Gsxrnz

After the discovery of wide spread thefts.

2.5mn tonnes at 20 tonnes a truck and they Just noticed that 10% of the stock walked out the back door?

Oh yes. This is going to be fun to watch them squirm on this one.

The trucks might be rated at 20 tonnes capacity but TIT - they would easily have got 30 tonnes on.

Anyway I'm sure it's all just a simple accounting error - some lowly typist put the decimal point in the wrong place on an official document and the authorities will ultimately discover that they now have 10% MORE than they thought they did, they've been chasing a red-herring, and all is well with the world. That assumed loss has just become a huge profit, allowing for even more "losses" to occur - Oh how I love the vagaries of government accounting.

I wonder if "red-herring" translates to Thai. I'm sure the irony would be lost in the translation anyway.

Comparing smoking to drinking - As a lifelong heavily smoking teetotaller I can tell you that I find it extremely discomforting to sit in a gogo bar full of inebriated miscreants who under the influence of copious amounts of alcohol, act with the manners of animals and do things that would make a grown man cringe. And then there's the customers!!

Here's an interesting video about the construction of what you have, and the author appears to have a passion for these things. I know sweet FA about longtails but have owned many regular outboards and boats.

I would suggest that maybe your internal shaft has become warped, and/or lack of internal lubrication has resulted in wearing of the plastic "bearings/spacers" inside the shaft, allowing the internal shaft to warp under load.

Alternatively, the outer shaft has become warped/bent and the rotation of the inner shaft is causing a centrifugal force to vibrate the whole prop shaft rig.

Cheers

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajH_bLa6fBc

You may also want to check out the following forum for advice.

http://www.boatdesign.net/forums/diy-marinizing/thai-longtail-mudmotor-6hp-lifan-honda-26281.html

EDIT: After watching the video again, I suspect what you are seeing as grease entry holes on the outer shaft are actually the screws that secure the inner spacers, as described in the video. I would assume that the length of the actual shaft would not actually need any lubrication as it is a rather basic setup with no real tolerance bearings that would require lube, and easy access for water to enter the whole setup from the prop end. However lube will be needed at the top at the PTO where the engine drive shaft and the prop shaft mechanically join, and also the prop bearing itself, as described in the video. I still suspect a warped internal or warped external shaft, or possibly worn spacers. The vibrations you describe would normally be associated with something being out of balance.

The BIB and the Thai mafia are like kindergarten kids compared to the Russian mafia. If they have enough people on the ground and get organised enough, it will be the BIB and the Thai mafia that will be paying tea money to THEM for the right to operate.

Now how would you know about that exactly? I confess I don't, but one hears comments like this from time to time, and you just gotta' wonder - how do you know? What enables you to make such a comparison? I do know I wouldn't want to tangle in any way to any degree at any time with the Thai mafia boys and sort of suspect that they can pretty well handle themselves in a home game.

Try this documentary and do your own research, there's tons of data available. Comparing the power and mentality of the Russian mafia to the Thai mafia is as I said, a kindergarten comparison. If they can operate widely and viciously in their own country, controlling 40% of the entire economy, easily operate in the US and cause the authorities major grief, imagine what they can do in Playschool Thailand once they achieve a significant foothold.

The Thai mafia may threaten you or undertake the odd contractual killing - and they think in Thai currency, Thai economy terms....small potatoes. The Russian boys will wipe out you and every living relative a la the original Sicilian mafia. These boys will take no prisoners and they will find it easy as hell to scare the BIB and the Thai mafia into sticking to their pitiful little bribe collecting from foreign tourists and non-helmet wearing motorcyclists, while the really big dollars are left to the Russians.

Maybe you think I'm talking about the effects that we will see on the streets? Not so - I'm talking criminal activities at corporate and government level being highly influenced and controlled by the Russian Mafioso. They have a problem with a multi million dollar scheme going pear shaped? - suddenly there will be 30 assassinations of BIB and local mafia involved as a message to the rest of the Thai administration involved to play by their rules - that will be somewhat of an incentive for others to play by the rules. If a BIB is caught taking too much from the trough now he is sent to a temporary inactive post - under Russian control it will be a permanently inactive post!

Look at the US back in the days of prohibition and more latterly in the control of the unions by mafia interests - it will all be happening here but on a more sophisticated level.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tg3xrrxNyIw

The time delay is because many of those in front of you are lubricating the process.....tea money. The queue keeps getting extended as new entrants who don't know the ropes are relegated to the end of the queue. The irony is that even more will join the queue in front of you as they lubricate the process. A little monetary lubrication offer from yourself will see instant promotion in the queue to the day after tomorrow, or next Thursday at the latest.

You may not like it, but that's how it works.

Ironically, most "earths" in Thai construction are there for decoration only. There might be an earth wire in your house/condo, but try and figure out if it actually goes to a decent ground of any kind. I've never yet seen an earth pole and strap outside a house or business.

Top prize goes to the muppet that installed my new water pump. Diligently earthed the green cable between the metal body of the pump and the plastic plinth it was mounted on. I explained the problem, even got the wife to explain with much use of the Thai language app on my phone to explain "earth, ground, plastic, metal, circuit, conductivity" etc. Totally over his head - always done it this way apparently.

lol better off doing it ya self or is manual labor beneath you?

I'm unsure why you chose to draw the conclusion that manual labour might be beneath me. I'm even more unsure why you took the time to post such a conclusion in the form of a semi-rhetorical question that implied that manual labour might indeed be beneath me.

If you were curious about my technical skills and/or my willingness to undertake manual labour, perhaps you would have been better to simply ask the direct question "why didn't you install the pump yourself?".

And my direct response would have been "because the property was rented and the property owner arranged for the installation of the pump, as is their duty under the terms of the lease. I did in fact offer to install the pump myself but the property owner was concerned about possible warranty claims."

I trust your curiosity is now satisfied.

Anyone know what an Earth Loop Impedance test is? This is the ONLY correct way to know that your grounding / Earthing system is adequate.

GOOD LUCK!!!

Impedance is the tech term for resistance that can change quickly with time due to 'capacitance' and 'inductance'

Forgive the fancy words ....

For 50-60Hz grounding issues, Impedance is just resistance .

The loop test finds the impedance from your home to the power source.

If the ground is dry it may/will be high and you effectively have no ground

to the power source. You still may be well grounded inside your home.

The loop is the kind of circuit needed to measure current ....... " all current flows in a loop/circle"

And the reading should be such that

" the impedance to ground of the grounding electrode does not exceed a values that will allow 5 times (or more) of the rating of the over current device, of current to flow to ground."

OR Example: A 20 Amp breaker supplying a lighting circuit :

100 Amps of fault current would be required to flow in order to ensure that the

breaker can open under a short circuit condition in an expectable time period

(5 x 20 Amp Breaker)

220 volts / 100 amps = 2.2 ohms (maximum)

Yes correct grounding isn't that simple, it is technical but is achievable, after all it's only there to save your life.

In saying that no one seems to have answered my previous question ......WHY DO WE NEED A GROUND?

Compliments of Wiki - but do you have a different theory?

"

In electrical engineering, ⏚ ground or earth can refer to the reference point in an electrical circuit from which other voltages are measured, or a common return path for electric current, or a direct physical connection to the Earth.

A typical earthing electrode (left), consisting of a conductive rod driven into the ground, at a home in Australia. Electrical codes specify that earthing wires must be a certain color, to prevent wiring errors.

Electrical circuits may be connected to ground (earth) for several reasons. In mains powered equipment, exposed metal parts are connected to ground to prevent user contact with dangerous voltage if electrical insulation fails. Connections to ground limit the build-up of static electricity when handling flammable products or electrostatic-sensitive devices.

In some telegraph and power transmission circuits, the earth itself can be used as one conductor of the circuit, saving the cost of installing a separate return conductor. (See single-wire earth return)

For measurement purposes, the Earth serves as a (reasonably) constant potential reference against which other potentials can be measured. An electrical ground system should have an appropriate current-carrying capability to serve as an adequate zero-voltage reference level. In electronic circuit theory, a "ground" is usually idealized as an infinite source or sink for charge, which can absorb an unlimited amount of current without changing its potential. Where a real ground connection has a significant resistance, the approximation of zero potential is no longer valid. Stray voltages or earth potential rise effects will occur, which may create noise in signals or if large enough will produce an electric shock hazard.

The use of the term ground (or earth) is so common in electrical and electronics applications that circuits in portable electronic devices such as cell phones and media players as well as circuits in vehicles may be spoken of as having a "ground" connection without any actual connection to the Earth. This is usually a large conductor attached to one side of the power supply (such as the "ground plane" on a printed circuit board) which serves as the common return path for current from many different components in the circuit.

Thepprasit soi 7. Continue for 2km and you will see a big well hidden but well maintained park on your right. They have showers and parking.

Agreed ---- this park has great sports facilities and all free as far as I know.

Just goes to show....been here for nigh on 3 years and never knew it existed. I'll be checking it out soon. Thanks to the OP for asking the question and the posters that responded.

i really don't get the venom. I can only suspect that many commenting have never engaged domestic help in thailand.

i also suspect that the same people vilifying the OP are the same that would condemn him for paying too much under other circumstances

Well said, far too much venom and ill feeling in this thread. I just checked back to see if there was any advice I could use in the future but I see the thread's been reduced to name calling and stone throwing. Seen better behaved unsupervised 4-year olds.....enough said.

My friend, an expensive lesson. Those bum bag/wallet bags are like a neon sign saying "take me, take me" Carry your wallet or cash in your front left pocket and make sure you keep your hand close to it. If ladyboys or kids approach just stick your thumb in your pocket and feel the presence of your valuables, also protecting your watch from getting lifted. If they feel your other valuables, as in your tackle, let them.....protect your wallet at all costs.

Also, don't carry those ridiculous sums of money around. You can open a bank account in 20 minutes and use ATM's like a local. And don't carry your passport either, just carry a copy.

How do you open a bank account without a work permit?

You walk into the bank and you say to the cute lady that will inevitably ask you how she can help you, "I'd like to open a passbook savings account please". And lo and behold, or "presto" if you prefer, she will open one for you.

Now the tongue is out of my cheek....take your passport, a document of any sort that shows your address (even a hotel business card will suffice), 500 baht minimum deposit, and it will be done. I can't remember the costs, maybe 150 baht for your ATM card.

atm card at Kbank is 400

the one with basic accident insurance cover included is 700

Cheers for that. I do remember losing my card last year and paying 400 for a replacement now that I think about it. And......at Kbank you also have the opportunity to have a picture of a very hansum man on your ATM card.

OP - I was fat from the age of 12 to 35. Had a lifestyle change and managed to shed 35 kilos and kept it off with no bounceback in nearly 20 years. Here's the trick - lose the weight, you've done it before so whatever you did actually worked and you can do it again. Try and regain that feeling of high self-esteem that you talked of and make that your focus. Do whatever it takes, dig deep, use screwy diet fads if you want, chain yourself to the bed, have your jaw wired together.......Ok that's extreme, but Mate you WANT to do it, only YOU can do it, start right now - go to the fridge and your food stocks and throw out anything that tastes good or is fattening!!! Don't go near a food shop for 3 days and you'll be on the road to recovery!!

My secret was simple, I stopped putting excessive amounts of food in my mouth and started doing moderate exercise such as walking only. Had tried numerous diet fads, just didn't work. The guaranteed way to lose weight is to eat less calories than you use in a day - simple stuff really - DON'T PUT TOO MUCH FOOD INTO YOUR MOUTH.

Keeping the weight off is another story. I became slightly obsessive and weighed myself every day for probably 10 years. Every day was a realisation that if I was 200g heavier than the day before, that's a little less I can eat today. You have to make sure you lock in that godawful fear of getting fat again. Being 200g heavier today means you may be 200g more the next day.........that's 6kg in a month if you get into denial.

Even now I weigh myself once a week. I have a "trigger weight". If I am approaching my trigger weight, I immediately cut down food intake and recheck more frequently. If I ever get past my trigger weight, it's rarely by more than 500g and I take INSTANT action to stop it getting any worse. Drink water, exercise, eat very minimal food.

If you're below the trigger weight you can enjoy all the foods you love, but as you approach it, you just cut down slightly. I eat copious amounts of the stuff that's bad for you but can still keep the weight off by not going into denial when you first realise that the weight is creeping up on you.

BTW, my trigger weight is 2kg more than my usual/ideal weight. I occasionally get 2kg below my ideal weight so I have a 4kg range - that's a lot of mackers

Make a promise to your self that your hands will not get within a foot of your mouth unless you're brushing your teeth, picking your nose, shaving, or drinking water. Semi-serious, you just have to have that willpower and realise that nobody is gonna do it for you, no book, no diet fad, no crazy food, no fairy Godmother.

Depends how much they "charge" you for the job itself - have they given you a price yet?

We shouldn't be charged anything as its through the complex...so although its free, we're compelled to tip something.

If they do a good job and don't make a mess, 200 baht between them. If they make a mess or do a messy job, 100 baht between them.

Hi All

I had my wallet bag snatched out of my hand 30th May by 2 guys on motor bike Soi Bakaue lost my passport and NZ$3200 and few other bits. Called 191 emergency and it just rang rang no answere tried 4 times.

Kiwi Kenny

My friend, an expensive lesson. Those bum bag/wallet bags are like a neon sign saying "take me, take me" Carry your wallet or cash in your front left pocket and make sure you keep your hand close to it. If ladyboys or kids approach just stick your thumb in your pocket and feel the presence of your valuables, also protecting your watch from getting lifted. If they feel your other valuables, as in your tackle, let them.....protect your wallet at all costs.

Also, don't carry those ridiculous sums of money around. You can open a bank account in 20 minutes and use ATM's like a local. And don't carry your passport either, just carry a copy.

How do you open a bank account without a work permit?

You walk into the bank and you say to the cute lady that will inevitably ask you how she can help you, "I'd like to open a passbook savings account please". And lo and behold, or "presto" if you prefer, she will open one for you.

Now the tongue is out of my cheek....take your passport, a document of any sort that shows your address (even a hotel business card will suffice), 500 baht minimum deposit, and it will be done. I can't remember the costs, maybe 150 baht for your ATM card.

Depends how much they "charge" you for the job itself - have they given you a price yet?

Somewhere in the Chiang Mai/Chang Rai area.

LR DSCF5615.JPG . LR DSCF5617.JPG

PS ... I like the safety aware red flag on the back of the load as a warning signal ...

.

David, believe it or not I've actually SEEN that truck, or at least somebody with a load of wheelbarrows. But I saw it reversing backwards up an off-ramp because the overpass was labelled at 5.15M. Probably halfway between Lamchabang and the airport.

I've told many of my friends about it and it was my best story up until I saw two horses two months ago on the back of a Vigo in Jomtien - no frame around the cargo area and the horses were bracing themselves for the bumps and turns like seasoned veterans.

We've had one good nanny in the past two years. She was a five day a week 9 to 5 woman who cared for my son and when he was napping did laundry and light cleaning. When he didn't nap, she didn't do the extra work. She left abruptly as pretty much all domestic help does. She lasted eighteen months.

During that time my wife has had a second child and we've tried to use Vietnamese women. They are better workers but don't do as well as the Thais with caring for children. They talk on the phone constantly and leave the moment a better job appears.

We would love to try Burmese, Khmers, hell ANYONE! We are desperate like the OP. We up in Isaan if anyone knows of anyone.

For what it's worth, I did post an ad on Thai Visa and did get one call from a woman in Bangkok who wanted a Bangkok area job.

I think part of the problem is a general labor shortage and wage inflation. Thais have options and many pass on a crying baby with dirty diapers.

We are past the crying baby part so our job is a doddle, but we still can't find a decent nanny or HOUSEKEEPER or whatever. Our current "nanny" is asleep on the living room floor. Lazy ass.

I pay staff, straight out of university 15k to work in my office. To pay an uneducated, lazy nanny the same amount irritates the hell out of me. How difficult is it to turn on a washing machine, cook a few meals and sweep a few floors?

Try this website. I tried it over a year ago and got quite a few replies. I employed our woman through this website and she's awesome. Most of the girls/woman that replied seemed of very good calibre. There are also quite a few Filipino woman on there that are already based in Thailand. Well worth a look.

http://www.greataupair.com/Hire_Nanny_Babysitter/Aupair_Tutor_Housekeeper/Thailand.htm

After reading these comments I've concluded that we have the greatest live-in maid/nanny/cook/car cleaner/gardener in the whole of Thailand by the sound of it. I will be giving her a pay rise

As well you should.

As I read through this thread I am getting several impressions. That they should not be expected to be an all purpose servant and if they are it is made plainly clear to them at the start and the pay is a decent rate for what they do. Also I am getting the feeling that the ones like yourself with a successful situation treat them with respect and perhaps a part of the family.

I've been an employer most of my working life. Treating employees with respect goes with the territory - those that don't usually get bitten regardless of the country. There are huge differences in employing domestic staff in Thailand that have to be considered when weighing up the pros and cons of the job itself. Our lady is treated like one of the family but knows the boundaries (that she herself has set). She is respectful, as are we towards her. We do her favours, she returns in kind.

But remember that if she had a job at say a 7/11, she'd get less money and still have to pay rent and living costs. If she was living at her home and had no job, her family would expect her to do what she is doing for us for free - repaid by the roof over her head and the food that she eats.

She works for us and is technically on call 24/7, 4 days off per month. In effect her day job is cruisy - wakes at 6:30am, does a few chores, bathes and dresses our daughter, takes her to school, does a few more chores and is usually having a nap or free time from 10am till 3pm.

She eats with us, takes care of the daughter as we require and does other general household work in between watching TV, reading, or talking on the phone until bedtime at 7pm, then has free time. Sure there are other things she does, but as/when it suits her. She likes to be busy and will wash the car whether it needs it or not.

Compared to probably 80% of unskilled labour in Thailand, she's on the proverbial pig's back in terms of living conditions, work conditions, and money. To say that the salary I pay her would not get anything like that level of service back home is not a fair comparison. I'm paying truckies back home $30 per hour - that would employ two truckies in Thailand for a DAY.

Very true about battery heights. We use to use RL Bedford trucks in the Kiwi Army many years ago and one of the inheriant faults was with its battery. The battery compartment was under the passengers seat and over time the metal seat base would sag and end up touching the 2 terminals. Believe me, vehicle batteries can contain a fair charge.... in this case we usually flew out of the seat rather quickly from a burnt arse.

I have also seen vehicle batteries to arc weld metal together, powerful stuff. So you can imagine what may happen should the 2 battery terminals touch the bare metal of your car bonnet/hood.

I hope your car is safe!

Regards

Cheers fellow Kiwi - had the same problem with an old VW bug that I was a passenger in. Overweight mate shorted the battery under the rear seat, smoke and fumes, only a 2-door, funny as a fight at the time but we were only just out and the VW became an inferno.

An RL Bedford ay......probably still being used

What did you allegedly do to have them take your passport off you? How did they score your passport anyway - you weren't carrying it with you were you? That's a definite no-no.

If it's a traffic fine/bribe, negotiate it down and walk away with your PP. If it's something more serious, negotiate it down and walk away with your PP. If it's REALLY serious, negotiate it down and walk away with your PP. Do you see a pattern emerging here?

You've probably annoyed them by delaying payment anyway - this is their sandpit and you have to play by the local playground rules, whether you like it or not.

You speak Thai also. That should have given you an advantage in being a baak-waan and getting off lightly in the first place. What's the point of learning Thai of you haven't got the common sense to minimise a bribe before it gets beyond the initial first stage. The more players involved the price of tea increases - the first chance to negotiate is usually the cheapest for the payer. (I was going to say pigs at the trough but concluded that might have been derogatory )

I'm not criticizing for the fun of it meatboy, just trying to help, in case you want a higher proportion of members to actually read what you went to the trouble of posting.

i think the problem is,i was always told i was illiterate but i had a father,as we didnt have computers in the valleys in my days so till now i never knew what it[illiterate]meant,but never mind i am one happy dude living in los.hurry up darling with my breakfast we have to go to home-pro.

Actually Taff, If I read your posts and try and imitate a Welsh accent in my head as I read it, it makes perfect sense! And your literacy is quite good, but if you used the FULL STOP now and again, it might make it easier for those of us that can't think Welsh.

EDIT: And if it's any consolation, until I was 9 I thought a bas*ard was somebody who had parents from different countries. My Mum's a Scot and Dad's a Pom.