Long time hexbear user, I've actually had pretty good luck getting input on non-political questions. No sick fish, but I've asked quite a variety of questions and gotten help. Maybe I would have gotten a higher quality answer on Reddit, but my experience with modern reddit (last 6ish years) has been hit or miss. Reminds me in a way of the forums I used back in the really 2000s. Even though the forums I was on were primarily oriented around tabletop gaming, the "general/off-topic" sections would have quite a variety of people and interests. And those people, since they all had a common interest, were far more talkative and generous with their time than what I've experienced in Reddit. IMO this makes up for the smaller population. Hexbear has that vibe for me, just with a non-sectarian socialist shitposting focus. Which works for me.