Author Topic: Gadget WEEKENDS (Read 640734 times)

mouser · « **Reply #150 on:** February 08, 2013, 04:03 AM »

Ok my gadget for today is something I wish I had discovered earlier in life, it's a Glue Gun.

This cheap little guy will cost you $13 and is a wonder for making super fast glue bonds.

You know those commercials for "super glue" the glue that will stick your fingers to each other but never seems to hold much of anything else?

Well a glue gun actually *works*.

Basically it just melts these little glue "sticks" into liquidy gel which you apply to the area.. and it bonds very quickly -- within a minute, as it dries.

The speed is the key reason you would use a glue gun -- there are so many glueing projects where you don't want to wait hours or even days for it to try.

The other advantage of a glue gun is that the glue can be made quite thick to fill a void or span a distance, and the glue gun bonds have a little bit of a rubbery give to them, which make them less brittle and more forgiving (unlike superglue which is super thing and brittle).

Anyway, at $13 I think it's a gadget everyone should have on hand.

http://www.amazon.co...d-Melt/dp/B000NIFKRM

app103 · « **Reply #151 on:** February 08, 2013, 11:57 AM »

Did you know they sell caulk sealer in glue stick form? The stuff is wonderful (when you can find it), because you don't have to wait hours and hours for it to dry so you can take a shower. It sets in about a minute or so.

Of course, you'd want a dedicated glue gun of the right type for this purpose, as it's not a good idea to mix adhesives or sealants within the same device. So, if you get yourself a 2nd one for a specific type of adhesive, make sure you label both guns with the adhesive type you used in them.

I actually own a bunch of glue guns, some of them are even dedicated to the use of this stuff (one for each color, that I picked up for about $3 each, back in the last century).

cranioscopical · « **Reply #152 on:** February 08, 2013, 02:53 PM »

Basically it just melts these little glue "sticks" into liquidy gel which you apply to the area.. and it bonds very quickly
-mouser (February 08, 2013, 04:03 AM)

Just don't let it drip on your hands or you'll find yourself doing one of those dancing-screaming routines

Renegade · « **Reply #153 on:** February 08, 2013, 08:33 PM »

Basically it just melts these little glue "sticks" into liquidy gel which you apply to the area.. and it bonds very quickly
-mouser (February 08, 2013, 04:03 AM)
Just don't let it drip on your hands or you'll find yourself doing one of those dancing-screaming routines
-cranioscopical (February 08, 2013, 02:53 PM)

I've done the dancing-cursing routine!

barney · « **Reply #154 on:** February 08, 2013, 11:53 PM »

Just don't let it drip on your hands or you'll find yourself doing one of those dancing-screaming routines
-cranioscopical (February 08, 2013, 02:53 PM)

I've done the dancing-cursing routine!
-Renegade (February 08, 2013, 08:33 PM)

Try doing it while wearing summer shorts and dripping it onto your thigh ... may have invented a new dance-n-chant $:-\$

.
The newer versions are trigger-fed, but the originals used thumb pressure - a strong grip at the wrong time could be ... painful, shall we say?

app103 · « **Reply #155 on:** February 09, 2013, 02:45 AM »

Don't do crafts in your bare feet, either. I had a gun malfunction once and the trigger got stuck, with a lot of hot glue all over the place, dripping onto my foot.

I did that same dance.

_{Then there is that other dance, the one that goes with crazy glue + nylon.}

Renegade · « **Reply #156 on:** February 09, 2013, 02:53 AM »

Here's a useful, super-ultra-mega-mondo-giga-killer-uber-sexy low tech little tidbit that works perfectly for helping to arrange NANY mugs under overhead cupboards:

Hook screws~!

I just put up a couple more in the kitchen for pots & pans as well.

mouser · « **Reply #157 on:** February 09, 2013, 04:08 AM »

Hook screws -- great gadget -- I have them all over. A must for anyone obsessed with utilizing space fully.

cranioscopical · « **Reply #158 on:** February 09, 2013, 09:28 AM »

Hook screws~!
-Renegade (February 09, 2013, 02:53 AM)

Screw hooks… use nails!

mouser · « **Reply #159 on:** February 15, 2013, 02:46 PM »

Ok my gadget for today is a cordless vacuum cleaner with beater brush.

I've posted before about the Swiffer Sweeper Vac, which is great for pet hair and dust on hardwood.

This gadget is more for carpet and rugs -- especially if you have pet hair.

There are a few of these models out there, and I've owned two.

The one I have now is a Hoover Linx cordless, which retails for about $150 but which I got for $50 on ebay because it was half-broken.

Previously I had a black+decker one that was almost as good.

The key feature of this device is that it is cordless, which for me means I'm actually likely to use it -- as I hate dealing with cords. And that it has a motorized beater brush, which is essential for rugs/carpets.

You should know that in terms of suction, a cordless vacuum does not even come close to the power of a corded model -- in fact I would go so far as to say that the cordless models are virtually useless as a replacement vacuum for hard flooring work (i'd prefer the swiffer sweeper), BUT if you have carpet/rug and want something to regularly pick up pet hair, the motorized beater brushes work well and these are very useful devices. So again, this is a narrow use gadget in my opinion, but one that does it's particular job well and with extreme convenience.

KynloStephen66515 · « **Reply #160 on:** February 15, 2013, 04:39 PM »

Very handy 9 in 1 precision screwdriver pen.

Also very cheap at just £2! (I found mine for 50% off so only £1 for me!!!)

Renegade · « **Reply #161 on:** February 15, 2013, 09:16 PM »

Well, I think you can buy these gadgets, or just reuse them...

Foaming soap dispensers - super economical, highly functional, and reusable.

From left to right...

The first bottle is Thieves soap. It's a powerful, natural soap and disinfectant, etc. etc. But, the bottle is a foaming one.

The second bottle is an old Thieves soap bottle that I fill about 1/8th or so with regular dish soap (further right) and then fill with water. It makes washing dishes much nicer and I use a LOT less dish soap this way. Just a squirt or two whenever needed. And it seems to last really darn long...

Gadget WEEKENDS

The dish soap foam comes out like this:

Gadget WEEKENDS

The third bottle is the same foaming soap bottle with the label stripped, but this one is filled with some liquid hand soap and water.

On the far right are those horrible liquid soap bottles that spit out a tonne of soap that always seems to slip out of your fingers and down the drain before you can rub it into a lather. Again, the foaming bottles make it much more economical on the soap, not to mention easier.

I think you can buy empty foaming bottles, but it's just as easy to find them full and get the soap to go along with the bottle, then reuse the bottle. Why recycle perfectly good bottles when they're just as easy to refill?

fenixproductions · « **Reply #162 on:** February 15, 2013, 11:38 PM »

Very handy 9 in 1 precision screwdriver pen.
-Stephen66515 (February 15, 2013, 04:39 PM)

I always carry same one with me

fenixproductions · « **Reply #163 on:** February 16, 2013, 12:02 AM »

Not all are gadgets but always nice to carry around:

Gadget WEEKENDS

plastic rain coat / poncho,
razor blades - was hard to find these in standard shop,
tissues,
lighter - Highlander Turboflame Twin Laser,
small perfume sample,
batteries - mostly used as my Canon camera emergency supply,
16GB pendrive,
nail clipper,
paracord line - dunno what to do with it
card reader
flashlight - Olight T15,
pocket screwdriver set - like Stephen66515 has,
ballpoint,
multitool - Leatherman Wingman,
comb.

Oh! And a needle with thread in my wallet.

Most of these were used many times.

Sometimes I also have my own "altoids box" with me

mwb1100 · « **Reply #164 on:** February 16, 2013, 04:19 AM »

small perfume sample
-fenixproductions (February 16, 2013, 12:02 AM)

I'm curious what emergency this is for?

fenixproductions · « **Reply #165 on:** February 16, 2013, 04:49 AM »

small perfume sample
-fenixproductions (February 16, 2013, 12:02 AM)

I'm curious what emergency this is for?
-mwb1100 (February 16, 2013, 04:19 AM)

Sometimes you just want to smell nice (i.e. on meetings). Of course, it does not replace proper shower and may be used in "comb situations" too

But alcohol in it can:
1. make better fire,
2. be antiseptic,
3. make it easier to clean things.

It also helps in crowded winter bus where people sweat a lot or some homeless guys appear. It is better to inhale drop of it on tissue instead of stinky air.

f0dder · « **Reply #166 on:** February 16, 2013, 06:43 AM »

paracord line - dunno what to do with it
-fenixproductions (February 16, 2013, 12:02 AM)

Handy if you're in an emergency where you need to beat somebody up?

4wd · « **Reply #167 on:** February 16, 2013, 11:45 PM »

Sometimes you just want to smell nice (i.e. on meetings). Of course, it does not replace proper shower and may be used in "comb situations" too

But alcohol in it can:
1. make better fire,
2. be antiseptic,
3. make it easier to clean things.
-fenixproductions (February 16, 2013, 04:49 AM)

4. Impromptu Mace/Capsicum spray.

Anyway, another favourite technician gadget: the butane soldering iron

Since I got this ~17 years ago I could probably count on one hand the number of times I've resorted to my old electric version. The above is the original Portasol, (with a Telecom Australia logo stamped on to stop people nicking them

).

Hmmm, explosive gas and made in Ireland.....

Renegade · « **Reply #168 on:** February 16, 2013, 11:53 PM »

^^ That's got quite the nice range of tips there!

f0dder · « **Reply #169 on:** March 01, 2013, 01:45 PM »

So, payday and stuff - new gadgets.

Been wanting to consolidate some of my external drives for a while, as they take up a fair amount of shelf space... and on top of that, those old drives are prettttty slow. Disk#1 and #2 are 500gig and have USB2 and FireWire400 (much faster, but still slow... but my current workstation doesn't have FW) - and, fortunately, eSata, which I had forgotten - nice surprise to rediscover that

. Disk#1 is chugging along at 50MB/s right now.

So, enter the Western Digital My Passport 2TB USB3!

Disk#3 is much newer than 1&2, but only has USB2

- fortunately, getting the drive out was as easy as unscrewing four screws and the drive slid right out. I expect it to be able to go a fair bit faster than the 50MB/s of 1&2. USB2 would've been dreary though - 1TB at that speed is something along the lines of 8-10 hours of transfer.

Gadget WEEKENDS

Not a super fancy and interesting gadget, I guess, but it's nice getting that data consolidated - will probably donate the old disks to p3lb0x. Oh, and apart from consolidation, the speed is nice - along the lines of 100MB/s read and 90MB/s write, that was a deciding factor as well

mouser · « **Reply #170 on:** March 01, 2013, 01:49 PM »

Good reminder that first of the month is a good day for everyone to do your full system drive imaging backups.

f0dder · « **Reply #171 on:** March 01, 2013, 01:52 PM »

Good reminder that first of the month is a good day for everyone to do your full system drive imaging backups.
-mouser (March 01, 2013, 01:49 PM)

...and at the speed of USB3, it's a little less painful than it used to be

I bought the 1TB version of the My Passport a month or two ago, for backups - a bit thinner than the 2TB version, but otherwise identical, and it's been working very well too. It's so darn convenient not having to mess with wall-wart power thingies, the drives are powered over USB3.

And eSata has always seemed a little flaky to me - flakier even than USB

mouser · « **Reply #172 on:** March 05, 2013, 06:37 PM »

Continuing a theme, I want to post today about a quick non-water-bucket mop.

The one I just got is the Swiffer WetJet, which is $20 and uses disposable pads and proprietary cleaning solution that triggers at push of a button.

This does not have the cleaning ability of a normal strong mop, but it seems to do a surprisingly good job, and most of all it's 1000x more convenient than using a normal water-bucket mop.. So for those of you like me who would just never ever ever mop, it's a real winner. It falls into that category of chores that would never get done without something quick and portable like this.

There are several different brands available -- I have no reason to prefer one over the other -- and you might try one with washable pads or which doesn't require hacking to use your own cleaning solution.

tomos · « **Reply #173 on:** March 06, 2013, 02:36 AM »

hey mouser,
are you having a long weekend

mouser · « **Reply #174 on:** March 06, 2013, 02:42 AM »

I figure it's me just talking to myself on this thread so why bother sticking to the rules..