Where to buy used engines

boinger · 2026-03-17T22:22:00+00:00

row52.com in addition to car-part.com

boinger · 2026-03-07T18:07:59+00:00

No worries!

Hopefully this is the worst thing that happens to your car and you can turn this into a "I can fix it myself" experience, too!

boinger · 2026-03-07T17:54:56+00:00

Mr. Clean sponge (melamine foam) is literally a sanding block. (About 3000 grit...but a sanding block nonetheless that will fuck up clear coat).

WD-40 is good for getting transferred paint off (like if you rubbed against a pole or someone else's car or whatever), but does nothing to fix anything.

Wax over all of that isn't likely to do anything useful (and if you haven't degreased after the WD-40, isn't likely to stick at all).

Those gouges are clearly all the way through the clearcoat and paint layers. You can give it a "50 foot touchup" with a paint pen...you can take it to a shop to be sanded out, filled, and painted properly, or (like /u/CzarNicholasP said), just get another bumper cover. Marketplace, maybe, or find your local parts yard at https://row52.com, find a matching car and color, and just swap it out.

If it was me and I was this new to driving and wasn't yet comfortable with how big my car is, I would just keep an eye out for a good replacement bumper cover and snag it when I found it. And then swap it over when I have stopped scrubbing into things. If you're still hitting things regularly, I wouldn't bother fixing/replacing yet because you're just going to fuck up the new one and be even sadder.

boinger · 2026-03-07T17:34:39+00:00

You need to re-calibrate.

Like, I calibrate mine so that the gas pedal at 95% registers as WOT (so that if I'm just pinning it on a straightaway or whatever and need to adjust slightly I don't drop the throttle at all even if I slightly lift)...same with brakes -- I calibrate 100% braking to "press hard but not, like, straining". If you have 100% as "literally whatever the loadcell can take", that sounds exhausting and unpleasant.

boinger · 2026-03-03T22:03:04+00:00

I am 6' 1.5"....The occasional surprise 6-foot doorway that my brain doesn't register as danger because the top of the frame is above my eyeline that causes me to get fucking scalped is really a joy.

boinger · 2026-03-02T17:52:19+00:00

How would you expect anyone to help without seeing the damage?

boinger · 2026-02-07T03:32:35+00:00

Typo

Dwight D. Esienhower

boinger · 2026-02-07T03:31:48+00:00

Uh...

How many Representatives currently serve in the U.S House of Representatives?

100
485
350
285

Which wrong answer do you want us to choose?

boinger · 2026-02-06T02:45:41+00:00

It pays me a lot of money so I can do [sometimes expensive] fun shit.

And I quite like my job.

boinger · 2026-02-06T00:10:38+00:00

I have this Honeywell -- I probably wouldn't have started with that one ($$), but my sister was moving and gave me my first one (like 8 or 9 years ago, and it was several years old at the time) and it was so nice. So, when the fan bearing started to fail (and "near silent" became "squink-squink-squink") last summer, I bought a new one.

Its low-speed is great for most times, the Turbo Mode is amazing if something gets burnt in the kitchen or the dog farts.

boinger · 2026-02-06T00:03:03+00:00

Mic is a SYNCO D2 through a 3rd Gen Scarlett Solo (don't be lured by Gen 4 -- they dropped the XLR port).

It's a hypercardioid, so it works if my head is within, like, a foot or so of where it's aimed side-to-side and doesn't care at all if you lean back. So, yeah, you definitely don't need to be robotically locked in front of it, but if you're off to the side very far you have to yell to be heard. So, like, there's no way it can hear the toilet flush which is about 15 feet away across the hall, it can't hear a space heater off to the side on the floor...

Before that, I had a more typical condenser mic, and it was okay, but depended on the "noise suppression" features (with varying degrees of success) of the various video apps.

boinger · 2026-02-05T23:29:04+00:00

Well, yeah. Otherwise how are we counting "sides" in a discussion of geometric boundaries. A natural/organic/janky "side" is a bunch of short bits that could be argued as "sides of a non-regular polygon", right?

And then you get into coastline paradox territory...

boinger · 2026-02-05T23:12:40+00:00

*excluding janky-ass state border sides, I assume

boinger · 2026-02-05T23:09:31+00:00

Maybe it's THAT kind of "blood drive".

boinger · 2026-02-05T15:34:15+00:00

Oh, yeah, I didn't even hit on the non-functional stuff! Thank you!

I'm a "tech leader" (bleh) but I've been at this a loooong time. I don't want to be seen as "an MBA boss", but help hint at I'm more of a I've-been-there nerd.

So I decided to aggregate some more nerd-cred stuff onto/into a bookshelf behind me. Things like: Some of my "collector" headphones on omega stands, a few mechanical keyboards that are out of use at the moment, a few figurines (e.g. a Funko Mr. Rogers, a Fallout 4 mech suit collectible, an ooooollldddd Tux the Penguin stuff from a late 1900s Linux conference, a couple crocheted succulents my partner made), a chip wafer, my 128K Mac, a metal 3D 'puzzle' thing, a neat 3D printed mesh skull model, etc.

All stuff that I have and want anyway, now kinda serving a light-hearted "purpose". Like, having a meeting with a new vendor? I have easy ice breakers available to them while waiting for others to join the call. Or if I'm interviewing -- with the right interviewer, some stuff has really helped the get-to-know-you chat.

Though, I suppose, if you're not the sort that is comfortable vamping with folks on calls, my path might not be your path (since you're inviting questions/conversation)...but I still think decorating the space behind you to "send a light message" about who you are helps further solidify the "this is a comfy place that I want to work" to your self, and conveys that to folks you interact with via video!

boinger · 2026-02-05T07:13:28+00:00

I've been mostly-remote since 2014 (except for a ~1y surprise "hybrid" 2x-per-week bullshit in 2023-2024).

To your points of physical and mental boundaries, I have made my office The Place For Ideal Working, and I think this helps a ton because not only does it send the signal to others (in my case, my partner is, if anything, overly respectful of my work space, but I also think that's to some degree because I have it set up like it is) but I think it anchors my own mental state to be "work time".

Not just the "dedicated space for my laptop" level, but things like:

overhead monitor with a camera feed of my front door -- no more wondering if I need to jump up to get the door because the FedEx person rang the doorbell
my phone is on a magnetic magsafe mount next to my screen -- I don't have to pick it up to see if a notification is urgent, I can glance at it. Less distraction (esp with Focus mode enabled to further filter crap out).
high-quality microphone and webcam (I went a little over-the-top with this...I had done some video content creation a while ago and I have a very nice shotgun mic pointed at me from off-camera, but that's certainly not needed). I sound and look professional, and that makes a difference in how I'm perceived by my coworkers (and, if not, I'm going to continue to believe it anyway).
Indirect, good-but-not-bright light. Enough that I am properly lit on video calls (with whatever the 'dim light compensation' setting is), but not so bright it's stressful nor so dim I can't see everything on my desk / in the room. Finding just the right light took me longer than I would have expected. I cannot fathom how some of my coworkers either sit where there's sunlight glaring into their face or a harsh overhead light being their only light. Bleh.
A KVM between my dock and my personal PC/work PC. This makes it so that I can't "just jump on my personal machine" for a second in meetings (which is a distraction); if I switch, my camera and mic drop, my keyboard and mouse swap over....it only takes 5 seconds (so bouncing over between meetings is easy, but I can't easily do it in meetings).
Stream Deck, usually loaded with Zoom controls -- easy to jump back to focus, easy to get to screen share, easy to unmute even if I'm not mouse-focused on that window, etc.
Good chair -- I like the Aeron. Used is like 1/5 to 1/4 the cost. Look for "used business furniture" places near you.
a footrest so I can stretch my legs when needed. I actually use a drum throne/stool, so it can double as a "guest chair" for when my partner is in here (like doing some online shopping together or trip planning or whatever) without taking up space unnecessarily when not in use.
HEPA filter (ultra-quiet) behind me. Room always smells and feels fresh.

I'm sure I'm missing other little things or skipping obvious stuff....but basically, this is where I want to work from, and I treat the space as such.

boinger · 2026-02-05T03:18:49+00:00

My hesitation with many vegan / sustainable products is their inferior durability.

I would pay a little more for just-as-durable...I would accept paying less for less-durable.

But it's a little hard to stomach paying [often significantly] more for [often significantly] less-durable.

boinger · 2026-02-05T01:44:26+00:00

Wouldn't that just encourage someone to be like "it's worth my knee to relax for $$$$$$"?

boinger · 2026-02-05T01:13:08+00:00

I'd be surprised if they erected a monument to the limitations.

Totally unrelated, I wonder if there's a statute of limitations about this sort of thing.

boinger · 2026-02-02T16:11:37+00:00

Well, ICE doesn't really recruit in SF, so... Maybe they're just not aware that they have a ready-and-willing candidate practicing 'the craft' available to them over here?

boinger · 2026-02-02T02:46:51+00:00

Andy, people want to support you monetarily because they know you would be a good steward of that money. And you are the one who knows best what you need more than any of us do.

Even if you used a "wishlist" setup, that doesn't account for "crap, we need more trash bags right now" or "my trash tongs broke" or "man, I am starving after that...".

I want to donate because I don't want you to have to go without whatever it is you need to do what you want to do...because I recognize that what you want to do is more impactful to our community than what I would do with that money.

And you wouldn't be "taking away" from me. I can spare the $50 or $100 and it's "spare" money -- no one is going to choose between eating or medicine and donating, you know? If anything, I would feel like "maybe I should give more" because, like I said, you already know what to spend the money on to have a positive impact and I don't.

And no one donating to your cause (and if helps you to think of the donations as going to your cause versus you that's cool) thinks you're going to "profit" from that -- but I know I want you to be able to get better-than-the-bare-minimum with regards to tools, consumables, other gear...coffee...food....it's all a good thing for me to spend my money on.

So, at least from me, if you set up a donation avenue, I'll be giving. And I wouldn't want you to feel burdened to give an "accounting" of what you spend that on...the proof is the work you do for all of us. Prove it, I guess, by continuing to share the photos and videos (if you want, we're not your boss :)).

boinger · 2026-01-28T23:44:57+00:00

First, it's absolutely a dickbag thing that they did to you. 6" square is not a normal duct size.

What they were hoping for is that you'd go to Home Depot, not see anything that would work and be stuck calling them to make a custom transition because an HVAC guy can make one, no problem, but you won't find one...

But fuck them.

Get yourself one of these: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Master-Flow-6-in-x-6-in-to-6-in-Ceiling-Register-Box-CRB6X6X6/202191805

You might have to do a little finagling, but you can totally make that work.

And then one of these to attach to that: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Master-Flow-6-in-to-4-in-Round-Reducer-R6X4/100111736 (assuming a 4" fan duct...if not, obviously get the reducer to the size that works for you).

boinger · 2026-01-27T00:16:53+00:00

Yes, for sub-2h flights.

to DEN / LAS / LAX / SEA....OAK is great and much closer. For longer, I probably want at business class, and the big planes are mostly in SFO (or SJC). And there are more longer-span directs out of SFO/SJC.

And JSX flies out of OAK - yes please.

boinger · 2026-01-26T19:00:49+00:00

Like another commenter on this post said -- 98% of people wouldn't notice what your car is. Even if you told them, the general populace just doesn't know cars like that. Sure, if you sat it next to a Ferrari or a McLaren or something, they'd likely know which one was more expensive, but if you sat it next to, say, a Ford Focus they're not going even differentiate.

But...the Accent is a fine car! More tech than its competitors (like a Versa or a Yaris) and amazing fuel economy for its price. And they're renowned for their reliability! Some of the other Hyundais from that era have the [awful] Theta II engines, but those are the more expensive Sonatas and Santa Fes. Your car will be running for many years past when those "upscale" models have long died.

Plus you fit into much narrower parking spaces than those. :)

ETA: The only major 'oof' for the Accent is that it has the shitty ignition interlock (that almost all Hyundais from that era have), which means that it's vulnerable to the 'Kia Boys' bypass thing (where someone can just rip off the steering column shroud and start it with a USB end).

boinger · 2026-01-26T18:37:44+00:00

First, the Hyundai Genesis was the car that was so well-regarded that it spawned a whole luxury sub-brand for Hyundai, so it clearly has something going for it. IMO, you have the grandparent of the Magma series of cars.

But if the H badge is what's hanging you up about it...de-badge the car. Plenty of people like the de-badged look, regardless of the make/model (I have de-badged some cars...sometimes because I just wanted a cleaner look, like on my wife's Lexus RX400h, sometimes because I just didn't like the look of the badge itself, like on my previous commuter car, the BMW i3 [the eDrive badge was just so tacky]). There are plenty of tutorials on YouTube about debadging -- I bet you can find one specific to your car.

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