MIC Quality

Let's face it. Whether we like it or not, we're buying MIC (Made in China) stuff. And just like getting a Proton car a decade ago, the quality depends on your luck. I have no doubt that China can mass produce items. With Billions of people there, churning out thousands of items an hour is not a problem. But for me, like many other consumers, the main problem is the quality of the product. Unless it manufacturing for a reputable company, quality assurance does not exist.

Take for example, this electronic housing. I did not
get it from my usual supplier because they did not
have the stock. So, I went next door and bought one.
When I wanted to use it months later, I was horrified
to see this: The plastic walls have burst out or rather,
cracked.

All over the edges have this problem. Apparently,
this was from the white waterproof seal which caused
it. The theory here is either the seals were too hard
and expanded, or, the walls of the casing was too
thin, or, the quality of the plastic.

After looking at all the edges, I strongly believe
that its all three.

And so, like all MIC products, you cannot get it 'repaired' or even do a swap since they're so cheap, its not worth the effort. But here, in this case, I am not even going to bother, not because it has lapsed for a few months but it reinforces my trust to the only shop which sells quality products. They really do a check for all MIC products, and even have an 'agent' there in China to make sure they're getting the 'right' items.

What are they doing?

If you're asking, "Are they planking?". The answer is, 'No'
because I have absolutely no idea what they're doing
either.

The Pen is mightier than the...

Sometimes, I wondered; 'Is there any other pen better than my RM3.80 Misubishi Uni Laknock?". The answer, usually, is, a deafening 'No'. Why? This was because i have grown accustomed to the Laknock for years. This is what I loved:

1. Writing is smooth
2. It is a ballpoint pen
3. You click on the end tip to reveal the pen
4. It comes in 0.5mm, 0.7mm and 1.0mm

However, there is a downside to this pen too:
1. Once you drop it, say goodbye to smooth writing
2. Not all paper can be written, eg. ThermoFax paper.
3. The price

But one day, I caved in. Yes, I bought another pen, which in my mind, was THE replacement to the Laknock. Suffice to say, if you take a look at the pen below, you would have screamed, 'No!' at me till my ears ring.

On first impression, it looks very elegant, like those
Porsche items. And the shade of the nice metallic
weave inside the glass body is nice. In order to get
the pen working, you need to twist it. However, if
you twist it on the opposite direction, you would
be effectively unscrewing the pen. An action I am
not so used to since all my pens are clickables.

And OK, so by now, you know its from China and
the good thing is, the pen's refill can be obtained
from almost anywhere since it is copied from a
well known brand.

And so, I tested the pen against my Laknock.
The writing is not so smooth and sometimes,
it 'jerks'. You can see this affects my writing.
On the bottom is the one done with Laknock.
I suppose I could buy a decent quality pen
refill but then, it would cost more than the
pen itself. Such is the dilemma of MIC products.

And so, despite my trying to come up with a nice
excuse for buying this pen, the Laknock wins
hands down.

So, what made me go for this pen in the first place? OK, so the design looks good but because its made of metal and clear plastic (Sorry, no glass), its heavy like heck. Its like carrying a heavy pipe on your front shirt pocket.

Mysteriously, after this small comparison, the Pen disappeared mysteriously, never to be seen again. Then again, this is a Made in China product, which nowadays, is generally cheap and has no value. I wonder why...

Border break Heavy Guard Type II

This is something very new to me. When it comes to 'robot' or 'mecha' models, the only brand I can think of was Bandai, which is insanely World Famous for its Gundam kits. Not only that, ANYTHING that comes out from that company's doors means quality and fine details. If you have bought any of their model kits, you'd know what I mean. They are forever pushing the envelope of kit-assembly engineering. Open up any Gundam MG kit and you'd be amazed at the number of parts and the details in them. (Don't try this in a shop unless you are really serious about buying it)

But today, I am not talking about Bandai. Rather, I am going to talk about Kotobukiya. Briefly, this is a company that does a lot of figures and also model kits. I did not take much notice about Koto until they started the Border Break line, producing robots from Sega's Border Break game. In the game, you control a robot aka Blast runners from one of the four classes; Assault, Heavy Snipe & Support. So, by the time I saw these kits over here, they're literally going extinct since the model I was looking for, came out in 2010.

The reason why I bought this was because of a silly reason that it was in 1/35 scale. Actually, in my belief, where kit-bashing is concerned, you can take parts from any scale to combine into your perfect model in the scale that you planned. But sometimes, where scale is concerned, you cannot just take a 1/144 Helicopter and stick it into a 1/32 plane. It would look very odd to say the least. The reason why the Heavy Guard looked promising was the huge chest area which I am thinking of stuffing a 1/35 figure in there ala Patlabor. But its not easy because there would be some remodeling which could be beyond me since I do not have hte necessary tools except for a blade and some blunt files...

Not to mention, the time required, which again, is beyond my reach. So, into the collection it must go...

The Heavy Guard is the model I chose. Not because it
has the bulk which I wanted but by coincidence, it was
also the cheapest of the lot.

Once I opened the box, I was amazed at the number
of sprues which gives Bandai a run for their money.
However, although the details/lines for each part is
there, you can see the big difference between the
two companies.

Kotobukiya even dedicated one whole sprue just for
the robot's hands. But if you're looking for those that
are poseable types, you'd have to look, and modify
from other 'third' party companies.

Right now, this is the idea in my head. Sort of like
a Patlabor type where a figure would sit inside it.
I mean, this robot is in 1/35 scale, so naturally, it
would be ideal for 1/35 figures...

Some stuff I got this week...

Where shall I start?

Let's start with the junked UPS. It was being thrown away and because it looked fairly new, I decided to 'rescue' it from the bin. One thing about UPS is that during power failure, it is one of the most important component where it comes to saving data and shutting down the computer. A UPS is not meant for working through a power failure.

But you already know that, right? RIGHT?

And so, this is the UPS which I took. It has that very
nice shape which screams for modification. No, not
the electronics but more on the modeling side, OK?

Also, I finally bought these Kotobukiya guns too.

Its just a two sprue part which makes up into
a rifle of some sort.

And this is how it looked like from the instructions

So, why did I buy it? My normal answer would be;
"Because of the design." And its true as its just the
pair of little round pipes under the main barrel
just got to me.

Back to the UPS. I have tried it earlier in the week
and it just refused to take charge. The guy also told
me that they have replaced the battery with a new
one and it still did not work.

Which means, its broken. Of course they could take it
to have it repaired but with the time and money
used, its better to just get a new one. And so, this
UPS is mine! So, let's start with the screws...

Strange.... I thought it was made in Malaysia.

Anyway, here is what the UPS looked like inside. For a
Degree holder, it spells danger. But for someone who's
ignorant in electronics, this is a mystery worth looking
into! Of course, with all the capacitors in there, you
will learn very quickly about how not to probe with
bare metal.

The 7AH battery looked brand new

The reason why UPS are so heave is because of their
backup batteries and the huge transformer inside.
Now, this is where you start to take things apart,
item by item. Don't worry about the sequence
as you're not going to put it back together
again. However, the first thing you must
do is to make sure its not plugged to the
mains and remove the battery.

Next is the controller board. I am not sure what it
does but I can guess that it controls the charging
rate of the battery, monitors it and also, tells
when there is no power.

However, at this stage, its just a great source of spare
parts. For example, I can take the beeper, the relay
and some capacitors. As for the three shiny aluminum
heatsinks, they're blocks of metal for the time being.

A circuit breaker, a mains cable socket, some caps
and a toroid too...

So, all these are taken out...

The transformer serves as a great paper-weight.
But not so for iPads...

Its amazing to see how a quality product was designed.
Even the mains sockets here uses the correct cabling
and its not even soldered.

But ultimately, what I wanted was the two halves of
the UPS. What am I going to use it for, I am not sure
but one day, it will have its purpose. A command
centre, a back pack for some costume, or even as
a project box.

Reorganising the Organisation

Its very interesting to observe how children play sometimes. As they are still 'pure' in their thoughts, it is a great delight to see how they think and react. For instance, Kaelynn decided to rearrange all the toys as she see fit today...

So, what message was she trying to convey?

SmarTAG

If I am not mistaken, the SmarTag is now in its Second Generation since its introduction in 1999. The first version is quite squarish (once I find it back, I will show you) but what is so great is that unlike the second generation, you do not need to press the button to see how much value the card has left. Apart from the yellowing plastic of the old SmarTAG, the new one is just well, so-so. Maybe I am biased in favour of the older SmarTAG which was so reliable, it actually survived all year round bombardment y the Sun and the plastic is still A-OK.

But I am not going to test this one like what I did since SmarTAGs are 'Hot items' among car thieves who love to smash windows...

Dad gave me this SmarTAG to use sometime ago but I
have not gotten the chance to use it first because I still
have my first Generation SmarTag. 10 years ago. And
I cannot find it anymore...

Swimming in another place

One of my very rare opportunity to fetch Kristine
back from her swimming lesson. Yes, the pool is not
heated and so, in the evening, it is very cold. But to
see her actually swimming, it was worth it since its
a one-to-one class instead of the usual ones.

03072011 Trip to MidValley

Decided to go to Mid-Valley today, for reasons unknown except for just to have some fresh air. I want to do this as much as I can so that the girls do not feel so bored growing up.

One funny thing was, Kristine got hungry very
fast. And so, we got her some sushi as she had
this craze. While eating, we decided to order
some food too...

I went for some weird Pepper thing, which arrived
in a hot plate and well, sizzling. The taste is quite OK

Mommy went for some other noodle which I
forgot what it was buy something which the
girls would not touch, as usual.

Eventually, with Kristine finishing her sushi, both
girls are sill hungry. We had no choice but to get
them something hot and noodly...

Guess who was the unlucky person who had to do
DBKL duty again when they could not finish them..?

Just another 2 hour job

Took me about 2 hours to do this while I noticed some
of the construction workers looking at me. I wondered
why. Maybe its because of my lack of tools since I only
had a cutter as the rest of the material was with the
main contractor, All I had to do was just get them.
Provided I know where to look...

1/35 Churchill Mk IV AVRE

Yep. I have gone modeling crazy this time. Its a cycle and yes, its just me. One moment, its electronics, then its model kits, then its comics, then its the Wife, then its photography, then its.... well, you get the picture. Sometimes, I just wonder why I am doing all these when I should be doing something else. But then again, personally, I want to achieve something until to its completion so that I do not feel so empty in my life, even if I have a family now.

The 'Question of the day' is, "Why did I chose this model of all things?". I mean, its huge and well, that was the only think I can think of. Huge. If you must know, it is the British's main tank at that time and they were involved in the Dieppe Raid which had a very unfortunate high casualty result among the Canadians. One look at the tank and you know its that its heavily armoured, a bit too long and very very destructive.

But do I care about this? No. What I wanted from this kit were its tracks for some other project which at this moment, is too early for me to reveal.

The box for the kit is surprisingly quite sturdy, despite it
was made from thinner cardboard. But I can't help feeling
that it might just fail one day when I stack it with other
model kits. Or maybe, I am just used to sturdier boxes of
Trumpeteer which looked very rugged and well, coarse.

There were other Churchill models in Hobby HQ but I
chose this one because it has individual track links
along with the usual vinyl ones. The individual track
links will definitely make the model look more realistic
because in real tanks, the tracks actually sag, which
something vinyl tracks cannot do.

I have never seen so much 'glass' in a tank before but
then again, like all manufacturers, every part is on the
sprue and you only use what you needed for a specific
version of the model. So, I would not be surprised
with the amount of parts left over once the model is
completed. In other words, model like these are a
boon for those kitbashers.

I am very pleasantly surprised
at the kind of detail and moulding
technology from AFV. Just take
a look at the mortar. Its round and
usually, you need to glue to halves
to get it to look like that. Years ago,
apart from Bandai, I have never
seen other manufacturers being
able to do such moulding.

Now, this is the reason why I chose this model. The
assembly diagrams shows that the bottom half of
the model is not a complete piece but rather, made
up of two sides of the tracks and lots of flat sheets to
make up the bottom shell. This means I can now just
use the completed tracks on its own.

Another reason is these 'springs' for the track/wheel
assembly which at first glance, it just a faux spring
suspension. Right?

Wrong. There are some metal springs which you need
to put over it. Now, since I have not built this model
yet, I cannot say for sure, how the tracks will behave
when the tank is placed over an obstacle and under
its own plastic weight. I would just have to bite the
bullet and hope that it is everything I hoped that
it would be.

That is, if I have the patience to assembly the individual
track links first...

And so, there you have it. a very nice model with a lot of 'realistic' parts. But knowing me, its not going to end up as what is should be but rather, another part for my alternative designs. But don't let my weird interest stop you from getting this model. This kit has a lot of detailed parts and especially with the individual tracks (you usually have to but them separately) and metal springs, thrown in, its a real bargain. Try it even if you don't do tanks.

Kristine's 1Murid 1Sukan

Today is Saturday and its a very special day for Kristine. This was because of the effects of "1Malaysia" which is now spreading to the schools. So, today is the "1Murid 1Sukan" and being a parent, I have absolutely no clue as to what its all about, except for some very complicated tasks that was relegated to me:

1. Ferry Kristine to and fro school
2. Make sure she has some newspapers too.
3. Run

I got lost after the 'ferry' part as my mind was more on planning to go to Pasar Road AFTER dropping her off. And so, this is going to be hard for me as I have stopped running since 24...

Both of us had to wake up very
early in the morning for this,
which is about 15 minutes earlier
than our usual routine.

Anyway despite all our prepartions, the school
was full of people by the time we arrived and I
had some trouble parking Vee-Chai. So, you
see many anxious and exited parents all over
the place with their mobilephones/cameras and
DSLRs.

I took Kristine to the field outside where it was
less crowded. I am not sure if it was just me or
us, but I did feel very crowded and stuff in there.

A few minutes later, we walked to the Hall where the
morning assembly will begin. I can see that someone
was trying very hard to set up the LCD Projector and
its not very focus. Yes, I was tempted to walk over
and assist them, just to satiate my engineer side.
But in the end, no. I mean, everyone has their job to
do. Mine was to.. er... ah... run.

We went out again, only this time was because
we were bored. Also, I did not want to start any
arguments about people taking my seat, etc but
then, boredom is worse. So, we went out walking
for a bit before it was time...

... to start the assembly. Here, I was thankful for the
newspaper that Kristine brought. There was only so
much Mandarin I could understand.

Not only that, this also gave me the perfect
opportunity to try out the Panorama App
for the Nokia n8.
[Update: On the latest version, you can switch off the flash]

Finally, after the speech, the next thing I know was
that everyone has now gone out into the fields and
they were lining up according to their class.

No, they are not confused. Just waiting for more
instructions as there are a lot of people anxiously
waiting for things to happen. And I don't mean
the students.

Ok, finally, the speakers came to life after a few
false starts and everyone is warming up before
the run. Parents were so excited about all this,
they started to take photos and shouted. OK, so
I only took photos but I did not shout....

I was so engrossed with taking photos that I had
forgotten about Kristine. So, I had to look almost
everywhere because the students have started
their run! Oh no!

But it' s OK. She found me instead. This was the second
time this year that she had to find me instead of the
other way round.

Seems like it was her class that was first in line
to start their run. So, we walked to the starting
line where the officials were making sure that
everything is under control...

This is very important because the parents are
actually more eager to get to the 'first' place. If
you do not believe me, just observe how they
drive on the roads every morning when they
drop off/pick up their kids.

And so, we're off!

OK, just for fun, we got a friendly lady to help
take pictures of ourselves. Man, I looked so fat!

The route of the run is a big circle round the school.
They have minders to help cordon off the main road
in case some people felt very hardworking and need
to come into their office on that morning.

Everyone was in high spirits and some of them
even ran with Kristine and encouraged her at
the same time too. Me? I was huffing and
puffing like a bad wolf...

And so, we ran and ran, having fun all the way.
Its lucky I did not trip and fell for taking so much
pictures of Kristine.

And speak of the... one girl actually fell and she was
hurt quite badly. All the girls that ran ahead of us
were frantic, trying to calm the little girl and also
looking for help since the nearest medical point
was quite far away. In the end, I helped carry her
while running since the other guy, was 'busy' with
his camera and running. And carrying a 16Kg girl
on your arms while running is asking for it... In the
end, she was safe while I huffed and puffed even
harder, like a bad wolf with asthma...

Anyway, since we were the first batch to start,
we were also the first batch to finish. With the
coupons, I quickly got Krsitine some food and
drinks plus some extra treats for her. Yes, by
now you would have realised that all parents
also had the same bright idea.

So, I told Kristine to quickly finish her meal so
that we do not need to use the seats for too long
as there are others coming back from the run
who will need them.

While waiting for the rest of the batch to finish, we
were once again required to return to the school
hall. Here, Kristine met a very familiar girl...

One thing I like about this place is that although
there were a mixed school, everyone is 'mixing'
together. But while waiting, the age old 'spin-
the-bottle' game was played which not only
drew the girls' attention but also the patrolling
teacher as well.

Finally, it was time to go home and
me being a banana, I did not realised
that Kristine won something from a
Lucky draw. Heck, I was in the Hall
for so long, I did not even realise that
there was a lucky draw... Still, as there
was nothing else for the day, we left
early, ahead of the maddening crowd...

We were lucky there. The reason was, since Kristine won a prize and she did ask her teacher permission to get off early, we were able to leave the place jam-free. If we were to wait along with the rest of the school, you can guess what kind of pandemonium would ensue. So, since the day is still 'early', I decided to take her for lunch at someplace 'special'...

So, as a treat, I took Kristine to Amcorp Mall so that
she can have her lunch at MacDonalds.

There was also a very good reason to go there as
there is the weekend bazaar plus I wanted to see
how Silver and his friend are doing with their new
toy store.

I let Kristine take her pick with the toy cars on display.

And my jaws dropped when I saw this.
I wanted this so badly last year but now,
with Kristine and Kaelynn's future, I just
cannot justify such purchase anymore...

Anyway, back at the RM5.00 per toy car purchase...

Yep, she chose one for herself and one for Kaelynn.
This is the reason for the sisterly hugs.

And so, for RM25 or more, each one of us had a car.

Why RM26 and not RM15? Because Kristine chose
the one with rubber tires which costs more.

Still, I am not complaining because if this keeps them
quiet for an hour or two, its a good price to pay.

I am happy too because at the end of the day, I did
not have to go to every shop to hunt down this BTTF
De Lorean which would have cost me more than RM5