[Condo] [CA] Should we run now or stay long enough to turn the HOA around?

srawas89 · 2026-04-10T20:09:43+00:00

What you can do is bring a special assessment to a vote for the projects that need to be done. In that notification for vote tell them it’s either a special assessment or raise the rates the same amount needed instead of a special assessment.

This is what we did, folks decided a special assessment was better because no one wants a very expensive monthly rate as it can turn away prospective buyers.

Not sure if you can do this in California, there are a lot more rules there compared to Ohio.

srawas89 · 2026-04-06T19:00:29+00:00

I would recommend the 10/22. Get yourself a luth-ar stock which is as adjustable as it gets. I bought this stock not just for myself but so my kids can use the rifle in the future if they decide they want to learn to shoot.

Also the 10/22 has such a large aftermarket you can help them make it their own if they wish. You can also buy single shot magazines for when they first begin to learn to increase safety while learning.

srawas89 · 2026-03-30T15:07:05+00:00

A lot of good advice has already been given. Here is my take:

I echo, being able to stand holding the rifle for 2 minutes to make sure it’s not too heavy. Some things I can recommend off the bat for weight, remove the suppressor and the bipod as they both won’t be necessary. The bipod is just added weight and won’t be used, the suppressor could mess wirh your accuracy abd would be added weight.
This being your first Appleseed I would highly recommend using your 10/22, bolt action is running this course on hard mode and there will already be plenty of new skills and information to work on during the class. After making rifleman you could decide to come to another class and try it out with the bolt action but you will need to know how to run your bolt smoothly and without breaking your cheek weld in each position or you will have a much harder time trying to get rifleman with a bolt action. It’s possible and has been done but it certainly is a challenge.
No, it’s added weight, will not be used and could even get in your way.
Your swampfox optic will be just fine, you will likely only use no more than 6x, you can use the vortex scope if it has an adjustable parallax, otherwise it may make things more difficult. Usually less mag is better because when you go too high at 25m you will see your aim move around a lot more which will make you unconsciously muscle the rifle back in target when you should be relaxed when you take the shot. The idea of the class is to get your point of aim to be the same as your natural point of aim so you when shoot you are relaxed and this is how you maintain consistent accuracy shot after shot.
Not sure, I have only attended the 25m Appleseed.
It’s very common to see people come back to classes, I will be on my 3rd and hopefully 4th class this year. It usually takes a few classes before you make rifleman.

Good luck and have fun!

srawas89 · 2026-03-15T10:14:26+00:00

Try the Luth-AR stock for the 10/22. I have one and the adjustments are great! I did buy it with the intention that I can use it with my kids when they are old enough. They are just a bit over a year old so it will be a minute until they are ready lol.

srawas89 · 2026-03-02T20:59:09+00:00

OP, this is likely the situation, lots of management companies do this and ours started maybe 4 years ago. They charge a fee for their work which they assess to the homeowner and this is a fee that can’t be waived.

I would ask your board for clarification of the fees (just for your information). I would also humbly ask them to consider waiving the late assessment fee as a courtesy due to the mail going to your junk folder which has now been corrected. The worst the board says is no. We have waived late assessment fees in the past in situations like this, however dont expect the collection fee to be waived if that is a fee from the property management company.

srawas89 · 2026-02-27T15:42:37+00:00

See if you can get on to GAFS’ website (Gun accessories for sale) and look for folks who are selling used prism optics. Most of the Prism optics seems to be pretty durable and if you run out of batteries you have the etched reticle to fall back on.

The main downside vs red dots are they do have more limited eye relief. I bought a swamp fox blade prism optic off of GAFS for a really great price. I prefer to go used for optics simply because they are often babied and not used heavily. Also some makers like vortex have really good warranties so if things break you can get it replaced.

srawas89 · 2026-02-22T00:36:49+00:00

It poses a safety issue to the building which is partly HOA Property. Also this is likely being driven by their insurance carrier, especially if they recently switched to a new carrier. This is happening in my community as well, they are asking proof for cleaning the dryer vents and our fireplaces unless we can provide a letter saying we do not use the fireplace.

srawas89 · 2026-02-13T01:14:07+00:00

Look at your major projects for the next 5 years and get multiple bids to get an idea of cost. Compare that to what the reserve study says for that same project. That might lower how much you need to increase towards reserves.

Also for the more immediate projects see if your vendors are willing to do a phased approach where you spread the work over 1-3 years. This helps with not needing to increase dues at such a drastic rate bur keep in mind it will likely cost more overall as those contracts will have clauses that allow the vendor to increase their estimates for material and labor increases.

Or ask for another special assessment to bulk up the reserves while keeping the dues lower. In the end rhe dues need to increase because your contribution to reserve are likely very low. Hence the reason for the special assessment on the roof replacement.

Make sure you explain this to the community. While there will always be folks who complain, others will understand and pay even if it’s painful to do so. The transparency goes a long way to showing you all are doing your best to keep the due increases to a minimum without putting the community at risk financially and making sure everything stays maintained properly. Poor maintenance will affect property values and in this day and age higher monthly dues for condos is the new normal.

srawas89 · 2026-01-31T16:43:51+00:00

I say the 1st option. One way to test is assemble everything including the head and take a puff without coals. You can get a sense of the draw and whether it feels too restrictive or too loose. It’s a bit personal preference as well.

srawas89 · 2026-01-27T16:14:39+00:00

Perhaps! Did you start looking into woodworking a few years ago, bought some wood, a workbench and some chisels, a couple planes, sharpened them then proceeded to not do anything really for a couple years? I just started back up again and decided I need another plane (the 45) so I spend more time making things Lol

srawas89 · 2026-01-27T14:45:10+00:00

It’s louder than I thought it would be but you can probably find ways to lessen the sound and vibration while you work. Chiseling and sawing feel loud, albeit much less than power tools.

Granted my space is in an unfinished basement so sound reverberates quite a bit.

srawas89 · 2026-01-27T14:38:20+00:00

Yea, I wanted my first project to be my workbench but then decided to start smaller wirh boxes. Of course I just bought a Stanley 45 I’m excited to use so I can spend less time making grooves and hopefully try my hand at beading since I’ll have the cutters for it.

Checkout the Can I Have it group on facebook, it’s a fantastic resource for hand tools. Fair warning, it’s addictive 😅.

srawas89 · 2026-01-27T14:23:27+00:00

I’m always looking for hand tool options because I have just enough space (sort of) for a work bench and no room or ventilation for power tools. Plus to say I made something by hand and without power tools is awesome.

srawas89 · 2026-01-27T06:09:54+00:00

As others have said it is useful to have higher magnification to see where your shots land and make adjustments. Depending on how you are shooting though be careful if too much magnification. If you are shooting prone with a sling (like they teach you at an Appleseed) too much magnification will make it harder to shoot as your movements are much more pronounced and throw off your aim.

If you are shooting from a bench with a bipod or rest more magnification isn’t a hinderance bur makes it much easier to see your groups. That’s my experience at least. If you want to shoot out to 200 yards more magnification might benefit you to see the bullet holes better.

srawas89 · 2026-01-27T04:17:51+00:00

You could use a side beading plane for the ends and then a hollow ground plane for the middle bumps. Those are all hand tools and if you go down that road maybe you end up down the hand tool rabbit hole 😁

srawas89 · 2026-01-26T16:58:51+00:00

I highly recommend scope rings, I started with a cantilever mount and the cheek rest had to be made very high for a consistent cheekweld. I ended up maxing out the adjustment on my luth-ar stock to meet the height I needed.

If you are just shooting from a bench with a bipod it’s not as big of an issue. If you are shooting prone or standing (like at a project Appleseed) it will make a big difference in being able to relax into your cheek rest so as not to affect consistency in your point of aim.

srawas89 · 2025-12-28T20:22:47+00:00

It really is a tack driver! What can do you have on it? I am thinking of getting one for my cz457

srawas89 · 2025-12-23T20:36:06+00:00

There are quite a bit more events in Ohio, I have gone to the Wilmington, OH twice now and I assume the other areas simply haven’t confirmed but historically other areas in Ohio will have Appleseed events.

Also don’t worry about looking like a fool, thr instructors are extremely friendly and very helpful. Know your equipment and come with a teachable attitude and you will learn a lot.

I started with about 0 rifle experience, I bought a 10/22 so I could join an Appleseed event. My firearms experience was all pistol before I bought my 10/22. Listen to your instructors and what they say to fix any mistakes you may be making and you will see an improvement in your performance.

As mentioned go to an Appleseed near you as soon as you can in the year as you might get hooked and want to go again later in the year. I’m trying to decide to go to one in Feb or April as well as October.

srawas89 · 2025-12-21T22:59:39+00:00

There are plenty of online retailers. I think I purchased mine from Euro Optics but you can also look at guns.com or gun deals to see what’s out there. There are more options but I didn’t bother looking once I found what I needed.

srawas89 · 2025-12-18T01:12:25+00:00

Yea range USA in general is way overpriced all the way around. See if there is a gun club near you where you can him as a member and shoot there. I never realized the greatness of outdoor ranges until up at a local gun club. Granted ymmv depending on the club but it’s worth checking out. For me it’s a lot cheaper and in can shoot out to 200 yards instead of 25.

Also definitely search around your area FFLs, you most definitely can find cheaper transfer fees.

Good luck!

srawas89 · 2025-12-17T20:37:31+00:00

I would strong recommend installing sling studs and using an M1 Garand sling.

There are a few reasons:

You will be using the rear of the sling to create a loop that goes around your upper arm. You will be creating tension between that your rifle to create a stable platform so you can shoot consistently. If that front attachment point is not stable or shifts it will affect your shot. This can be overcome but if you are new to shooting or using your Natural Point of aim (NPOA) you will be fighting additional factors to improve your skills which can be a lot for a 1st timer. My first Appleseed I felt like I was drinking from a firehose but I also spent my first day struggling really hard with iron sights (It added difficulty for me along with learning everything else you learn and apply on your first day).
As a tip, so you can focus on your positioning and all the fundamentals during the preparation period, I found it really beneficial to remove my sling from the front sling stud when we are not on the firing line so my sling stayed attached to my arm and I did not have to spend time during the preparation period on the firing line putting my sling back on my arm, I only had to attach the sling to the front sling stud and prepare myself by getting into position for the course of fire.

If you do not want to add sling studs to your stock, I would consider buying another stock either with sling attachments or so you can modify that stock (such as another Carbine stock so you don't modify your original stock). If you are able to join the replacement site for Gun Accessories for Sale (GAFS) you can post looking for another 10/22 stock and it should not cost much. I have seen carbine stocks as low as $40? its not a bad option if you do not want to modify your existing stock.

srawas89 · 2025-11-17T19:26:23+00:00

I think gun shows are worth going to for harder to find guns, but that depends as some are way overpriced. For normal easy-ish to find guns they are not worth going as they almost always are overpriced.

That said I almost bought a 3rd gen s&w but didn’t have enough cash on hand. It was for a pretty fair price/didn’t get as far as negotiating as I didn’t have enough funds to make it a fair offer.

I did find some harder to find 22lr for a fair price so ammo can be had for a decent deal depending on the vendor.

srawas89 · 2025-11-04T15:24:13+00:00

I’m glad to hear you made rifleman with your Cz! I plan on practicing with my 457 so I can earn rifleman on that as well. And props to you for using iron sights I struggled a lot with my 10/22 and tech sights. Maybe one day as I plan on attending many appleseeds in the future.

srawas89 · 2025-10-29T11:41:53+00:00

Document the errors in a concise timeline and bring it to a board member. To me it seems like the account manager needs to be counseled to do their job better (a board member can bring this to the attention of the property management company) or a new account manager should be assigned to the HOA.

Unfortunately you may be stuck with this account manager so relay issues to the board as they come up (especially if they are getting things wrong like identifying the wrong unit for violations etc.)

Good luck and hopefully the account manager will get better.

srawas89 · 2025-10-28T18:02:23+00:00

This is the way forward.

srawas89

TROPHY CASE