of smokes at $2.98, and raised the cost to register a car 50%. We pay sales tax on the purchase of a used car, and transferring the title now costs $150.

We've got fabulous weather (blazing hot summers, below zero winters), great roads (for a third world country), and cheap state colleges (U of I tuition and fees for Illinois residents: $14K/yr), and more layers of local government that any state in the union.

It's the Shangra La of the Midwest, I tell you-- a veritable workers' paradise. 

I'll trade you.

Last edited by Stan Galat
Lane Anderson posted:

There are several of us (me, Cory, Danny, etc.) looking into western NC and eastern TN as a retirement location and we've even discussed having a group buy to build a car-centered compound.  Northeast GA could also be a possibility as that is where Ron and Maddie Mullis are and it sounds awfully nice.

This is also an area we are considering. I really would like to be in a hilly, mountainous region Re: Outside of Asheville, Gatlinburg, etc. I am going to be selling in 2 years (See how the election goes) and moving in 3, most likely.

mppickett posted:

I'd say something about retiring to Maui but I suspect it only works well if you've got relatives out here and were lucky enough to save enough dough to retire in California.

Plus you've got to put up with nice weather year round, white sand beaches, colorful tropical fish, a 10,000 ft mountain for when you want cool temps or snow and a diverse group of people who are really filled with the aloha spirit (mostly). It also sucks not to be able to drive over to Carlisle.  Don't shed tears for me, I'll get by somehow but if anyone decides to join us, we can form a car club...

There is a reason that the rice and Spam isle in the grocery stores over there are the largest. That is the only food the locals can afford. Spam in so many different flavors too. C'mon, Chipotle style, really!

 

Ahem, pay no attention to Stan's post about Kalifornia.

This state is, without question, the worst place to live in the country. You really don't want to be here. Please, stay away!

All of those folks who come here and pay all of these taxes and spend top dollar for housing regret their decision the instant they arrive. They immediately flock back whence they came. This is why our population has remained almost the same over the past 50 years.

If you insist on defying all common sense and come here anyway, at least move to the best part of our state - LA. It's the only place in the state that's tolerable. If you want friendly neighbors, you'll be surrounded by millions of them, no matter where you go in LA.

The rest of the state is completely uninhabitable, especially the northern half, where it's 140 degrees every day in the summer and gas is $8/gallon.

If you drive a Speedster, you'll hate this place even more. There are just no good roads. Ask anyone how to get anyplace and the answer is always 'Take 80 to 680, then the 101' or 'follow 680 to 5' or 'do 5 over the grapevine'. And trust me, endless views of the Pacific Ocean or the Sierra Nevada while you're driving are so overrated. Don't believe all that melarky from the Chamber of Commerce. You've seen one ocean or one snow-capped mountain, you've seen them all. And wine country, wine shmuntry! You can get wine in any market or liquor store from Duluth to Peoria.

So please, I beg of you, stay in Oklahoma or Nebraska or Alabama. If you've already made the mistake of moving here, save yourself while you can - go home.

I'm just telling you this for your own good.

 

RacerX posted:
Lane Anderson posted:

There are several of us (me, Cory, Danny, etc.) looking into western NC and eastern TN as a retirement location and we've even discussed having a group buy to build a car-centered compound.  Northeast GA could also be a possibility as that is where Ron and Maddie Mullis are and it sounds awfully nice.

This is also an area we are considering. I really would like to be in a hilly, mountainous region Re: Outside of Asheville, Gatlinburg, etc. I am going to be selling in 2 years (See how the election goes) and moving in 3, most likely.

So as I understand it there will be a Car Clan somewhere in the south 

Yes, that is right. The brochures show that each development in this planned community are going to have one of those car-stacker, elevator things like they had in New York and Los Angeles in the 20’s or 30’s. Say for instance, if I see Lane’s Coupe in there, I just punch in the code and I am presented with the car and I am off! It’s gonna be great! But then again, maybe that’s the wine talking ... 🍷

Sacto Mitch posted:

 

Ahem, pay no attention to Stan's post about Kalifornia.

This state is, without question, the worst place to live in the country. You really don't want to be here. Please, stay away!

All of those folks who come here and pay all of these taxes and spend top dollar for housing regret their decision the instant they arrive. They immediately flock back whence they came. This is why our population has remained almost the same over the past 50 years.

If you insist on defying all common sense and come here anyway, at least move to the best part of our state - LA. It's the only place in the state that's tolerable. If you want friendly neighbors, you'll be surrounded by millions of them, no matter where you go in LA.

The rest of the state is completely uninhabitable, especially the northern half, where it's 140 degrees every day in the summer and gas is $8/gallon.

If you drive a Speedster, you'll hate this place even more. There are just no good roads. Ask anyone how to get anyplace and the answer is always 'Take 80 to 680, then the 101' or 'follow 680 to 5' or 'do 5 over the grapevine'. And trust me, endless views of the Pacific Ocean or the Sierra Nevada while you're driving are so overrated. Don't believe all that melarky from the Chamber of Commerce. You've seen one ocean or one snow-capped mountain, you've seen them all. And wine country, wine shmuntry! You can get wine in any market or liquor store from Duluth to Peoria.

So please, I beg of you, stay in Oklahoma or Nebraska or Alabama. If you've already made the mistake of moving here, save yourself while you can - go home.

I'm just telling you this for your own good.

 

..... “ And if you travel East from Sacramento, it get’s really terrible. Places like Auburn and Foresthill, Oh, don’t get me started” ... said no one ever ...

At the risk of taking vdubuslife's Motor Rebuild thread slightly off topic, my mother was from the Burnsville, NC area, between Asheville and the Tennessee border (30 miles north of Asheville). There's an upscale community named Mountain Air that has its own airfield on the Bald Creek side of the town. Nice small town restaurants, arts stores, bars with craft beers, etc.  If you're interested in that type of thing, it's worth checking out.

On the SC side of Asheville, Tryon, NC is an elegant small town with a lot of old money resulting more than the usual amount of cool cars. Great local theater, food, etc and close to Lake Lure. Some of my favorite cousins live there and it would be on my checkout list if we decided Maui was too nice for us.

 

Todd M posted:

A while back, California was taxing the income of pilots and flight attendants who  flew over or landed in California, even if they had no residence here.  The law didn't last long.

Good Lord, were they getting a royalty on all the peanuts passed-out during the fly overs. I mean, they must own a copyright since the word “Nuts” is used so often to describe their actions.

Sacto Mitch posted:

 Ahem, pay no attention to Stan's post about Kalifornia.

This state is, without question, the worst place to live in the country. You really don't want to be here. Please, stay away!

All of those folks who come here and pay all of these taxes and spend top dollar for housing regret their decision the instant they arrive. They immediately flock back whence they came. This is why our population has remained almost the same over the past 50 years.

If you insist on defying all common sense and come here anyway, at least move to the best part of our state - LA. It's the only place in the state that's tolerable. If you want friendly neighbors, you'll be surrounded by millions of them, no matter where you go in LA.

The rest of the state is completely uninhabitable, especially the northern half, where it's 140 degrees every day in the summer and gas is $8/gallon.

If you drive a Speedster, you'll hate this place even more. There are just no good roads. Ask anyone how to get anyplace and the answer is always 'Take 80 to 680, then the 101' or 'follow 680 to 5' or 'do 5 over the grapevine'. And trust me, endless views of the Pacific Ocean or the Sierra Nevada while you're driving are so overrated. Don't believe all that melarky from the Chamber of Commerce. You've seen one ocean or one snow-capped mountain, you've seen them all. And wine country, wine shmuntry! You can get wine in any market or liquor store from Duluth to Peoria.

So please, I beg of you, stay in Oklahoma or Nebraska or Alabama. If you've already made the mistake of moving here, save yourself while you can - go home.

I'm just telling you this for your own good.

Exactly.

Sacto Mitch posted:

 

Ahem, pay no attention to Stan's post about Kalifornia.

This state is, without question, the worst place to live in the country. You really don't want to be here. Please, stay away!

All of those folks who come here and pay all of these taxes and spend top dollar for housing regret their decision the instant they arrive. They immediately flock back whence they came. This is why our population has remained almost the same over the past 50 years.

If you insist on defying all common sense and come here anyway, at least move to the best part of our state - LA. It's the only place in the state that's tolerable. If you want friendly neighbors, you'll be surrounded by millions of them, no matter where you go in LA.

The rest of the state is completely uninhabitable, especially the northern half, where it's 140 degrees every day in the summer and gas is $8/gallon.

If you drive a Speedster, you'll hate this place even more. There are just no good roads. Ask anyone how to get anyplace and the answer is always 'Take 80 to 680, then the 101' or 'follow 680 to 5' or 'do 5 over the grapevine'. And trust me, endless views of the Pacific Ocean or the Sierra Nevada while you're driving are so overrated. Don't believe all that melarky from the Chamber of Commerce. You've seen one ocean or one snow-capped mountain, you've seen them all. And wine country, wine shmuntry! You can get wine in any market or liquor store from Duluth to Peoria.

So please, I beg of you, stay in Oklahoma or Nebraska or Alabama. If you've already made the mistake of moving here, save yourself while you can - go home.

I'm just telling you this for your own good.

That's some excellent writing right there.
-=theron

Ray:  Brock is in the other Beaufort - the one in NORTH Carolina and pronounced Bōw-Fort.

The one in South Carolina is pronounced Béu-fort ( Bee-You-Fort )

Both places are named for the same guy, Henry Somerset, the 2'nd Duke of Beaufort.

Beaufort, SC was the richest town on the East Coast just before the Civil war, making money for the planters from Cotton, Rice and Indigo.  It has, in the suburb of Port Royal, one of the deepest natural ports in the southeast at a mean of 68 feet, just past the same dock featured in "Forest Gump" when Forest and "Lt. Dan" returned from the hurricane to find the dock and shrimp boats trashed (that spot is actually a restaurant, the 11'th street Dockside)

Beaufort, SC was established in 1711.

Beaufort, NC was established in 1713.

That's my history lesson for the morning, but "Southern Living" magazine has named Beaufort, SC the best small town in the South for well over a decade  (Charleston, 2 hours north, is always named the best city in the South)

@vdubuslife   How's that Engine Rebuild coming?  

Did we bore you with the tangential thread shifts?

That kind of nonsense goes on with those who believe that everything needs to be taxes and are living off taxation.   

We were living in the country and the state/province decided to amalgamate small towns around into the large city and we got double the taxation and no extra service and a continual 2.5% per year tax increase for 10 years.  No reduction in bureaucracy.  BTW, they charge for water and for sewage more than the water even if the water is used for your sprinkler or pool you pay a sewage charge.  And, they want to tax well water too, only thing left is an air breathing tax.

And it goes ON...

OK, to get Ray off onto a tangential topic and get his blood pressure back down, Port Royale, SC, is a close suburb of Beaufort and started out Français - It was first "discovered" (But I'm pretty sure the Yemessee Natives were there long before this) by Jean Ribault in 1562, making it a really old French settlement.  That site (now part of the US Naval Hospital in Port Royal) subsequently became a Spanish and then a Scottish settlement.  It is, indeed, a Beau Fort and sits on the Eastern Intra-coastal Waterway.

For Bruce, the whole area is positively dripping in history, but the infrastructure management I would put with one foot in 1960 and the other foot around 2000 - They're all trying to do a great job, and sometimes they know how and pull it off.  Taxes aren't too bad (yet) but the highest point in the county is around 12' above mean high tide so you may have to worry about flood insurance (now only available through FEMA).  The mainland is protected but a bunch of sea islands blocking most storm surge.  Where your house is, and whether it is built on stilts, makes a BIG difference.  It is a microcosm of Charleston, in that both miraculously survived the Civil War intact but Beaufort is a much smaller version and more "walkable".  Some very old churches live there, as well as one of the earliest synagogs on the East Coast (a very cool place in and of itself).  We used to go to "Forest Gump's Church", the St. Helena Episcopal but, full disclosure, we mostly went for the outstanding choir but grew to become part of the flock.  

Realestate is still very affordable but get there soon, it's going up fast.  Decent facilities, a very good hospital in town (two, if you're a veteran) and an easy lifestyle (and a terrific car club) plus veterans can shop at the PX on Parris Island (it's like a nicely appointed Walmart).  And you're only 45 minutes from Hilton Head Island or Savannah, Georgia (another highly recommended town to visit).

gn

The new Green Deal will be fun too !  We probably will be taxed on the air we breath ! It'll start with the farmers who own cattle though. Since they won't be able to catch or control Cow Farts,  they will be required to to be taxed to pay for the research. 10% will go to the research and 90% for Governmental administration of unregulated Cow Farting. Here in SoCal, electric cars will soon be taxed because they don't use the taxed gasoline and the State Government is loosing revenue. The Government here doesn't know how to budget or make cuts to one, only how to raise or make new taxes. Fortunately, Government in general can never stay ahead of Private Industry. Private Industry will always find a way to hide taxable commerce. At least until Government gets rid of Cash. Then everyone will be nailed. I can't think of a single major program that Government manages that is working well and is cost effective. Why would it ? It's not their money invested !

California IS a beautiful State in many, many ways. That's why there is so many people out here. The Population isn't growing, thats somewhat true. What is happening is scary. Industry and wealth are leaving and being replaced by low to 0 income people, homeless people who have found that the winters are easier to get through than, say, Michigan. More and more social welfare programs are implemented to provide basic care for all the sick, lame, and lazy moving in.  Basic medical care must be provided as well. Try going to an Emergency Receiving Center at a hospital. last time I went I was bleeding pretty bad with the end of my thumb cut off. I had to wait for 3+ hours to get care. The room was full of welfare recipients waiting to see some one because they had the Flu. One gentleman was there because he had an ingrown toe-nail. After 3+ hours of soaking my thumb in Betadine I started screaming and cussing. They took me in then, fixed me up and sent my insurance Ca. a bill for $15,000.00. That payment probably paid for everyone else in that waiting room that day. These are just personal observations by me and are the reason I'm looking elsewhere. This will not end. So.....Any of you who think SoCal (at least) is pretty cool....well it is....but there is a price....both morally and financially...........Beaufort Nc and SC look pretty good and so does  Panhandle Bob's area.............Bruce

I don't Stan. I'm sure it's happening elsewhere but my experiences are here. Some people may be defensive if I generalize to include other states. I do hear stories from other places.  In Mexico I have Government medical health care coverage. It costs me $150 per year per person for Susan and I.  Susan fell and cracked her pelvis down there.  She spent 2 days in the local hospital. The x-ray tech couldn't read the photos so the Doctor couldn't tell if anything was broken so no treatment came or decision on what to do next. It took me two days to arrange for a Lear Jet Medical Evacuation to get her to a Hospital up here in Pasadena to the tune of $19,500.00 out of pocket.  I am now sueing Blue Cross for that reimbursement which is covered in my health plan. The two days in the medical facility were not so good. Cockroaches crawling over her while she lay in bed. Soggy sandwiches for lunch and dinner from the local greasy spoon and so on. They will not give out any pain pills. Not covered in the social plan down there plus you cannot buy them except in extreme conditions as determined by the MD. Such as it goes Stan, it's the same old story. You get what you pay for and if you want better, do it yourself.  Socialized medical care for all is a pipe dream.

By the way, Susans's pelvis was cracked in 3 places. She spent 2 weeks in bed at Huntington Hospital. Blue Cross picked up that tab at $115,000.00. Then she spent 3 more weeks in a rehab center getting  P. T. twice a day to learn how to walk again. Then 2 months at home in a rented special bed and me as the rehab/caregiver which cost Blue Cross another $61,500.00.  My out of pocket expense is 33,465.00 so far  including the plane ride with me and our dog riding along.  Even with insurance it's expensive. not counting what I have to contribute every month to maintain Blue Cross Health care and Medicare.  Medical Care costs are outrageous ! How the heck are we going to pay for the millions of Immigrants coming here ? Even if we only push a few pills at them ? I don't think it's possible. I haven't even mentioned subsistance allowances for all these unfortunate people coming in. 

All I'm trying to do is take care of my wife and I in the best way I believe I can. To be able to proud and independent of others. To give back a little thru our Church or to others we know who weren't unlucky but made some bad decisions. To be able to have some fun fulfilling those dreams of the future that Susan and I had while we were younger and hard at work with our nose to the grindstone.

I think this is enough dialog for me on this subject. I really don't rave on like this because it's just a waste of time that could be spent on more positive thoughts and deeds. I apologize to all of you for this drift. I do have some really good coffee now.

Bruce

Moving into a  "Community" probably will have Association fees etc. Also may very well have restrictions as to what you can and cannot do right down to working on your car at your residence, what you can park in your driveway , exterior color choices, shrub, flower placements and most importantly flying our Nation's Flag ….. Proceed With Caution. 

Last edited by Alan Merklin
Marty Grzynkowicz posted:

@Stan Galat you are getting a deal at 2%.  We are almost at 3% on the real estate tax up north. 

Same here (in many municipalities), but I try to be conservative because Morton runs closer to 2% than 3%.

My son pays over 3% in Peoria. Washington, Dunlap, etc. are all at or over 3%. I looked at a house with a view in East Peoria— over 4% (>$10k/yr on a $250k house). 

BTW: we have mosquitoes. 

The point is that whatever problems Kalifornia has are not unique to the place. Blue states all over the country are circling the drain. The Golden State at least has perfect weather and amazing roads. It’s hard to feel too bad.

Last edited by Stan Galat
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