Contrary to the sometimes irascible persona he liked to present on this forum, he was warm and friendly on the few occasions we met. His knowledge of aerial photography seemed encyclopaedic and that, combined with his keen sense of humour and larger than life presence, left a lasting impression. I really wish I'd had the opportunity to get to know him better.
I went through this whole issue about six months ago and ended up with a De Longhi espresso machine (7900 baht) and a Krups burr grinder (about 3500) which do a fine job. The pair are overpriced when compared with Europe but the build quality is good and using Hillkof blends produces satisfying results.
I replaced all four Bridgestone tyres with a new set of Dunlops and it has improved the handling hugely and removed the squealing too. It turned out I needed a new shock absorber so that added to the cost but the D-Max has been cheap to maintain in all so I don't begrudge the extra.
So it looks like you should be considering a new set of tyres between 50 & 60,000 km or about 3 or four years as they really do seem to degrade independently of tread wear.
It's hard to believe that you've been here long enough to need to do a visa run and not yet come into contact with a Big C, Tesco or any one of the countless places that sell cheap watches. If you can't find one, you could always buy a cheap phone.