Charlie

I'm having trouble finding a good selection of relatively cheap roller blades (for the boardwalk; not competitive or sports) both online and in stores. I'm in Southern California.

Aside from Big 5, and Wal*Mart, what other places are out here that would sell inline skates?

Hello!

I have a 2004 Mazdaspeed Miata, and after a long trip I noticed a loud buzzing sound coming from under the driver's side of the engine compartment. It buzzes when the engine is running, and also buzzes for about 1 second when I turn the key from "off" to "run" (in other words, before I start the engine, I can hear it during the time I assume the fuel pump is charging the engine with fuel for startup).

Is this the electric fuel pump? The buzzing is electrical-sounding and is similar to the sound a streetlight makes, or the sound a speaker makes when it's busted.

Thanks for any tips on where to start looking!

Here's a strange one:

1998 Honda CR-V, automatic, 170'000mi. Over the course of the last 6 months this has happened 4 or 5 times and it always lasts a few miles and then goes away for awhile: there is a medium-pitched pulsating whine from the engine bay while the car is moving, which changes pitch with the speed of the car (getting lower when I slow down). It gets worse when under load, but this happens while accelerating, decelerating, in all gears, coasting in neutral, the only time it stops is when I'm stopped. I've had the CV joints and rear engine mount replaced and the transmission oil changed and it still does it. I'm thinking something in the transmission is popping in and out of alignment: could it be a gear?

Any direction would be great, so I know where to start next - I thought it was the CV joint worn out but apparently not. Thanks!

Hello,

I'm stumped:

2004 Mazdaspeed Miata, [aftermarket] 5spd manual transmission, otherwise all stock. Starting about 200 miles ago, I heard a rattle coming from the engine compartment. It was worst when idling/low RPM and would go away when revved above 2500. It's steadily gotten worse and is now a bad rattling/knocking/squeaking sound like 2 large hunks of metal banging into each other and squeaking intermittently like a rusty bolt. It happens in any gear including reverse, with the clutch in or out, moving or stopped, and now when I rev the rattling gets louder and more pronounced. I'm sure it's not a loose pipe or cat cover, etc, and I believe it's coming from the inside of the engine/transmission.

I'm going to take it to a shop, but I want to give them a pointer on where to start so they're not charging me tons just poking around cluelessly - what are a couple good starting points for a problem like this? Clutch? Valves/timing? Bearing? What inside the engine/transmission could cause this?

If anyone has experienced this problem it would be great to hear from you, thanks!

Hello,

I'm stumped here: I have a 2004 Mazdaspeed Miata that suddenly started making a purring/rattling sound from the engine/transmission area. It's worst at idle, but I can hear it at all speeds including stopped, in all gears and in neutral, with the clutch in or out - it makes the noise basically all the time and gets more severe the lower the RPM. No other indication that there's anything wrong except the sound. It started on the highway a couple days ago and has gotten worse. It sounds like something is loose, like 2 large metal parts bumping together rapidly, with an occasional high-pitched squeak. Could this be a clutch-related bearing like the throw-out bearing going bad? Could it be the turbo? I can provide more specific details if needed, just looking for the best direction to start with.

Thanks!

I'm new to the projector world, and I could use some help choosing a projector screen:

Projector: Epson HC8350 Powerlite Home Cinema 1080p projector

Brightness: 2000 lumens

Contrast: 50,000:1

Desired screen size: 105" diag at 16:9 (51.5"H x 91.5"W) - preferably fixed wall-mounted (not one that pulls up or down)

The screen will be next to a floor-ceiling window, which I consider to be "medium" ambient light during the day with blinds closed. I've used the projector on the bare wall, which is somewhat glossy, and the image is more than bright enough at that size even during the day but suffers from hotspotting and the texture of the wall.

What I need help figuring out is what color (grey, white), what finish (matte, glass-bead), what gain (to defeat light pollution but not have a hotspot), and what brand is best for me (and what brands to avoid). I'd like to spend around $500 if possible, and a reconditioned screen is ok as long as the screen itself is undamaged.

Any help is greatly appreciated!!

Hello!

I'm curious if there is a company that makes modern motorcycles that have the same appearance of WWII-era Harleys, Indians, BMWs, whatever.. only with modern running gear. I know Ural makes retro bikes but only with sidecars.. I'm looking for something without a sidecar, just a bike.

Thanks!

I've got an aluminum wheel for a Mazda Miata that's had gasoline spilled on it and the finish has been eaten away somewhat - it is now a darker color and is not as shiny. Is there any way to repair the finish on an alloy wheel damaged by a gas spill? Maybe a spray-on clearcoat fixer...

Thanks!

Does anyone know a program I can download that can change the tempo of and audio track without changing the pitch? In other words, I want to stretch the audio out, but keep its integrity and avoid the kind of skips and hiccups that audio tends to have after having its tempo changed in a program like Audacity. I know the Elastic Audio function in Pro Tools is good at this, but I can't afford Pro Tools so I'm looking for something passable. Thanks!

I'm aware of the Hummingbird, the Dove, and the Doves in Flight acoustic guitars. What I'm looking for is a guitar that projects a rich full sound and has easy action, and all the guitars I've listed above have these qualities. If you've played them, or know of others i haven't tried, which do you think is the best and why?

I'm looking for a classy cigar lounge in lower downtown Dallas in the general vicinity of I-30. If you know about Chamberlains in Addison I'm looking for something like that but closer to downtown. Is there anything like that in this area?

Thanks!

I'm looking for a good place to play 9 or 18 holes of golf for something in the $10-20 per person range. I know that's very cheap, and the course doesn't have to be nice - in fact the trashier it is the more fun it could be, since we're all terrible at golf anyway. Does anyone know a place like this in the greater DFW area?

I could look at the online reviews, but I want to hear from people who've been and why they liked these restaurants - I'm looking for someplace with a nice adult steakhouse atmosphere, not on the tacky side like Roadhouse or whatever, but the kind of place you'd have red wine with your steak.

Any places like that around DFW?

Hello!

My 1990 CRX DX, stock everything, fails emissions for too much NOX gas. I've replaced the O2 sensor, now need to know why it is still failing. Exhaust smell tells me it's running rich, and exhaust pipe has black soot on it. Haven't replaced anything else yet, so Cat, PCV, and any sensors are all stock. Need to know, could this be a bad sensor giving me too rich a mix and causing weird emissions? Could it be the Cat not filtering NOX out properly? Just need ideas on where to go next

Thanks!

I mean, isn't it kinda difficult going back to regular life when you've seen how awesome those peoples' lives are in the movie? It makes even a pretty cool day-to-day life seem completely losery and boring. Did anyone else feel this way??

1975 Honda CB550 K1, all stock engine (air box, carbs, etc, all stock)

Here are my symptoms:

- The colder the air, the harder to start and the more cranking it takes - won't start at all when colder than about 60degrees outside - starts fine after engine is warmed up.

- The warmer the air, the smoother it runs throughout the power band

- Runs very rough when cold - the colder, the rougher

- Choke on makes the RPM drop rather than rise

- Smells like it's running rich, but air/fuel mix screws are set as specified in manual

I'm just curious as to what these symptoms point to. I suspect it could be one or more of the following: vacuum leak somewhere, running rich, carbs out of sync. Let me know if any or all of these are valid or if there's something else it could be

Thanks!

Hello,

I've been using Google Chrome with Yahoo Mail, and when I want to view an attachment (for example, an image or powerpoint presentation someone emailed to me) I cannot simply open it with a default program; it makes me save the file in order to view it - which I then end up deleting after I view it because I didn't want to save it in the first place. Is there a way to get Chrome to do what IE does, and just prompt me when I click the link on whether I want to open or save?

Hello there,

I have a 1975 Honda cb550 (k1), stock air box & carbs (no cafe pods, etc). I suspect I might have a vacuum leak, and I want to fix it if there is one before I sync the carbs. At what places would an air leak cause a problem? For example, I don't imagine having an imperfect seal around the intake boots on the carbs where the air box meets each carb intake would be a problem right? Where would it be a problem?

Thanks for any pointers

I love the retro styling of Ural motorcycles with sidecars, and I want to buy one someday - but how reliable are they? Are they prone to failures or other problems from poor craftsmanship, or are they quality motorcycles? Also, are parts and/or service for them expensive? I've got my hangups about Russian-manufactured stuff.

I might be getting that wrong, but I seem to remember a movie where a motif involves dogs in every scene of a certain type. I'm aware of the oranges motif in The Godfather, and this is similar to that. Can anyone think of what I'm trying to remember?