Now I'm going to inventory another of the case boxes of extras and add them to my Haves. It's the only way I'm going to get these organized and be able to have a shot at moving more of these out and filling in some holes.

Other work to do today, too. I'll be around, though.

If this is in seriousness, I support it fully.

Is everything in your H/W extras/up for trade?

I never buy new.

The amount of money that you lose when you drive it off the lot is such that you could buy TWO other used cars that will probably last longer.

Also, I wait until something has been on the road for a year or two and then ask someone who works on cars about them.

"Oh, the rear axle on those goes bad after 50000."

"The metal they used in the body is bad and rusts quickly."

"The cooling system can't support the engine heat: design flaw."

I like to know these things BEFORE I buy.

EDIT: I'm wondering if anyone can guess the make/model/year of the statements in quotes because they are about actual cars.

I've got more, too.

Let's see, where to begin...lol:

1) On cars: I'm more in line with Suga's line of thinking as I look at cars as simply transportation. I've neer been a gearhead. I don't think the brand really matters as there are duds on all sides. We bought a '91 Ford Exploder (as they tend to be called) when we moved up here for $1000 and it did good by us up until the point we sold it for $600 (a few years later). We now have a Saturn and it's the second I ever owned. If I ever had a loyalty to a car brand, it's Saturn (even though it is still from GM). I've never had a problem with either of them. I can't say that for any other brand. K-Ness, you're shopping for a new car so I think you'll be pretty darn good to go. Especially if a car gets great mileage (a big upside to me with the price of gas these days).

2) On Tolkien and Peter Jackson: I've read the books in question and I've seen all the flicks. I enjoy both versions. Not flip-flopping here, I really like both versions. However, I like them for different reasons and treat them as different entities. I look at the movies as "inspired" by the books, no different than looking at any other movie that does the same (including most "historical" movies). I like what someone said earlier (sorry, don't remember who) about how each person has their own idea of what a character looks like or even how a place or event would look in person. These movies are no different. This is what Jackson (and his team) saw. I can't fault him for it. I may like it, I may not...but I can't fault him for it. We're talking about converting (basically) a linguist's version of a fantasy novel into something on screen. Not an easy task. Even though I enjoy the movies, I still agree with Kevin Smith...it's three movies about walking. heh heh As for the previewed picture of the film that's shooting now, doesn't bother me. Again, it's how Jackson (or someone in make-up) saw the character. I was expecting something horrifying when it was compared to Yu-Gi-Oh (like a giant head of "Electro"-ish blonde hair) so I guess the lack of shock was welcomed. See? I had a picture in my head, and it wasn't close to what I saw. lol

3) On Michael Bay: He has a vision...it's to blow everything up. I say let him. If I'm in the mood to catch a matinee and want to see stuff go "BOOM", I'm in. I'm not always looking for brilliant stuff on-screen, I just love going to the movies...and sometimes I want mindless, plotless, earth-shattering ka-booms! Besides, without Bay, how can we compare "serious" directors. And remember...it can always be worse: Uwe Boll.

While my Wants should be up to date, and my Haves for recent sets should be correct, I know I have some mistakes still in there going back a way due to an earlier misunderstanding about the function of Haves.

A little here, a little there, I'll get it up to date. There's plenty more that hasn't been added into the Haves, though a chunk of it will simply be more of what's already in there. I want to be careful about the details, which will mean as I move through inventorying cases that should only have extras in them I make sure that I have each of those in my collection and don't merely believe I do before I add them to the list.

I just did some adjustments to the GSX extras, though I have another box with extras in it from that set to get to, too. The next handy one is a box of Crisis extras which I'll be organizing, but may not get to checking my collection for right away.

I'm a truck guy. I have owned an 85 Chevy, a 96 Dodge Sport and an 07 Ford F-150 FX4. I've had problems with all, but the least problems have come from the Ford. I grew up a Chevy fan, but as I got older, I realized there is good and bad in all.

Ideally, I'd like to buy last year's model as "new." Something that's not been owned, just test driven, where the model's gotten most of a year's performance record to inform me. Something I can buy as they look to move the new hotness, so the price is lower and I'm still getting the full coverage package on something that has less than a thousand miles on the odometer. Again, ideally.

I don't remember buying a vehicle with less than 80,000 miles on it already since the first half of the nineties, but that's been a matter of handy finances and affordability.

For some reason, throughout all the history of Ford making junk, their trucks have always seemed to escape this unfortunate trend.

I, also, preferred Chevy to Ford but their electrical systems go out so quickly that they can be just as annoying in their own way.

What were the problems with the Dodge?

I've heard that their nineties stuff, especially their trucks, were pretty solid.

THIS.

This.

And more this.

Very true. I know my Dad had Fords and Chevys when I was growing up. I mentioned my Ford Explorer that I had no real problems with other than it being beat to heck. I think the moniker "Exploder" came from people that ran them into the ground )beyond their capabilities) and never actually took care of the vehicle.

Again; Harry Potter.

Exactly the way I pictured everything? Hell, no.

A faithful rendition of the source material?

Yes. Up until the part where they kill Dumbledore. The "assault" on the castle by the Death Eaters is so underwhelming on film. Pages of wizards battling all over the castle worn down to a screwed up chick wrecking a dining room. Ugh.

Subract? Fine.

Combine? Fine.

Add? Bad.

Hollywood it up for romance, cheap yucks, cliffhanger moments, X-treme sports stunts, and "badassness"?

Too bad to function.

Very smart. I treat new tech this way (game systems, etc...). Give it time for the woes to surface and go from there!

I rebuilt the engine in the 85 Chevy, but transmission went out after 155K miles.

The Dodge had the head gasket leaking and the water-pump went out twice within 2 months. Fixed it and traded it away.

The only problem on the Ford right now is the power windows. Everything else is running smoothly.

I missus has owned an 06 Chevy Impala which had a rod blow through the side 400 miles from home. Only had it for a month. Bought the extened warranty and had the motor replaced for $150. Traded that in for an 07 Dodge Caliber. Not the best little car, but it serves it's purpose. Have yet to have a major problem with it.

I also owned an 84 Nissan 300ZX that had the clutch go out 285K later. Had that puppy up to 115MPH 2 months before the clutch went.

More than you wanted to know, but there it is.

The Girl has one.

I'm inclined to grumble about the basic way it was designed because I drive a Jeep Cherokee '97.

The wheelbase, underhood layout, and basic interior layout bug the hell out of me.

But, for the most part it runs solid. The stuff that's gone wrong with it is all the basic stuff that happens when you own a vehicle long-term.

I can't really comment too much on Harry Potter because I honestly lost interest in the books after Book 5. I just wanted it to end. It literally felt like I was running the most boring marathon in the world. It became a chore because I literally stopped caring about the characters, the story, everything about that world.

As far as the movies, I've seen 1, 2, and 3 and liked them (I prefer 1 & 2) but was just as finished with them. My wife LOVED (past-tense) Harry Potter stuff and even wrote fan-fics. lol She made a deal with me that she'd go see Transformers (which she had no interest in) with me if I went to see Potter 5 (which I had no interest in). I agreed. After seeing both films, she looked at me and said, "You win". All I know is she hasn't been pleased with Potter movies since 3. lol