If you've known me for any length of time you know two things about me. One, I have a loud, acerbic and opinionated mouth. Two, that mouth gets even worse unless I imbibe copious amounts of latte' brewed thick enough to polish rust off chrome.

We had a "death" in my home a few days ago. My loyal drip coffee maker. *sniff*

In searching out a replacement, I expected to get bent over a barrel for a dry shank. Most of the systems I like (ones that use a "once through" drip) cost about over 100 bucks. However, I did take a stroll through Sears and found a Hamilton Beach model for 26 bucks. I bought the thing, and as I sip while typing this, the world is once again safe from my fiery discourse.

It has features I will seldom use, like an automatic timer that starts the coffee while you're just getting up. But it does make over 12 'normal' cups, which translate into "3" for me.

More to the point, it strikes me as the 'Harley' of appliances. It's simple, it's black in color, it functions as I want and it is devoid of features no one asked for. Like I originally stated on showcasing products to other bikers, we all know we guzzle a cuppa before we are fit to be around polite society. I just found something that works.

When you call something "The Harley" of coffee makers thats placing a reliable tag on it. I always referred to the Remington Rand 1911A1 .45 as the Harley Davidson of hand guns because of its simplisticness,reliability and you can do so many customized modifications to it.

I am also a fan of the Colt 1911. In many ways (and with reloading dies) I could make a 1911 fill my entire "need" for things that go 'bang.'

I had always hoped that we would report on those "secondary products" that we all use to make life as bikers a bit more manageable. You put your mousey tax accountant in ill fitting boots and prepare to get your head bitten off--we need good footware. Biker forums seem to only showcase big bore engines and cute girls. I have no problem with that--in fact, I encourage it! But warm dry socks on a cold ride home are important, as well.

BI63, if you were in my kitchen right now (imagine having a gleaming edge gently polished into your favorite EDC knife whilst sipping a premium latte' and telling a bushel basket of lies) the aroma of the brew and the open mouth laughter would go hand-in-hand.

While the frost and snow force us indoors this time of year, I'm going to write a few reviews on "biker crap." If a product works for me, it probably works for you, too. Hey, if nothing else, I bored you for ten minutes...

Funny you mention having a kitchen full of sharp knives...as a one time line cook/chef I carried my own knives in a knife wrap. Hinkels and Wustoffs...some of the best in the business. When I retired from the restaurant industry I placed a knife holder under my kitchen cabinets to place my hinkels and wustoffs in a quickly acccesible location. No one can use them but me, I wash,dry and replace them immediately after each use and never ever just chuck them in the sink to be washed with the rest of the househld dish's.

Other than touching up my new Spyderco I haven't sharpened much lately. To be fair, I haven't dulled anything lately, either. Truth be told, over the past week I've cut food twice at the Japanese restaurant and opened a box of Special K cereal. That's about it.

I like the idea of carrying something nice like my ZT0300, but to slog around in the slop this time of year makes that seem a waste. We have 10 inches of snow and ice coming in the next 24 hours, and if I have to venture out my cheap little Spydie will be the perfect thing, anyway.

I did slip a "skull lanyard" on the Spydie just so I look like a real biker...