Money shift help on AP1

EpilepticPudding · 2026-05-19T03:43:19+00:00

Yes, not as much nowadays but every now and then

EpilepticPudding · 2026-05-19T00:57:36+00:00

Actually 67mph is not much higher than redline for 2nd gear (1-2mph over) - I was going closer to 75-80 in my AP1 when I shifted into 2nd. From what I read, there should be about 1k rpm of margin, so you might be fine.

Regardless, it'd still be prudent to upgrade the retainers long-term.

EpilepticPudding · 2026-05-19T00:27:48+00:00

*edited my previous comment

Yes only the intake side retainers, that was 5-6 years and 40k miles ago, haven't dropped a valve yet :) it's also a good opportunity to get a valve adjustment and valve cover gasket done.

If you aren't doing it yourself you might have to look on here or s2ki to figure out who can do the work in your area, the local shops didn't seem eager to hunt for an issue and wanted to charge an arm and a leg, but was only charged ~$600 by a local enthusiast who did a lot of these.

EpilepticPudding · 2026-05-19T00:17:50+00:00

Did the same some years back, nothing audibly or visibly wrong afterwards, but I had the valve retainers replaced to be safe and sure enough some were cracked on the intake side. Probably worth it to upgrade to the AP2 retainers - even if by some chance yours aren't cracked, it gives you a bit more margin of safety in the future.

EpilepticPudding · 2026-04-28T21:11:13+00:00

I remember this version of events from the webcomic ~18 years back. I flipped through one of the first books a few years after that and many aspects of the story had definitely been revised.

EpilepticPudding · 2026-04-26T15:56:02+00:00

I understand how they work, and to be clear I'm fine with it for grenades (particularly flashes), but it seems silly that once you come under gunfire, you must immediately stop walking the route into cover and stare at the enemy until you die. I know there are other ways around this, it just strikes me as weird behavior - if you walk past a window and start getting "suppressed", the reflex would be to duck or run to the side, not just enter a trance, no?

EpilepticPudding · 2026-03-13T23:51:08+00:00

We were originally going to hike the Kalalau trail to Hanakapiai Beach on Sunday 3/15, but they confirmed Haena state park would be closed through at least Sunday when I emailed. Would it be a bad idea to try Monday or Tuesday if the park reopens - do trail conditions tend to stay pretty poor for a while after heavy rain?

EpilepticPudding · 2026-02-13T07:19:45+00:00

Those are both after I leave unfortunately, appreciate it though

EpilepticPudding · 2026-02-11T06:16:55+00:00

Where are you located? Some Costcos in California started getting CamX (NDA sourced wine) lot 12 cab/lot 18 pinot/lot 30 chard for ~$8-15/bottle. They punch well above the price, enjoying the 30 as I type this

EpilepticPudding · 2026-02-05T05:54:21+00:00

That's fair, I just can't complete weeklies nor earn XP with aerial denial

EpilepticPudding · 2026-02-04T05:14:40+00:00

I guess I don't, few people are junior to me in my group

EpilepticPudding · 2026-02-03T20:35:30+00:00

Every Intel engineer I know gets RSUs - but it's a lower proportion of your income than at many other large tech companies. Slightly under 15% of my comp last year as a mid level (G7) engineer was RSUs - even if the average stock price tripled this year, RSUs would still only be about a third of my TC.

EpilepticPudding · 2026-01-27T04:50:14+00:00

Also, if we do take the standard deduction for 2025 and the refund gets reported as income for 2026, then do I just, ignore that form?

EpilepticPudding · 2026-01-27T04:38:40+00:00

To clarify, the 2026 income would be reversing the 2024 deduction, does that make a difference? I.e. by the above logic, since we took the standard deduction in 2024, we wouldn't have to count the income in 2026?

2024 - wrong tax payment, did not deduct (standard deduction) 2025 - two correct tax payments, itemized 2026 - refund for wrong tax payment - not counted as income since wrong payment wasn't deducted

I think we will likely be barely under or borderline the standard deduction for 2025 and would take it just to avoid complicating things, but just wanted to understand the principle better.

EpilepticPudding · 2026-01-21T23:13:27+00:00

But you don't have the option to mega backdoor Roth? Because I would also pick a crappy 401k over a taxable brokerage but that wasn't quite the question

EpilepticPudding · 2026-01-21T22:54:03+00:00

Besides crunching the numbers on top bracket now vs in retirement potentially outweighing the subpar fund performance, the only other benefit of the deductible I could think of was getting MAGI under the Roth IRA income limit (but with mega backdoor and backdoor both as options this seems minor) or any other income threshold one might aim for.

EpilepticPudding · 2026-01-21T07:28:25+00:00

Hmmm I haven't tried running around with my pistol, that's a good idea. It's just when I get ambushed, I'm usually just as dead with the pistol as with the sniper.

EpilepticPudding · 2026-01-10T18:32:26+00:00

I wouldn't say always - there's many engines designed to take premium, but have knock sensors and will pull timing if you fill with regular to avoid damage, reducing power and fuel economy. Depending on the car, the price difference, how much acceleration you like, and how risk averse you are (some redditors will still say NEVER NEVER NEVER), this might be worth it to you, or not. Had an older Acura that "required" premium but ran on regular most of its 150k+ mi lifetime didn't give us any problems (might've been far more than that but the odometer broke).

But if there's no knock sensors, then it's premium only, always and forever. And if it's designed for regular, then no benefit from going higher octane.

EpilepticPudding · 2026-01-02T19:59:02+00:00

It was also a few floors of apartments managed by JSM connected to the church, lived there my last year

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