the-bitcoin-dood 3Speak Podcast: Recent Episodes
BitcoinDood
Listen and watch the latest videos from the-bitcoin-dood. Hosted by 3Speak.tv. The free speech video platform on the HIVE blockchain.
https://3speak.tv/watch?v=the-bitcoin-dood/iyjpmcea
It's a cool rainy day in western NY so I'm just sitting around playing with the CBG. I promised this video 6 months ago, so here it finally is.
Truthfully, I'm just starting to get the type of sound I want out of it. I also have a ground issue I can't seem to get rid of.
Video was taken using a Samsumg A53 sitting in front of a Sawtooth 15 watt practice amp. Sorry about the buzzing, these things happen with homemade instruments. Sooner or later I'll figure it out 🤣🍻
I may start posting a couple Sunday Blues posts a month. My Sunday's usually consist of sitting around strumming the guitar. I'll have to start recording them every so often.
This is just me Sunday strumming I guess. I'm just getting to the point where I don't mind playing in front of people. Thanks for watching :)
https://3speak.tv/watch?v=the-bitcoin-dood/relwusti
A quick simple mod. I pulled the small stock gas filter out of the gas line and replaced it with a larger filter that I can actually see when it gets dirty.
Of all the mods I've done on the bike so far, I like this one the least. There just isn't a lot of room to work with around that throttle assembly. It's pretty tight in there, so it's important to make sure nothing is blocking that throttle assembly where the throttle cables control the fuel.
I dd notice a small difference though with the larger CLEAN filter. I couldn't believe how cruddy the old filter was in just 8,000 miles. It never fails either, stuff like fuel filter failures always happen at the worst time or in the worst place like out on the trail in the middle of nowhere. I like that you can now see the condition of the filter, and it's easy to keep a spare in the tool pouch. One less thingt to worry about I guess.
https://3speak.tv/watch?v=the-bitcoin-dood/ssgnxcsu
The DR650 is probably one of the quietest bikes I've ever rode. I wanted to swap out the exhaust for something a little louder. I didn't want ear ringing loud, just loud enough to get the attention of the drivers around me. In the age of distracted driving, it good to be not only seen but also heard.
I came across an inexpensive slip on muffler kit on eBay originally. Researching it online though, I found the same seller on Walmart but $10 cheaper. So I ordered it from Walmart.
So far I'm pretty happy with the end result. The new muffler gave the bike the added sound I wanted without becoming deafening. I'll be doing a carb rejet soon to tune it better with the exhaust.
https://3speak.tv/watch?v=the-bitcoin-dood/pafbqvwy
Did this simple mod over Memorial Day weekend. I replaced the big bulky rear fender on the DR 650 with a small metal license plate holder I purchased on eBay.
eBay link (not an affiliate) https://www.ebay.com/itm/184768344122?var=692505635649
Tools needed:
10 mm wrench
wire cutters
heat for shrink tubing, which I forgot and just used electrical tape :(
Process was super simple, took under an hour. The end result was asthetically pleasing and a much better look than the bulky stock rear fender IMHO. Simply remove 4 bolts, cut the license plate light wire, bolt up new license plate holder, wire light, secure wires to frame, and done. Mods don't get much simpler than this.
The kit cost me $23 at the time I ordered. I love the look and seems worth the money. The new license plate light is really bright too and lights up the entire back of the bike at night. For safety and visibility, it just seems better all around!
I should have some more mods coming soon. Aftermarket gas filter and removal of small stock one coming soon. Lowering foot pegs coming soon. USB powersource mounted to dash coming soon. Possible new exhaust and carb rebuild coming at end of season if finances permit.
https://3speak.tv/watch?v=the-bitcoin-dood/yugaoyjl
I just hit my first 5000 miles on the DR650. I figured it was a good time to swap out the stock oil plug in the DR650 for a magnetic one seeing it was time to change the oil also.
Why a magnetic oil plug. The idea is that if anything is wrong with the engine, if parts are worn out or something comes loose, if it's metal, the magnetic oil plug could catch it and save you from further engine damage. Also, you can look at the plug each time you change the oil and if there is an excessive amount of metal shavings on the plug tip it could be an indicator that there are other problems that need to be addressed. For the most part, it's just good preventive maintenance IMHO
I used to change my oil every 1500 to 2000 miles but with oil prices the way they are I've been trying to be a little more conservative with my oil changes. I'm trying to get about 4000 miles out of each oil and filter change. I almost always replace the oil filter and crush washer with each oil change.
The new oil plug seems to be working out great. No leaks, that's the important thing. So far so good!
https://3speak.tv/watch?v=the-bitcoin-dood/tclaswst
Scored a couple decent cards, LOTS of DEC, some Merits, and a gold foil.
In this video I open season rewards, focus rewards, and talk about a few of the changes that's happening with Focus Quests.
I bought my packs with DEC this week. I should have used SPS. Oh well. I may have to scoop up a little DEC with my Hive.
https://3speak.tv/watch?v=the-bitcoin-dood/teclhibg
Well, I got stuck riding local last week, so I decided to take a hike to the bottom of the Niagara Gorge. This is one of my favorite rides and I've promised you guys that sooner or later I'd hike down to the bottom and film it. With the new phone gimbal, I decided to test it out hiking the Niagara Gorge.
This is Devil's Hole State Park about 10 minutes from Niagara Falls NY. I used to hang out here as a kid, well, teenage years. We'd hike down to the bottom late at night and drink beers by the water. I don't think you're allowed to do that anymore.
I used my Samsung A20 and the Moza Mini-S phone Gimbal to film this. The Moza Mini-S worked out great. It far exceeded my expectations of a $50 phone gimbal. I'm loving the difference in stabilization and the way it turns a little more smoothly. It was money well spent. I didn't install the app or anything. I just set it up to work with my phone and control the camera angle with the gimbal joystick.
The hike down was easy and I loved the footage. I should have shot some on the way up too because I'm really out of shape. What a workout it was getting back to the top. I was so out of breath and covered in sweat by the time I reached the top. I may have to start hiking here more often. We used to run up and down these stairs as kids, I couldn't believe how out of shape I was. My legs were really sore the following day.
This was a really fun adventure. I can't wait to film some more adventures with this Gimbal.
https://3speak.tv/watch?v=the-bitcoin-dood/lkvnfwtz
Wow, did really great with this seasons rewards. Scored a lot of DEC, some gold cards and a really sick Legendary! I'm pretty happy with this seasons rewards.
The sound quality should be a little better. I did this video with a new microphone. I was pretty excited to try that out as well. Fairly happy with the results.
I'm going to be switching things up in the coming weeks. I want to start doing more than just pack openings and season rewards. I want to start doing bi-weekly posts about Hive (those will be geared towards Youtube as a way to onboard), I also want to start adding tips and tricks and talking a little more about the game itself in the season reward videos. Hopefully I can get started on those Hive vids soon.
I'm finally getting the editing parts of vlogging which is freeing up more time now that I have a general idea of what I'm doing. Time permitting I'd like to do a bi-weekly Hive report and on the alternate weeks do a bi-weekly Splinterlands Season End post.
Anyway, hope you're as happy with your season rewards as I was with mine. Did you score anything decent? What did you get?
https://3speak.tv/watch?v=the-bitcoin-dood/dfdcewbr
I meant to post this last weekend but Fourth of July and I didn't finish editing it. So here's part II of my trip to Cayuga Lake.
I planned on camping in Cayuga Lake State Park but reservations have to be made online due to Covid protocol. I had no reservations so I ended up camping about 20 minutes away for free in Finger Lakes National Forest. The campground was great, with plenty of wood for a fire. I'm actually glad the park refused me, the forest was a much better experience IMHO and FREE, I love free. More money for my next adventure.
It was the first time using 3 cameras and my SD cards were filled by morning. I did manage to capture setting up camp though and starting a fire. Around 3am it started to pour. I captured that on camera as well and ended it there.
I have some bigger trips planned soon. I'm focusing on NY state right now. There is so much of this state that I haven't seen. So I think a big part of this riding season will be exploring my home state with a couple really big surprises if all continues to go well.
https://3speak.tv/watch?v=the-bitcoin-dood/nvgyizcc
Time for another season rewards video! These seasons go by so fast. If I wasn't sure about the new system for season rewards, I'm really sure now. I absolutely love the new system!
For the most part, I missed close to the entire season. I think I played a little at the start of the season and for the most part earned all my loot chests in the 3 days before the season ended. I ended up with 29 loot chests for season rewards plus all the loot chests I earned on the Daily Focus for those 3 days. In one day I earned 15 focus chests. I'm really liking the new system A LOT. I'm probably playing the same amount of time, but now I can play on my terms when I want and not have to play everyday. I'm also earning close to the same number of chests! I'm good with this!
I stopped by the Splinterlands market last night and discovered a lot of cheap cards and many in the penny and under 5 cent range. For the most part, I'm looking for cards with decent abilities that I can upgrade cheap. I updated a few cards to level 4 and purchased a couple cards that had some awesome abilities and I thought were pretty cheap.
https://3speak.tv/watch?v=the-bitcoin-dood/oatvdsrm
This was such a wonderful trip. I woke up to sunny blue skies in Buffalo NY but the closer I got to my destination the cloudier it got. Honestly, though, the weather was just perfect. We're talking Goldielocks zone! Just right. Cool and comfortable.
While the rest of the country is unseasonably warm, central and western NY have been unseasonably cool. It makes for some nice travels on the motorcycle when it's not raining.
The rain did hold out. For the most part, this is just a short 15-minute video of me riding along US route 20 east heading towards the great lakes region of central NY.
This was the first video I shot with multiple action cameras. I'm learning so much. I had a lot of fun editing this. I'm really glad this was a short trip too. I had no problem filling up the microSD cards of my action cams and phones.
I'm breaking this trip up into two videos. This one is of me riding along Geneva and Cayuga lakes. I planned on camping in Cayuga Lakes state park, but camping was by reservation only due to Covid protocol. No reservation made online, NO CAMPING. Covid is such a pain!
However, no reservations are necessary for camping in the state forest. I ended up staying in Finger Lake's National Forest. It was free dispersed camping. It was actually pretty awesome. I'm glad I wasn't allowed to camp in the park. I'm editing the camping portion now. I figured I'd break it into two parts. I'll have the camping portion up next week.
https://3speak.tv/watch?v=the-bitcoin-dood/ttsbmuus
I went on my first real adventure of 2022 over the weekend. First trip of 2022. While I'm editing that footage I thought I'd share this video about the different cameras I'm using and what's working for moto-vlogging for me.
In this video I review my Samsung A20 phone and a cheap tripod/selfiestick. I talk about my first action cam, the iTek action cam that was gifted to me. I also talk a little about my Drift Ghost XL and Akaso Brave 7 LE cameras. Basically, I talk a little about each camera then show some sample clips.
I also chat a little about the importance of image stabilization software for moto-vlogging.
For the most part, I'm really happy with the footage I'm starting to collect with these different cameras. I'll be editing my first clips from 2022 this week. Unfortunately on my most recent adventure I ran into some SD card issues. LMAO. If it's not one think it something else! I did get a lot of good footage to go through though. Anyway, I'll talk a little more about my SD card issues next week.
https://3speak.tv/watch?v=the-bitcoin-dood/grjbksot
In this video I claim some quest rewards, season rewards, and talk a little about the new scoring system for SP (season points) and FP (focus points).
I hope you were all as lucky as I was with DEC... I scored A LOT of DEC in these loot chests.
I also poorly explain the new scoring system for SP and FP and wonder what your thoughts are. Do you like the new system for earing loot chests?
https://3speak.tv/watch?v=the-bitcoin-dood/zuvnlpwd
Added the Akaso Brave 7 LE Action camera to my camera collection. I sold the Honda the other day and thought I'd invest in another decent action cam.
The Akaso Brave 7 LE was on sale on Amazon. I found great reviews on this camera as well. At only $119, I'm really happy with this action camera.
I wanted to spend some money on motorcycle parts for the DR but everything I wanted was on back-order. I decided on a camera and thinking about a drone.... We'll have to see. For now, I just want to get out on the road and film some footage. Hopefully next week.
My plan now is to use the Drift Ghost XL for sound and all my wide-angle shots and use the Akaso Brave 7 LE for everything else like riding video, scenery, and selfie grabs. The iTek action cam will remain in my pocket for still shots and video that doesn't require image stabilization.
The Akaso Brave 7 LE is just fantastic. The sound quality is decent when you're not in the wind but the image quality is superb for a $119 camera IMHO. I'm going to do an actual camera review shortly and also talk about the equipment I'm currently using for my videos.
The camera was mounted to the bike using a SmallRig Cool Ball Arm. I absolutely love the mount! It has a vice that attaches to just about anywhere on the motorcycle! This thing is perfect for me. I'll talk more about this in an upcoming video as well.
For now, I just wanted to test this camera out because if it wasn't as good as everyone said, I was sending it right back. This is a keeper though. I'm really happy with this one!
https://3speak.tv/watch?v=the-bitcoin-dood/betrhtri
I picked up some new tires a while back and put about 300 miles on them. I was out doing a little urban exploration and got inspired to do a quick review of the Shinko SR244 Trail Tires.
I've used these tires most of my life. Honestly though, I'm not happy with them on the DR650. On my little 200cc enduros and my 230cc Chinese dual-sport, these tires are perfect. The 650 just needs more tire. These have a speed rating of 95 mph, the DR tops out at around 93 mph. I try not to drive that fast, but at times with 65 and 75 mph speed limits, you get up to 80 or 90 mph just keeping up with traffic. I don't like these tires at those speeds. The front tire is also washing out a bit more on gravel. Next season, I'll be looking for something different. I'm guessing, these will make it through most of this season, hopefully all of this.
Here is a screen shot of the price and tire sizes.
https://3speak.tv/watch?v=the-bitcoin-dood/ltzwqrga
Just a quick 3 minute video about my Splinterlands season rewards. I had just gotten back from a really long motorcycle ride and hadn't noticed how burnt I was until I sat in front of the camera. 🤣
I made this video short and sweet. Under 3 minutes. I'll make up for it next week.
It looks like the game is changing a bit so next week we'll talk a little about the new SP requirements for season rewards and the new way to fulfill daily quests.
https://3speak.tv/watch?v=the-bitcoin-dood/hpmaxfop
So I'm still working on getting some Hive graphics. I think I found a guy locally that can create them for me. I'm pretty sure those are going on the side plates or gas tank. However, while looking for someone online to create them, I came across this graphic and it was the exact size I needed.
Many people refer to the Suzuki DR650 as the Bush Pig. So when I seen this crazy graphic of a wild Boar's head, I had to have it. On top of that, it looks like it was measured for the front visor. It's a perfect fit.
This is just a quick and easy walk through of applying vinyl graphics and the final product of the visor decal I purchased. Hive logos coming soon I promise!
https://3speak.tv/watch?v=the-bitcoin-dood/igtmuaah
I finally got around to updating my blog. I think I finally found a theme I'm happy with.
In this video I talk a little about the new blog theme, the 2022 riding season, the direction the travel blog will be taking, and using the Exxp WP pluggin to post to Hive.
Now that I've got the blog of my dreams, I can't wait to start filling it with content!
https://3speak.tv/watch?v=the-bitcoin-dood/wnthywql
I believe I kept this one under 8 minutes. In this video I open my season rewards plus 5 packs. I score some gold cards and some summoners.
I also open my first pack of Gladius Case cards available in the guild store. Another Gold!
The guild currently has 1 more position to fill. If anyone is interested just leave you in-game username in the comments and I'll make sure to send an invite.
https://3speak.tv/watch?v=the-bitcoin-dood/sqfqkuri
The other day I needed to change my tires on the Suzuki DR650. I've been changing motorcycle tires my entire life and never had such a problem breaking a rim bead as I did with the rear tire. You can read more about that nightmare here.
I was at Harbor Freight and thought this motorcycle lift would be perfect for my tire change job. It turned out the DR650 is slightly heavier than the recommended weight, I didn't know that at the store when I purchased this. I used it anyway though and it worked out great. This lift has a 350 LB capacity and should work fine for most dual sports, pit bikes, and motorcross motorcycles that are UNDER 350 LBS.
I'm still working on losing weight. I never realized how fat I looked until I started doing these videos. I'm OK with that though, that is what is currently motivating me to lose weight. Regardless, I decided to name this one....
Fat Guy With A Motorcycle Lift The lift itself was $50 from Harbor Freight. It's made by Pittsburgh Tools. I'd probably look for something with a higher weight limit if you own a DR650. Had I realised in the shop, I probably would have waited for something that meets my weight needs. Even my motorcycle is overweight 🤣. It worked fine though for me, keep in mind those manufacturer weight limits are there for a reason. Better safe than sorry, The Dood just likes living dangerously I guess.
Anyway, hope you enjoy "Fat Guy With A Motorcycle Lift"
https://3speak.tv/watch?v=the-bitcoin-dood/tfchzaxa
This turned out to be a really fun trip. Each new motorcycle season I tend to start off with a run to the NY / Pennsylvania border for some fireworks. I basically just buy a backpack full of fireworks for the Fourth of July holiday.
This season I took a little different route. I rode along rt 5 pretty much the entire way. I got off rt 5 about 10 miles from the border.
There was one huge surprise. I came across a weed dispensary. It was my first vist to a dispensary and I was pretty excited about it. I wrote about my dispensary visit here.
This was a really fun trip. The bike ran great and I snagged some weed! Wish the weather would warm up, but soon enough we'll all be complaining about the heat in Western NY state! Cheers from Buffalo NY!
https://3speak.tv/watch?v=the-bitcoin-dood/xxirheip
I've been spacing off slide guitar lately because I play in open tuning and it's a bit of a pain to retune the guitar for one or two songs. I haven't been playing my Jasmine guitar because it just doesn't compare to the new Ibanez I got a few months back. The other day, it dawned on me, maybe I could use it for slide and open tunings.
So I tuned it to open E, messed around a little, was happy with the results and now dedicated that guitar to learning slide and open tunings!
In this video, I review 1 homemade copper slide, a glass slide that was included in a cigar box kit I bought, and the new Dunlop 202 glass slide that I just got yesterday. Absolutely loving this new slide.
https://3speak.tv/watch?v=the-bitcoin-dood/zfimvkaq
I'm trying to shorten these videos down a bit and would like to get them under 5 minutes. This is just a quick 8 minute video of me claiming my season rewards and also opening 5 packs of cards. Looks like my luck ran out with the pack openings! Still ended up with some decent cards. I finished the season in Gold II my max tier is Diamond III. The weather is getting nice here and it's been tough getting to a computer. Hopefully this season I can get myself up into Diamond III.
Surprisingly these videos are doing OK on Youtube. They've been generating views and followers. I'm going to keep posting these to Youtube and I'm going to start a bi-weekly in-between season rewards to talk a little about Hive. I should have the first video uploaded towards the end of next week.
Well, it's April 30th and this is the last day of #HiveBloPoMo. Pretty stoked about completing another one. I think this should be my 4th monthly author badge and I think this is either the 2nd or 3rd #HiveBloPoMo I've completed.
I'll talk a little more about this in tomorrows post. I've been in a groove and I want to keep it going into May now!
I hope you're all doing wonderfully. Happy Saturday!
https://3speak.tv/watch?v=the-bitcoin-dood/acyvbcab
A couple weeks ago I posted an oil cooler gas can mod. It got zero views on 3Speak but started doing well on Youtube. Really well actually. It was my most liked, commented and viewed video on Youtube to date! I was a little bummed I decided to delete it.
The video was up for 3 days and generated roughly 400 views, 17 comments and 9 likes. In the comments though several people voiced concern about where I placed the gas can. I felt the concerns were legitimate and decided to delete the videos both here and on Youtube.
I also felt you all deserved and explanation as to why I deleted the video and why I posted it in the first place. Obviously, the main concern in the comments was about safety. I somewhat agreed. I try not to post unsafe stuff though and I try not to post controversy. I felt some of the complaints were warranted and I decided to take the post down.
On top of that, I didn't like the finished product of this mod. I felt like it needed further securing. IMHO I didn't like the mounting hardware that came with it. I thought about reinforcing the mod to make it safer. I felt the mod could be made safe, but as it stood, more work needed to be done. I didn't want anyone to do a half assed mod and get hurt, so I deleted the video.
With that said, here's a a 3Speak of me explaining why I decided to delete it, and explaining a little bit more about the mounting hardware and my thoughts on it.
This is post #28 in this months #HiveBloPoMo
https://3speak.tv/watch?v=the-bitcoin-dood/lutaqcee
The warm weather is getting nearer! It got up in the 50s today in Buffalo. I bought this hammock last month, and today was the last day I could return it. I figured I'd make use of the sunshine and set this hammock up at the park and make sure everything was OK before I decided to keep it. .
I've been shopping for motorcycle parts and kit for this summers riding season. I impulse bought this $15.00 hammock from Amazon when it popped up as a special offer.
For $15 I couldn't resist, I had to try it. Hammocks are the perfect solution for lounging and relaxing when camping. I had a really cool tie-dye one since the mid 90s. It was all cotton and a freind of mine bought it in Bali. The thing lasted me forever but the material finally wore thin from years of wear and me gaining weight over the years certainly hasn't helped. 🤣 I got a lot of use out of it over that time and you could feel the fabric getting thin. I was really bummed when it ripped. The landing wasn't much fun either!
This new hammock isn't as stylish as my old one but the quality seems like it's there. The fabrick is very thin nylon parachute material. Seems legit. I sat on it slowly and it seemed to take my weight no problem. I didn't hear any ripping and the fabric seemed stronger as I sat down. It's supposed to hold up to 500 pounds. So far so good. We'll have to see how it fares over this riding season.
https://3speak.tv/watch?v=the-bitcoin-dood/uktchqwv
It's time for #Splinterlands season rewards! I finished this season in Gold 1. My max tier is currently set at Diamond 3. I opened my quest rewards and also open 10 packs of Splinterlands Chaos Legion cards.
I should have made it to Diamond 3 this season but I had something come up on the last day and I wasn't able to play. I'm good with Gold 1 though.
Nothing to spectacular in the season rewards or pack openings this season. I did get to finally update a summoner. So I'm pretty excited about that.
Anyway, I kept this video short and under 12 minutes.
This is post 16 for this months #HiveBloPoMo
https://3speak.tv/watch?v=the-bitcoin-dood/gspocehe
I wasn't sure if I was going to post this or not. I have to push myself out of my comfort zone though, so I decided to go for it. My playing still has a really long way to go. This is a two week progression of me learning Warmup Blues by Rick Payne from the Simply Fingerstyle Blues song book.
The first day I can barely play it. If you just want to see the end result you can skip to the end around the 6 minute mark.
A few notes about the songbook this song is from. This was exactly the type of songbook I was looking for. I'd like to shoot for learning 2 songs a month out of this book. Most of them seem right at my skill level, and I'm loving the sound.
Honestly, at this point, I just want to be able to sit down and play a few songs when I feel like it. I'm still practicing my theory lessons in the background though because, well I want to be able to play my own songs and not just someone elses. Still, for me this is the perfect book for this summer. I'm probably going to order a couple other titles from this author as well. He has different books for different styles of fingerstyle blues. I'm really psyched about finding these!
With that said, I'm looking forward to finding another song to learn. I've also noticed that the other stuff I'm working on is improving as I learn this stuff. That's probably the good thing about learning other peoples music, you're also learning how songs are formed, picking patterns, keys, etc. I think I'm learning a lot from this book.
Anyway, that's where I'm at with all this!
This is post 13 in this months #HiveBloPoMo