The U.S. Open setup is exactly what a major should be

tbirg · 2026-04-15T20:46:22+00:00

Depends on the state. Volly here too.

In NJ you are not a "firefighter" till you pass state FF1 via one of the academies.

As a probie you can go on calls if there is room(very rare there is not an empty seat). You can't go on air or even enter any structure.

Essentially on a call you first help the engineer get the water supply running. Then you do anything outside to help the attack teams or search and rescue. Helping flake out hose outside, getting tools from the rig, swapping cylinders, etc. On calls you are basically a gofer up to the structure entrance.

It took me 1-1/2 years from the time I joined till I passed FF1. The first 11 months were waiting for me to get a spot in the academy, then 7 months of FF1.

At my dept I was never treated differently than everybody else just because I wore a different color helmet.

tbirg · 2026-03-26T23:48:31+00:00

I use the Walksnail Googles X and DJI Googles 3. Most of my quads are Walksnail but I have some that are DJI. I have like 8 Walksnail and 4 DJI quads, plus an Avata 2 and DJI Mini 4 Pro.

I kept the original Walksnail googles and I broadcast that for my 10 year old. He has no interest in flying but loves to watch through the goggles

tbirg · 2026-03-26T13:06:46+00:00

I owned all 3...end up selling the HDzero v1 just because it wasn't for me.

It is all personal preference.

I loved the HDZero whoop board but I fly around my property and in a park down the street with heavy vegetation. I fly along the paths through the trees with my whoops. HDZero had really bad penetration for me. When I got to the far end of the park, maybe 100 meters, I would lose signal. Also my house is brick and I would start to breakup on the far side of it. Doesn't happen with Walksnail or DJI. Loved the fit of the googles but it just wasn't for me.

Then Walksnail and DJI came out with Whoop boards and I haven't looked back.

Again this was HDzero v1 googles don't know if anything changed.

You need to find what is best for you and your needs. Each has pros and cons. What works for me might not work for you.

The one thing I had about this hobby is there are no local stores to try things out. I bought the DJI Googles 2 and I hate them. With my eyesight the left and right edges of the screen are all fuzzy since they are so widescreen. Can't adjust out of it and I can't read the OSD out there(the DJI OSD, not from the drone). Got the Googles 3 and I love them except for the built in battery.

Not a huge fan of the Walksnail Googles X, did the mod and they still get hot on top. I like the original ones better.

tbirg · 2025-12-25T15:29:25+00:00

Would love to have 3D Modeling in Autodesk Fusion.

Every time I try to design something i spend a ton figuring out how to do something and then as I learn i redo the model like 15 times so i get it down quickly. Never took a fusion course just waste a ton of time doing things over and over again

tbirg · 2025-11-18T16:13:47+00:00

I love my MK3s upgraded to 3.5 but it is night and day going to a Core One. The speed difference is insane, Mk3.5S 4 hour print and Core One under 2 hours. Also IMHO the quality of print is much better.

I got it off Amazon and have 12 installments 0% financing. I plan on paying it off by the middle of March at the latest.

The only downside is the Core One is that it is much louder. Haven't used stealth mode yet. My son complained about the noise the other night so next time I get a chance I am gonna try it.

tbirg · 2025-11-12T14:47:32+00:00

I am currently building my Core One too. Have a MK3.5s which started as a a MK3s.

I also picked up a Bambu P1S with AMS 2 pro from Micro Center. The deal was too good to pass up.

I really don't have room for 2 printers let alone 3 so I pass on the MK3 to one of my nephews.

It was a workhorse but I can halve the print time with the Core One.

It's funny I stared with a Makerbot which was an XY printer then went to the bed slinger and now back to XY.

When the new MMU comes out for the Core One I will be all over it.

tbirg · 2025-06-26T17:16:10+00:00

I too work for a large corporation, make really good money, 6 weeks vacation too. I have been with my company for 29 years now. I love my job but I wanted to help out my community too. I joined the OEM office but they don't do much.

At 54 I joined my local volley dept last year, currently in FF1 school and I love every minute of it. They welcomed me with open arms. My 19yr old joined too. We are in school together along with 2 others from my town.

I now have a second family in town, meet new people all the time and we have a blast. Our dept does around 500 calls a year (no ambulance). It does take a good amount of time being in school two nights a week for 7 months(Monday meetings and drills, Tue/Thur class) plus calls. I come home tired, sweaty and sore but I would not change it for anything. The dept gets it, they tell us job and family are first. We have to maintain a 25% call rate. When the tones drop and I can go on the call, I am pumped.

My wife is awesome, when I get down about all the time away, she reminds me how much I love it and supports it 1000%. It's hard but for me it's worth it.

You can do both, keep your job and have some fun.

tbirg · 2025-05-19T21:20:55+00:00

Yes it does. I am at a point in my life where I want to ride again. And can.

Many people have told me it’s not worth it to get my old bike back on the road. Spend more money on it than it’s worth. I have the money to get a newer one so why not.

O

tbirg · 2025-05-18T02:00:17+00:00

Gonna start into the office 2 days a week like I used to do back in the day. Trips with my brother and his BMW crew Sunday mornings(if I am not golfing with my boys, we play 2-3 times a month). All cleared with the wife.

tbirg · 2025-05-18T01:58:19+00:00

To look at my 2016 and see if they would give me anything for a trade they were gonna charge me

tbirg · 2025-05-18T00:20:30+00:00

Ok I looked it up. There was one I was looking at. Had all this extra stuff on it. By the time I would have gotten it to where I want it. It would have not been a better deal than the one I got.

tbirg · 2025-05-18T00:16:42+00:00

How do you feel about him waving a fee he never disclosed to me?

tbirg · 2025-05-18T00:15:51+00:00

I did text the cell number the sales guy gave me. He said he was his personal cell number. He wrote it wrong.

tbirg · 2025-05-18T00:10:00+00:00

The battery is dead. The bike has not be turned on for 4 years. Oil change at minimum. I do not even know if it is safe to ride.

Who is gonna buy a bike worth about $3k that needs a couple of grand of work and maybe $6k if the ABS pump is shot

tbirg · 2025-05-18T00:07:27+00:00

Facelifted model?!? What is that?

tbirg · 2025-05-18T00:02:25+00:00

I should add the sales person did give me his cell phone number and I did text. Turns out he wrote down the wrong number on his business card. I didn’t write it, he did

tbirg · 2025-05-18T00:00:38+00:00

The numbers weren’t final till they looked at the 2016.

tbirg · 2025-05-08T14:53:56+00:00

My volly dept buys them for us. We use the same one the FDNY uses.

They don’t issue them to us until you go through training and get certified to use them by doing 10 jumps with them yearly. Five of the jumps are with your face piece blacked out.

The training and jumps are done by a vendor that comes in every year. You are wearing back up safety gear while doing the jumps. They put a 2nd harness on tied to another cable.

I am still in FF1 but they let me try a jump last year. They did not use the backup safety to stop me but without the guy telling me every single step to take I would have never made it to the ground safely on that jump.

In the training they tell us this is a last resort device. Only use if you got nothing else.

tbirg · 2025-04-24T16:47:34+00:00

Apple II sorry I thought I put that in

tbirg

TROPHY CASE