casio strap adapters for watches that are not g-shock
This used to be something only for G-SHOCK watches, but thanks to lovely people with 3D printers, they're now available for a whole bunch of regular Casio models.
The first strap adapter kit I remember was for the G-SHOCK DW5600E. Without question, the worst part of the watch is that polyurethane resin strap as denoted by PUR on the strap interior.
Being the DW5600E as an entry level G-SHOCK is so popular, and because a lot of people wanted to use a fabric strap (as in nylon), the strap adapter kit was born...
...but only for G-SHOCK watches.
Time passed, more people started getting their hands on 3D printers, and soon enough, strap adapters for regular Casio watch models began appearing. I believe the first was the strap adapter kit for the AE1200 since that is a very popular regular Casio model.
However, a search for casio strap adapter now brings up adapter kits for a whole bunch of different models. The G-SHOCK is included, of course, but so is the F-91W, W217H, F108WH, bigger models like the WS1500, AE1500, DW291H, and so on.
What I'm personally really happy about is that adapters now exist for the WS1600H. This watch is the same size as the AE1200 but way more legible. Big digits for time, date and day and great night light, all in a not-huge size. And since it's basically an AE1200 with a different module, strap adapters exist for it.
Which strap adapter type to get?
Good question, and I have a good answer.
Generally speaking, most strap adapter kits come in two types. Slip-through and band.
Slip-through has a slot on each adapter, meant for one-piece straps, as in NATO or Zulu style.
Band has protruding lugs on each adapter meant for two-piece straps or bracelets.
My favorite part...
...is that you can finally escape the skinny PUR straps Casio uses on so many of their lower cost watches.
For example, you could, if you wanted to, have a Casio F-91W with a 22mm strap. That would look all sorts of ridiculous, but the point is yes, you could do it (although it would be much more sensible and look much better to use 18mm for an F-91W).
Remember that fabric nylon straps do not taper. What that means is that the strap does not get skinnier as it approaches the buckle. The width is the same for the whole strap. Using the F-91W as an example, the stock strap tapers down to a very skinny 16mm, so if you switch over to adapters and use an 18mm NATO, believe me, much better. Gaining 2mm width on a strap may not sound like much, but it does make a noticeable positive difference.
And for larger watches, punching up to 22mm wide is oh-so nice.
You finally have access to the most comfortable watch strap that exists
The most comfortable strap for a watch is the stretchy elastic fabric band. These are primarily made for smartwatches, but guess what? With Casio strap adapters, you can use those straps on a Casio too.
This strap type alone can make a plain Casio digital your favorite watch. If the one thing keeping you from wearing a plain Casio is an uncomfortable stock PUR strap, switching to an elastic fabric type will finally make it comfortable to wear.
Tools needed?
Just one, and if you own a bunch of watches, you may already have it, a spring bar tool. You need that to get the spring bars out to install the strap adapter.
If you don't have one, my suggestion is to get a small watch repair kit. It will come with the spring bar tool, and most will throw in a small bag full of extra spring bars. And you might need that because if that bar goes flying across the room when taking it out, you'll never find it again. Good to have spares.
I should also note it's super cheap just to buy a 360-piece spring bar set if you just need the bars. Again, if you have a bunch of watches and switch out straps every so often, sometimes spring bars go flying and get lost forever. It's totally worth the 6 to 8 bucks to have extra bars.
Does Casio themselves make strap adapters?
Yes, but only for G-SHOCK models. And it's quite the production to even get them. You either have to buy a G-SHOCK that comes with a fabric strap to get the adapters, or have to find a Casio parts supplier that can actually get them for you.
For example, two G-SHOCK models with made-by-Casio adapters on them with a fabric strap are the GM2100C-5A and GM2100CB-3A. On either model, you'll see the strap adapters right there in plain sight.
You either get one of those models, or find an authorized Casio supplier that can put it an order for them. How much for official-from-Casio adapters? I have no idea, but it wouldn't surprise me at all if it ran you $35 or more ordering direct like that.
I only mention this information for Casio watch owners out there that like things to be "100% official". Some just like having everything to come from the original manufacturer.
I'm not so picky. I'm totally okay with third party strap adapters because they do the job, they're very affordable, and they allow me to use something far more comfortable than a stock Casio PUR strap. And I can have it on a regular models that aren't G-SHOCK.
fixing a car radio
It's old, but it works. Mostly.
I finally got around to fixing the wonky volume control for my car radio. It's one of those pretend-analog things where there is an actual potentiometer in there, but the signal it controls is digital. Mine was in a state where it worked, but turning it in either direction could increase or decrease the volume and it was really difficult to land it on a specific volume.
The fix? DeoxIT D5. I've been mentioning that a lot recently, but yeah, it worked here. I pulled off the volume knob, gave a spritz in there, turn-turn-turn back and forth, spritz again, repeat. Knob back on, done. Now it works like it's supposed to.
Part of the problem with this control to begin with is that it's a pseudo-infinite adjust, which means a smooth feel when turned. If it had detents, then the problem never would have happened. And, wouldn't you know it, the knob on right side for choosing a radio station has detents. No problems with that one. I rest my case.
My car radio is not at 100%. Only 3 of 4 speakers work due to age. The front two work, but the driver's side rear never has since I got the car. I've literally been debating for years whether to replace the rear shelf speakers or not. Every time I consider doing it, the decision is always nope, not worth the effort. And that's due to the first car I ever owned. More on that in a moment.
The CD player stopping working a while ago. It will take a disc, but it's a tossup whether it will read or not. Also, it's a tossup whether the unit will actually eject the disc. The last time I had a disc in there, I honestly thought it was stuck, but after trying over and over again, the disc finally ejected. I've not put another disc in there since. Yes, I could take the whole radio out, take it apart, clean the lens and lubricate the mechanism. But like with the rear speakers, it's not worth the effort.
Everything else on the radio still works, including an AUX IN that I never use.
Do I even listen to the radio? Rarely, and that's the first reason I've not bothered replacing the rear speakers.
The second reason is that my very first car, a Civic from the early '80s, only had two front speakers. The car didn't have any radio originally, and the guy who sold it put in the cheapest AM/FM radio-with-cassette deck he could find, slapped in two speakers in the door panels and that was it. I was happy to have any way to listen to music in the car at the time.
The third reason is that me and car radios do not get along.
For that first car I had with that cheap AM/FM cassette deck thing, it never had a problem. Never "ate" tapes, and the radio always worked. True, it wasn't that loud, but it was good enough. It was just about every car radio I had after that which developed a problem or two or more.
Many moons ago when I was making regular trips from Vermont to Connecticut, I would be driving on I-91 and listening to the radio because there was music there I didn't have on tape. I could actually gauge how far along the trip I was because of one station I'd listen to for many miles. Once that station was out of range to where it was just static, I knew that I'd driven a little more than half the trip. And that kind of sucked because there weren't any other stations to listen to until I got to my destination. But that was how things were at the time in the long-ago 1990s.
What I've learned over the years is not to mess with car radios. If I try anything fancy, there will be problems. Just like car radios of the past, I've had CD players stop working and speakers that fuzz/blow out. And if I try to get fancy and connect something, be it wired or wireless, something will go wrong.
It absolutely does not matter how careful I am with a car radio. It could be absolutely bone stock without a single modification done to it, I could clean it regularly, never play it too loud and be super careful with it. Again, doesn't matter. Something on it will bust at some point. And it will be something decidedly annoying.
That first car radio spoiled me just because it always worked, even as cheap as it was.
What I've learned over the years with car radios is that if the radio and two front speakers work, I'm good.
I fixed the volume control. The front two speakers still work. The radio still works. I'm good.
strat shaped guitars with no pick guard
While I'm happy with my Yamaha Pacifica PAC112VM and it absolutely works for me, it does have a pick guard. Granted, it only covers the middle and neck pickups along with the selector switch, but still, that disqualifies it from the "super easy to maintain" category.
Truly super-easy Strat shape guitars have no pick guard at all because you can access the electronics for maintenance from the rear via small panels, so let's look at those.
Two things out of the way first:
First, if you gotta have a Fender Strat but want one with no pick guard, only two exist that I've mentioned before. Fender Aerodyne Special Stratocaster and Fender Aerodyne Special Stratocaster HSS. That's it. So if you just have to have Fender, there you go.
Second, I'm specifically going to concentrate on mid-tier guitars, but if "I want a Strat shape with no pick guard, I want it new, and want it cheap" sounds like you, see Jackson JS11 and JS12 Dinky models. To the best of my knowledge, that's the absolute rock bottom lowest cost no-pick-guard Strat shape you can get for a fully assembled guitar.
In my research for mid-tier Strat shape guitars with no pick guard, Ibanez and Schecter rule the roost here.
...is something I am seriously impressed by considering what you get for the money. The carve in the back is insanely good to get access to higher frets, which Ibanez calls the "Super All Access neck Joint". The neck itself is roasted maple. Can you say stainless steel frets? The AZ24S1F has them, and they're of the wide/tall flavor. Body is alder, pickups are alnico 5's, and yes, that little switch changes from humbucker to single-coil.
Ibanez claims you can get 10 different tone types out of this guitar because of the dyna-MIX10 system with "power tap" mode.
Can you?
Incredibly, yes.
Holy crap.
Even before mentioning the other guitars, the AZ24S1F is the best of the lot. No question.
...doesn't have as many features as the AZ24S1F does. But it does have 3 pickups instead of just 2, and the output jack is top-mounted instead of side-mounted, which is more convenient.
Also, the guitar is just straight up gorgeous. Natural finish with tastefully done flame and gold hardware. Even the tuners are gold. Yep. Also, something I personally like better about it is that it's a hardtail. No vibrato system whatsoever.
Simple, solid, easy-player, gorgeous guitar.
Schecter Traditional Van Nuys...
...is the old school Schecter design. Instead of the 3x3 tuners they use on basically everything, it has the 6 inline tuners like a Strat does. This is an HSS, and the humbucker has a nice chrome cover on it. Push-pull exists, so yes, you can get single-coil goodness out of the humbucker.
The only finish offered is Gloss Natural Ash, so it has that coffee table look going on. Ordinarily I don't like this, but this has a darker hue and it carries all the way to the headstock, so it works.
Schecter C-1 Exotic Spalted Maple...
...proved to me spalted maple can actually look good, because otherwise I can't stand the spalted maple look. This C-1 model somehow pulls it off and it looks right.
Again, this is one of those coffee table looking things, but Schecter just seems to get the right combination of colors while other guitar makers can't. Schecter just knows how to do natural.
In this one is a pair of zebra humbuckers, the body has binding (and looks good), the knobs have a mysterious red/brown look to them (which you'd think wouldn't work, but again, Schecter knows good color), and yes, I think this earns "Exotic" in its name.
As for the sound, it's the Schecter Diamond '78 humbuckers, and yes there is a toggle for single-coil sounds.
Straight up gorgeous guitar, just like the Ibanez offering.
Is the no-pick-guard Strat shape the way to go?
For a lot of guys, yes.
With all electric guitars, there's maintenance. Maintaining your guitar should be easy, because if it's complicated, you get annoyed with that real fast.
Also, one of the best parts about the double cutaway Strat shape is no neck dive. Not only is a no-pick-guard Strat style guitar easy to maintain, but also is an easy player sitting or standing.
I covered the mid-tier stuff because there are guys who want something nice that's not insanely priced and easy to maintain. Yes, you can get it, and do so without going to the poorhouse in the process.
finding a new case for an old phone can be annoying
This was (and still is) an adventure, and not one I wanted to take.
My phone is old. It's a 2016 model that I acquired in 2019, but it still works and I don't want to give it up. It takes fantastic photos, records fairly good videos (including 2K 30fps and 1080p 60fps resolutions) and gets the job done. The only thing it can't do is run certain apps because the Android version is old, but I can live without those for the time being.
I've only had one case for the phone this whole time, which as of recent ended up being a disgusting mess due to age and wear, so it had to be replaced.
Off to eBay I went to find a replacement phone case, of which there are many. Amazon also has many, but eBay is where I decided to go.
I find a case that looks okay, and make the order. A few days pass and it arrives.
Stupid thing doesn't fit.
Ugh..
Start an eBay return, go to eBay again, buy another case. Another few days pass, it arrives, and this one actually fits. Okay, good.
Technically, this new case is "better", but I prefer the design of the old one. The corner bumpers were done right. Not-so much on this one, but I literally have no other choice because nobody makes that style of case anymore...
...or so I thought.
For my original case, I had to fight to find that one back in '19. A fair amount of hunting around was required, but I found one on eBay, and it was only $3.29. Digging through some old emails, I was able to find the eBay seller who originally sold it. But of course, that seller no sells them.
Drat.
What I did have however was the title of the product the seller originally used.
I did an eBay search for that and... oh my God, I found it. The exact same case, proper corner bumpers and all.
One problem. It's in China and it'll cost $8.50 to get it.
The price is obviously cheap, so that's not the issue.
Being it will come from mainland China, it may take anywhere from 4 to 6 weeks to get here. And that's a risk, because sometimes buying stuff from there never makes it to the USA.
This is a risk I'm willing to take, because I really want my old phone case back.
I may end up $8.50 poorer with nothing to show for it, but only one eBay seller in China has my favorite phone case (believe me, I looked thoroughly), so... yep, gotta do it, take the risk and hopefully get my case back.
the nipple you need? guitar pot cleaning cap
I recently griped about Stratocaster design in how it's such an annoyance to clean the volume and tone pots. The cap I'm about to describe might be a solution. Maybe.
A reader emailed me and told me about a thing known as a pot cleaning cap. He called it a nipple. I'd never heard of this thing before, so I looked into it.
Out of the gate, you have to be careful buying one of these things for one reason. Statute vs. metric. Some are made for 3/8 x 32 thread, meaning those will not work for a metric size. But then there are others that state it fits 7mm and 8mm.
In other words, know the measurement you need before you buy one. If what you have with the scratchy pots on it was made in America or Mexico, it most likely uses 3/8 x 32 measurement potentiometers. If it's an import, then it's probably uses metric.
How does it work?
- Pull knob off
- Screw cap on
- Insert straw from DeoxIT D5 into the little hole in the cap
- Spray (lubrication travels down the shaft)
- Turn-turn-turn back and forth to spread lubrication
- Test to make sure scratchy noise gone
- Remove cap
- Put knob back on
Unless I'm missing a step, I believe that's how it's supposed to work.
Who benefits most from using this?
Anyone who owns a thing where it's an annoying production getting to the potentiometer to lubricate it.
Examples of this are the Fender Stratocaster, semihollow and hollow body guitars, and just about any guitar amplifier.
What's it made out of?
The majority of these caps I've seen for sale are made from either aluminum or brass, so it's safe for anybody to use, including those with a nickel allergy.
Do you have to use DeoxIT D5?
Not necessarily, but recommended because the stuff just works, and it's known to be safe for metals and plastics. You can peruse other contact cleaners if you like and maybe try WD-40 Specialist Contact Cleaner (which also claims to be safe on metals and plastics). There is also DeoxIT F5 specifically for faders, but I don't know if I'd feel comfortable using that on a potentiometer. For me, I use D5 and it gets the job done without damaging anything.
Does this cap actually work?
From what I've read, some guys swear by these things just because it saves so much time. Semihollow guitar owners especially love them because it can be ridiculously complicated snaking tools or straws or whatever inside the F-hole just to get a pot lubricated.
To answer the question directly however, I don't know because I don't own one since I just found out about them.
If you do have one, feel free to contact and let me know if it worked or not.
And on that note, price. Right. Not an expensive thing but also not exactly cheap. You're going to spend $10 to $30 for one. That's a little bit up there for something so small...
...but then again, the time this saves is arguably worth it. Also, depending on what gear you have, it may serve multi-duty for both your guitars and amps.
This is a specialty tool, to be sure, but sometimes you need a specialty thing to save yourself from an evening of swearing and throwing things across the room out of frustration.