mrjohn

White radish (hua pak gat) is dirt cheap and available just about anywhere and to all intents and purposes is the same thing.
It depends what you want to do with them.

1 hour ago, Thechook said:

They also prove they don't think before they act.  This guy obviously didn't realise that by opening his mouth he has got people rolling on floor laughing and the criticism has increased a hundred fold.

But I suspect that they (and only they) actually think they’re doing a good job.

Since some of the dealers on Lazada undercut local prices by 20%, it makes sense to buy online.

I have bought small, cheap items from Lazada before with no problems but not so sure about a more expensive item like a smart phone.

So, is there anything to watch out for on Lazada?

For example, what is the difference between “local manufacturer warranty” and “warranty by service provider” are they both good?

Incidentally, I was thinking of buying the Huawei P9 lite but the GR 5 2017 is only slightly more expensive with much better specs.

The only negative review I could find of the GR 5 2017 was that the interface and Android OS were out of date but it appears that a free update will be available fairly shortly.

So, any views on these phones will also be very welcome.

The Thai “police” bring shame upon themselves and their country across the world’s media every day.

It’s about the only thing they are good at.

I switched to qBitorrent from utorrent about 2 years ago as well.

I was fed up with the advertising and intrusive nonsense.

qBitorrent is a much better and easier to negotiate interface and absolutely no advertising!

I'm not a tourist. I live here.

But farang face = farang price.

Pattaya is the filthiest place I have ever been. And I mean filthy in every sense of the word.

Many thanks for all the replies to this topic.

In common with many other forum members I do not spend as much time here as I used to, so I apologise for not getting back sooner.

However much advice you get from this forum, if you live out in the sticks (well, nearly) like I do, you have to buy whatever is available locally.
So, first I checked my local shops. There was not much choice, in fact a newly opened shop had only one type.
The young guy in the shop assured me that it was very good. The brand was “Team” and made in Taiwan.
It was marked at 680 bht but I could have it for 650.

Anyway, I was 2 days away from having to take a trip to the big city so I thought I’d leave it until I had a look round there.
I checked out two shops and they had the same brand also at 680 but no discount. They also assured me it was a pretty good pump.

I decided that out of some sort of loyalty to my local shop (and, of course because it was 30 bht cheaper) I would wait until I got back home. Anyway, if it turned out to be a piece of junk I could always easily go back and complain about it.

So, the following morning I go into the local shop and was about to buy the pump for 650 when a woman (who I assume was the boss) appeared and immediately cut the price to 600 bht!

I will never understand Thai business practice, without even asking for it I got an 80 Bht discount.

So far it works fine and I’m very happy with it.

Much of the “wine” in Thailand is adulterated in a manner which would be deemed highly illegal in any normal country. Unfortunately Thailand is in the grip of a highly organised alcohol producing pressure group (or Mafia if you prefer) which controls the market and the government.

This situation is unlikely to change in the foreseeable future.

As far as I know all the boxed wine in Thailand is adulterated. The only safe bet for genuine wine is to pay through the nose for something that is definitely bottled abroad.

All you need to know about this disgraceful scam is contained in this article:

http://www.thebigchilli.com/news/fruit-wine-is-it-for-real

Many thanks for your reply Paulsingle.

That sounds like just the sort of thing I’m looking for. And just the right sort of price too.
Do you happen to know the model number?

Since I am nowhere near Phuket my best chance of buying one Is probably Lazada.

Does it look like one of these?

Many thanks for that.
The bike shops in my area are not particularly sophisticated.

Just looked on Lazada and can’t find it although they do have some Topeak portable ones, all of which are well over 1000 Bht

Anybody had any experience with Beto pumps?

This sort of thing:
http://www.lazada.co.th/beto-vauko-beto-tyre-floor-hand-pump-cmp-111ag1-8322065.html

Could anyone recommend a good quality bicycle pump to pump the tyres up to around 50 psi.
It doesn’t necessarily need to be portable as I always check the tyre pressures before I go out .
I have bought a number of cheap ones over the years and they have all been next to useless. Even if they can pump up to a decent pressure they tend to start leaking fairly quickly.
I’m happy to spend more money but only if the pump will actually do the job.
So if anyone has personal experience and can recommend a brand name or give me some guidance I would be very grateful.

To clarify the situation then, because I was going to start a similar topic.

The re-entry permit is valid as long as your visa extension, is that correct?

So, therefore, if I go for my annual extension (retirement) next week and apply for a single re-entry permit I will be able to use it at any time before the end of that extension, i.e. January 2018.

Is this correct or not?

Many thanks to all of you who contributed to this. I’m very glad to say the situation is resolved with a more than satisfactory outcome.

Encouraged by what I read on here from forum members. I got the car started and went on a tour of the local auto spares shops. Thanks to the Ford engineer’s diagnosis, I knew exactly which part I wanted.

The 2^nd place I visited checked out the wiring, ran tests across various points and eventually concluded that I needed a new glow relay.

“How much?” I said. “500 Bht,” he said.

“Is this a normal/generic part?” I said.

“ Yes,” he said. He fitted it in a couple of minutes with a charge of 100 Bht.

I omitted to point out in my 1^st posting that not only did Ford want 5,260 for the part, they would also need to order it and I was going to have to wait until Tuesday afternoon to have it fitted!

The total bill would have been 6500 Bht.

So I saved 6000 Bht and have learned a lesson.

I should add that I would never dream of going to a main agent for this sort of job in my home country because I know they would be too expensive. I would just ask friends to recommend a decent mechanic. This is more difficult to do in Thailand since Thais usually send you to the nearest shop without any idea as to their expertise or competence.

Thanks again for all your replies.

The part number is not easy to read and every time I search for glow relay, I get prices for glow plugs.

Thanks for your replies.

Basically the engine wouldn’t start. The guy from the local garage used a jump lead from the battery to  the cable above the glow plugs. I use the same method for a few weeks. And it would start immediately. The glow plugs are relatively new incidentally.

Many years ago I was with my first Thai girlfriend (as I said many years ago…)

We decided to go to the Grand Palace and I paid the foreigner/tourist fee while she paid nothing.

I was effectively a tourist at that time, so not too concerned but the lady on the ticket booth pointed out that there were 2 other palaces/attractions included in the fee.

So having done the Grand Palace with the hordes we jumped in a tuk-tuk and went to see one of the others. I can’t remember the name, but it looks like a Gothic cathedral and is often shown on TV with government personages preening themselves in front of it.

Now this was the most stupid aspect of the dual pricing policy; I was allowed in because I showed the ticket from the grand Palace but the girlfriend (a Thai national) was not, because she didn’t have a ticket!

I have had a starter problem with my elderly Ford Ranger for a couple of months. I took it to the local garage and they had no idea. So, yesterday I took it to the Ford dealer and they concluded that the component (the mechanic referred to it as a relay) arrowed in the picture needed replacing but would have to be ordered.

I was quoted 5,200 Bht, which seems a lot. Any idea what the correct name for this part is so that I can check the price online or with another dealer?

I make my own too. I use the blood cake that Thais use in noodle soups. It can be bought in most markets and Makro.

I’ve also seen a blood sausage for sale in Tesco Lotus under the Thai German brand. I have no idea as to the quality because they only sold the whole (not very large) sausage at about 180 bht, which is why I thought it more economical to make my own.

“Thailand is a democratic country and adheres to free trade.”

The Great Leader 3rd June 2016

I was so shocked when I heard this nonsense by “the self-appointed one”  on Thai TV  that I checked my dictionary  in case I had misunderstood the meaning of the phrase “free trade”

I had not!

Free trade is : “international buying and selling of goods, without limits on the amount of goods that one country can sell to another, and without special taxes on the goods bought from a foreign country.”

Which part of the words"free trade" do Thais not understand?

Asian Cricket Council Women's Twenty20 Asia Cup currently being played at the Asian Institute of Technology. North of Bangkok.

Very pleasant cricket ground set in the middle of an international university.

 Well worth a visit for anyone who loves the game.

There is the added bonus of some very edible Indian, Sri Lankan and all kinds of Asian foods in the student cafeteria at very low prices.

Does anybody know anything about this bizarre and beautiful insect?

They seem to like crawling about on mango and lamyai trees

Never mind, just Googled it.  Albizia saman or  Rain tree. A native of Central America ( like so many plants)

Wow that was quick! Thanks. Anybody  know the botanical name?

Anybody know the botanical name of this magnificent tree? It provides masses of shade and is quite beautiful. 

At least 20 or more have been cut down in our moo baan already this year. It flowers around songkran every year.