pf01 [r]

My wheels came a scant three days after order, in fact three of them arrived on Tuesday. They look good, I might have gotten a darker hue were it an option, but they do their job and show plenty of rotor. The 18s with new rubber ride wayyy smoother than the worn 19s, I'll see how they handle load after break in.

Purchases, products, plantings [s]

Chilies and rosemary and stuff - plants that are used as seasonings so we don't have to grow a whole bunch to have useful quantities. Since I feel that organic foods are pretentious, I'm going to spray them with DDT every week or so.



The front yard is getting some love. The papyrus is doing well and Jes added some sort of flower. The grass is still flourishing, but now I need a damn lawnmower.



The deck's been cleared off for another coat of stain and then some heavy sealant. I'm not messing around with that thin deck sealant this time.

Also in store for the backyard is replacing all the pvc drain grates (most broken) with metal ones. They're actually cheapest at Home Depot.


Source.

I finally settled on wheels and tires for the vr4. Enkei pf01's with Sumi HTR Z IIIs from Tirerack. There aren't a lot of options for the Mitsu (see tiny caliper on Z above) but I like them and it's time. I stopped by Discount yesterday to see if their store selection differed from their site. Barely.

So the pfs have an extra half inch of width, are forged, and add about fifty pounds of lightness.

Now, as with surfboards, I'm set until I move up to carbon fiber (espp-dependent).


Source.

Along with replacement fridge water filters and a subscription to Roadracing World & Motorcycle, Amazon is sending me Endless Ocean 2.

Rollies [r]

Is it a shame I have new wheels and tires before Jon? Yes. Will that be the case when his come in and they're shiny and scratch-free? No.

While I'm on the subject, here's my experience with Edge Racing. I ordered some wheels and tires from them since they advertised in Grassroots and had good deals. I was surprised to not get a confirmation email immediately. I was surprised the order did not ship within 24 hours as advertised. I was surpised I didn't get an email explaining that the tires were on back order. It wasn't until I called that I learned the tires were back ordered in spite of what the availablity quote indicated. I asked for expedited shipping to compensate for the delay, the csr declined. I asked for an order confirmation email, the csr said the 'order shipped' email was sufficient.

I'm the passive-aggressive type consumer who won't throw a fit, but instead pass the experience on to others and, naturally, never patronize them again.

Here's a report card of all my tire-related purchases. Since it's Corporate America, I believe the grade school rating system is appropriate.
Tire Rack (online) and Les Schwab (in store) get pluses for expediency, inventory accuracy, and complaint handling. (Tire Rack quickly replaced a strut I ordered that appeared to have been previously installed).
Edge Racing (online) gets a check for expediency, inventory accuracy, and complaint handling. By contrast, Craigslist gets a plus for expediency and inventory accuracy, a check for complaint handling.

Price wise: Craigs < Edge < Tire Rack < Les Schwab

Back to the TSWs. I like them considerably more than the stock wheels and more than I thought I'd like them before mounting. They're still a bit shiny for a Japanese coupe but a good dose of brake dust will solve that. We'll see how the Falkens will stand up to autocross.