A very weird '90s Fender color, Blueburst
This one is weird enough to where it almost doesn't look real, yet it is.
The '90s. A time when Fender's angle was showing off modern designs and features, and that included the finish choices.
One color of the '90s that a blue/purple looking thing is Midnight Blue...
...but then there's Blueburst. This color goes all over the place. Some are just the burst. Some are transparent where you can see straight wood grain. Some are transparent and flamed (yes, a blue flame). Some are heavy quilted, some light quilted.
The majority of the Blueburst finishes are on '90s Stratocaster guitars, although some Telecasters exist.
Years later, the color made a reappearance on the Jazz Bass and the Player Stratocaster HSS Plus Top, but it doesn't have quite the same blue punch the '90s finish had. It appears there's some green with the newer Blueburst towards the middle of the body.
But that '90s Blueburst... wow. It's a feast for the eyes, and yes it was a premium color option at the time. The '90s Fender guitars with that finish are decades old now, but certainly do not look it. Blueburst is a finish that still looks fresh even now.
The other guitar company who does really awesome blue burst finishes is LTD, so be sure to see those as well.
Still the best cheap semi-hollow, Squier Starcaster
Squier does have the market cornered with this one.
Let's say this is your situation:
"I want a semi-hollow electric guitar, I want it cheap, and I want it new."
...then you want a Squier Affinity Starcaster.
You'll quickly discover that you can't beat the Affinity Starcaster's price for a new semi-hollow electric. Sure, you'll see the Ibanez AM53, AS53 and AF55, but those are all $50 more.
Now to be clear, this model is NOT as good as the Squier Classic Vibe Starcaster, nor is it anywhere near as cool as, say, the VOX Bobcat S66...
...but again, you can't beat the Affinity Starcaster price for a new semi-hollow electric. When price is the #1 concern, Squier wins this round, followed by Ibanez, then followed by everybody else.
Probably the best stereo flanger guitar pedal
1980s stereo flanger effect goodness for a decent price.
The flanger effect is not hard to find, as it's in pretty much in just about every multi-effect processor out there. Tons of flanger pedals also exist.
However...
The best flanger effect is, without question, the stereo type. As in the kind where you can go from a mild organ-like rotating speaker sound to trippy sounding 1960s style "fast wide" tone.
BOSS actually makes this right now with the BF-3. Typical to BOSS pedals, it's built like a tank, so you know it's good.
But then there's the old school Arion SFL-1.
A friend of mine actually had one of these back in the late '80s. I have absolutely no idea where he bought it from, but what amazed me about it was the stereo flange effect it could do really, really easily.
This is the only pedal where I can honestly say it was fun to use because it's not "safe". What I mean by that is that you can get some seriously wacky sounds out of it, so much to the point it makes your guitar tone unrecognizable...
...and it is for that reason I say the Arion SFL-1 is probably the best stereo flanger guitar pedal effect. I like a pedal that let's you go right off the deep end with your sound, so to speak. And do it in stereo.
Sure, you can play it safe with the SFL-1. But it's oh-so easy to go from safe to crazy with just a turn of a knob, and that's just cool.
Little GPSes
Sometimes smaller is better.
I currently drive a car that has no screens in it, so my primary navigation system is a Garmin DriveSmart 66. And while I like that just fine and it does the job very well, little guys like the Garmin nuvi 30 are also very good but for different reasons.
Before getting deeper into this, yeah you have to be a bit of a nerd to use an old Garmin these days. The 30 is a super basic navigator that is GPS-only with no Wi-Fi and no internet. Maps have to be updated manually using OpenStreetMap data, such as from OpenMapChest. The map data won't fit on the 30's internal memory so you have to install a 32GB microSD card and put the maps there. A proper USB charge cord must be used to power it (a regular USB cable won't work), else you'll have to use the bulky 12V Garmin charger. Anywhere you want to navigate to more or less has to be input by direct GPS coordinates, which can be acquired from Google Maps.
But once you jump through all those hoops - if you're willing to do so (and I am) - that little wonder, the nuvi 30, is great to have.
What makes having one of these worth going through the hassle of setup? No cell phone service required. No phone telling you the GPS signal was lost (which it will do to save battery later whether you want that to happen or not). The UI always stays the same and does not change. The favorites you save stay there and don't just magically disappear. No signup required. No login required. You just turn the thing on, it acquires a GPS signal, and off you go.
There's no traffic reporting with the 30. The 30 navigates, and that's it.
I have a bunch of old Garmins, and the 30 is one of my favorites not just for its simplicity but for the fact it fits anywhere. Just about any smartphone mount made for the car can hold the 30, or you can do the double-sided Velcro thing and just stick it wherever. Arkon also makes a bunch of mounts for Garmins as long as you have the mounting clip that clicks on the back of the 30 - although I think a cheap smartphone mount would be better since the 30 is small enough for that type of mount to grip it without a problem.
It's just cool to have something with a little 3.5" touchscreen to be able to navigate you anywhere. And speaking of temperature, yeah, the 30 can handle heat and cold a lot better than a phone can.
I'm not saying the 30 navigates better than the phone does, but it was designed for car use whereas the phone was not. As a navigator, yes it's more reliable than the phone is.
It's also nice that the 30 is more or less the size of a car gauge. And even though it's small, the speaker it has can actually go quite loud.
But again, some nerdy steps are required to get one of these things set up. I personally think it's worth it, because once it's all done you just use the thing and don't have to think about it. It just works.
Adventures in Shaving: Safety Razor Blades
This does get a bit nuts...
...but it's kinda fun and is fortunately cheap. This is a followup to the last time I talked about this. I only said a little bit about safety razor blades there when in fact it's kind of a big deal where safety razor shaving is concerned.
If you look at one of many safety razor blade samplers available, they start around $7 and go up from there.
You first get a safety razor. Most go with Parker as the go-to brand for that because you get decent quality for what it is. If you're unsure what to get, get a 96R or 99R and just pick which one you think looks better.
Parker does supply 5 complimentary blades with each razor, which you can totally buy on their own if you like them, but that's no fun.
The fun comes in finding the best blade that works for your face, and that's what the samplers are all about.
I can confirm with certainty that different blades give a different shave. Some are definitely sharper than others, some last longer than others, and so on.
For example, Feather is said by many to be the sharpest blade you can get. However, it's also said that's the blade to be most careful with so you don't nick your face, and that they don't last very long. Then there are those who use the cheap-as-chips Derby Extra blades because they're not as aggressive, but then others say there are better options if you're willing to spend just a little more, such as for Astra.
This is why samplers of safety razor blades exist. There are a lot of brands out there, made in various places across the world. To test out blades, you don't need 100 of each but rather just 5 to 10.
I'm using Astra "Superior Stainless" (blue/white box) right now, but that might change if I find something better that works for my face.
It's really nice I can try different blades without changing the handle. And speaking of which, there are many who say certain handles work better using certain blades. What that means is that if you have a screw-top handle type (such as the Parker 91R) and a TTO (twist-to-open) Parker 99R, one may "favor" a certain blade while the other doesn't. This again makes getting a sampler of blades all the more important.
I have just one safety razor handle right now and it's a screw-top type. At some point I want to try a TTO, and it wouldn't surprise me at all if I had to switch the blade to something else for it to work best. Or maybe I won't have to. I won't know until I get one.
Also, if you couldn't tell by now, yes I'm definitely all-in with safety razor shaving now. I'm liking it quite a bit.