Sod quality standards vary from state to state, but it is accurate to say that all seed carrying the distinctive gold tag is tested to a much higher standard than the minimum requirement for seed labeling. For example, in Washington, Oregon and Idaho, where much of the turfgrass seed is produced, sod quality bluegrass requires examination of every seed in a 25 gram sample and sod quality tall fescue requires a 50 gram examination. In contrast, a standard seed purity test requires examination of a minimum of just 2,500 seeds, which is approximately 1 gram of bluegrass seed. In statistical terms, the confidence level that a sample accurately reflects the composition of the entire seed lot increases as the sample size increases. In laymanÂs terms, if there are a few weed seeds in the lot, a seed analyst is more likely to find one in a large sample than in a small sample. Additionally, Sod Quality standards prohibit certain problematic weed and other crop contaminants that are otherwise allowable in seed labeled using a standard test. The purpose of Sod Quality standards is to provide assurance to sod growers that the seed they plant will not contaminate their fields with difficult weeds and unwanted other crop species. The primary cool-season turfgrass species used by sod growers are Kentucky bluegrass and tall fescue, so they are the most commonly available Sod Quality seeds. from seedsuperstore.com

Instead of the FS80, look at the FS90R. Its about the same price and has a solid steel shaft and you can buy different gear box attachments for it. The Stihl 4 mix engines run fine, is not that loud, powerful, and easy to start. Just use the stihl synthetic oil and you'll be fine. I'm going to be upgrading my trimmer in the future, and I've considered echo and husky as well. Echo may build quality stuff, but the lack of published hp numbers leads me to believe their stuff is a little unpowered. I've owned one honda powered piece of equipment and I'll never own another. I have a honda harmony lawnmower, and it is hands down the hardest to start out of any piece of equipment I own. Parts are expensive for the honda's as well. The wheel engagement cable broke and I had to buy the whole assmebly including the lever etc just for the cable. And its the only mower I've ever owned that the deck just about rusted through and the drive wheels are bald. Honda's are not worth the $$$.

"Overall, the valve (tube)is still an almost mystical thing, but in all honesty, modern amplifiers using transistors or MOSFETs are so vastly superior in terms of fidelity, efficiency and reliability, that I really don't see what all the fuss is about. Having said this, I was using a valve preamplifier on my own system until recently." --from Rod Elliot---I recommend his site on all questions related to audio. There is no doubt that valves do have some very nice characteristics, and for guitar amplifiers there are few guitarists who would argue otherwise. Guitarists love the sound of soft clipping that tubes make, rather than the harsher sound of over-driven MOSFETS or transistors. A soft overload behavior means that a valve amp does not sound as harsh as a transistor amp when it is overdriven - which is great for guitar, but a hi-fi should never be overdriven anyway, so the point is moot. The problems that befall valves are many, and include Fragile - The glass envelopes are very thin, and are easily broken. Limited Life - Even if a valve is operated well within its ratings, it still has a finite life. The main causes of valve failure are cathode emission degradation (happening all the time), and gas, when small amounts of air "break" the full vacuum. Microphonics - All valves tend to be slightly microphonic, which is to say that they act as a microphone. This can cause additional colouration to the signal if the sound from speakers vibrates the amplifier. High Voltage - Having to ensure that the 600V DC typical of a high power amp does not "flash over" valve bases is a constant headache, and ensuring that these voltages are kept well away from small fingers is mandatory. High voltage capacitors are also more expensive than lower voltage ones. Heaters - Valve cathodes must be operated at the correct temperature so they emit electrons properly, and "boil off" contaminants. If the heater voltage is too low, the cathode will become poisoned, and the valve is useless. The heater power used is all wasted, in that none of it is turned into sound. Output Transformers - The output transformer for a valve amp is expensive, bulky and heavy. It introduces its own distortion components, which are difficult (or impossible) to eliminate completely. Heat - All valve amps run hot. The valve will not work unless it is hot, and the heat causes problems for other components, shortening their life. The heat is all wasted energy. Damping - Valve amplifiers nearly all have a low damping factor, caused by a relatively high output impedance. Speakers must be very well damped indeed to work well with any valve amp, or the bass will become poorly defined, and crossover networks (which rely on a very low amp impedance) may not work as well as intended. On the positive side, valve amplifiers have a "warm" sound, partly because of the low order harmonic distortion introduced and because of the much higher impedance level compared to solid state. A good valve amp will also have a very wide bandwidth, and will have an easy job driving loads that cause solid-state equipment to have severe heartburn (or just blow up on the spot). But then again, how many people own 2 ohm speakers. Personally, I would never buy a speaker that is so poorly designed that it required a special amplifier. At low listeneing levels, valve equipment has vanishingly small distortion levels, and when all is said and done, there is something nice about little glass tubes, with little lights inside, making your music. But watt for watt, dollar for dollar, and if accuracy of incoming signal is of your highest importance, buying tubes are definitely not the way to go. Robert Carver has built solid state amps (with a so-called niceness and warmth switch) that tube-heads couldn't tell the difference from. But if you get you your stereo info from expensive retailers, true-believers, and Stereophile-type magazines rather than acoustic and electrical engineers you are likely to be led down the path of subjectivism, rather than objectivism. The repair rate and replacement rate of tubes is so far greater than solid state devices it is ridiculous. Unless you live in very cold weather and need the extra heat--go solid state:-) We all know that heat is the enemy of electronics. That is why heat sinks and fans exist. Krell, Meridian, Levinson, are all solid state and they are generally considered to be the Rolls Royce of the industry. In the age of DSP's and amplifier impedance output adjustment it makes almost no sense for tube amps for the average audiophile and every listener. But if you love the look of glowing tubes and don't have kids with prying hands, go ahead and buy one. Greg

Just ditched the trilogy of Foundation by Asimov . I read Foundation and I quit them when I was halfaway through The Foundation and the Empire; I enjoyed the series when I read them more than twenty years ago, but at the moment I found them too "episodics" and not so riveting IÂm leaving to my loved mountains the day after tomorrow, and IÂm taking along, four Graham Greene novels: - The Heart of the Matter (a re-read) - The Human Factor (also a re-read) - The Ministry of Fear - and - Monsignor Quixote two George OrwellÂs - Burmese Day (re-read) and - Coming up for Air Robertson Davies - Fifth Business Alasdair Gray - Poor Things; IÂm really intrigued by this one. From the back cover What strange secret made beautiful, tempestuos Bella Baxter irresistible to the poor medical student Archie McCandless? Was it her queer origin in the home of monstruos Godwin Baxter, the genius whose voice could perforate eardrums? This story of love and scientific daring storms through Victorian operating theatres, continental Casinos and a Parisian brothel to its happy end in a decent, old fashioned Scottish marriage I don't think I'll read them all, but, just in case... grelobe