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Richard L.

Richard L.

Joined on 04/24/02

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Product Reviews
product reviews
  • 6
Most Favorable Review
HOMELITE 14" In. 9.0Amp Electric Chain Saw UT43100
HOMELITE 14" In. 9.0Amp Electric Chain Saw UT43100

Pros: I use firewood for heat so I use saws a lot. I have a bunch of worn out ones. When my last one showed signs of dying I bought a couple of these, a 14 and a 16 inch. The way I usually process wood is I cut trees into log sizes that will fit in the truck with a gas saw in the woods and then cut it into stove size pieces with an electric saw when I get it home. This saves wear and tear on the more expensive gas saw, and electric is safer, cleaner and quieter. Also electric always starts, even in below zero temps. I actually like the 14 inch better than the 16, They have plenty of power and so far the oilers keep working which is one thing my other electrics always had problems with. As long as you keep it sharp and the chain tight it keeps cutting. These are also quieter than my other electrics.

Cons: I don't care for the toolless chain tightening system. It tends to get slack in the chain and when that happens the chain comes off easily. I much prefer the manual system with the bolts that hold it tight.

Overall Review: Somebody needs to make a power cord connection that locks together because I get really tired of having things constantly getting unplugged. You step on the cord while cutting and move the saw and its unplugged. And yes you can do the little knot in the cords thing but the pigtails on saws are pretty short and that does not work that great. A much better thing would be a socket that has a twist lock in it.

Team C123 32GB USB 3.0 Flash Drive TC123332GW01
Team C123 32GB USB 3.0 Flash Drive TC123332GW01

Pros: Its a large capacity fast USB 3 drive that works with no problems. I have both an 8 gig and a 32 gig and neither has given me any trouble. I use it to install Windows 7 on library computers. Plug it in and boot up into the Windows Install right from the USB drive. It has room for all the other programs that I install with it. It has cut the install time by half. that of a DVD.

Cons: The 8 gig and the 32 Gig are the same color. You have to look close to tell them apart. And there is no place to attach a lanyard, that would be a nice thing to have.

Overall Review: I have a box full of pen drives. None of them are bad, just smaller capacities. I can combine the data from all of them on to a single 32 gig drive. I do worry about loosing it. That is a lot of data to replace if I leave it behind somewhere.

XIGMATEK Gaia SD1283 120mm Long Life Bearing CPU Cooler LGA1150 Haswell Compatible
XIGMATEK Gaia SD1283 120mm Long Life Bearing CPU Cooler LGA1150 Haswell Compatible

Pros: As replacement for stock cooler its great. Runs very quiet and keeps the temperature way down. Its a bit overkill for the processor I put it on but since its priced low its worth it. It takes a little bit of work to install but if you follow the directions it goes smoothly.

Cons: Its tall, make sure it will fit your case. You might have to remove the motherboard if you want to change the fan later.

MSI 890GXM-G65 AM3 AMD 890GX USB 3.0 HDMI Micro ATX AMD Motherboard
MSI 890GXM-G65 AM3 AMD 890GX USB 3.0 HDMI Micro ATX AMD Motherboard

Pros: Its a small board but is packed with features. it really has it all. Set up (assembly) is a breeze, Windows 7 installs perfectly. MSI update lets you get the newest BIOS and drivers. Its ready for 6 core processors and SATA 3 so it can be upgraded in the future. That should extend its life a bit longer.

Cons: None that I noticed

OCZ Platinum 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory Model OCZ3P1333LV4GK
OCZ Platinum 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory Model OCZ3P1333LV4GK

Pros: Performs good so far. All of my OCZ rebates have come through but they take a while. I would rather have a check than the card they give you but the rebates have been good. The rebates make it worth buying over other memory.

Cons: Not the fastest RAM but for less expensive setups its good.

Jumper problem also

Maxtor DiamondMax 10 6L250S0 250GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 1.5Gb/s 3.5" Hard Drive Bare Drive
Maxtor DiamondMax 10 6L250S0 250GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 1.5Gb/s 3.5" Hard Drive Bare Drive

Pros: I have bought a lot of Maxtor drives and usually had no problems with them. I use them in RAID arays a lot and they are fast and quiet. This was the first time I ran into this problem with the jumpers.

Cons: I thought this drive was defective at first. It would not spin up at all, appeared to be DOA and I was going to ask for an RMA. That means I have to pay to ship it back though. So just to make sure I tried removing the jumper and it spun up Ok. I am still running tests on it just to make sure. Rather than completly removeing the jumper switch it over to the other 2 pins. Probably where it should have been to begin with.

Overall Review: Hope this doesn't cause Maxtor a lot trouble and cost. They should jump on it right away and at least issue a notice to change the jumpers to the correct position.