Surprisingly enough I have an auto mechanic that I trust.  When I needed a new battery this winter he said that the best one for my car was the Wal-Mart Ever Start Maxx.I had not ever had any work done at the Wal-Mart Auto Shop, but since the price for the battery was based on turning in your old battery core, and the installation was supposedly free, I decided to let them do it.  Oth...

Liquid Sandpaper is meant to be used as a de-glossing agent if you want to paint over a surface that has had a high-gloss coating.  I can’t tell that it works any better than a piece of sandpaper, or if it does anything at all.I had the chance to try this product by Klean-Strip on some shelves that had high-gloss enamel paint on them.  It is meant to be used on paint, varnish, e...

Hobby Lobby is so confident of customer approval that they named it “I Love This Yarn.”  It pretty much lives up to that claim, I will admit.This is a 100% acrylic, 4-ply knitting worsted yarn.  That much sounds just the same as the Red Heart Yarn I reviewed earlier.  But this yarn is much, much softer to the feel.It is machine washable and dryable.  The skeins a...

I like everything about the Behr Ceiling Paint. I have used it on various surfaces with both a brush and a roller, and it performed well in every case.In the apartment that I recently painted there were both plaster ceilings, and three rooms that had been fitted with lowered panel ceilings. Of these three, each had a different kind of surface.  One was smooth, one of medium texture, and on...

This holiday season we’ve enjoyed playing the classic French game Mille Bornes, “a thousand mile posts,” with family and friends. This is a fast-paced and competitive game which can be played by anyone who is able to add by 25s.The idea is to complete a journey of 1000 miles (or 700 in some configurations).  It can be played by 2-6 players, but for any number over 3 it mu...

Can Shoe Goo rescue my X-Country Ski Boots?  Read how I put it to the test.NovemberMy cross-country ski boots are old and by most people’s standards, worn out.  But they fit me, so I decided to try to repair them.  As you can see in the second photo, one toe had pulled away from the sole of the boot quite badly.  The other toe just needed sealing.I had never used Shoe ...

This is a lightweight denim shirt that is available with quite a few current and historic railroad names and logos embroidered above the pocket.  The weight is just right, in my opinion, and it is well made.I’m also a railroad fan among my other hobbies. I received this shirt as a gift this Christmas from another railfan friend who is as crazy as I am. The shirt is made by Port and C...

This earpiece is made by Motorola and is Bluetooth enabled. Although it’s at the low end of those available my husband likes it.Alltel synchronized the headset to his phone. Then all he had to do when he got home was charge it up.If he is expecting a call he puts it on, turns it on, and is ready when the call comes in. A message appears on the phone that says something like “device ...

This is the original recipe book featuring desserts from my favorite restaurant on the Lake Superior North Shore at Two Harbors, Minnesota, Betty’s Pies.I have an unofficial list of the best places to get pie along the North Country National Scenic Trail, and Betty’s Pies tops the list. This is not a small country café or diner, which most of the rest are. This is now a decen...

Would you like to maximize your impact on readers at Shared Reviews? Do you wish that more people would vote for your reviews even though you have written quite a few? Here are a few tips. Shared Reviews (SR) is primarily a venue for people who want to share their experiences using products. In January 2010 they added the possibility of writing articles on a wide array of topics in which you ca...

This is the only printed guide to the Kekekabic Trail, but it was written before the big blowdown of 2000, and before the Ham Lake Fire. It is better than no information, but it is not a reliable guide at all any more. This past spring, three friends and I hiked the northern Minnesota Arrowhead on the North Country National Scenic Trail. This includes the northern end of the Superior Hiking Tra...

This folding Felco 60 pruning saw is retired, and replaced by model 600, but if you want a folding saw that actually cuts branches, get a Felco!This saw came to our trail club in our original tool kit from the National Park Service. I’ve had the opportunity to use a lot of other brands over the years, and this is simply the best. It actually cuts branches.Lots of serious hikers simply car...

This is a variable temperature food dehydrator, with a timer.  I don’t think there is a better product on the market.I prepare all our hiking and backpacking food from scratch.  I’ve seen and tried a lot of different dehydrators, but not a one of them can hold a candle to this company’s products.The biggest difference in an Excalibur is that the air is forced across ...

Although this fluorescent bulb is technically able to be dimmed, it really doesn’t work very well, and it was really expensive.One of the big problems with the new “curly-que” fluorescent bulbs is that you can’t use them in fixtures that are on dimmer switches. We had heard that there were new ones that were able to be used in these fixtures. Our local Meijer didn’...

Bellingrath Gardens was beautiful even in late fall, and it must be truly spectacular in the summer.A few years ago hubby and I had the chance to take a trip to Alabama in the late fall. We had an afternoon that wasn’t scheduled and decided to go to Bellingrath Gardens. We thought that the admission price was a little steep at $11 for “just a garden,” especially since we didn&...

This is the sixth (alphabetically) of a 20 volume set. I give the set as a whole very high marks, and this particular volume gives general information on the basic aspects of any kind of gardening.  I have used this a little bit, although I was pretty familiar with the fundamentals before I bought this set of books.  However, it is a good reference book for basic how-tos, and includes...

The Chase Amazon Visa Card gives me points which can be used on purchases at Amazon.I don’t have a wallet full of credit cards... just two: Discover and Visa.  Previously the Visa card had no reward associated with it which bummed me out because there are a lot of places that won’t take Discover, which is why I had the Visa card in the first place.Now, however, for every dollar...

If you have lime (calcium) in your hard water this product will clean off those deposits very well.  It does not deliver as well on its other promises.CLR (short for Calcium, Lime, Rust) promises to remove calcium, lime (redundant... lime is calcium chloride!), and hard water deposits, discoloration, soap scum and dirt.  It is non abrasive and also claims to deoderize.I tried this pro...

I have a collection of Christmas ornaments based on a theme of hiking and camping. I now have three of the S’mores collection.Mostly, thanks to friends who enjoy helping me build my collection of Christmas ornament and knick-knacks centered on my obsession with hiking, snowshoeing, canoeing and camping, I now have 58 different items.  Three of those are from the Original S’more...

Behr latex enamel undercoat goes on nicely but can be brushed too thin too easily, and sometimes even two coats aren’t enough to prime some surfaces well enough.This was my first experience using this brand of paint.  Although I’ve been happy with all the various top coat types I’ve used in the past couple of weeks, I have to say that I expected better things of the prime...