Skimpflation

[Andre1969]

Oops...thanks for the correction, everyone. I don't know why I was thinking there was a "recommended" tire pressure that was listed on the tire itself, in addition to the Max. But don't worry, even I'm smart enough not to inflate them to 44 psi!

One thing I'm curious about, though, although this isn't a problem that comes up much anymore. What if you have an old car that originally came with bias ply tires, and you now have radials on them? For instance, any Corvair owner probably has "16 front/26 rear" memorized, as anything else can literally kill you. But, that was for bias ply, I imagine radials would be different, although you'd still want more pressure in the back than the front.

 

[ERD50]

... One thing I'm curious about, though, although this isn't a problem that comes up much anymore. What if you have an old car that originally came with bias ply tires, and you now have radials on them? For instance, any Corvair owner probably has "16 front/26 rear" memorized, as anything else can literally kill you. But, that was for bias ply, I imagine radials would be different, although you'd still want more pressure in the back than the front.

I'd probably go to a Corvair Club forum, I'm sure this has been addressed.

Or ask Jay Leno (heck, he probably has bias ply tires custom made!) ?

-ERD50

 

[Badger]

My favorite brand of Pesto used to be made with 100% olive oil. Now it includes canola oil and cottonseed oil. Santa Mozzarella! What would my grandmother think?

I would rather my Italian-American relatives thought I was a Mafia hit man who steels lunch money from little kids, than somebody who uses Pesto made with cottonseed oil.

The silver lining is that I started raising Basil in the summer and making my own pesto.

I've been doing that for years. It is the only way to have good pesto. I usually have enough to freeze several quarts in small batches to keep me through the winter. Maybe next Fall I will grow in containers to move inside for fresh basil before cold weather.

Cheers!

 

[Badger]

Moral of the story - buy 100% butter!

Good reason to avoid processed food.

+1 on both

Cheers!

 

[NW-Bound]

My favorite brand of Pesto used to be made with 100% olive oil. Now it includes canola oil and cottonseed oil. Santa Mozzarella! What would my grandmother think?

I would rather my Italian-American relatives thought I was a Mafia hit man who steels lunch money from little kids, than somebody who uses Pesto made with cottonseed oil.

The silver lining is that I started raising Basil in the summer and making my own pesto.

Well, at least the label has honest info.

I read that fake olive oil abounds in Italy, and even Italians get fooled.

 

[CP Soon]

In the mid-80's I had summer job as a Porter at a local Chevy Dealership. I remember the parents of my best friend bought a Chevy truck. When they came to pick it up it did not have a spare tire or rear bumper! When questioned, the Sales Guy said those were extra! My friends' parents were very animated and verbally sailor like and let the Sales Guy know their opinion on this BS as they walked out the door. Needless to say, the dealership scrambled to install a rear bumper and spare tire that day. They came to pick-up the truck the next day with said equipment at no charge and also left with a pair of Tigers Baseball Tickets!

 

[Andre1969]

In the mid-80's I had summer job as a Porter at a local Chevy Dealership. I remember the parents of my best friend bought a Chevy truck. When they came to pick it up it did not have a spare tire or rear bumper!

Trucks in those days didn't have to conform to the same safety standards as passenger cars. In fact, this is one reason you'll occasionally see automotive articles lamenting about how big pickup trucks have gotten...they'll compare the official specs of a modern truck against one from once upon a time, but forget that little detail.

For instance, I used to have an '85 C-10 Silverado. Regular cab, 8-foot bed. Your "standard" truck of the era. The "official" length was 212". However, throw the rear bumper on, and suddenly you're looking at a good 220". And if that front bumper had to conform to any sort of crash test, rather than being just a slab of chromed metal bolted right to the frame, it would no doubt have added a couple inches as well.

For comparison, the 2023 Silverado regular cab, 8-foot bed, is 229.7". Still no shrinking violet, but once you take the bumpers into account, not *that* much bigger than the 1985.

 

[Ready-4-ER-at-14]

I've been watching the various marketing that coca cola has been doing with prices and different bottle sizes. Itty bitty 2 good gulp cans, marketing prices on 2 liters. buy 3 get 2 free. Buy 3 get 1 free. Prices are ranging from 1.75 to about 3 a bottle for 2 liters. And sometimes it tastes like Pepsi... not a preferred taste to me, so maybe some reformulation or lesser carbonation.

I first was disgusted with marketing inferior products at the old prices due to inflation the first time I got a salted nut roll that was the mouth equivalent of every other tooth knocked out. A nugget bar with strategically placed isolated peanuts. At least they did not shave them first. : ) They have been less naked lately, but then again, I quit buying them for the most part because they lost my trust.

 

[Dream Weaver]

A lot of that was actually government intervention, with a dose of inflation thrown in. If the automakers had their way, well GM was actually working on a new family of engines in the 500+ CID range! The first Arab oil embargo put a stop to that real fast.

GM was already starting to cheapen their interiors, though. It started with the big cars in '71 and the midsize in '73. The compacts were already pretty spartan inside to begin with, although they started doing petty things like deleting rear armrests in the back seat of the base Nova.

Safety regulations meant an end to the sturdy metal (and plastic) interior components that gave the cars up to the late 60s an aura of class and quality inside. Everything now had to "give" instead of impale or concuss in an accident with unbuckled human bodies flying around so that new law ushered in the barely secured thin brittle plastics that would do so.

The automakers of course loved this move on an economical level and thankfully the designers and chemists eventually started figuring out ways of making plastics look and feel less "plasticky" with better overlapping fit and rounded corners beginning in the mid 80s or so depending on the make and model.

 

[foxfirev5]

NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO!

Please do not spread dangerously bad information.

Your tire only lists MAXIMUM allowed pressure. The manufacturer takes into account the weight and suspension of the car for the type/size of tires the car is designed for. The tire manufacturer doesn't know the weight of the car their tire is going on!

Always inflate your tires per your car's manual or the info on the door jamb.

If you have inflated your based on the tire sidewall, go get them adjusted ASAP, it is just not right.


https://www.tireoutlet.com/blog/3023/how-much-air-should-i-put-in-my-tires/



You are risking a blow out if you have the pressure set to the max, poor handling, and uneven tire wear.

Another source: https://tirehungry.com/should-i-fill-my-tires-to-max-psi/
-ERD50

+1000. I got into a heated argument with the moron at my Toyota dealer that inflated my tires to over 50 psi while the recommended PSI was 36. Now they want me to buy a service agreement. Too funny. Incompetence like hypocrisy knows no bounds.

 

[cyber888]

Correct. Follow your car's tire pressure instructions always.

NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO!

Please do not spread dangerously bad information.

Your tire only lists MAXIMUM allowed pressure. The manufacturer takes into account the weight and suspension of the car for the type/size of tires the car is designed for. The tire manufacturer doesn't know the weight of the car their tire is going on!

Always inflate your tires per your car's manual or the info on the door jamb.

If you have inflated your based on the tire sidewall, go get them adjusted ASAP, it is just not right.


https://www.tireoutlet.com/blog/3023/how-much-air-should-i-put-in-my-tires/



You are risking a blow out if you have the pressure set to the max, poor handling, and uneven tire wear.

Another source: https://tirehungry.com/should-i-fill-my-tires-to-max-psi/
-ERD50

 

[ncbill]

NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO!

Please do not spread dangerously bad information.

Your tire only lists MAXIMUM allowed pressure. The manufacturer takes into account the weight and suspension of the car for the type/size of tires the car is designed for. The tire manufacturer doesn't know the weight of the car their tire is going on!

Always inflate your tires per your car's manual or the info on the door jamb.

If you have inflated your based on the tire sidewall, go get them adjusted ASAP, it is just not right.


https://www.tireoutlet.com/blog/3023/how-much-air-should-i-put-in-my-tires/



You are risking a blow out if you have the pressure set to the max, poor handling, and uneven tire wear.

Another source: https://tirehungry.com/should-i-fill-my-tires-to-max-psi/
-ERD50

Above reminded me of this:

 

[CaptTom]

I just discovered I was the victim of skimpflation. I thought it was a manufacturing problem.

We've used "Smart Balance" fake butter tubs for years. I don't even remember why we started, but now we're used to it. I always have an extra tub in the fridge so I don't run out, which means it takes a while between buying and opening one.

I opened one and had to spit out the first bite of toast. There was a horrible, chemical taste! I returned it to the store and bought another brand. Didn't like it as much, but at least it was edible. I waited until that one was gone and bought another Smart Balance, thinking by now it would be a different batch.

Same horrible taste! This time I went on line. Turns out they watered it down, and everyone is complaining and leaving one-star reviews everywhere. Sure enough, looking at the fine print on the package confirmed this.

My guess is the chemical taste I noticed was some artificial "buttery" flavor they added to make up for all the vegetable oil they replaced with water. Other people complained that it didn't melt on toast, or that it spattered in the frying pan. I never got past the taste, so I didn't notice.

Supposedly the manufacturer is going to revert back to the old recipe. Sure enough, I found one in the supermarket with the "old" oil percentage.

I was really glad to see that others complained, and it actually got through to them. Go ahead, raise the price it you have to. Don't just double the water content and think we won't notice!

 

[JoeWras]

I opened one and had to spit out the first bite of toast. There was a horrible, chemical taste! I returned it to the store and bought another brand. Didn't like it as much, but at least it was edible. I waited until that one was gone and bought another Smart Balance, thinking by now it would be a different batch.

Same horrible taste! This time I went on line. Turns out they watered it down, and everyone is complaining and leaving one-star reviews everywhere. Sure enough, looking at the fine print on the package confirmed this.

Wow!

 

[Amethyst]

I'd say real butter is the solution. If cholesterol is a concern, perhaps use less spread, or switch to an organic vegetable spread such as a nut butter. Just some thoughts.

I just discovered I was the victim of skimpflation. I thought it was a manufacturing problem.

We've used "Smart Balance" fake butter tubs for years. I don't even remember why we started, but now we're used to it. I always have an extra tub in the fridge so I don't run out, which means it takes a while between buying and opening one.

I opened one and had to spit out the first bite of toast. There was a horrible, chemical taste! I returned it to the store and bought another brand. Didn't like it as much, but at least it was edible. I waited until that one was gone and bought another Smart Balance, thinking by now it would be a different batch.

Same horrible taste! This time I went on line. Turns out they watered it down, and everyone is complaining and leaving one-star reviews everywhere. Sure enough, looking at the fine print on the package confirmed this.

My guess is the chemical taste I noticed was some artificial "buttery" flavor they added to make up for all the vegetable oil they replaced with water. Other people complained that it didn't melt on toast, or that it spattered in the frying pan. I never got past the taste, so I didn't notice.

Supposedly the manufacturer is going to revert back to the old recipe. Sure enough, I found one in the supermarket with the "old" oil percentage.

I was really glad to see that others complained, and it actually got through to them. Go ahead, raise the price it you have to. Don't just double the water content and think we won't notice!

 

[Badger]

Margarine is to butter as Cheese Whiz is to real Cheese.
Cheers!

 

[ncbill]

Yeah, we long ago switched from butter flavored margarine back to actual butter.

 

[jcfradio]

I'm always ready to pay more for better stuff.

Which is why I don't buy Costco pizza or hot dogs -

Sucks to be you folks with Costco USA - we can still get sausages for the same $1.50 as hot dogs up here in the Great White North.

 

[catii]

Sausages still available here in Hawaii, but I like their hot dogs, too! Checking our Smart Balance for overwatering.

 

[CaptTom]

...Checking our Smart Balance for overwatering.

Update on the watered-down Smart Balance: After complaining on line, I got a nice letter from the company, trying to justify their stupid idea of watering it down as making it more "spreadable." I wasn't fooled, but they did send me $14 worth of coupons and said they're going back to the original formula. I'll take that as an apology.

The "newer" product with the original 64% vegetable oil is starting to replace the "new" product with just 39% on the store shelves. In one store I've seen the exact same four 39% tubs sitting there for weeks. I guess they're hoping someone won't notice and buy their old stock. That's OK, I'll buy it elsewhere.

 

[easysurfer]

Total skimpflation on dry cat food at Aldi. Used to be for about $10 is enough for about a 20 lb bag. The other day, a measly about 2 lb bag was for about $4.