Product Review
Badger Balm
A gift received four years ago sat unused for months. Need finally arose over a bracing chapped winter. This balm was found to be superior. An all-natural salve with pleasant wintergreen finish restored what nature took.
Before the tin was reduced to a few smears of Badger Balm along the bottom, my restored hands had intersourced * a vendor with reasonable shipping fees. I’m BACK IN THE BALM again!
That split nail growing from a perpetually cracked cuticle? Finally, some relief after a couple months of consistent application. Sub-epidermal exposure through fingertip calluses? Stick with Badger Balm, and relief will come. A must have through the winter and all year around!
Bill, what makes it so good? Our philosophy flows from the ground up. We believe in using botanical ingredients that are grown in healthy soil and processed simply without the use of chemicals. Ingredients like these are filled with life force. They make for better products, for healthier people, and for a healthier planet. – Badger Bill Whyte, CEO & Head Badger
Harry’s Shave Cream
Our publishing deadline is here once again. More quickly this time around. As life becomes busier, hectic, and committed, options to slow down remain elusive. But one ritual can transport you for a few minutes: the morning shave.
A Barbasol man from ‘way back, gifted shave product traditionally sat unused. Tried once or twice, they usually seemed gooey or thick. Turns out I was not reading the directions. Premium shaving products contains more conditioners to position your beard and protect the skin. Unlike the much lighter Barbasol.
This morning with fresh blade, Harry’s Shave Cream brought me, for a few minutes, into a decadent salon. Natural oils pop with mildly astringent nose, along with conditioners which assist in Zamboni-smooth blade action across my weathered face. Harry’s CSR will not share their formula secrets except to list ingredients. Research as I may, the specific plant or tree oil which brings me to reorder Harry’s remains elusive. Unlike a perfect shave, which is now within my grasp.
The whole picture, via Harry’s SMT (social media team): Thanks so much for your interest in our products! To give you the whole picture: our blades and cartridges are engineered and manufactured in Germany using Swedish steel, our handles are made in China, and our shaving cream is developed at a really cool lab in New Jersey. Every Harry’s item is uniquely designed and produced, but we hope you’ll love them all equally.
Harry’s shipping boxes are of particular genius. Perfectly sized, sturdy, reusable. I turn’em inside out and load them up! Next project? Take an unpurposed box, unfold it flat, and have my nieces draw on it. Then reassemble. Voilà, first of the Harry’s Collectable Boxes. You will not know which edition you receive until your order arrives, with instructions: Kindly unpack your Harry’s premium shave gear for later use. Unfold this box to flat. Reassemble inside out. Fill your new Harry’s ART SERIES container with multi-generational treasures and enjoy!
3M Personal Safety Division
La sécurité n’est pas un accident.
I gear up for another season with that famous French proverb ringing in my ears. Safety is not an accident. Eye protection? Check! Uxex for me. Ears? Hoppes plugs are always within reach and used, even if drilling only one or two holes in concrete. Lungs? As they say, when you can’t breathe, nothing else matters.
After several apprentice seasons struggling with disposal breathing masks, I took advice from safety experts at Graingers. North/Honeywell or 3M are the usual offerings when safety is your top concern. Decades later, I have and use both brands. Honeywell for light dust and all day comfort, and the 3M “half-mask” for more involved irritants.
The 3M™ Half Facepiece Reusable Respirator 6000 Series. Interchangeable cartridges for protection within different contaminants. While this unit will not provide oxygen, with the right cartridges, muriatic acid can be handled safely in a well-ventilated area. With the pictured P100 Particulate Filters, I’m protected against anything the typical construction site stirs up.
Healthy body, healthy mind, restful sleep.
Oatey Pipe Thread Sealant
Decades ago while hand-threading five stories of 1″ steel pipe, a gas company employee shared a great product with me. His fancy blue pipe dope to apply to pipe threads before screwing everything together. Back in those days, I used grey pipe dope, or more often, white dope with teflon. The blue stuff? An expensive specialty item.
That gas company guy said they used only the blue stuff. It was the best. Pipes never leaked. You did not have to tighten pipe like Hercules to get a good seal. After my gifted can was empty, I bought another. Two decades later I still buy the same pipe dope, Oatey MEGALOC. Sometimes an even stronger product, Oatey Block, for larger or irregular pipe as well as specialty applications. Made in the USA for professional plumbers worldwide.
MADE IN USA / HECHO EN EE.UU.
Even if you are not a professional, just a guy who knows a lot about pipes, do yourself a favor. Get an edge on every project. The upper hand on potential issues. Oatey MEGALOC and BLOCK, their Blue Wonders.
MEGALOC cleans up with water. BLOCK requires isopropyl alcohol.
alcoholics anonymous
SINCE ANCIENT TIMES grain and fruit have been allowed to ferment into alcohol. Fermentation is the process in which yeast breaks down sugar into alcohol and carbon dioxide. Whether your pleasure is okolehao, scotch, or makgeolli, every culture has a drink to cure ills, relax nerves, mark occasions, and calm stomachs.
When things get a little too calm, alcohol works the other way. So it seems. Then there’s the “Thank God it’s Friday” excuse to consume mass quantities.
After all commercial exaltation is exhausted and peer pressure ignored, an acceptable vintage port by a crackling fire with a nice book is probably good for the mind, body, and soul. But when this (almost) all-natural beverage becomes a destructive force? Who do you call?
Since the 1930s Americans have turned to Alcoholics Anonymous. An approach to manage an addiction through abstinence. Now an international fellowship, membership is one of America’s more constructive exports.
Surrounded by creative types all day, every day, we see eight sides of the issue. In the end, one phrase sounds more true than all the others. Sobriety brings clarity.
Nelson Wood Shims
In today’s iPhone age most forget simple tools which make our lives comfortable. Lever, wheel and axle, pulley, inclined plane, wedge, screw. Archimedes got it. A few millennium before him with these simple tools Pyramids were build. Two+ million years ago stone scraping tools, precursor to the wedge, were made and used before humans were around to criticize its design.
Banging pipes within a wall had me turn to this tool invented before humans roamed the land. With a wedge of wood I cured a sick installation, relieving stress and worry from countless users of this plumbing system. A simple shim of wood inserted between pipe and metal stud eliminated an issue which existed for decades. I made sure to “reconfigure pipe within wall” when no one was looking. Can’t share all my trade secrets.
When it was time to shim, I turned to Clyde. He in turn points me to the rear of his store, where both loafer and curmudgeon gather around a re-screening table for coffee and lies. Just past these antiquarians lies a trove of shimming choices. Six flavors of Nelson Wood Shims. Today, a thin package will satisfy my needs. Plus a few extra for the toolbox.
Mohawk Leather Protector
When you buy well made items and take care of them, they will typically last. A mid-1990s leather jacket makes good example. Lands End, expert stitching, made in Korea, a solid product. I had to have one! At $157, the most expensive article of clothing I’d bought to date! Who would have known I’d still have it? Glad I ordered a size larger!
After two+ decades my coat remains perfectly serviceable. Garnering accolades from all, the well-worn leather garment has been a solid investment. Life, however, is not without maintenance. A button resecured. Pete expertly replaced pocket linings ~ I scratch my head over his magic. The leather? Dry here, cracked there, discolored in areas.
I tried a few reconditioning products. Foam had its chance. Expensive and uneven. A couple of years later, liquid spray. Well, that was a mess. Oversaturated, gummy, plus the spray gets everywhere!
Pete inadvertently provides the solution. I repaired his bouzouki and was most happy with Behlen’s nitrocellulose spray finish used on the instrument top. An American Toolbox article ensued. Behlen parent company Mohawk became aware. Their social media guru reached out with thanks and offers of sponsorship and product. Banner ad? Sure! Product? You bet.
I chose products for which I had use. Mohawk dropped them on my doorstep. No strings, no expectations, no editorial review. Except badgering from their legal eagle, who wants me to stress I received FREE PRODUCT FROM MOHAWK. A subtle reminder I pass on to you.
Mohawk leather products come different ways. Leather Protector Wipes are chosen. At this point, keep it clean and let it age. The protector is delivered via pre-moistened towelettes. Easy to apply, good coverage, nice smell. Perfect amount of wetness. Very neatly done, Mohawk!
Wow, WHO KNEW the leather was so filthy! My jacket gratefully sheds misapplied waxes, dirt, grime, and oils. Absorbs the Magic Mohawk dose of goodness. I’m GENUINELY pleased with the reborn look and feel of the leather. Maybe I’ll wear it one more time this season. Soon my beloved coat shall pass to the next generation. My nephew will look so cool in it!
By popular request, a few words about Pete the tailor:
Pete the tailor has been a friendly acquaintance for years. The first time? Bringing in a treasured garment for repair, I politely ignore his “No new customers, please” sign. We share bonds of musicianship and craftspeople. I fixed an old guitar his kids trashed, two hours on a $5 guitar. He was ecstatic. He’s Greek, from Greece, and owned a genuine bouzouki bought in the home country decades ago. I was asked to fix his treasured bouzouki after years of hinting and delay.
So Pete, he finally let me give it the old college try. Unlike college, I did finish the bouzouki. With its cracked top requiring a new lacquered finish, I tried a nitrocellulose spray made by Behlen. Parent company Mohawk came into my orbit while I spread the word on social media. Then came more product after, actually, I wrote a second materials-related piece, Behlen Hide Glue. Then came Buffer’s Polish, Fingerboard Oil , and now, the leather conditioner.
ATB’s coveted “Six Thumbs Up” is proudly bestowed upon Mohawk. 
Mainline Plumbing Products
“Jed, gimmie two toilet seats, elongated, open front, less lid. Please.”, I tell the shuffling counterman at our venerable plumbing supply. He reaches under the counter and PRESTO there appears before me one of America’s finest. All plastic, ADA compliant, stainless nuts and lock washers, ready for my 9/16″ hollow shaft nut driver to bring it all home.
Nothing says “I love you” to a new toilet like a new toilet seat. Some customers want a newish old seat swapped onto a new toilet. I am not a “seat jockey”, but I keep that to myself. Easier to explain of buggered threads, damaged hinge, unsanitary practices, or if all else fails, It’s on the bill already. I can leave it here for later if you like.
With features I want and an American flag on the box, I know I’m installing a great product as well as keeping our economy rolling. For an item which gets as much use as this, buy the best. Mainline.
Uvex Safety Googles
In 2010 Honeywell, the American multinational conglomerate, made one of its best business decisions. They acquired the French firm Sperian Protection, thus adding to the portfolio of Honeywell superiority an amazingly designed and constructed set of eye protection, Uvex Safety Goggles.
Tough enough for the professional, inexpensive enough for Harry Homeowner, Uvex Stealth go into every house-warming gift I give, a stocking stuffer at Christmas, and an anytime gift for the masses of kids in our extended family. Mud-flinging games, Tinker-Toy battles, tobogganing with reckless abandon, favorite kiddie pastimes made more safe with Uvex.
Digging out a crusty wall to expose fractured cast iron pipe, dropping a weak ceiling, Estwing demolition or Craftsman grinding, none would be complete without Uvex safety gear. After all, we live by the motto – and Rule #3 of Plumbing:
Safety Is Not An Accident
Along with North respirators & Hoppes ear protection, a trilogy of safety always with me. This bag of protection with spares, easy to store and carry, treated with as much importance as any tool in the box. Replacement Uvex lenses always available, new eyes, not so much …
Boonton Ware / Melmac
Long before Mr. McGuire gives young Benjamin unsolicited career advice in the 1967 movie The Graduate, plastics were making their mark in American manufacturing. Six decades earlier, Bakelite made its world debut. This synthetic plastic was invented in New York by Leo Baekeland, who coined the term ‘plastics’.
A few years later melamine formaldehyde was discovered. Plastic had arrived to the dinner table. Nicknamed Melmac and churned out by the ton. Cheap, durable, 
colorful, just what a growing nation wanted and needed. Highly fashionable in the late 1950s and 1960s.
Melamine resin kitchen utensils are a favorite rummage sale find. Durable, functional, lightweight, perfect for a generation or longer.
Every childhood meal was eaten on Melmac. This
collection made its way to an attic for a few decades, but it is back in the cabinet, my first choice for sandwiches and snacks.
Not safe in ovens or microwaves, but that barely dampens the utility of vintage Melmac! The name Boonton Ware? Melmac was made in a small New Jersey town, Boonton, for many years.
Y.M.C.A.
Pre-dawn, water in the kettle halfway to steam. It’s New Years Day. I’m waiting to pour 195˚ water over somewhat fresh coffee grounds. Standing before the hob in a quiet kitchen, the flame, the gathering water, my cat happily crunching through breakfast. When a ghostly voice rises from the folds of my robe …
Message from 692- … It is my credit card company, telling me there has been activity in excess of $0.01 … The first CC charge & text of 2017 is from an institution overlooked, ignored, forgotten, and rediscovered. Part of the daily schedule three-four times a week. Our local chapter of the Young Men’s Christian Association.
Their short story? Industrialized London was a bleak mess in 1844. A farming lad went to the big city to work. This 22-year old and eleven friends organized a refuge of bible study and prayer, an escape from the streets.
Years later, retired Boston sea captain Thomas Valentine Sullivan, working as a marine missionary, noticed a similar need to create a safe “home away from home” for sailors and merchants. Inspired by the stories of the Y in England, he led the formation of the first U.S. YMCA at the Old South Church in Boston on December 29, 1851. ∆
Todays schedule includes 30 minutes in the pool. The YMCA pool. YMCA staff will receive special thanks for providing a reduced 9am-3pm schedule as the rest of the country rests.
Youth Development Healthy Living Social Responsibility
Prime-Line Products
Every lustrum or so, I need change. I want change. Something to stir my imagination, make every morning a new experience. I want my shower door to again roll smoothly upon its nylon wheels.
MADE IN / HECHO EN / FABRIQUÉ AU U.S.A.
Nothing beats the luxury of fingertip effort in rolling aside glass shower doors for a steaming hot morning shower and shave. For a few bucks every five or ten years, I can restore my rolling shower door operation to new condition. A trip to the BigBox home center, a few minutes installation, and DONE!
Each door takes two rollers, but upon return from a few years abroad and regrettable renting of my abode, I discover a shower door off its track, one of its wheels shattered. I then decide to use four wheels per door. The engineers will shed tears of joy. Nothing beats redundancy.
Research for this article uncovers the truth about my door roller choice. Not only are they American-made, but the company, Prime-Line Products, is North America’s Largest Supplier & Manufacturer of Window & Door Replacement Hardware!
Keep it rolling, Prime-Line!
Dunlop Ultex Picks
Dunlop Primetone Sculpted Plectra
THE SEARING HEAT OF molten lead. Wintertime ditch digging with frigid blasts from Arctic Artie. All SOP. Decades of plumberly fun have shaped my hands. The finger tips, they are hardened sheets of callus.
Lately, my biggest worry has been picks slipping out of my fingers when playing for popes and presidents. These frequent occasions were marred by callused fingers which can’t seem to get decent pick grip. Grumpy Biker customized a few .88mm Dunlop Tortex picks, but while working out the kinks, I discovered a new product – the Dunlop Primetone pick with raised grip surface.
Primetones are large, textured, and sculpted. Yes, they sometimes rotate in my fingers like other picks, but with three picking surfaces, I’m good. Dunlop’s Tortex is still a great choice. But this larger pick with a grip surface? Until a sticky pick comes out, I’m adding Ultex to my pocket full of Dunlop.
Behlen Fingerboard Oil
All good things come to an end. The 18 month loan of Hugh’s mandolin reached an inevitable conclusion. Lavish attention restored his battered and worn mandolin to a memory of factory gleam. Even more hours, summer picking under the old oak tree in Hockessin, returned some dirt and dullness to its finish. Time for spa treatment.
Strings into the rubbish bin. Gentle wipe-down with a hot damp slightly soapy cloth, first the body, then the neck. Extra attention to the fret board. Looking a little dry, methinks. Time for Behlen!
When Mohawk sponsored a banner ad in July 2016, they sent me a box of product to try out (actually, I sent a list of stuff I wanted). Included? Their fancy Behlen Fingerboard Oil. Not just a step up from mineral or boiled linseed oil. Far beyond, it turns out. A crisp hard finish. A Zamboni treatment for my fretboard, without the ice.
First I used it on the ’70s Conrad banjo. Then the Framus cello. And now, full circle, we have arrived at Hugh’s mandolin. The product has proven itself. A professional-quality sealer applied on instruments I own, use, and sell.
An Indonesian-made 1990s Hohner guitar and a 1970s Japanese-made Madeira (by Guild) guitar both received this magic elixir. Fan-TAS-tic results. One’s finger’s literally glide along the fingerboard. Moments ago, my newly returned and beloved 1996 Guild D4 fingerboard was refinished. Tomorrow, with D’Addario Bluegrass Mediums carefully wound, we’ll be flat-picking a lively homecoming!
Luthiers discuss the best treatment to an instruments’ fingerboard with cantankerous zeal. Only among cat food debates will you find more acrimonious opinions. There are generally two old-school options: mineral oil and boiled linseed oil (“BLO”). Almond oil is another, which I classify similar to BLO.
Turning to National Finishes Expert Phillip Pritchard, I ask, “What makes Behlen’s product so good?” Our Fingerboard Oil contains a resin binder that hardens in the wood to give a more permanent finish than a non-curing mineral oil or boiled linseed oil alone. Our product applies and looks like an oil finish but has a crisper feel and doesn’t require the maintenance of a non-drying oil. “What is its base? How does it smell to you?” It contains mineral spirits and has an oily hydrocarbon smell.
Fast curing, crisp finish. Odor? Not really. –editor
Ridgid Plumbers Tools
It was a dark and stormy night. We had been digging for two days. The water main was exposed, its pit shored and braced. A lovely, plumber-friendly trench ran from our customer’s foundation wall to the pit. Shiny heavy-walled copper had been rolled along the trench floor in two directions from the curb cock: into the basement and to the municipal water main. All that was lacking? City water department employees to make our final connection. A little background, we give you …
The crew of American Toolbox last week enjoyed their favorite hobby, plumbing. We chose a cold autumn day with constant drizzle and wind. For further enjoyment, a 3:30pm water main tap time was chosen. Knowing these things run late, a dark muddy trench awaited us when the work got hard.
Hard it did get! City employees arrived predictably behind schedule. Everyone was hungry, tired, chilled to the bone. Wrestling K-copper in a narrow muddy trench? Not my idea of a relaxing evening. But one constant, the one thing I can depend will go right?
Ridgid hand tools. We had between us five Ridgid pipe wrenches, six tubing cutters, and the all-important pipe flaring tool. When it was time to cut, ream, flare, and wrench tight, Ridgid was there. Nearly indestructible, Ridgid tools may wear out, but they seem not to break.
The cold #15 cutter was familiar in my hand as I tightened and sliced copper in semi-darkness. After reaming my fresh cuts, the E-47 Hammer Tool created flared ends one uses in underground water piping. Tightening the flared copper to the water main tap and the curb cock, Ridgid pipe wrenches. Even one of the shovels was Ridgid. This was a Ridgid job start to finish. Everything except my aching back.
The American Road Trip • Part IV
Labor day brings burgers and corn on the grill. Kids straining for school’s resumption. Perhaps commencement of well-laid vacation plans. A favorable time of year. Crowds are subdued, winter beckons, leaves begin to change.
If piloting a 30′ box mounted on Ford’s E-450 chassis along narrow State highways does not sound vacationary, careful what you promise. Years after your words are spoken you’ll be parking in spaces meant for vehicles a third shorter, braving hand-dug tunnels driving a vehicle twice your height, squeezing past oncoming traffic through scenic rocky gorges. Expecting the RV to peel open upon an outcropping at any moment.
It was not that bad. A flat $1,000 deductible on full-coverage insurance, included with every rental, eases my mind. Fuel economy was predictably in high single digits. The toilet worked. Our RV experience was a success.
7am, the perfect start time for our trek towards the Colorado Plateau. Driving from Phoenix allows one to detour through Sedona, famous for its red rocks – the Schnebly Hill Formation – valleys, and shopping. Continuing north along US-89 to Flagstaff, a super-hip college and observatory town close to the Grand Canyon. Through pine, Douglas fir, and spruce. We rejuvenate souls and lungs.
From Williams AZ the North Rim is visible twenty miles away. A couple of days in Grand Canyon, famous for exceptional dining at El Tovar, more shopping, unparalleled views. Back on the road to desert, rock, and scenery. The mellow peace of driving your home ensues. Kanab, then Zion. Zion National Park, of the narrow tunnels and inspirational rock formations. RV parking and an excellent shuttle system.
We visit Cedar Breaks National Monument. “Great choice”, a Zion ranger insists. More beautiful driving, Duck Lake surrounded by aspen, more canyons. It was in the 50˚s at this elevation near sundown. Windburned, sunburned, layered in nearly all the clothes I brought, our road trip approaches conclusion. From the furthest point we turn and head for home.
Through Iron County along SR-14 we come upon dense aspen with bright yellow leaves, autumn reaching this forest a little early. Onward to an excellent Comfort Suites in Cedar City UT. Tap water cleaner than the bottled water stowed on the RV. South to my favorite spot, Kolob Canyons, Zion’s western edge. Back through Zion, and a day of pleasant driving along US-89 Alternate. The San Francisco Peaks appear closer for over an hour as we approach Flagstaff.
A few miles west, along Rt-66, the second highlight of my trip (after the aspens). The Arboretum At Flagstaff. Parked beneath towering ponderosa pine, my cousins take to their trails. I put on the kettle, set up a camp chair, and relax under the morning silence and majesty of this forest. After 1,200 miles in six days, everything stops. I could live here forever, with trips into town for books, beans, and beer.
In the end, it is all about people. Vacationing with friends. Sammy, an Allentown transplant keeping a B&B running in Williams AZ. That colorful beef jerky guy beside the highway miles from any town. Professional waitstaff within a dozen restaurants and cafes. Fellow tourists. Artists selling their wares, sharing their dreams. We all wanted the same thing. Everyone got it.
Although I packed my lucky tee shirt and grass-stained mitt, looking for the perfect small town diamond, this trip did not see any baseball. Jerry and Fred must have been grabbing one last game in the next town over. Before the dinner bell rings.
L.S. Starrett Company
L. S. Starrett Company is an American manufacturer of tools and instruments used by machinists and tool and die makers. The company was founded when businessman and inventor Laroy Sunderland Starrett bought the Athol Machine Company in 1905. –wiki
Wait, what about luthiers? Machinists, tool and die makers, and luthiers, they mean to say. This particular Starrett tool is the only one I found of domestic manufacture which has end graduations in metric. Metric, because that is the language of violin luthiers when expressing measurements.
Where the C635E-150 is exceptionally helpful is in measuring violin bridge height above an imaginary line projected from the fingerboard – the projected height. Especially important, I can measure projected height while the instrument strings are under tension, and pencil corrections directly onto its bridge.
Equally useful, when shaping a bridge from scratch, I can get a fairly accurate idea of how much material to remove before initial fitting.
Previous to this tool, I first set up each violin and measured string height at the fingerboard end. The bridge was then removed, carved or filed lower, new string slots cut, reinstalled, and re-tensioned with strings. Whew! A lotta work! Measure again and likely repeat!
With this Starrett ruler, I can quickly do more accurate setups, and get the strings right where Steve wants them. And he likes them low when he goes ripping into Floppy Eared Mule on Stinger, his favorite fiddle!
Money is always tight running this USA-products online resource. Yes, this is an appeal for you to hit the SPONSORSHIP button and zip us a few bucks. There are also other ways to help. After a few years of amateur luthier work, it became apparent this Starrett ruler would be handy. While inquiring upon Starrett manufacturing locations (my C635E was made in Athol Massachusetts) and methods ∆, a Starrett representative offered to donate this ruler “to the cause”, without promise of review or compensation on our part. It has helped our luthier work (100% of the proceeds are used to support the blog). It’s also a fantastic product and has made a worthy article. Six Thumbs Up!
∆ Markings on the steel rules are produced through photo engraving. As a last step in the manufacturing process, there is a light-sensitive coating placed on the rules. A mask is applied to protect the surface that should not be marked. Light exposure removes the coating where the markings should appear. Then they go through an acid etching process. One of our long-term employees believes that we took country of origin off the design, because the photo-engraving process is the highest risk for imperfections in the manufacturing process, so limiting the markings should help minimize scrap. – Starrett
Weber Charcoal Grill
One does not imagine a marine buoy manufacturer as far inland as 
Illinois (geographically challenged people like myself specifically). But that is where it all started. A Chicago guy with an idea. George Stephen Sr. was working at Weber Brothers Metal Works in Illinois. The lightbulb went off. In complete secrecy he filched a buoy from the scratch’n’dent pile, cut it in half, and made a barbecue grill out of it. The dynasty of American-made quality charcoal grills was born.
Webers last forever. They look good, year after year. And functional? George wrote the book on it. Still privately held, Weber is estimated to have 35% market share selling PREMIUM grills. Impressive!
Recently I upgraded from a 14″ Smoky Joe to an 18″ Jumbo Joe. Finally, I’ve begun to understand searing and indirect heat, versus previous plop’n’pray grilling techniques. Excellence and mastery has its price, as several inedible meals can attest. And George’s company? Their premium grills are tortured to durable perfection before they hit retailers. Weber can afford to offer a fantastic warranty because their grills are so good!
An excellent Weber article written by Joe Cahill for Crain’s Chicago Business is linked here.
Saba’s Western Wear
The VFW in Gardiner Montana greeted my first wearing of cowboy boots, borrowed from Pete. A memorable small-town wedding made unforgettable from a new vantage point, 2″ higher. A few decades later, horseback riding occasioned buying a pair of these useful boots.
Not until venturing into Saba’s to duck ovenlike temperatures of Scottsdale in August did my knowledge come full circle. Within this establishment resides the former general manager of Saba’s Western Wear, selling, educating, and enjoying the people who make up the boot chain’s success.
Three days a week the spry and smiling Jerry Hill brings it all together for hundreds of clients. His understanding of the American boot history, materials, tanning, construction, and especially fitting, make every browsing experience remarkable. Handmade vs handcrafted finally understood, my favorite boots are about the same price as a decent pair of Aldens. “Handcrafted means I had a machine assisting me in doing some things in building this boot … a handmade boot is unique in its own right.” Ask Jerry about lemonwood pegs, 1880s-style!
What is Saba’s known for? Fitting boots, shaping hats, and the quality of the merchandise. Shaping hats? Yes sir. The hat is easy to fit us if certain things are covered. A thumb high above my ear and a finger above my eyebrow. I don’t want to be Deputy Dawg but I don’t want it touching my ear either. And then across the eyebrow? That’s a cowboy thing, a little social thing. No man can see what I’m looking at unless I want him to see my eyes.
Basic Hand Tools
Tools Of The Trade are chosen without thinking. Not the fix-it tools, but the “check it out” tools. Not knowing what is broken, I grab a few of the most common hand tools an amateur or professional can use when poking about the mechanical systems of a house or restaurant.
A 4-in-1 screwdriver. I’ve managed not to lose my Craftsman 6-in-1 for over a decade. Although well qualified for free replacement, with a shaft collar which pops out of the handle, I’ve refrained from enjoying Craftsman’s Lifetime Warranty. With occasional replacement of the reversible bits, the screwdriver has gotten me into problems and out of trouble countless times.
Channellock 430 pliers are perfectly sized for tightening compression nuts on a 1 ½” trap under most sinks. It doubles as a hammer. Punches holes through drywall with ease. A digging tool? You bet! Anything that needs squeezing, Channellocks will make quick work of it.
Lastly, a good flashlight. Some years ago this super-bright Surefire was gifted to me. Surefire has since developed brighter LED handlights, but the Executive E2E has proven both indestructible and handy. Small enough to conceal in a pocket, bright enough to expose the issue at hand, in the darkest of crawl spaces.
As the chain-smoking plumber taught me decades ago, I do know need to know what we are doing. “Plumbing” was often the only answer I’d receive. Whenever reprieve was given to hauling his 80 pound toolbox, it was in response to my question, “What do I need to bring?”
* Channellocks * Screwdriver * Flashlight *
AlohaLand Hawaiian Shirts
Ray King had me in his studio to install copper irrigation pipe. A noted sculptor in glass and optics, metal and light, Ray had his mojo working. He wore the coolest linen batik shirt. I immediately bought one and wore it everywhere. After eight sweaty summers my shirt began to revert, shredding back to thread. The vendor was long gone.
Never one to be without a “favorite shirt”, I began the search two years ago; AlohaLand.com came into my orbit. Among dozens of fabrics, I choose “Mauve Island” with its earth tone reds, browns, and greens. A fantasy land on fabric.
A few months ago, discretionary funds appeared while the linen batik shirt fell to rags. An AlohaLand order was placed. My two year ordeal ended just in time. Judi tells me vendors usually discontinue patterns every few years.
My shirt came after ten days. Made to order and a perfect fit. I marvel at the quality of Judi’s sewing. I have a shirt to last another decade, at least! Judi, care to comment on an upcoming article?
Here’s what I say: The best Hawaiian shirts in the world made right here in Oregon. I match up the pocket so some people ask to have a pocket. They can’t see it. I do a flat felled Levi seam on the side so they never fall apart (I noticed !!! ❤ ) The fabric is pre shrunk so it will not shrink with washings. I use great buttons, some coconut shell, some agoya shell and some very high quality plastic that looks like shell. (Like mine ❤ ❤ ) I also reinforce the collar, the center fronts, and the top of the pocket. I hope this helps. Thanks, judi
The school bus print shirt below? His shirt is made by Richard Tison, Paperhorse Creations, Leesburg, GA. It is a cool shirt and a great photo. ATB’s “Six Thumbs Up” Honorary Mention Extravaganza Award. – editor/publisher
Sloan Flushmate
WITHIN THE CAVERNOUS Lutheran Church at 5th & Olney, a huge renovation was ongoing. It was there I first witnessed the genius of a Sloan Flushmate.
A solitary basement powder room, undiscovered (and unused) by the faithful featured a toilet without handle. It had a round metal button on top. Taking the lid off the tank, I found no water. There was a metal and plastic cylinder instead, with an actuator on top activated via the lid button.
In response to conservation concerns in the early 1990s, low water consumption toilets entered the market place. Early gravity/siphonage designs were poor •••. In response, Sloan designed a revolutionary flush mechanism which harnessed municipal water pressure. Water entered a closed cylinder from the bottom, compressing a quantity of air trapped within. When one flushes the toilet, the compressed air forcefully propels the water into the bowl. Hence the term “power flush” or, as Gerber says, “pressure-assist” toilet.
In the later 1990s a commercial customer trusted her plumber. Instead of traditional gravity toilets which rely on siphonage, she agreed to purchase a dozen of the new, more expensive “ULTRA-FLUSH” toilets. Savings were dramatic. No more weekly service calls for damaged handles or misaligned flappers. No more ballcocks to replace. Two decades later, about a third of the original tanks remain in service.
••• The pros & cons of low-water consumption toilets since the 1992 Energy Policy Act have been tabulated. Municipalities note water savings but increased sludge within their sewers.
Behlen Buffer’s Polish
Slowly, cello refurbishment inches to completion. With as much time spent correcting my mistakes (learning 57 ways NOT to mix varnish) as with actual progress forward, months have galloped along. Mindful always of Shakespeare’s words: “Striving to better, oft we mar what’s well”. I’m learning to back away and contemplate. All good things, however, come to an end.
The top and back, after varnish, I treated with a slurry of wool lube and rottenstone. Experimentation with a fine scratch remover formulated for plastics followed. But what is perfect for nitrocellulose lacquer is not right for varnish. There was a better choice for final polishing.
To internet research I turn. Clues point to North Carolina’s Mohawk Finishing Products. The undisputed expert, Phillip Pritchard, Mohawk Finishing Products Technical Service Representative, is again enlisted. Without hesitation he suggests their own Buffer’s Polish. The product is ordered, shipped, and received.
Upon the cello sides stray marks of top removal, scraping of glue, various blemishes and blisters of a 65 year life, are examined, exfoliated, and finally exit before my eyes. Hand-polishing is not easy work, but with effort comes reward. No need to rush as the cello is so close to completion; half today and half tomorrow. Behlen Buffer’s Polish has a nostalgic smell – reminds me of a bowling alley – maybe a similar polish is used on the hardwood lanes to maintain their gloss?
So with the sides looking ship-shape, I try a little elbow grease on the top. Stunning! I may go ahead and remove the strings/bridge/tailpiece and buff the entire top! And why not? Behlen Fingerboard Oil was shipped with the Buffer’s Polish. This mature cello could use some professional refurbishment of her fingerboard. We’ll keep you updated!
Oatey Epoxy Stick
A customer’s desire to spend no money had succumbed to relentlessly dripping water. The leak which had slowly destroyed expensive plaster would finally be addressed. First I had to find the pipe.
A century after this opera & vaudeville theater opened, as spaces became repurposed, pipes tend to run in unpredictable directions. In this case, the offending pipe was not buried in a wall, but above a newer ceiling. A horizontal offset taking rainwater from the roof into the basement sewer, it was. Cracked along the top, one piece spewed water like a clam when thunderstorms and flash flooding occurred. How old was the pipe? A plumber had shoved a few risqué handbills into a dark corner for me to find sixty-five years later.
Getting another piece of cast iron service weight pipe 14′ above the floor into this area would be difficult; a second plumber, a helper, tools, lights, it was to be a festival of plumberly noises and smells. For now, a quick fix would protect the ceiling, walls, and floors from further damage.
I turned to the leader in plumbing materials, Oatey. Decades have I used their blue MEGALOC pipe dope after endorsement from the gas company. Oatey Plumbers Putty sets every kitchen sink within my hands. Had they a repair material for cast iron?
Sure enough, along with all the Oatey products I’ve used for years I found Fix It Sticks. Two part putty epoxy rolled together. I cut the stick in half, kneaded and rolled the epoxy into a consistent color, and began pressing the putty into the crack as the epoxy was heating up. Wow, I should first have read the instructions! It is ready to go 2~5 minutes after mixing!
The second half of the stick was all it took to complete temporary repairs. The epoxy will probably outlast the pipe, but being a concealed location, we’ll swap out the pipe in a couple of weeks when the weather is more cooperative. Perhaps another article on Charlotte cast iron pipe?
Cabot Hosiery Mills ∆ Vermont
Kenny is a consummate booster of American products. With the family’s 3rd Generation retail chain of stores, Kenny specializes in the finest shoes made in America. While visiting to inquire of his health, he saw me perusing a rack of biking socks. “Made in Vermont. Guaranteed for life”, he quipped.
“Impossible”, I thought. Socks that will either last forever or be replaced? But sure enough, right on the packaging are Ric Cabot’s words. With endurance bicycling one of the painful pleasures among my vices, these socks look a natural for me. Especially the lines: “Fine Gauge Knitting. High stitch count ensures a foot hugging fit. Less bulk. More comfort.”
A little pricy? All is relative, Kenny again points out. Earlier this week I chose the hottest, most humid day Philadelphia can offer for R&D. The new socks went on.
WOW, Ric’s endorsement is not an exaggeration. Firm fit, like a thousand tiny angels surrounding my feet with love. Into my sneakers and onto the Raleigh. Ten miles later, cooling off, I remembered I was product-testing. Humm … An hour later, at home, I realize how comfortable my feet are.
These socks cost more that other bicycling socks I own. With wicking, deceptive body, and comfortably snug fit, I see the value. Add Ric’s 
guarantee, and we honestly access this product Six Thumbs Up, our highest rating.
Editor’s note: I am upon the cusp of sizing. Mediums, sized to 9 ½. Large, Size 10 and up. 9 ½ I am, went with the Large, and they are PERFECT.
Milwaukee Super Sawzall
ARCHIMEDES famously said, “Give me a large enough saw and a perch on which to stand. Into halves I shall divide the earth”. He was speaking figuratively. Ancients’ quest to separate Good from Evil would get nowhere without the right saw.
Two thousand years later we have just the tool. Take mine, for instance. Near two decades young, still zalling along. The ultimate confidence builder. No stubborn pipe dare refuse its persistent bite when matched with the correct blade.
Last weekend we cut and dropped several tons of radiator pipe with nary a whimper. About the only service it has required is a good cleaning of the Quick Loc Blade Clamp, a relatively new option twenty years ago, at that time found only on Milwaukee’s upper tier sawzalls.
There are now models with higher amperage ratings, built all over the world, as Milwaukee has gone global. Clyde’s has a Milwaukee sawzall in stock labeled, “Assembled in the USA with domestic and foreign parts”. Some of the other Milwaukee power tools are labeled, “Hecho En China”. With care, my Milwaukee Super Sawzall will make a buying decision moot.
But I do want a cordless drill. Battery technology has advanced; Milwaukee’s battery warranty is 3 years, with 5 years on handheld tools … far longer than the 90 days or one year I remember back in ’00. Let look into percentage of domestic content and get back to you.
Near Vintage Milwaukee Super Sawzall
Park Tool – St. Paul, MN
It is always the last place you look! A perfect complement to our 97˚F / 82% humidity would be a sunset bicycle ride along historic Kelly Drive. The Art Museum Loop, we call it. As the day before, hitting a trail of somewhat smooth asphalt as Rush Hour hits its finest knuckle-whitening tension.
Yesterday everything was perfect. Pedal, sweat, hydrate. Using my E.U.-Approved water, I did not resolve my dehydration, but satisfied my thirst (no wonder the Brits Brexited). My 1980s Technium had performed like a champ.
But today? Its front wheel sounded like my back after cutting out three tons of boiler pipe. Once again, the spokes want service. Our local bike shop would have suggested -again- new rims, but until the wheel completely collapses, I’ll use the original Rigida wheels Raleigh installed three decades ago in Kent, Washington.
After searching everywhere, the Park Tool spoke wrench I’ve used for years is found. In, naturally, my Executive Tool Bag. An hour of tranquil “tuning” of my spokes returns the rim to true. The clatter is no more.
BisonDesigns Coyote Pattern Belt
Purchasing decision has been made.
30mm - Millennium™ Black Buckle - $19.75
Pattern: Coyote (COY)
My nephew turned 13 today. That is a tough age for which to buy, now that kids speak a different language than my generation. Fortunately, good looks never go out of style. Who cannot use a nice belt? One strong enough to save their lives, if need be?
We turned, last Monday, to our favorite designer of nylon belts, Brian Kelleghan. Pictorial weaving with nylon? Brian was the first. When his suppliers said it could not be done, Brian figured it out. The results? Pages and pages of designs, enough to find something a 13-year-old will think is cool. We chose, the belt was made to order, shipped, and arrived in time for the party. Yipeee!
Additional information was requested and answered:
Brian,
Have you recollections into how the design came up? What you were thinking when choosing the colors? How about the “Millennium” buckle? Was that a Y2K idea, and the name stuck?
The Coyote pattern is filled with colors chosen from all of the “Docker” style pant manufacturers. That is an easy call. Weaving the colors into an attractive pattern is always the big challenge.
The buckle pattern is an echo of a popular climbing harness design from the 80’s. It communicates that the wearer is an active outdoors enthusiast. – Brian
Estwing Leather Grip Hammer
An opportunity to present a housewarming gift came up. It turned into a bit of a head scratcher, though. Casserole dish? Toaster? Bath towels? Not really. What do you give someone who has everything they need?
Something I’d love to have myself, naturally. New house means new picture hooks to install. Paint cans to tap shut. Shelves to knock together, perhaps. Estwing has the perfect gift. A 12 ounce hammer with leather grip. The same hammer we pictured in our Executive Tool Bag.
She’ll have this hammer for forty years. Her daughter’s daughter will have it a lifetime as well. Assuming none of the kids loses it at college or a camping trip.
Charlotte Pipe
Some things change. Others stay the same. Our local plumbing supply is a bit of both. Old-school methods and materials tested over generations, some unchanged since Roman times. New ideas to save time and expense now, some destined to fail yet introduced to a hungry public. The spawn of change? Entire developments of luxury homes with Tinker-Toy waste pipes, flexible water lines secured with hose clamps, already springing leaks not one lustrum after completion.
All that new stuff, proven in manufacturers labs but unproven in the final test, Time. Not for me. Copper and cast iron is what I learned and how I stay. Lead and oakum, a centuries old method of pipe connection, or the “new” method of No-Hub® cast iron pipe attachment – now decades old and proven durable.
When the call for multi-generational durability goes out, I head to the same supply house patronized as an apprentice. To the same stack of cast iron pipe I drew from as a lad. The same brand, Charlotte (or Tyler. This is almost a “Skippy or Jif” comparison).
When the builder asks, “Plastic or iron?”, they are talking about the horizontal waste pipes dropping through your home. Perhaps your dining room or den walls. Nothing beats the quiet serenity of cast iron pipe.
Chapman Manufacturing Co
Last weekend I acquired several special chairs at auction. One has a cracked frame and looks beyond salvage – a wintertime project?. The others will be recalled to life with deep cleaning, some frame tightening, and a donated seatback from the fractured chair.
While performing this nostalgic refurbishment – these mid-1950s chairs recall earliest memories – three flathead screws were in need of removal. My new Chapman Master Set was ideal for this task. Previously I have never NOT had a flathead slip upon a tight wood screw. Chapman’s squared edge precision flat screw-bit fit the screw head perfectly, transferring full torque. Definitely the right tool for the job!
Some Mid Century Goodness for your viewing pleasure:
Craftsman Garden Hose
Two winters ago we wrote of our beloved Craftsman garden hose. Pulling the hose from a snowdrift during a daytime thaw of 44˚F in January. Treating my truck to a quick wash-down before temperatures again plummeted (it dropped to 8˚F that night).
This hose is still going strong, does not kink, no splits, perfect performance with every use. The price, double or even treble a vinyl hose, is forgiven. Rather than endure mediocre performance of a cheap one-season hose, I went with the best. The investment has paid off handsomely.
With Father’s Day around the corner, I’ve thought about a second hose for Dad. A quick internet check shows Craftsman 50′ hose prices starting at $20, nearly half the usual. Shopping for Dad was never easier, with quality like the Craftsman hose a few clicks away.
Filson Duffle Bag
As editor/publisher of this USA-products online resource, I’ve had the pleasure to discover American manufacturers previously unknown to me. Liking stuff that lasts and a strict adherent to “Buy once, cry once”, I’ve periodically scanned the Filson website.
Past middle age but not yet in retirement, I own nearly everything I want or need. With the possible exception of a rugged travel duffle. Large enough to pack -sparsely- for ten days, airline carry-on approved, durable, and functional.
Filson manufacturers many such bags in the wonderful Pacific Northwest. Some with enough brass and leather to compliment the most fastidious among us. Not wanting to broadcast my great wealth, I focused on their nylon-lined Tin Cloth small duffle with integral nylon shoulder strap. And waited . . .
Eventually funds and opportunity aligned, the bag ordered and delivered. Joy, joy, joy! Well worth the investment. Far superior to my nylon-only model the Filson replaces. No questionable seams through which an important item may disappear. Rugged enough to withstand 180 mph airborne flight off the roof rack of my Maserati onto rough asphalt. Ready for a lifetime of use and above average abuse. My heirs will fight over Uncle Jimmy’s duffle.
- Made of abrasion-resistant, water-repellent 15-oz. oil finish Tin Cloth fabric
- Solid brass zipper closure custom cut at Filson
- 2 stow pockets
- Fully lined with matte nylon
- Meets standard airline carry-on size requirements
- Sturdy, quick-drying nylon webbing shoulder strap and handles
- 18″ W x 10″ H x 11″ D
Red Wing Boot Restoration
My first experience with Red Wing boots came after a moment of blinding pain. The boss had just cut a piece of cast iron pipe held steady with my foot. The snapped piece of pipe rebounded against my ankle. After swelling went down, we visited Vern to inquire into some boots.
Vern operated the local Red Wing Store; he kept a supply of discarded boots for the discerning budget-minded tradesperson. Ten dollars later, I had safely protected my ankles, looked stylish, and felt like a professional.
My sixth pair were purchased over a decade ago. As a “second pair”, they avoided the nastiest of abuse. None the less, after a dozen years, the heels were crumbling and holes had appeared in the soles.
Without visible stitching around the lower, I assumed they were not recraftable. A call to Red Wing proved me wrong. After debating resole vs replacement, I went with factory restoration for my 953s.
Red Wing cuts off the old sole with a band saw, cleans it up with pliers and Dremel, and sews on a new welt. The boots then go onto original factory machinery, where new soles are poured in place, directly bonded to the boot. The Chevron Super-Sole® is a urethane which goes into the mold as a liquid and hardens in about ten seconds. Finally, the leather is conditioned and new laces expertly laced over and under. The lace tips line up, a skill which eludes me to this day.
It was about two weeks roundtrip from handoff at USPS to delivery by UPS. Not new boots, but my boots. Same stains and cuts, broken in to my feet. About half the cost of new boots.
Alden Restoration • Cordovan
Kenny taught me a valuable lesson. Because something is more expensive doesn’t mean it isn’t worth more. Better products can be cheaper to own. Look at shoes, for instance (coming from great shoe salesman). They hold up better and can be restored to new condition. You get added benefits: comfort, looks, better foot health.
KENNY SHERMAN stood from a position of facts delivered with passion. Yet again, his words prove true. After ten weeks absence, my ’09 cordovan loafers are back. For quarter the price of new, my old shoes were restored. Treated to skillful craftsmanship and shoemaking experience from the factory which manufactured them over a lustrum ago, they are now virtually brand new.
LIFE IS TOO SHORT TO WEAR A CHEAP PAIR OF SHOES
Taken apart, cleaned, dyed, reassembled with all worn parts replaced, then polished. Boxed in correct retail packaging in tissue with new cloth dust bags and cedar shoe trees. A complete “new purchase” experience. Except these were my shoes. Not new shoes.
You know how shoes start falling apart in a year? Right about the time they become your favorites? Aldens typically last me three years. After recrafting, they come back as new shoes but their uppers are “broken into” to my feet. Cork, outsoles, insoles, heels, all replaced, all sewn together on the original last (shoe mold). Pre-broken-in new shoes. What a concept! An ultimate “body off” restoration.
Once again, a pleasure for rambling about windy concrete canyons and shady flagstone parks. Don’t your feet deserve the best?
Executive Tool Bag
WITH TYPICAL AMERICAN frenzy for planning, annually our offices are inundated with frantic emails from those seeking the perfect Fathers Day gift. “What do we get our Dad / Brother / Uncle? He’s very particular!”
In the course of researching domestic production tools, I’ve developed fondness to a particular few, which I own, use, and recommend. This 
publication’s weekly contribution offers what I consider to be a perfect gift. One that will last decades of normal residential use. Even heavy use and moderate abuse.
Hammer, screwdriver, & pliers. All in a tidy zippered bag. About $100.
Estwing E12S 12oz Straight Claw Hammer with Leather Grip
Klein Tools #32557 Heavy Duty Multi-Bit Screwdriver/Nut Driver
Channellock 430 10-Inch Tongue and Groove Plier
Klein Tools 5139L Top-Grain Leather Zipper Bag
Bison Belts • Colorado
Shopping on the Brian Kelleghan website, designer & manufacturer, is a study in choice. He brought pictorial weaving to belts and climbing gear 29 years ago . . . and has not stopped designing, manufacturing, & updating.
Denied a new belt most of my childhood (except across my buttocks), I now own far more than a basketball team needs. Yes, belts (and shoes) are my wardrobe vices. When a shopping opportunity arose, I went right to BisonBelts and selected a belt for each of my three nieces. With dozens of designs, I was able to find a belt to match the personality and likes of each individual girl.
My decision? 25mm wide for kids (and women) with an elliptical airport-friendly tri-glide buckle of Dupont Delrin. And the materials? Jacquard looms in Central Falls, Rhode Island weave nylon into his patterned webbing. BisonDesign labels are stitched in Chicago. The thread, naturally, comes from Mt Holly, North Carolina. And the cutting, manicuring, sewing, labeling, trimming, and QC before packaging takes place back home in Longmont Colorado.
Great design, excellent materials, perfect manufacturing!
brian kelleghan – first to bring pictorial webbing to the world
Craftsman Tools
NEXT DOOR TO MY CHILDHOOD HOME lived Mr Piccolo. He had an interesting garage. Packed within its vast space were dusty bins, shelves, and boxes, inmates in his dark laboratory of experiments. Mr. Piccolo was a machinist. When not at work or helping his loving wife, he’d be in his garage. Making, fixing, or improving something.
When still among my single digits, he gave me sage advice: “Buy Craftsman tools. Know why? If they ever break, Sears will give you a new one for free”.
Even the magic word FREE was of little significance to a seven-year old. Tools were something other people used. Not me. I was more the Legos® and wooden blocks type. It took over a decade as tradesperson before I began buying Craftsman. Mostly their screwdrivers or tape measures.
Sears is different now, victim to a hedge fund. Little remains of a Sears I knew even ten years ago. But the Craftsman name survives.
My go-to poker for delicate work is their ⅛” x 2″ slotted screwdriver. Great for digging out threads from busted gas pipe. Or opening up a crack on Pete’s bouzouki top for better glue insertion. Hammered straight and filed sharp many times over its past two decades, she finally screamed, “ENOUGH”.
Fisher’s Ace Hardware was the solution. The local Sears Craftsman Store had closed, but Fisher’s had a full selection, and honored the Craftsman Replacement Warranty. A fast, simple transaction later, I had a new screwdriver. Plus a roll of painter’s tape for Pete’s bouzouki refurbishment. Back in business, we are!
Behlen Stringed Instrument Lacquer
EVERY FEBRUARY, PETE CLOSES his tailor shop and heads to Greece. Every year he says, “I’ve got to get you my bouzouki, Jim. It needs your attention.” The strings buzz at its 8th fret and up from worn frets. But he never actually gives me his instrument. Until this year.
He opens the case and again explains what he wants, repeating those three magic words every luthier wants to hear, “Whatever you think is best.” Doesn’t he know my favorite Oscar Wilde quote? Experience is simply the name we give our mistakes.
“Pete, what about this big crack on top?” Pete had never noticed a clean 6″ crack through its white spruce top. It gets 
worse. A second top rack. The 12″ separation among its sfendamos side ribs plus a 6″ opening further toward the back. A casualty of a major συμπόσιον; someone must have gotten pretty well knocked on their head with Pete’s bouzouki!
Big jobs are nothing but a collection of small jobs. But after all that gluing and sanding, it’s clear Pete’s bouzouki will want its top refinished. Lacking a spray booth and years of experience, I turn to a name luthiers have trusted for decades. Behlen. I ordered their spray lacquer, prepared the top, and before you know it, I have Pete’s bouzouki on its way to looking like it came out of the Borgada Spa!
A few holes in my knowledge base are quickly plugged. Phillip Pritchard, Mohawk Finishing Products Technical Service Representative, has just returned my call. With his gentle North Carolina accent, he seems respectful even of the nitrocellulose lacquer of which we speak. Phillip’s insights into scuffing, sanding, buffing, polishing, the “Cut & Rub”, are so comprehensive, we link to his reply email.
American Toolbox has restored several instrument, notably Hugh’s Collings mandolin & Santa Cruz guitar, several Guild guitars, a few others. Pete’s bouzouki has been more complicated. Not as hard as Steve Field’s Joh. Bapt. Schweitzer 1813 violin, but major enough. Thanks, Behlen! You made me look like a pro!
Special thanks to Jayne Henderson for her advice and guidance.
Ridgid Aluminum Pipe Wrench
RIDGID 47057
12″ ALUMINUM PIPE WRENCH – MODEL 812
A FEW DECADES AGO A MASTER Plumber told me of a great pipe wrench. This wrench had saved his hide on several occasions, mostly because he had it with him. He had it with him because it was compact, light, and very strong.
The brand? Ridgid. Their 10″ aluminum pipe wrench. Easy to pack, doesn’t take up too much room, hard to forget. When I had the money and the right job, I closely followed his advice. Instead of the 10″, I acquired the 12″. Packs perfectly in the tool satchel with a closed length under 14″. Very light. Virtually unbreakable. And if the wrench does splinter apart (I’ve never heard of this happening) Ridgid will be happy to replace it for you. Free.
The Ridgid Aluminum Pipe Wrench. A perfect wedding gift for the do-it-yourselfer.
Girl Scout Cookies
A decade or so ago I paid a neighborhood kid a few bucks to drag a trash can, broom, and shovel four blocks from my house. Then work his way back, sweeping all the gutters and picking up any trash. It took him over two hours.
As I’m settle accounts, a savvy Girl Scout sees my stack of bills, and pitches cookies. She does not take “Thank you, no” for an answer. She suggests I reward my laborer for a job well done. Two 11-year-olds in conspiracy. Sales 101 had hit the Girl Scout Cookie Drive. Concede, commit, convince, close. The kid wanted a chocolate peanut butter variety, she made the sale and went on her way, and things got interesting.
The kid opens the box, scoops ALL the cookies into his hands, tosses the box into my rubbish can, and starts eating. He ate them all. There are currently 14 to a box, which would provide 105% of your recommended daily fat intake. A few lustrums ago, I’d bet there were more, even tastier cookies, before health-conscious den mothers insisted Change was good for us.
The drive is again with us. I cannot commit to buying, because I too would eat the entire box. Maybe if the sales girls would find the right pitch for me. “Hey mister, you don’t have to eat them now. Put a box in your freezer. You never know when a guest might want one”.
True Temper Snow Shovel
Back when this cub chronicler began his journey, the February 2014 North American Winter Storm struck. Warm Valentine’s Day hearts awoke to 28″ of snow. Our country was somewhat unprepared. Smaller retailers had long since exhausted supplies of shovels and snow-melt.
Home Depot, by chance or foresight∆ had just received pallets of new snow shovels. In their foyer, waiting for the lucky few, one could choose from three USA-made snow shovels. I opted for a “Good” and a “Better”. Both of these Ames True Temper® products have held up wonderfully, proving themselves yet again against Blizzard 2016. Not as severe, with only 22″+ inches, the 4′ drifts are a bit of a challenge. Yet the True Temper chews through the white stuff without a whimper.
The second shovel selected in 2014 has the same handle but polymer body. The less expensive of the two, we find it handier with thick light snow. Today we salute the True Temper 18 Inch Poly Combo Snow Shovel with D-Grip !
∆ Repeated requests for comment have been politely ignored. We shall never know if The Home Depot acquired their stock of snow shovels by chance or foresight. Regardless, we honorarily christen this company The Hope Depot, both for their contributions to the economy and because it is easier to type.
Kingsford Charcoal
Henry Ford had many good ideas. “Waste not, want not”, ingrained within him, saw value in even the lowliest pile of rubbish. Scrap wood from his production line? “Make charcoal”, he proclaimed.
His subsidiary thrives with ubiquitous Ford success. Currently owned by The Clorox Company, Kingsford Charcoal enjoys a safe 80% market share. What would Ford say? “Why not 100%?”, perhaps. Or maybe “You can have any color you want . . . as long as it’s black”.
With lighter fluid, I choose Kingsford® Charcoal Lighter Fluid. One may say, “It’s all the same”. Aliphatic petroleum solvent, like everything, can be produced in differing qualities. I’m a brand-name believer, so it’s Kingsford for me when grilling vittles for friends and family.
Our American Toolbox method varies depending on what we are grilling. Today, it was this: lay out an almost double thickness of coals; pile into a pyramid, douse with Kingsford lighter fluid, and light; admire this January Arizona weather – grapefruit are not yet ripe but last year they were early; spread out coals when red, set top grill and wipe with olive oil-soaked towel; grill; wait for your chicken to cook – this was nearly 20 minutes, covered for the last two.
Nashua Foil Tape
Before cellphones and DVDs I discovered something more useful than car insurance. A roll of shiny tape left in our basement by heater repair guys. When they adjust duct work, even if only ten feet of tape is used, they leave the roll. Easier to charge a client for a roll than to measure a few feet.
Chrome tape is shiny on one side, with paper backing you peel off to expose a super sticky surface. The tape itself is thick metal foil which conforms to the object being repaired. Books & boots to windshields & zippers, the list of temporary – or permanent – repair possibilities is endless. I had discovered a material even better than duct tape for solving the world’s woes.
Jump forward a few years. As a tradesman, I’ve found chrome tape a must-have in the tool sack. Nothing beats the adhesive properties of Nashua foil tape. Reading foil tape attributes on Nashua packaging, the trend I started in my youth has evidently become mainstream.
A decade ago I cut 12″ lengths and saved them to a particular pocket in my torch bag. Sure enough, every year or so a strip of chrome tape saves a job from complete chaos. Around the house, it’s great for packaging and weatherproofing. Most recently, I discovered the source of my long-suffering lint filled basement. It seems a mouse had chewed through our aluminum dryer duct. For the past lustrum, lint had flooded our basement. But now, with a few wraps of foil tape, problem solved. The tape even worked as temporary stitches when I sliced my thumb on the vent pipe!
3M Transpore Surgical Tape
Many moons ago, my palm was grievously sliced in a moment of inattention while working on our house. Next morning, who is our first customer through the office door? A health care provider! Nurse Nancy took professional interest in my poorly applied paper towel & duct tape dressing.
Peeling off my wrapping, she calmly said, “You should have gotten stitches”. Mild concern, minor annoyance. Detached acceptance of yet another male who blatantly flaunts his white blood cell count, daring infection to rear its ugly head.
As quickly as I can cut, clean and flux a copper pipe, she had reached into her front smock pocket, retrieved a roll of tape, pinched my flapping skin together, and applied her magic tape. She finished by adhering a square of clean Kleenex® over the whole affair, again with her Transpore multipurpose surgical tape.
The nurse gave me the roll, finished her business, and I never saw her again. Still I am in awe, decades later, at her dexterity, common sense, and knowledge. What I learned in those few minutes has stayed with me to this day. I never Road Trip without Transpore. A visit to the sea-shore? Peroxide, Transpore, and medical grade cyanoacrylate (translation: a sealed tube of Super Glue). Doctor John ready to clean, close, and bind all major or minor flesh wounds. Emergency appendectomies, Thursdays thru Tuesdays.
Phases of the Moon
What do moon phases have to do with American Toolbox? A public service break from our usual mundane articles on guitars, shaving cream, and tools? Hey, that sounds good! Call it an educational message from our sponsors.
Questions submitted to our Contact Page regularly include: 1) Why don’t we ever see the Dark Side Of The Moon? 2) Why does the moon gets bigger and smaller?
It all starts with this: Viewed from the celestial north pole, the motion of Earth, the Moon and their axial rotations are all counter-clockwise.
OK, enough college-talk. Why is there a “Dark Side”? In truth, there is not. As our moon orbits Earth, its “other side” is either bathed in sunlight or hidden in shadow. With a temperature spread of about 500˚F ! Why we never see this further side? In addition to its orbit, our moon also rotates upon its axis. One axial revolution per orbit puts it’s “face” to us at all times. Just as if you held your sweethearts hands at arm’s length, and spun her around yourself. You are the earth and she is the moon. Always facing you.
As far as moon phases go, that’s easier. Perception of moon phase exists through varying degrees of reflected sunlight. That amount of reflected sunlight depends on moon orbit position in relation to Earth and Sun. When the moon is behind us (further 
from the sun) we see more reflected sunlight. Almost directly behind? Full moon. The easiest part? Data does not vary. No complex star charts. Keep looking up; record what you see in a notebook. Within a few months, it all falls into place.
Ziploc • S. C. Johnson
We last visited consumer offerings of S. C. Johnson with a great Windex article. We’re back with another product from one of our favorite American companies. With Saran Wrap, Ziploc freezer bags, and my favorite, Twist’n’Loc reusable containers, it is easy to see why the company is so popular with foodies.
Exclusively used in my kitchen. Pint and quart containers share the same lid. Stackable. Holds up well in the microwave. Most others have hit the recycling bin.
Along with quart & gallon freezer bags, these are the nicest food storage solutions on the planet! Thanksgiving is coming up. Pick up a few. Bring them to Aunt Genevieve’s house, and take home a feast of leftovers!
As an amateur luthier, I find Twist’n’Loc containers especially valuable in keeping parts safe during repairs to acoustic instruments! What else? Maybe a few become stained or etched from repeated trips into the microwave. Fret not! These are perfect for holding small quantities of paint. Perfect for touching up trim and stairwells after the kids have their romp.
Remo 12″ Djembe
IMAGINE MY SURPRISE. After purchasing and using REMO percussion products for decades, I’d become used to usual manufacturing practices. The drumhead is USA. Shell from Indonesia. Its hardware, Taiwan.
But upon flipping this fine instrument over, inside was a red/white/blue logo and proud words, “Made in U.S.A.”. Within the music store, I had already decided to buy, but came back the following day after a little midnight price-shopping and a sunrise phone call to REMO.
Customer service was fast and alert. Straight, informative answers immediately given. Yes, that entire product is made by us. Yes, we agree it is a fantastic product. No, you do not want to leave it in the rain”.
REMO Skyndeep® drum head gives us warm, crisp, vibrant tones. A great look which imitates goatskin of traditional African djembes. The shell, virtually indestructible, permanently imprinted with its design. Great job, REMO!
Jetfire Balsa Glider
EVEN BEFORE EYEGLASSES were put upon my head I remember waiting in the hardware store for Dad to finish his transactions. Standing by a rotating display of balsa gliders, I’d imagine flying within one of these toy aeroplanes. Prices started at 19¢. A fortune several times my weekly allowance.
Sometimes Dad would become interested and examine the choices. Maybe he’d make a purchase. A glider each for his younger kids. A fancy rubber band powered plane with wheels for the oldest.
Times may have changed, but not that much. The company established in 1926 by Paul K. Guillow still manufacturers reasonably priced offerings. Still engages the imagination of our next generation of space shuttle pilots.
Soon after Charles Lindbergh’s famous solo transatlantic flight in 1927, a craze for all things aeronautical swept over America. Guillow capitalized on that fad by introducing a line of balsa wood model kits. WIKI
- ← Previous
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- Next →
American Toolbox 
