ShopTalk Sunday: Wicktorian Lamp, Elven Shopwork

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I received a marvelous email from long-time reader LOOB (Looking Outside Of (the) Box) up in one of the cold Square States.

In case you are not familiar with his work, I seem to recall a ShopTalk adventure a while back where he went through making a cardboard dry bar. Came out as good (or better) than a store bought piece of furniture, too.  Yet – from cardboard – 100-percent.

Today, he’s got another project underway.  Gathering up parts for something called a “Wicktorian Lamp.  In a comment Friday, he explained his fascination with this:

“I have a real thing with lamps and heaters and candles etc.. since I was a little boy.. my parents when I was like five bought a house that didn’t have any of the modern conveniences.. in the living and dining room there was a gas lamp.. a pipe that ran along the wall and down by the kitchen doorway.. two sections.. one for water and one for calcium carbide. My sister and I would fight over who got to put the rocks in it and who got to put the water in it.. so we would have light at the supper table. mom would go around and light them up.. My father eventually had electricity put in. the coal stove remained but the old cook stove went missing and mom got a gas stove..
this is what it looked like.. I actually had one that I sold at an auction for seventy five dollars about two years ago.. wife wanted to park in the garage LOL
https://www.lehmans.com/category/cookstoves
If our politicians get their way.. the survivors will all be using them again pretty soon..
anyway since I was a little boy I love lamps and how to make gas fuels etc..
its really easier than most people imagine.. the wife wouldn’t let me have the cook stove put in the kitchen..
she wanted a gas stove to LOL LOL
I wished I had gotten the old ceiling lights.. they were in my fathers garage for such a long time.. while I was in the military she got rid of them.. otherwise I would have owned them.. I debated just giving the younger kids a table lamp or wall scone.. I have them.. but then they wouldn’t understand how they work.. I was going to have my rocket heater put in.. but the code here made it so I couldn’t put it in.. no place to put it.. so I gave it to one of my grandkids.. they put it in their place.. and now have warmth in an old farmhouse ..
https://rocketheater.com/dustpan-brush/
great unit and really made nice..

As to what his latest lamp idea is about, seems to be inspired by something like this, only made from a spaghetti jar for the lampshade and a candy tin for the alcohol:

“…except the center piece will be the alcohol storage container.

I had considered using two baked bean cans for the alcohol container, but heck the candy tins were cheap enough.  Easy project. The hardest part will be cutting the bottom out of the spaghetti jar LOL.

Well, I finally came up with what I will have the kids learn how to build.  Rather than having the kids make a wall scone gas lamp, I am going to make it a double globed table lamp that can be hung like a ceiling light or used as a table lamp… the perfect unit. I went and bought a couple of small candy tins.  Source: https://www.boxandwrap.com/tin-containers-small.html (I got the little round ones.)

Verticals from two toilet paper roll holders https://www.amazon.com/ROLABAM-Weighted-Function-Standing-Storage%EF%BC%8CSpare/dp/B09QZK18GW/

…at Walmart under ten dollars the same at dollar general..

The pipe is one inch inch diameter. So a one and a quarter inch hole through the candy tin. a piece of pvc pipe to slide over the post. JB weld the pipe through the candy tin. A hole on both sides for the wick (to go through the lamp pipe, into an elbow and then to a valve).

I will use carbon felt as the wick. Another hole in the front top of the candy tin lid to JB Weld a nut on it for a bolt.

This will be for filling the tin through the top of the pipe. I’ll thread a stop bolt (to adjust it up and down) from the valve.

A soft copper pipe will go along the rod that will be bolted to a bean can with a pig tail up into the venturi pipe to the mantle. On the end of the quarter inch copper pipe I will put a mister nozzle. https://www.amazon.com/KUWAN-Misting-Nozzles-Cooling-System/dp/B01L3N8NHO?

… the bean can will go through the top lid of a spaghetti sauce jar with the bottom cut out. This will be the globe.. through the top of the bean can will be the venturi tube and an elbow one half inch.

The venturi tube will go out the back of the bean can and down the elbow on the T in the jar lid will go down to the mantle.  A hole drilled in the end of the end cap to hold a screen to separate the gas.  One on each side.

Then paint all the metal parts to be uniform. On the lid to the candy dish, we’ll use a Shroeder valve with a straw on it to the bottom. Then epoxy the inside of the candy tin and the inside top of the can lid, slide that over, glue it into place. Then paint it.

On top of the bean can going through the spaghetti sauce jar I will drill holes around the bean can, as vents.  On top of it, attach a small pie tin or get two dog bowls and drill a hole the size of the bean can to slide this over. The bean can that is totally dependent. (I can get the dog bowls at the dollar store cheap enough, coat the inside with the reflective tape or just leave it stainless steel.)

I will determine what the kids will do once we start on it.. I have two of the toilet paper holders. So, I will make two of the table lamps in a Wicktorian style lamp but versatile enough to be used either or……https://www.amazon.com/ELYONA-Adjustable-Industrial-Fixtures-Farmhouse/dp/B0B2WFJZCK/

.. now the lamp can be adjusted. It can either be a table lamp.. the grandson can glue some dinosaurs or whatever decoration he wants on it, and the top will have the loop. The bottom can be taken off and a finial can be put on the bottom for a ceiling light.

https://www.amazon.com/Penck-Lamp-Finials-Lighting-Accessories/dp/B07QYTJTXQ/

Put five pounds of pressure in the epoxy coated candy tin  and you have a nice lamp. that is the plan. The pipe attached to the bean can and lid will serve as a great support for the weight of the spaghetti sauce jar globe.”

If we’re lucky, he will send along some pictures for us over the Holidays.  But not exactly our cuppa tea as projects go.

One reason is (from a family of firefighters) we’re just a bit sketchy on anything being on fire inside a home, especially one where we have a South Pacific/Tiki vibe (themed) dining room. Where the faux bamboo was crafted by Elaine out of some reed hunting mats.  All it would take would be a spark and that’d be it for the house.

That nit aside, we sure hope LOOB does the testing of this lamp OUTSIDE and well away from anything flammable.  Sure, plaster and lath construction is more fire resistant than sheetrock, probably, but we worry about little details like this.  I’ve even got a note to add a screaming loud smoke alarm in the greenhouse because of the Chineseum diesel heater.  Needs to be properly alarmed.  By Monday.

The Fat Elf’s Workshop

One of my “clean up and organize” the office projects this week was to print off as many small parts bins as I could from an (on sale $14) roll of PLA plastic filament acquired earlier this year.  Screaming Yellow Zonker’s yellow, too.

This is the kind of (nesting) storage you can find on Thingiverse.com.  You can download most of the .STL (stereolithography) files free.  Then you have a big decision to make.

One solution is to simply slice them with Ulti-Maker Cura and they will print out dandy.

This doesn’t mean you are totally locked on the print size, however.  Before slicing (which is where the surfacing file (.stl) is turned into plastic-squirting .gcode for the 3D printer) you can tinker with the x, y, and z axis settings.

So, on one of these parts boxes, if I want something a little taller, just printing x and y at 100 percent and the z axis at, oh, 200 percent will get you into the ballpark.

It’s not going to be perfect, however, because the wall thicknesses will be  changing on the horizontal plane.  Which means you can gobble up more filament than expected.

The other option is to take your “idea file” and import it into TinkerCad.com where you can add, subtract, or plagiarize to your heart’s content.  (You won’t even have to be a culturally appropriating Ivy League college president to do it, either!)

This being the cold spell in the shop until the warmer temps come back in a couple of months, you will want to bump up your temps on the print nozzle and on the print bed.  With the shop at 45F, here’s how the temps worked out for reasonable print quality this week.  A degree (or 3) hotter on each setting for each 10-15 degrees colder.

Horse Shoes and Weenies

As you may have figured, we are huge fans of Walt Disney. Not so much on their recent string of “woke” excesses (pass on that). But, Walt himself was a genius and visionary when it came to design.  Which is why Disneyland is still popular today as it was when it opened.

For us, there’s an almost spiritual angle to design.  Because when we die, we all get a Life Review, (goes the story).  At which time we will be able to “playback our lives” and it’s almost like a Game Film. We want to have some really good Creative to show off for that.  Not just buying from someone.  Making with your own hands and heart. Seems like that matters more.

Which relates to Disney, how?

Well, Imagineers (and I’ve read a lot of books on imagineering) adopt the Disney design criteria “There always has to be a “weenie.”

I forget which of the books it was in, but there was a long hallway in one of the park settings.  And Disney stopped and asked “Where’s the weenie?”  As it was told, he said “If you have a hallway, or corridor, you need some visual cues to get people to wander down that way.”  In other words, a weenie.

Weenies around here are both visual (in the summer, the screen porch looks like sitting around outside a Golf Pro shop. Especially effective when the yard is freshly manicured and is as big as a golf course.

When the door opens, Polynesian music starts automatically and you’re under a thatch roof looking into a bamboo (almost Trader Vic’s) kind of room.  They kitchen is dark green rustic tile and stainless with black cabinets, so not a “weenie” per se.  Just a comfortable pass-through area.

The Northwest Room has a rough cedar ceiling and a dandy mural oof the Golden Gate.  Here, the “weenies” include some UFOs flying out of the mural.  And a lobster pot with a large 2-pounder, hung from the ceiling trying to escape.

So, what does this have to do with horseshoes?  You mean these?

Last week, I spotted a buyer on eBay (1bidderup in Montana) and snagged a lot of 20 horseshoes for $41 bucks and change.  $2 each including the shipping.

Now, when it comes to “making weenies” there’s all kinds of things you can do with horseshoes.  From a ShopTalk standpoint what made this a ton-o-fun was that included were directions how to take rust of metal using critic acid.  Which is not too expensive on Amazon.

Now, I can’t vouch or these instructions, but here’s the “remove rust from horseshoes cheat-sheet that came neatly packed with the shoes:

“Instructions:
Removing Rust from Found Objects without Scrubbing
A few months after I sold my first horse, I was walking through the pasture and found a shoe he’d lost sometime in the preceding year. Although it would be a nice keepsake and something I could use to create an equestrian project with sentimental value, it was covered with layers of rust.
Thankfully I’d been experimenting all winter with using citric acid to clean rust off garden tools that I (oh-so-irresponsibly) tend to leave out in the elements. Turns out, the basic combination of citric acid, water, and time completely removes rust from metal. I was pretty thrilled, especially after trying to remove rust from tools with caustic chemicals like CLR and The Works without luck. A common ingredient in canning recipes, citric acid is an organic acid a little stronger than vinegar, depending on the concentration you mix it in.

Supplies You’ll Need:
A bucket or plastic container large enough to hold your rusted object(s) Very hot water Pure Citric Acid – You may be able to find citric acid locally, but it’s usually sold in small packages by the ounce. Amazon has 5 lb Bags of Citric Acid for a much better price that anywhere I’ve found locally. (1 actually get a regular delivery of it, because it’s also great for boosting dishwasher detergent, descaling coffee makers, removing hardware stains, and general cleaning)

  1. Scoop the powdered citric acid carefully into your bucket. I add about 1/3rd cup of powder per gallon of water, but you can use more or less depending on how rusty your object is and how quickly you need results.
  2. Fill your bucket with very hot water and stir to dissolve powder completely.
  3. Add your rusty object. (in this case, a horseshoe arid rusty bolt cutters!) Use hot water and make sure the citric acid completely dissolves.
  4. Leave the bucket to let the rusty object soak. After 10-15 minutes you’ll see bubbles forming on the surface of the object as the acid reacts with the rust and creates gas.
    The citric acid solution will slowly turn yellow as the rust dissolves
  5. Next, Soak your object until you see visible results. After a day you may want to remix your citric acid solution (it will slowly lose acidity as it breaks down the rust) And if you are a fan of instant gratification as I am, you may want to do a bit of scrubbing to speed the process.
    Scrubbing is optional, but speeds the process up significantly. The acid will loosen  things before it completely dissolves the rust, so a lot of the rust can he wiped off after an hour.

Of course, all the usual precautions with this kind of shop operation. Don’t let the kids near it, lock up hazards.  Wear good waterproof gloves. Have a box of baking soda for neutralizing. And don’t do any of this kind of stuff with your Sunday Finest Suit of Clothes on.

Yes, there’s some prep work to getting the horseshoes ready.  Some have nails and some have “cheaters” – little flanges (like corner metal for picture frames) designed to hold a shoe in place while a farrier tries to get a horse to steady while holding a shoe, nails, hammer and all that. These are trivialities for the Prince of Plasma Cutters, god of Grinders, and savior of sandpaper.

Which reminds me, don’t I need a sandblasting rig one of these days?  Think how many more “weenie works” we could do with that!

You know you can etch glass with fancy designs?  You can lightly blast wood expose and accentuate the grain and really give an antique look to things?  Why, first thing you know, our little home in the woods will have everything a full-on museum has in the way of mood-setting diorama type scenes!

Come Life Review time at the big Finis, our only question will be “When do we get a real world to do some crafting on?”

For now, raising our Personal Ark is a hell of a lot of fun.  A little escapist, maybe, sure, but everyone else is nuts.

Not us, right?

Write when you get rich,

George@Ure.net

44 thoughts on “ShopTalk Sunday: Wicktorian Lamp, Elven Shopwork”

  1. “And don’t do any of this kind of stuff with your Sunday Finest Suit of Clothes on.”

    And don’t lie about it if something happens.

    Leave It To Beaver
    “Beaver’s Bad Day” (1958)

    Beaver disobeys his mother and goes out to play in his good Sunday suit. He also disobeys his parents by playing in an area where a new house is being built. That’s because his get-Beaver-in-trouble friend Larry Mondello talks him into it. Larry can talk Beaver into anything and always gets him in trouble.

    Anyway, things get worse when Eddie Haskell shows up at the site and winds up inadvertently ripping Beavers trousers. Then Beaver does his normal thing: he lies to his parents. That’s another thing that’s overdone in this usually very wholesome show. Beaver is always telling lies.

    https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0630194/

    • thank god I don’t have a suit LOL LOL LOL LOL….
      My brother who had a really good paying job.. really good paying job.. I could have easily had retired on just his travel expenses for a month.. use to send me his hand made suits.. had a closet full of them.. ( dress for success thought he had.. ) one day the closet was full.. I stood there and asked the wife.. look at that.. she said.. I know you have to many suits.. I said when have you ever seen me in a suit.. and gave them all to the homeless shelter..

      Dress for success is great if you have a sheet of paper..
      two hadn’t been tossed under the bus by a boss.. ( when I was a young man.. a boss thought.. brewhahaha.. I AM GOING TO BE RICH.. and played the markets and silver and gold .. he used all his employees money that was being taken out for health insurance…the kid fell from a tree and impaled on a branch going through his lung and heart.. and way back then.. they had to fly a surgical team in.. the bill for three months in ICU and the surgical team.. over a half million.. just for the room.. no insurance.. destroyed me.. it still follows me to this day to.. )
      three plaqued with medical issues..
      as we all know.. it doesn’t matter how smart you are.. or what you know and can do for a company..
      (when I worked for a cabinet shop.. they had a contest.. go to lunch with the boss at the exclusive country club.. once a month.. all you had to do is submit an improvement that would save the company ten thousand dollars or more per year.. I had this thought.. what if.. I proved to them my value is a tad better than being a seal sander of cutter.. I went every month for what twelve years LOL LOL LOL…it got to be a joke.. that I would submits ideas with a comical twist.. got one once on hand soap.. LOL LOL and Toilet paper.. it was as fun as my bulitenboard jokes.. LOL LOL one of the receptionists was an exceptionally rude and crude woman.. the woman that is the whitehouse spokesperson reminds me of her..
      https://www.youtube.com/live/F0Yzp4mrNOc?si=TS8trqT0pidMmrK2
      so I had the URINE BANK… what if you get in an accident and they need a sample for a test.. they have your urine on file freeze dried and stored.. …anyway.. an old friend owned an advertising agency so he and I came up with the buletin board poster … I bought a display box with all the specimen cups.. and put it together.. LOL LOL everyone including the Boss’s gave her a small jar of Urine… I was probably the only one that didn’t..
      Vacations.. vacation time is an executive privilage.. not a laborers right.. so the rules to go on vacation or to use any built up vacation time was so stringent and so complicated.. that you couldn’t take it.. a great bulletin board joke came up.. yeah right you betcha..
      and it came out.. by the time you got done reading how you didn’t know when in the hell you should go and put in for a vacation.. LOL LOL
      the need your employee number tatooed on your arm was the last one.. the woman from shipping looked at me and said.. what are you doing today LOL I had been caught and discovered.. so they ended.. the lamp is coming along nicely.. we will bend the tubing this week for the WICK… on the wicktorian gas lamp…the theory is..When the tube of an alcohol pressure lamp is heated up with the wick in it, the gas pressure inside the lamp increases. This is because the heat causes the alcohol,white gas,kerosene etc. to vaporize and expand, which increases the pressure inside the lamp 1. The pressure increase is due to the ideal gas law, which states that the pressure of a gas is proportional to its temperature and the number of particles in it 1. The increase in pressure causes the alcohol or white gas, kerosene etc to be forced up the wick and into the burner, where it is ignited to produce light .The ideal gas law is an equation of state that describes the behavior of an ideal gas. It is a good approximation of the behavior of many gases under many conditions, although it has several limitations . The law states that the product of the pressure and volume of one gram molecule of an ideal gas is equal to the product of the absolute temperature of the gas and the universal gas constant . The empirical form of the ideal gas law is given by:

      PV = nRT

      where P is the pressure, V is the volume, n is the amount of substance, R is the universal gas constant, and T is the temperature . The ideal gas law can also be derived from the microscopic kinetic theory .The kinetic theory of gases is a simple classical model of the thermodynamic behavior of gases, which describes a gas as a large number of identical submicroscopic particles (atoms or molecules), all of which are in constant, rapid, random motion . The particles undergo random elastic collisions between themselves and with the enclosing walls of the container ..You also find this very same principle used in military applications but on a more intense form of expansion. The basic version of the model describes the ideal gas, and considers no other interactions between the particles . The kinetic theory of gases explains the macroscopic properties of gases, such as volume, pressure, and temperature, as well as transport properties such as viscosity, thermal conductivity and mass diffusivity . The same principles and theories work with the gas stove.. and with pressure cooking.. etc.simple stuff.. but a lot of people don’t really get it..they buy it and use it all while not knowing the how ore why… my plan is to show the kids the how and why..so in some future time the principles can be used for good ..

  2. It was great for your seller to provide the de-rusting instructions for the horseshoes. Citric acid is quite safe to work with using the precautions given.

    If you don’t have citric acid available and some small item de-rusting to do, soft drink cola (Coca Cola) with phosphoric acid can work well. The pH is slightly higher than citric acid (2.5 vs. 2.0), and less aggressive but may be closer at hand. Both of these are far less dangerous than working with hydrochloric (muriatic) acid.

    P.S. Many people don’t know that gastric acid in the stomach can have a pH as low as 1.5 but I don’t recommend it for de-rusting. :-)

    • when I made cleaning chemicals the one that scared me the most.. was hydrofluoric acid.. I was to mix up a bunch of drain cleaners and toilet bowl cleaners.. the guys were all giving me scary stories on people that missused it.. or didn’t pay any attention to just how dangerous it was.. I went over and put in the acid resistant bung.. went back.. and when I got back .. no bung.. the fumes had totally dissolved it.. I never went near it again.. the fumes..
      one of the ladies that I worked with the year that I worked off the debt to the hospital.. ran into her at a doctors visit.. her lungs had gotten a condition similar to popcorn lung from using the spray cleaning chemicals’ all those years working in housekeeping.. and needed a lung transplant.. of course the hospital had gotten rid of her and she didn’t have the money to get the lung transplant… she is long gone now.. that was several years ago.. my grandkids give me guff.. because they do spray paint art.. and I bought and make them use their own gas mask.. I tell them that the chemicals in the paint are extremely hazardous.. I may be over cautious but its for their own good..

  3. “Beaver is always telling lies.”

    ..and Men keep falling for them, since beginning of time !

    • Beaver’s Library Book

      “Beaver tells Ward that he lost the library book and that he can take the money out of his generous allowance. Ward tells Beaver he already knows about the book because Mr. Davenport called him. Ward explains that he can’t go through life lying about problems in hopes that they will go away. Beaver agrees that lying is more trouble than not telling the truth in the first place.”

      https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0630215/plotsummary/

        • He is in the soup!

          “In The Soup”

          “Wally would like to have his first teen party at his house and he hopes Beaver doesn’t do anything to ruin it. Beaver is going to spend the night at Whitey’s house the night of the party. On the way to Whitey’s house, the boys see a billboard in the neighborhood that displays a picture of a woman holding a three-dimensional cup of steaming Zesto Soup. Whitey urges Beaver to climb up to the cup to discover how the steam is produced. Beaver falls into the cup and can’t get out. Whitey hurries home to tell his parents. Curious onlookers gather with Ward, Wally and his friends among them. Eventually the fire department arrives to rescue Beaver. Ward still lets Beaver stay at Whitey’s house. Ward hopes Beaver will not take a reckless dare again.”

          https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leave_It_to_Beaver_(season_4)

        • @Bill, Yeah I’ve seen the articles about horseface Zuck and what he’s building on his massive Kauai property. Thankfully he’s at the far end of the island chain from me, and he’s in a much less sustainable place. He’s just around the shoreline from Barking Sands Missile base.. where they do the orbital missile intercepts. Guess where the enemy will target??

        • The horseface Kauai ‘estate’ cost him $100 mil, and the underground 5000sf ‘improvements’ are estimated at another $175 mil.

          I got the Volcano Ranch for under $100 grand. Some people have way more money than brains.

      • Zuck has never seemed as if he had all that much intelligence. CIA set up lackey is much more likely and I’m sure they’d just as soon see him gone with a “mis-directed” missile.

  4. Another way to remove rust is with plain white vinegar, no heat required. Just soak the rusty steel in vinegar for 24 – 48 hours, neutralize with a mild soda bath, then rinse and dry it. A light coat of oil will help to keep the rust at bay. Another way is to heat it until it’s red hot. When it cools, the rust will have formed a hard black coating (scale) that can be painted over or removed with a wire brush.

    If you can locate your local farrier, he/she likely will give you all the horseshoes you want.

    Blacksmiths have a saying; “In rust we trust.” If it’s rusty, it’s safe to forge. Galvanized or chrome plated metals are hazardous to your health when heated.

    • Rust? ‘OSPHO’… phosphoric acid treatment. Turns rust to black ceramic that can be painted over.

  5. as far as the mini hydrogen gas separation unit..
    Electrolysis is a process that I plan on using that uses an electric current to split water into hydrogen and oxygen. The hydrogen produced can be used as a fuel. In the Past Researchers had been exploring ways to increase the efficiency of this process. One such method involves using a magnet to double the hydrogen output of a water-splitting electrolyzer . Another method involves using a combination of acoustic cavitations, molecular vibrational enhancement, and increased magnetic susceptibility to reduce energy dissociation requirements associated with water electrolysis, thereby enhancing the process . A study has also been conducted on the effect of rotating magnetic fields on hydrogen production from electrolytic water . a similar situation that is quite an oddity is the Bermuda triangle and multiple disappearances’..The Bermuda Triangle is a region of the ocean that has been associated with a number of mysterious disappearances of ships and planes. While there are many theories about what causes these disappearances, there is no scientific evidence to support the idea that the Bermuda Triangle has a magnetic vortex from the center of the earth and a magnetic vortex from space in combination with a highly charged electrical storm.
    the idea and theory of dual magnetic vortexes of the Bermuda Triangle along with the theory of the electrically charged storms creating a plasma magnetic storm in the center that casuses the electrical guidance systems to fail.
    On the idea of dual magnetic vortexes of the Bermuda Triangle along with the electrically charged storms creating a plasma magnetic storm in the center . on hydrogen fuel production they do have the use of a vortex hydrogen circulating pump (VHCP) in the production of hydrogen fuel. The VHCP is mainly a core component of the hydrogen fuel cell system that recirculates unreacted humid hydrogen from the anode outlet of the fuel cell stack back to the anode inlet . My mini unit that I have made in the past which utilized a magnetic suspension and no connection shaft structural design to apply a a variable speed and high-flow hydrogen magnetic turbine . The VHCP that is under current scientific study can achieve full power coverage of the hydrogen fuel supply system and can meet the hydrogen circulation system use of 10–300 kW reactor, with the maximum return hydrogen flow rate reaching 1600 SLPM . the mini units that I have made in the past.. all use a much lower voltage and amperage and instead of brute electrical force relies on the vibrational aspects of frequency and the magnetic vortex created. I have a variable magnetic vortex to adjust for the rate of gas production.. and a frequency modulation unit to adjust to the water that is being transformed from the solid to a gas.. on the units that NAZI Germany used of a 50/50 mixture of methanol and water with an adjustable hydrogen imput that was sprayed into the supercharger of German aircraft engines primarily for its anti-detonant effect, allowing the use of increased boost pressures. a fuel system that mixes hydrogen with oxygen along with alcohol in ambient air to stratify the fuel was then developed for their engines. The system also included an adapter, which was mounted between the spark plug and cylinder of the internal combustion engine. The injection plug they used had ridges or grooves on its outer surface that acted as mixing structures to create a smaller ventury mixer.. Thus, when hydrogen was introduced into the adapter housing along with the alcohol mist, it was mixed with ambient oxygen within the chamber as it flowed over the plug in a vapor form. The mixing structures in the housing created a vortexing action as the hydrogen flowed over the plug and towards the cylinder of the engine where it was ignited.
    NOW to store hydrogen rather than use it on demand is easy enough to but more dangerous… It is extremely important that you have to keep the two gases separated.. since hydrogen like gasoline when mixed with ambient oxygen becomes quite explosive. Gasoline I have been told isn’t explosive itself it is the mixture of the gasoline and oxygen that makes the vapor explosive.. ( I won’t be trying that one )
    then similar to propane is put under pressure in a tank filled with metal hydrides.. the problem with that is a heating element is needed to release the hydrogen.. which makes an on demand system more logical in one sense but illogical in another sense.. since the way motors are created today and using the materials they use.. a person would need to pass the hydrogen through a cooling and lubricating solution.. ( oil ) to cool down the water so it wouldn’t destroy the motor itself.. it is also a good idea to remember the Three.. for some reason an odd number is always needed for balance of cells… I sometimes wonder if the reason has to do with what is believed as the number of the universe and everything in it.. in the bloom box.. they use potassium nitrate as the electrolyte..Potassium nitrate is an ionic compound that dissolves completely in water and produces potassium and nitrate ions, which conduct electricity. Therefore, KNO3 is a strong electrolyte.. What I am not sure of is.. from what I had read is that they use it in a ceramic or clay plate unless I seen one or made one I will never know .. or maybe they use is like a regular lead acid battery as a separation film similar to the glass fiber mats used in a lead acid battery that are soaked in acid as the fundamental source.. could this separation mat be made of a similar material with potassium nitrate impregnated on it from what I have read they use a solid oxide ceramic electrolyzer.. I had read they electrolyzer they used was potassium nitrate.. how did they make those plates.. is is similar to a ceramic water filter…… I have never played with that in the past when I had built them to show how easy it was…. I have always used salt as the electrolyte.. that way I can keep the bleach afterwards for use in the laundry..

  6. LOOB- Does your brother have any hand-me-down wool sports coats? They are good for outings. Not too dressy, but very functional. They are somewhat out of style, which makes it even better.

    I bought gasoline this morning for 2.249 a gallon at a major retailer in town (with a 5 cent card discount). Saw several stations priced that low.

    For lighting, diversity of fuel sources is important. I keep a couple of oil lamps, some lamp oil fuel and some candles for when all else fails.
    My primary lighting when the electricity is off is LED lamps, and LED Maglites. I keep at least half the lamps in dry bags in shielded enclosures. I keep some gas bulbs for emergency back-up on the Maglites. I use NI-MH rechargeable batteries, which shouldn’t be prone to EMP damage. I am gravitating toward USB-powered chargers. Again, I keep at least 50% spare chargers and USB power supplies in dry bags in a shielded enclosure. Then, any voltage you have a USB power supply that works with will run the recharger. Tenergy NI-MH low self-discharge batteries and USB rechargers are reliable.
    In writing this, I realized I don’t have any cheap kerosene lanterns around. I have one of those big pressurized jobs stashed somewhere, but the mantles never seem to work when you need them. Simple wicks are a better back-up. I do keep kerosene around for cooking and emergency heating, so I need to correct that.
    Never found a way to do lighting with wood, other than one of those thermoelectric generators, which I haven’t indulged in as of yet.

    • “I bought gasoline this morning for 2.249 a gallon at a major retailer in town (with a 5 cent card discount). Saw several stations priced that low.”

      We celebrate here in the islands when gas gets below $5.00. Recent trip across the island (200 miles R/T) to Costco warehouse got me a tankful at $4.87/gal. Seems like I gotta spend money to save money.

    • wow.. probably to far for me to go fill up.. LOL LOL LOL.. No.. I doubt it.. he retired many years ago.. he still over dresses though .. the suits were nice if you like that kind of crap.. He gave me a pair of hand made shoes.. nice.. most uncomfortable shoes I had ever worn.. I used them for painting..
      I had someone working on making him a pair of these ..
      https://crochetbydarleenhopkins.files.wordpress.com/2014/02/crochet_pants2.jpg
      you would have to know him to appreciate how much he would love those LOL LOL LOL LOL.. he has the little ankle bracelet and pinky ring on LOL LOL LOL it has to look high class… LOL LOL LOL
      I do want to some day make a trip to his house.. what in the hell someone needs six thousand square foot house for is beyond me.. what I want to see is his sewer pipe.. six inch copper sewer pipe.. I didn’t even know they made that for a house LOL LOL
      and three four hundred amp services.. give me a break.. for two people LOL LOL LOL LOL… I am betting you are not allowed to wear shoes in his house .. needless to say we obviously had different life outlooks ..

      • “what in the hell someone needs six thousand square foot house for is beyond me.”
        First thing I would do is section off about five thousand s/f into a workshop the size of Ure’s, with multiple workstation areas!

        • that is what I need hank.. a friend of mine bought the old blacksmith shop a block away he calls it his dog house.. somedays he maybe just sits there.. at his age he doesn’t need anything.. but his dog house.. a radio on.. drink a cold one.. or a hot one..
          he is rebuilding an old model A I think..
          with the projects I have going on.. I need something just like that..
          I don’t know why they have that big of a place.. they sure don’t need it he has several shops around to.. I have never seen any of them though.. keep thinking I should visit but there isn’t any time to go anywhere.. He asked me what kind of car I would have if I wanted one of the older cars to rebuild.. a 74 marathon .. the old checker cab..

    • from what I have heard he rebuilds antique cars for a hobby.. the last one he sold to some schmuck in Iceland.. reminded me of the quarter million dollar bently that I could have gotten for fifteen grand.. ( they wanted to get the front brake pads out of it.. ) the kind of car you would show someone in his social class.. LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL
      I have the Beast and the Buggy.. not much to look at but they get you back and forth.. the Beast is the old pickup to drive back and forth to the dump LOL LOL

    • I have what maybe eight easy light coleman table lamps and about ten lanterns.. I love coleman lanterns .. I still have my coleman stove from the hard days in the seventies.. and the oven..
      I have several camp stoves to many smokers and grills.. I want to make a solar grill.. I gave away the solar beer chiller.. the wife wanted to use the garage.. LOL I gave away the crosley icy ball to.. nice but it was gifted to me I gifted it back to someone else.. just to play with it..
      I love coleman.. coleman was one of the first that realized if he put a little pressure in the fuel tank that the air bubbling up from the bottom would be fuel enough to start a lamp or a stove.. and once the tube is hot.. it will keep the pressure up for the source.. nice.. I love the petromax to .. you can burn just about anything in that one.. usually during the holidays I give out some small light of some sort.. this year I was going to have the kids make some.. but things have been so busy.. there just hasn’t been any time to do that..
      with what I see coming up.. I want to show the kids how to make them.. get the wicktorian lamp built.. nothing like having a little light when the lights go out..
      the sad part is our grid is designed to make profit not be secure.. and wouldn’t take very much to knock the whole thing our.. not that many years ago.. a squirrel took out the whole NE.. or a great majority of it.. a freat hundred year winter storm almost took out the core of the USA grid.. which you would think would have gotten someone some smarts.. but it didn’t the number was more important than then national security.. if they were smart.. they would have started just handing out systems to anyone will ing to have them installed. free of charge.. the catch.. they don’t get any of the excess power that they produce.. grid tie.. then solar towers with battery backup.. the people still have to pay for the house hookup and what they use at night.. if they want a backup .. then they have to pay for that part of it.. I forget which Scandinavian country did that.. but they didn’t have the room to put any new power plants.. worked out great..
      once the lights go out.. you won’t be able to get fuel.. I argued a lot with a guy working for the govt. on it.. he teased me to no end that I spent to much money on solar.. then there was an east coast hurricane.. he ran out of fuel for his.. backup generator.. went to buy some and couldn’t.. the pumps worked on fuel to..
      which is why I am pushing oil and alcohol.. I can teach them how to make alcohol and I have the oil press.. so.. easy conversion.. all you need is a couple of bean and pea cans and an old sock to get a nice space heater.. they can be made out of just about anything.. for the cars.. a lard candle.. one year this is what everyone got on my xmas card list..
      https://youtu.be/DqiO6mj2ZL4?si=r1JuJh0ml1lMqILB
      https://youtu.be/ktFoLzufmfQ?si=znIW0qljkhTePlnr
      making one of these.. using the seige brackets.. you can get a really nice hobo stove..
      https://youtu.be/j8nkF0bYYLE?si=BoM7uM4b4f75wx0j
      of course I have a few of the carbide lamps.. my grandfathers engineers lamp.. and my caving lamps and carbide..
      a ten thousand year or better known as the forever battery can be made to.. pretty simple stuff.. the shielding for the ten thousand year battery is the expensive part well all the batteries are expensive.. to make them is easy enough though.. ..

      • In an extended grid down, the Coleman fuel, the lamp oil and kerosene last until you run out. If you don’t have the fuel on a hand, you are SOL. If you can recharge with solar, then the LED lanterns will potentially work for a long time. Candles are the last technology tier. I suppose beeswax candles and olive oil lamps would eventually come back in style, but I also suspect we wouldn’t be around for that. Having a stock of candle wicks hid away would be an optimist’s prep.

        https://www.amazon.com/Hemp-Wick-Long-Lasting-Standard-Dispenser/dp/B01H83VPDW/ref=sr_1_5?crid=165J2EWP8FYI&keywords=Connoisseur+Hemp+Wick&qid=1702855696&sprefix=connoisseur+hemp+wick%2Caps%2C148&sr=8-5

        • Exactly…. there’s so much we take for granted with the thought that it will always be there…

        • I suggest a real wick — braided cotton in the 2.5-3mm range. I’m not sure you can even build proper birthday candles with 1mm hemp.

          (Of course I do, along with many pounds of beeswax, bayberry wax, and paraffine. (Empty hairspray cans make perfect poured candle molds OR portable candle dipping wells…)

          Not “optimist” as much as “multiple backups,” both redundant and forked to provide as many variations as possible.

      • Fuel is a major concern for me here in the islands. The only refinery is Honolulu on Oahu island. Gas and diesel are barged to the neighbor islands for distribution. If the .mil targets on Oahu are taken out, there are no backups. The Navy just drained the massive underground fuel storage facility at Red Hill because it was constructed above the major island aquifer that supplied 20% of Oahu drinking water… and it was leaking. That’s why I rushed to get my little rocket stove for cooking.
        https://www.ebay.com/itm/224295639495

        I have my 10,000 cycle LiFePO4 battery, 512wh with a 100w solar charger. If the battery is only taken down to 50% it will last for that many charges… more days than I have left myself.

      • PS- The rocket stove is made by a plasma-cutter shop in Colorado that also makes car parts. One negative feedback I read on the rocket stove was that the dummy who bought it couldn’t figure out how to assemble it. Apparently too complicated for him to fit the tabs together… nor recognize the parts. LOL!
        To me, it is an ingenious and clever design that disassembles flat for storage. I love it!

  7. Fresca was the greatest soft drink. Pour a bottle on an ant bed and dead ants. Grass a problem pour on grass. dead. Then we realized that by us drinking that stuff what was it doing to us. Teenagers!
    Now when we were kids we had tuna cans and chicken cans. Washed dried. Strips of cardboard (free) cut to width of can then rolled into can from the outside in. Later just rolling the cardboard then placing into can. Use old candles, not moms new ones, or you can get blocks of candle wax and melt.
    Pour generous amount of wax onto cardboard to soak in. Use needle nose pliers to pull a little of the center edge out. Enough to light the edge. Now you have a 12 hour candle that can heat food and warm you hands. Can and cardboard are free. Time and wax are $$. Something to do during the cold winter. Lots of boxes arriving currently so lots of material ,save cans all summer then as boxer arrive cut into strips. Have fun!
    Update 10 biscuits made yesterday only 4 left today. Mmmmm, GOOD! Simple Pioneer pancake mix, I stick of frozen butter shredded, I cup buttermilk. 3 cups flour in mixing bowl, shred butter on box grater, mix butter and flour the add butter milk, stir and hand mix till all dry ingerdients are damp. Dust surface, counter or cutting board with flour and put lump onto surface and gently form into ball. Dust again with dry flour the using rolling pin to roll out to sheet. Fold dough 1/3 over center the other 1/3 over that. Rotate dough 90 deg. roll out again, repeat for 5 times in all. Get glass or cutter to make rounds. Place on baking pan with parchment paper. After getting all biscuits cut poke each one in center with finger. Bake in preheated 400 deg oven for 13 minutes (not 14) might have a slight burnt taste). Melt 1 tbsp of butter to brush on tops after cooking or brush before and after your choice. Last biscuit make by had so you have a taste test subject. Now clean up your mess because other half won’t! After cooling place biscuits in gal zip lock bag and refrigerate. Warm up in morning in toaster oven 10 mins on warm bake should do it. Pace yourself. They are good and you could eat 5 or 6 just out of oven. Not good!

    • “Fresca was the greatest soft drink. Pour a bottle on an ant bed and dead ants. Grass a problem pour on grass. dead. Then we realized that by us drinking that stuff what was it doing to us. ”
      And much later in life we learned that the ‘chemists’ were attempting to formulate an insecticide and quite accidentally came up with something sweet-tasting and so decided to market that as an artificial sweetener.

  8. I spiked by coffee this morning [ Meyers Special Dark Rum.,] Nothing planned and all my little ‘dailys’ [ chores ] completed. So., started dancing on the calculator.
    With closing out this last trade I have enough to pay the taxes and buy everything for a new greenhouse [ 10×20 double glazed.] and all the “stuff” required to go into it. Been working on the design and list throughout the Summer. [ Big list.] Along with the rotation / production schedule – seed propagation.., etc.
    But.., is it worth it? Back breaking work getting it all up and operating – but once up and running – pretty darn easy., and a great place to just hang out in during the cold Winter months.
    But – you can not hide a green house of that size. It does standout – just wee bit – and if the economic-drop goes into over-drive and we land in a depression – it will become a “target of choice” for many who happen to see it. A whole other level of security will be needed. And do I really want to be charging out of the house at three in morning, through two feet of snow, to stop a couple of miscreants from raiding my veggies ?? Gettin’ a little old for that…,
    I can easily buy five, six years of freeze dried., everything., and just use my current, smaller greenhouse and raised beds for fresh, or canning.., and have a good size sum of money left over! [ To be used for ? ]
    Yes., the green house will produce longer than a neatly organized, inventoried and stacked pile of number 10 cans – but hopefully in five, six or seven years the crisis will be abated.
    I may be over thinking this some-what., but it is the current decision-dilemma. Luckily I have a couple of months to ponder-the-possibilities.

  9. Wow, reading you guys talk about “backups” makes me dizzy.

    I live with 1,800 watts of solar panels with a small generator to top off the forklift battery that powers my house when I don’t get enough sun during the day, usually in the Winter.

    My primary light source is 12 volt LED lights that were advertised as tail lights. I combine one “bright white” with one “warm white” in each fixture.

    My fridge and freezer are both Sundanzer DC units that I run on 24 volts.

    If I really need to, on the shortest, cloudiest days of Winter I can turn off my 3,000-watt inverter and still have lights, fridge and freezer with no problem. I would just have to give up things like computer, TV and laundry until a sunny day.

    I measured my 120 volt AC usage one time and on heavy usage days it was about 2 Kilowatt Hours per day. That was with using coffee maker, microwave, big TV, laundry, etc.

  10. what a marvelouse artical.

    i have something to say, but i dont want to say it. because everyone seems so cheerful. that is good.

    and its important to keep that and hold it, as long as one is able to do so.

    some stuff is above my paygrade. im paid far more than what i actually do.

    i spoke to THE DUDE about my time on the Mountain. why did ya send me here? he replied Hebrews 12:18.

    tommorow is 12/18.

    i asked THE DUDE many things. yesterday i was quiet and alone with the exception of the Animals all day long. i actually listen way more and wait way more for the answers to come. i dont mind being quiet and waiting for the answers doesnt bother me so much as i get older.

    im flaberghasted by the actions of our leaders and recent gay porn video being made in a place that has stood for over 200 years as Justice, Libery and Decency.

    i asked Him. history has shown, You have burned down entire cities for shit like that. it breaks my heart. i am a veteran. i served honorably. i have 16 medals. i really do. i marched in the Canyon of Heros Parade in New York City after Desert storm. i fought honorably for my country and for which it stands.

    everyday i been hearing the National Anthem on the radio and other places.

    it makes me sick to my stomachto see the Demicratic party complete dishonerable conduct in our Government. and the establishments that have stood ad symbols of Free Men and Women for over 200 years. it is hard for me to let that go and say, “Vengence is mine says The Lord, I will repay.”

    i said History shows us God, You have burned down entire cities for shit like this. i know if this doesnt sit well with me? i know it doesnt sit well with You God!

    so i asked, God, what say you?

    God replied to me,

    Hebrews 12:26, 27.

    George you said, “Then you have a big decision to make.”

    i sure do. i sure do.

    i do not think i will return to Urban Survival. its not because I dont want too. i will be in an entirely new location by this time, next week.

    my time at the top of the mountain has come to a close.

    ya know, after i asked THE DUDE and HE replied above. i said what about me and those you place with me?

    I went outside to smoke and and said God Help us!

    and i saw this

    https://twitter.com/ore_train_11/status/1736522084866769122?t=MQ9U42a1O3yvbWVTl2VhmA&s=19

    that song by Bob Marley and the Walers begain to play in my head.

    and every moring for over a week, i wake up hearing this in my head,

    Well there’s a rose in a fisted glove
    And the eagle flies with the dove
    And if you can’t be with the one you love, honey….

    i wont answer any replies. esp-cially from Hammer Heads like that Billy Kid. where everything is a nail.

    God Bless us, One and All.

    Andy

    • Stop by to chat after you make your move.
      Having a modest place in the country crammed with tools and supplies is an old lifestyle model that is common in many cultures. Back in the eighties when employment got so tight in Texas, I worked out of state for half the decade. The old timers had been thinned out a lot at my place of employment, and during that period, I began informally interviewing what few older coworkers remained. Many had been laid off for anywhere from 1 to 3 years, and had only recently returned to work. There was a common thread to their stories. Most held title to some property with living quarters out of town, in a place with lower operating costs and taxes. For some it was the family farm, for others it was the lake house, deer camp, etc. When work became available, they came back to town and either lived in an apartment or RV, but held onto the titled property.
      I also discussed this with individuals who had live in Eastern Europe under communism, and they lived the same lifestyle. They held unto the family cabins in the countryside with garden plots, while they lived in apartments in the city. They would send retired family members to tend the garden plots in the growing season, and they would go there when things got bad in the city.
      Keeping the little cottage in the woods crammed with tools and supplies is not unique to the Urban Survival crowd. It is a traditional hedge against economic cycles in the city. The telecommuting adds a new dimension to this.

  11. Citric (or any other acid) is fine.

    The pros use hydrochloric acid.

    Drive by the “clean steel” piles at the steel mills. You can smell the HCl from hundreds of yards away.

    This is why I keep a bunch of TBC (specifically “The Works” but you have to use the liquid, not the “thick” Works, which is junk, for cleaning steel…)

    Hotter is better.

    Always dissolve rust outside…

    BTW, I acquired the materials to do electrolytic rust removal, but haven’t tried it yet. It requires water, a plastic or lined tub, a battery, and simple washing soda as the medium. ‘Sposed to be nondestructive, so stuff that gets left in the tank too long doesn’t dissolve or degrade.

    What’cha think, LOOB?

  12. “One reason is we’re just a bit sketchy on anything being on fire inside a home…

    …That nit aside, we sure hope LOOB does the testing of this lamp OUTSIDE”

    Pish…

    The house I grew up in had ¼” black pipe plumbing throughout the walls & ceilings. Until the knob & tube went in, the place was lit with gas and until my 20s, was heated with gas and oil heaters. 3-4 gas lights per room — some wall sconces, some probably chandeliers. Lotsa fires, no issues. ‘Twas common, all over the Midwest and Eastern Seaboard…

  13. honestly, i feel not prepared for this last leg of the journey.

    the news says one thing. when i look at the world around me it says another.

    all i see around me is good. really good. the rest of the world not so good.

    i dont have giant buckets of beans and rice, all that shit. i dont have a mountain of guns and amo, a bunch of property and money. i dont really even have a plan.

    I have a Holy Bible, a couple packs of smokes, a Large cup of Hot Coffee, A prayer Journal, A gratitude Journal, an older Volkswagon with a full tank of Gas and I Arise every morning (long before the crack of dawn) to THY will.

    That is my Big
    plan.

    lol

    oh i have a super kick ass flash light that looks like a light saber handle. and i read the world around me like a book. and i am always right where im supposed to be. always leaving 8 hours before the Big One Hits.

    i sure hope that is enough to make to the other side.

    oh. p.s. please tell Miss P, i wrote a prayer for her. and every single person i have ever written a prayer for, it all manifested for them.

    i even had a fella i know in his late 60’s say his only regret in life was not having children. i wrote a prayer for him about having a child and 8 months later he gets a call from a lady who was 32 years old and said, My mother passed away a little while back. she left a letter and said you are my father. they got a dna test and He was her father.

    so im certain all your Questions and concerns Miss P. have been addressed and are answered.

    12/26, 27 isnt that far away.

  15. i would not blame God one iota for burning down the whole thing. they are all so dishonerable.

    i knoa, be grateful and sing praises and yada yada yada. but fuck, everyone has a po8nt that they have had enough of the bullshit. im at that point with them. and if im at that point, im not the only one and i sure know God is too.

    its zero degrees outside on the mountain this morning. fuck its cold.

    im not in a good mood. at all.
    im super pissed about that whole thing on the senate judicerary floor. and its takes a lot for me to get pissed. alot.

    fuck those disgracefull political leaders and their disrespectful staff. and destroy those who are in secret that financed them.

    Our God is a consuming fire!

  17. George, if you actually do need some CRITIC acid… my wife thinks I can supply quite a bit. (Guilty as charged: my criticisms are much more acerbic than sweet.)

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