Author Archives: Rex

Cooper Tires ATRs — 25,000 km performance update

My Cooper Tires ATRs have performed faultlessly on my Toyota Prado during the last 25,000 km of driving in the city, bush, beaches and camping. There was one thing that I remember from my university marketing 101 subject 20+ years ago. That was, if you want to increase sales, you can do one of three things: improve your product reduce your price increase your promotion (advertising/marketing). Using elasticity of demand curves, somehow, you … more »

Lake Ainsworth Holiday Park at Lennox Head camping review

We recently spent an enjoyable four days camping at Lake Ainsworth Holiday Park at Lennox Head in Northern New South Wales. The park featured a new amenities block, friendly staff and a great location next to Lake Ainsworth and Seven Mile Beach. The Lake Ainsworth Holiday Park is a Big 4 Holiday Park, as well as being a North Coast Holiday Park. The holiday park is large and features unpowered tent sites, powered tent sites, powered … more »

BlackWolf Turbo Plus 240 — 2012/13 model

The BlackWolf Turbo Plus 240 2012/13 model has a new, larger awning that can be fitted with optional front and side panels. The awning provides a useful space to shelter from the weather — sun, rain, and with the optional panels fitted, wind. The new tent still has BlackWolf’s high quality and robust performance in bad weather. I am a big fan of BlackWolf tents, so I was pleased to be offered the opportunity … more »

BlackWolf Turbo Plus 240 tent — 2012/13 model tent first impressions & photos

The 2012/13 model of the BlackWolf Turbo Plus 240 tent has some new features, the main one being the larger front awning, as well as the curved rear pole and gusseted windows of last year’s model. Following are some of the first photos on the internet of the new tent. Update: I have now been camping in the new BlackWolf Turbo Plus 240 tent and have posted additional comments here. I am a big fan of … more »

How to stop chickens clucking in the morning at sunrise

Our chickens -- two ISA Browns, an Australorp and a Leghorn

Backyard chickens make great, charismatic pets and produce eggs, but can be horrendously noisy just before sunrise. A blackout box can help to keep the chickens quiet until a more sociable time of morning. Unfortunately, chickens clucking and squawking early morning can be a nuisance in suburbia. While most councils (including Brisbane City Council where I live) prohibit keeping roosters in backyards, they do allow hens (up to six hens in my area). … more »

Techni Ice vs Waeco Cool-Ice — which is the best icebox?

I have both Techni Ice and Waeco Cool-Ice iceboxes (cooler, esky, ice chest or chilli bin). I conducted a test to compare which icebox held ice the longest and, much to my surprise, found that they performed equally well. I was sure that there was going to be a clear winner! The Techni Ice iceboxes receive rave reviews by many happy customers on the internet. I have used my 40 litre Techni Ice … more »

How to repair a 4WD self-inflating mattress

My DMH Outdoors 4WD self-inflating mattresses have had a hard life. One of the four mattresses that I purchased now has a puncture in it and needed to be repaired. We have both the DMH Outdoors Off-Road (10 cm) and Bush-Mate (8 cm) 4WD self-inflating mattresses. They have been used on numerous camping trips, but also were used for a couple of months as our primary beds after we were flooded in the Queensland 2011 floods. … more »