Vintage memories of DIY

[smorneau]

Hi Rich,

Thanks, that brings back memories some good, some not so good. I bought a 3 lb. weight mold from a dive shop back in the early 70ies. It was a 2 piece mold that hinged on one end and had a clasp on the other. It worked great and 80% of the weights looked store quality. In fact, later I would trade/sell some of those weights at a dive shop for larger ones.

Until one day.....after pouring a few weights, I somehow missed seeing a bit of water left in the mold and when I made a pour, a geyser of molten lead erupted back through the pour hole. The liquid lead shot up high enough to hit the ceiling. I owe my eyesight to a pair of safety goggles as a drop hit them and would surely have taken one of my eyes out.

So please, if anyone is going to pour their own lead weights, do it outside or in a very well ventilated place; wear proper safety equipment, and if you use water at all in the process-ensure your mold is completely dry before pouring.

BTW the DIY spirit is alive and well. Why not join us in the DIY forum?
Do It Yourself - DIY

What a great idea, I was just given 400#'s of lead boat ballest!

 

[dumpsterDiver]

My first pole spear was made from a fiberglass golf flag from the local Country Club.

I used string to tie a piece of sharpened re-bar that I hand ground on concrete. Covered the string with a little electrical tape and used more string and tape to attach a length of latex, Bunsen Burner hose I "acquired" from my Jr. High school science class.


I remember thinking it worked pretty well. One day I loaned it to the captain of our boat and when he got back on deck, he threw it down and I still remember his words: "You can take that piece of shXX and shove it up your cuXX". I think my feelings are still hurt almost 40 years later.

 

[Sam Miller III]

Let me understand this...

You used a fiberglass golf flag from the local Country Club, I some how suspect it was not given to you and you didn't purchase it..
Next you "acquired" a length of latex Bunsen Burner hose from your Jr. High school science class....

How will you explain this to that boy in you avatar? or is that you?

Where are your morals?

SDM

 

[macado]

A few of my friends made one of these. Tow plane, aqua plane or water plane whatever you want to call it. They're great fun. This is from the July 1967 issue of Popular Mechanics magazine.

 

[Ed Palma]

Once made a spool out of some PVC - it even looked legit. Came apart underwater unbeknownst to me, but someone in my group pointed out a long trail of buoyant polypro line that I had used with it floating behind me

 

[dumpsterDiver]

Let me understand this...

You used a fiberglass golf flag from the local Country Club, I some how suspect it was not given to you and you didn't purchase it..
Next you "acquired" a length of latex Bunsen Burner hose from your Jr. High school science class....

How will you explain this to that boy in you avatar? or is that you?

Where are your morals?

SDM

I thought this was a little like the Catholic Church. A confession and I am absolved of all guilt. I've done worse, unfortunately.

 

[CT-Rich]

I thought this was a little like the Catholic Church. A confession and I am absolved of all guilt. I've done worse, unfortunately.

If JYC could use high explosives to count fish, I think we can all forgive an middle school theft from thirty years ago...

:blessing: I absolve you of your sins by the holy roman state of intoxication... :blessing:

 

[dumpsterDiver]

If JYC could use high explosives to count fish, I think we can all forgive an middle school theft from thirty years ago...

:blessing: I absolve you of your sins by the holy roman state of intoxication... :blessing:

Thank you father!

I've killed hundreds of thousands of fish, simply to count them... Really. Once we dumped some rotenone solution in an estuary on an outgoing tide and things got a little out of hand; there were dead fish popping up everywhere! LOL

 

[DaleC]

Once made a spool out of some PVC - it even looked legit. Came apart underwater unbeknownst to me, but someone in my group pointed out a long trail of buoyant polypro line that I had used with it floating behind me

Me too