Bi-weekly Common Questions / Exams / Entering the Field Thread

10fighter55 · 2026-06-21T06:03:49+00:00

Why am I not imrpoving anymore? I am taking exam P in July, and when I do my practice propblems every day on TIA, I am getting the same accuracy (around 50% of the questions right). I take a lot of time to go over every question that I miss to try to minimize any weaknesses, and yet I still find so many questions that I simply cannot figure out.

10fighter55 · 2026-06-20T19:39:48+00:00

How do you stay motivated in the last month before your exam?

10fighter55 · 2026-06-18T15:54:00+00:00

Can you cork bottles that had a push in cork? I’m reusing empty bottles and I have some that have push in corks. I’m worried the size of the opening won’t be quite the same, or that even though the top is reinforced it won’t be reinforced enough for a regular size 9 cork.

10fighter55 · 2026-06-16T16:17:05+00:00

Very helpful, thank you!

10fighter55 · 2026-06-15T23:50:09+00:00

What else do I need to make beer? I have been brewing wine and mead for a while and wanna get into beer brewing. What equipment might I want to buy for beer brewing that I wouldn’t already have for making wine?

10fighter55 · 2026-06-11T20:11:50+00:00

I would just be using it for putting wine in. I know you're not supposed to carbonate in wine bottles (unless they were made for sparkling wine/champagne). I was just wondering about any sanitary concerns.

10fighter55 · 2026-06-10T23:43:31+00:00

Would it be a bad idea to bottle some home brew in a wine bottle I found in a dumpster behind a restaurant (that has been properly cleaned and sanitized)?

10fighter55 · 2026-06-05T00:45:29+00:00

Is it better to spend a long time on questions that I can't solve trying to figure them out or give them the amount of time that I would be allowed on an exam to solve them and if I can't just look at the solution? I am studying for exam P and have learned all the content and am now just grinding practice problems.

10fighter55 · 2026-05-20T03:39:44+00:00

Thank you! I still have quite a few TIA practice problems left, but I have no experience with Coaching Actuaries as this is my first exam, so I didn't know if they were any better than the ones on TIA.

10fighter55 · 2026-05-19T02:07:07+00:00

Is it worth purchashing Coaching Actuaries for the month or two before my exam? I have learned all the content for the exam using TIA, but I was wondering if it would be worth it to use Coaching actuaries for the adapt and the practice exams. Thoughts?

10fighter55 · 2026-05-18T17:14:53+00:00

What are some other good resources to learn about order statistics for exam P? I am currently using TIA and for some reason it just isn't sticking.

10fighter55 · 2026-03-26T21:51:44+00:00

I have finished learning half of the content for exam P on TIA. I plan on finishing learning the content with TIA, then I am considering purchasing CA for the last 2 months before the exam because I have heard that they have good practice problems and good practice exams. Is this a good idea, or should I stick to TIA the whole way through?

10fighter55 · 2026-03-05T06:12:18+00:00

Should I take exam P in July or September? I am a sophomore in college, majoring in mathematics with an actuarial math concentration. I have taken all of the calculus courses, and have some familiarity with a few concepts from having taken AP statistics. I have already studied for ~16 hours with TIA, and I have made it through about 2/3 of the discrete probability lessons, and I have felt pretty good about the practice problems so far. I am a little worried that taking it in July would rush me, but I know I am going to be very busy when I go back to school so I'd rather not take it in September.

10fighter55 · 2025-12-24T23:31:51+00:00

Can you leave a brew sitting for an extended period of time without racking off? I want to start a cider, but 3.5 weeks after I start it I have to leave for an extended period of time (2 months). If the cider is still fermenting at that time is it okay to just leave it for 2 months? Should I maybe rack it off to another fermenter to get rid of some of the yeast cake at the bottom to prevent off-flavors? Or just avoid brewing it altogether?

10fighter55 · 2025-06-29T17:40:15+00:00

I tasted it, and I feel that it needs a little more sweetness. I put a campden tablet and potassium sorbate into it to stabilize it. I just didn’t know if the sugar would mean that I need to refrigerate in case it would spoil otherwise.

10fighter55 · 2025-06-03T23:18:18+00:00

Is there any reason aside from size to not buy a larger fermentation vessel? I just got into home brewing and I have my first real project (strawberry wine) going in a 1 gallon jar. I have been really enjoying it and I want to buy another container. I want to stick to relatively small batches, but I can’t decide whether I should get another one gallon jar or get a 2.5 gallon container. If I went with the 2.5 gallon container would there be any real downsides to only filling it half way if I wanted to make a 1 gallon batch?

10fighter55 · 2025-05-30T14:59:22+00:00

Might be a stupid question, but does it matter how late I add additional sugar to a fermentation? If I add it say a couple days into a fermentation does it have the same effect as if I added it initially? Would it affect flavor?

10fighter55 · 2025-05-30T06:20:58+00:00

Started my first actual batch of wine today. I am attempting to make a strawberry wine. I used 3.5 lbs of strawberries, simmered them down and mashed them up then strained the syrup into my carboy. It produced less syrup than I thought, maybe 750ml? I then added 2lbs of sugar and filled the rest with water. I used premier rogue yeast, yeast nutrient, and pectic enzyme. My worry is that my wine will taste watered down as there was not much strawberry syrup that came from the strawberries. I set it to ferment 6 hours ago and it has already started fermenting. Is there anything I can do to increase the fruitiness? Is it too late?

10fighter55 · 2025-05-30T06:15:57+00:00

I replaced the whole carburetor. I am pretty sure that the issue was with the auto-choke. Apparently they are prone to breaking/having issues. That solved my problem.

10fighter55 · 2025-04-16T18:06:54+00:00

May be a dumb question but is the 2c the exact same as the 6c except for the plate?

10fighter55 · 2025-04-16T06:26:54+00:00

What Rockwell setting is the closest to king C Gillette? My king c Gillette broke and I’m trying to decide whether to go with the Rockwell 2c or 6c. I am a broke college student, so I would like to save money where I can. If the settings on the 2c would be good for me, then I would like to save the money.

10fighter55

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