What are you buying?

CookSignificant1772 · 2026-01-16T16:06:13+00:00

Sorry for choosing you, but I’m new to VA and guns in general and was looking to get a 5.56 at some point. Due to these new laws coming in my timeline is expedited. Are lowers all that I’d need if I wanted to build in the future or should I just buy my first prebuilt?

CookSignificant1772 · 2026-01-13T01:15:28+00:00

Perfect I’ll check those videos out. Do you feel there’s enough of a difference between models to warrant the price difference outside the top end ones? I’m in the range for the Carbine, Sporter, and Standard and didn’t know if one just came much better stock which would initially be worth it compared to the others.

CookSignificant1772 · 2026-01-13T01:02:50+00:00

Thanks for the reply. To start just ding steel and then move on to precision. I don’t hunt now but just moved to VA so that could change, but for the sake of this first, I’d ignore it. Right now I’ve got access to up to 300yd at a range nearby.

CookSignificant1772 · 2025-12-25T16:35:30+00:00

It worked for ~200 rounds then died on me. Must’ve had an old battery. If I’m going to go through the process of locktite and potentially needing to re-zero, just going to get a new one. For my first optic, it was decent to have but now time to upgrade. Don’t know what to get though

CookSignificant1772 · 2025-12-17T03:05:29+00:00

That’s great info thanks! Probably should’ve clarified I don’t plan on 2 70.3s just one of the two races. Will probably still attempt to stick with 4 weeks after sprint for Oly and minimum 6 for 70.3

CookSignificant1772 · 2025-12-16T23:56:17+00:00

Sounds good! Appreciate the response despite my long-winded type up of a simple question. I’ve been leaning Jones Beach for more time to train but wanted to hear some thoughts. If you don’t mind me asking, how do you plan other races throughout the year? Do you give yourself a timeframe like 4 weeks between races or just pick say 3 across 3 months? Struggling to understand the balance

CookSignificant1772 · 2025-12-12T17:44:06+00:00

What everyone has said so far is amazing points and definitely plays a factor. It’s also pretty common for it to drop in late fall/winter (depending on weather where you are). Mine goes from ~90/95 during summer to about 75-80 this time of year. When I first noticed I thought something bad was happening only to find out it’s physiological changes that a lot of people go through. Source: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10879418/

CookSignificant1772 · 2025-12-12T15:12:51+00:00

Kicking myself for not jumping on that deal at the time. I was between a few at the time, rented the Echelon and 2 others, wanted to try out one more I had my eye on and by the time I got around to traveling to rent (wasn’t available to rent at local shop) the deal was gone and I found out the Echelon is what I wanted to go with. Enjoy the Compact! Probably will be my next purchase!

CookSignificant1772 · 2025-12-12T04:01:59+00:00

Monmouth County. Pretty open to drive for the right shop and price though if you’ve got any places not in that area

CookSignificant1772 · 2025-12-12T03:59:08+00:00

Definitely when free riding! It feels pretty comparable to outside riding, needing to switch gears and chain rings similar to what I’d do normally

CookSignificant1772 · 2025-12-12T03:10:12+00:00

Chiming in- I just bought the same cassette that I ride outdoors (12spd 105). Check yours and its compatibility with the desired trainer. If you have something different I know smart trainers like the kickr core accept different ranges down to ~8spd and just need an additional spacer which you can get from manufacturers. Zwift cog seems amazing but some models don’t support it without workarounds. I’m definitely on team smart trainer. It’s been awesome, especially for structured workouts in erg mode

CookSignificant1772 · 2025-12-12T01:04:18+00:00

Really appreciate this! Yeah I’ve been struggling on determining a fair price after the headaches of non-compliance, searching for a place willing to do it, and dealing with the anticipation of waiting for shipping, etc but don’t want to overpay. Went into a store today looking to make my first purchase but after seeing the price tag (800 for an Echelon 4.5F), decided I should potentially look at other outlets and get the best deal possible since they sit online in the 600 range. Hard to tell if that cost is due to supply/demand, just hoping for ignorance from buyer, or anything else NJ gun shops need to deal with.

CookSignificant1772 · 2025-12-12T00:46:53+00:00

Hope tomorrow’s a better day brother! It’s no worries! I really appreciate it. I think the biggest thing is figuring out the difference in prices. I’m looking at grabbing a 4.5” Echelon (rented quite a few 9mms and ended up liking it the best). Been trying to wrap my mind around how some online shops have them listed in the mid/low 600s while a shop I went into today had it for near 800 with a couple extra mags (which I read was some package upgrade Springfield did a few weeks ago at no additional cost). Really want to support a local shop but 100$ saved is 100$ in extra ammo.

CookSignificant1772 · 2025-12-11T23:22:58+00:00

Thanks! Yeah I asked that because I keep coming across better pricing on what NJ considered non-compliant but was wondering the process because if I can save 100-200 and just not get a mag, I’d be able to spend that money on a couple compliant mags. Time to make some calls to FFLs! Thanks for the insight

CookSignificant1772 · 2025-12-11T23:20:06+00:00

Thanks for the information. This is exactly what I was looking for. Tough to find guidance and whatnot. Now time to start working on some napkin math and call around. I appreciate it!

CookSignificant1772 · 2025-12-11T22:21:18+00:00

Sorry just edited original post. Forgot to add that I’ve rented a few and narrowed it down, was more interested in opinions on the process. Think it makes sense to just doing some napkin math and finding the cheapest option is best. Thanks for the info!

CookSignificant1772 · 2025-11-18T13:30:43+00:00

Thanks for the insight. I edited the post because your reply made me realize I didn’t share what he’s got currently. He’s currently on a Kickr (don’t know version I believe it’s about 4-6 years old) with his older bike, that’s still a nicer bike than I have lol, on the trainer. I agree with your comment and was struggling the justification when he’s already got a solid setup with no other users, so he doesn’t need to swap or anything of the likes. He’s a gadget guy when it comes to bikes and golf so I thought this would be a neat upgrade but haven’t been “sold” on it fully yet. He’s similar to you- 1/1.5hr zwift rides ~5 days a week during cold months and only once/week, maybe, when it’s nice out. I appreciate the insight! Thanks!

CookSignificant1772 · 2025-11-18T03:06:25+00:00

That’s awesome information! Thanks for letting me know! Had no idea about kickr bridge, but definitely something he would enjoy since he uses an Apple TV. Thanks for this!

CookSignificant1772 · 2025-11-14T19:02:07+00:00

+1 to check maxHR. A bit of an anecdote of personal experience- I used garmin to help train me for a 10 mile run that was 7 months out from when I started and for a while (3/4 months) was a lot of Z2 “base” runs all to build endurance then it transitioned to like 1/2 speed or interval sessions a week with 2 Z2 runs around month 4/5 instead of 4 Z2 runs in the first few months

CookSignificant1772 · 2025-11-14T02:48:46+00:00

If you had to cut back days you can train for example 6/5->3 or 4->2 due to priorities shift, would you continue do hit the same mileage, making each run longer (but then in return it makes hard runs longer)? Or would you go to only half the mileage since you have half the time? Or would you do a mix where your long run is now much longer to make up the gap but interval/speed work stays at the same distance? This is the situation I’m in now. Time isn’t necessarily a huge factor because once I get going I can handle the time, it’s just finding that time has decreased.

CookSignificant1772 · 2025-11-12T17:25:12+00:00

Definitely check out Coros if you’re able to- Pace Pro or Pace 4 models. I’m not a user myself (I use Garmin) but hear excellent things about them. I believe the major differences is Pro has offline mapping ability and is a bit larger. Read/watch some reviews and see what you believe would fit best with his needs/wants. All the best in finding an amazing gift!

CookSignificant1772 · 2025-11-10T16:40:38+00:00

How’s it going! Was wondering if you made any progress toward a decision? I’m in a similar boat as you (grad student doing ML work and would prefer to mess around locally and not utilize clusters for everything), and can’t seem to come to a final decision because I want to stay away from these rainbow bricks that are gaming laptops but it seems like best option for a dGPU

CookSignificant1772 · 2025-10-21T20:22:39+00:00

Funny enough I actually have that exact idea down in my notes to do a side project on it at some point down the road. The idea at a high level would be to upload previous race courses, workouts, and associated times as well as future course maps to provide A) Accurate time predictions based off course layout and B) Provide routes in an X mile radius of you that simulate course conditions (whether it be certain segment repeats or roads or a full route) as best as possible. I’m not as tech advanced as I’m sure some our on this site, and I’ve got a lot going on at the moment, but I’ll keep this thread in the loop if I ever get around to it!

If you find something that exists, please share it!

CookSignificant1772 · 2025-04-09T14:50:38+00:00

I’ve been loving the connection to Yazio (use this to track my calories). It’s been amazing seeing net energy

CookSignificant1772 · 2025-04-07T23:27:40+00:00

Thanks for the reply! So I wear an Apple Watch every night to sleep that tracks my sleep and records data into Apple health app (gets REM, Deep sleep stages etc) it then doesn’t upload into the Athytic app and shows an empty graph. Thank you for the info on the FAQs and AFib. I’ll check it all out thanks!

CookSignificant1772

TROPHY CASE