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I recently got the USB version with the BT addon for my E36. Happy with the result, only downside is track titles etc don't show but I think that is the head unit I have, rather than the Grom unit. It mimics the CD stacker by folders on the USB stick. If you want to keep the factory hardware/look, GROM is on point.

pic 1, yeh they do look like drill chuck arbors, maybe MT1s? there may be (or have once been) an adapter to sleeve down to that size in either the dril or the lathe tailstock. Pic 6 looks like that chuck might be on an adapter already. pic 2, yeh, assorted cutters, looks like a lot of tool steel blanks rather than carbide insert cutters. Can be tricky to sharpen/setup correctly if you are learning, and tricky to diagnose if they are causing an issue. Hopefully there are some sharper ones in there from the last guy, maybe practice on Ali mostly while you get a feel for things. Personally I go with carbide inserts except for real oddball work as it's so much less hassel and generally eliminates the tool as an issue (carbideNZ do good mail order stuff). pic 3, as Jon says, facing plate, think I have use my one of those once. Nice wee units by the looks of them, can't see from the pic, but does the mill/drill have a drawbar (often a hex on top, it's a long 'bolt' that threads into the toolholder to tighten it up into the taper) to remove the tool holder? Looks like it has a BT30 collet or similar in there so it should do. In which case the drill chucks are unlikely to fit in that, for the tailstock, you may need to wind it out (extend) it a few turns in order for the chuck (and live center in the last pic) to seat properly?

The could well be a few tools that go with either, tailstocks often have the same taper as mill/drills so your drill chucks and drill bits could fit both. Quite a few fixtures around for both mills and lathes, can't help much without a few pics of them...

Not full time, but I dabble... not Auckland based, but flick up some pics and I can help you out. Also, setup is pretty much everything for machining, unless it's a real basic part, plan to spend 50-75% of your time setting up the job.

Few BMWs hanging out at the nurburgring... The i8 is a very pretty car, but I do wish they put something with a bit more horsepower in it.

Yeh Dubai ep was exellent. Last weeks Jaaaggggg ep was quite like the top gear of old which was pretty good also.

And taking the piss out of electric cars without any puns, that's just shockingly bad form! RegularCars guy does it better imo https://youtu.be/m-gDhq8VKsQ

Seems interesting how well his use of language aligns with his views, using gay as a derogatory terms immediately marks him as a bit backward, angry, and somewhat uneducated. Reading the article certainly doesn't change that view of him based on his EV views! Not that the EV bloke sounds like much of a winner either...

That could be of benefit if we go to a more distributed generation and buffered power network. Micro-hydro and wind and even some solar out in that 95% could be buffered by powerwalls or even just cars capable of backfeeding into the network to even out blips in demand from supercharging, depending on how much buffering goes on you could lose all the efficiency gains (viaAC/DC rectumfrying and back again) batts have over hydrogen though. Carbon nano batts could knock Tesla over (though I suspect Elon would pivot to make use of such tech and stay in the game) and knock out hydrogen too. Or other battery chemistry, or supercaps, or even room temp superconductors. I wonder if we'll get to the point where trucking electricity out to remote locations is their most viable source of energy

Don't be so hard on yourself, while the weight issue you brought up was obfuscating, your point about recharge time is not low quality.

I mean, I could macguyver something together if I got a tesla out of it though; all I'd need would be 8 mules, 700ft of 12AWG string, and a bunny in a comical hat More significant is wasting 30-50% of your energy fuel before you can even get it into the car. Does lower mass equal better performance though? Is the Tesla model S outperformed by the Mirai then? I agree the recharge time is an issue. Infrastructure cost is debatable at scale, for now (very small scale) the infrastructure is there to support EVs on our roads, but requires a large cost to support hydrogen vehicles.

Since I lack both, and a weighbridge I just went with their spec'd weight. So include the relatively light 85kg tanks and the relatively light 60kg fuel cell for the hydrogen one to make it an accurate comparison. If you compare the weight of the fuel itself and not the containers it would be 5kg vs 0kg for electrics since charged batts weight no more than empty ones! I'd say the biggest problem is the recharge time, what difference does weight really make? And where do you get the hydrogen from? Fossil fuels (non-sustainable) or from the same electricity you put in batteries, just with far less efficiency; it's faster to refuel and weighs less, but it's a less efficient use of electricity. That's what makes it less viable.

What does the fuel cell and hydrogen tank weigh? Let's at least try to be fair and compare the same factors eh... Curb weight for example, the Mirai is 1850kg to the Tesla's 1961kg, both Luxury 4dr sedans.

You source the electrons from renewable electricity generation, which give you more bang for your buck in batteries than they do in hydrogen fuel cells. The comparison between hydrogen and batteries should not focus on where the electricity comes from since it is the same for each place, but the efficiency is markedly different. That's what makes hydrogen less attractive. Batteries.

75% on electrolysis init? Or have you got some updated numbers from this decade? Then about the same for electricity generated in a fuel cell. It's viable in the same way the horse and cart is viable, it works but has been superceded by better technology.

When you think about it, fossil fuels are also like a battery, just one which takes thousands of years to trickle charge, and has incredible power density at the expense of an incredibly high internal resistance. Bingo. Not sure the JFM pixie converters are any cheaper or last any longer than current batteries do anyway.

Only due to moving goalposts via technological progression. Batteries are the current best solution in a growing number of use cases. BEVs are objectively a better environmental option compared to ICE cars provided both satisfy the desired use case.

Got bored of that pretentious wanker in the video, does he get to what car he thinks the environmentally conscious should buy? As with anything, money talks, and money spent on electric cars in the belief they are better for the environment just expands the market niche and creates market forces for the development of cars which are unquestionably better for the environment. In addition to secondary market forces on renewable energy supply.

What's with all the electric vehicle hate? sh*t's going to make petrol cheaper if nothing else. Would also be interesting to put a few of the 'evs have no soul/character' types into a tesla for a day and see if the tune changes...

I didn't mind the concept of the celeb drivers, could have got some better celebs though... The three cars were very well chosen, and the familiar banter between presenters was good as usual. It was one hell of a crash, and speaks volumes for the car design and safety that Hammond made it out alive. I think if you drove a californian home off the same hill it would fare much worse, the homes burning down are far more likely caused by the thousands of acres of brush fires around them...

Interesting stuff, my initial thoughts (which you've almost certainly covered) are around worst case failures, will a failed mosfet cause a fuse to trip or will the PTC nature of it means it just applies full heat and could start melting your dash from inside out if the fan isn't going? And can this be easily adapted for the EV guys? series up the elements so it can run at 72V or 144V?

I was the same starting out, came home with some welding I did at college I thought was decent, dad put one end in the vice and broke it clean off at the weld! A very tangible lesson. I'm moving to Tauranga next week, so if you're down that way I'd be happy to give you lessons and help with the cross member and engine mounts. Not too sure on foam, makes it a PITA if any rework is required. Hope I'm not coming off as too negative, it's a great choice in engine/chassis/etc, and an excellent rim selection to go with!

You should never be going back and forth like that, it's symptomatic of either inadequate prep or incorrect weld settings. Gasless is also rubbish on thin stuff so that definitely counts as an incorrect weld setting! Tbh if the salesman told you it would be fine for car body stuff gasless he should get a clip round the ear with a full gas bottle Have you got much more welding to do? The forum may be able to provide the borrowing of a bottle perhaps?

Great project, and that's some excellent work on the diff! but I've got concerns that welding is not ticking the 'no compromises' boxes. Sticking metal to metal is just one part, the join should be uniform and not create any sharp transitions which will create stress raisers and lead to cracking... Whether it is just academic or actually going to be a potential issue is beyond my experience, I'd suggest you get in touch with your certifier asap.

Still chipping away at a good use for the jerco... Thinking about black anodising the aluminium plate and spacers at the bottom to make the gearbox assembly pop out a bit more, not sure though.