{{ Stuff that just works }}

[PhotonWrangler]

"Bear claw" style telescoping back scratchers with curved heads. This is the best kind I've ever used.

 

[orbital]

+

back scratchers ^

a few night ago in bed had an annoying itch on my back, couldn't reach it.
grabbed a plastic coat hanger next to me and scratched my back with it = FIXED!

typo'fix

 

[iacchus]

"Bear claw" style telescoping back scratchers with curved heads. This is the best kind I've ever used.

View attachment 90962

I just ordered some for the wife. Thanks for the recco

 

[Monocrom]

+

back scratches ^

a few night ago in bed had an annoying itch on my back, couldn't reach it.
grabbed a plastic coat hanger next to me and scratched my back with it = FIXED!

Dedicated tool always works best.
Recently saw a guy cleaning snow off of his car.... with a rectangle-head broom.

 

[tech25]

I don’t know why when there is a plethora of quality extendable snow brushes for low prices.
I don’t know why people drive and don’t clear their cars off only to have snow slide down and cover the windshield.

To that end, I have two of the extendable snow brushes from Costco and one of them is probably over 10 years old.

 

[orbital]

Dedicated tool always works best.

+

Yes for sure,
but the shipping option from Amazon for 'Need in the next 2 minutes' was like $3000

 

[Monocrom]

I'll be happy to Rush Delivery over to you a plank of wood with a rusty nail througfh it.
Happy to pay the shipping.
(Honestly though, no Dollar Stores in W.I. within walking distance to buy one of those?)

 

[Bucur]

I don’t know why when there is a plethora of quality extendable snow brushes for low prices.
I don’t know why people drive and don’t clear their cars off only to have snow slide down and cover the windshield.

To that end, I have two of the extendable snow brushes from Costco and one of them is probably over 10 years old.

From the paint protection perspective, one of the worst things one can do is brushing something (dust, snow, especially ice) over the paint. The outcome is at least severe swirls, if not scratches.

I agree with you that snow sliding down and covering the windshield is very dangerous. My solution is to wait with every heater fully on (windshield and glass heaters included) until the bond between the paint and snow/ice melts. Then, I slide the snow/ice with my arm without touching the paint. Only then, I start driving. Most of the time; the snow/ice slides as a whole, like a carpet, or big enough blocks. This requires patience and unfortunately causes more pollution but less than the above description suggests. The bond melts pretty quickly, forming an invisible film of water (lubricant) over the paint. This can still induce swirls but brushing is virtually like sanding.

 

[orbital]

I'll be happy to Rush Delivery over to you a plank of wood with a rusty nail througfh it.
Happy to pay the shipping.
(Honestly though, no Dollar Stores in W.I. within walking distance to buy one of those?)

+

The closest town with Walmart & Dollar Store is a 10 minute drive, going 65mph on county roads.
It was like midnight and had to just find something since I don't have a back scratcher.
Used a coat hanger since the next closest thing was a 10mm carbine,,,,,,,, decided on the coat hanger.


(there was a typo in my post 1022 forgot an r, that's why I edited) it read scratches, obviously meant scratchers

 

[dc38]

I don’t know why when there is a plethora of quality extendable snow brushes for low prices.
I don’t know why people drive and don’t clear their cars off only to have snow slide down and cover the windshield.

To that end, I have two of the extendable snow brushes from Costco and one of them is probably over 10 years old.

crank that bass and wait for the drop

 

[Monocrom]

Ball-point pen refills from all of the established, classic brands.
Yes I've used them all, over the decades.

 

[TPA]

This 18650-powered battery operated fan:

https://www.amazon.com/efluky-3-Speed-Portable-Camping-4-9-Inch/dp/B00Y1VZ00E

I bought mine in 2016. It's been with me all over the world, used nightly, often 24/7. Literally, this thing goes wherever I do. Outdoor restaurants, theme parks, outdoor work, warm offices, in hotel rooms, etc. It really saved my butt during hurricanes. We had to turn them off one time after a hurricane because we were getting too cold! Runtime is 9 hours on low, although I usually run it off USB in hotel rooms.

That one was still going strong after 10 years...until last night when I accidentally knocked it off a high shelf onto a porcelain tile (not ceramic) floor which is mounted to a poured concrete foundation. It's fallen many times over the years, but this time cracked the case and bent the fan spindle. The motor keeps trying to work, but alas it was a fatal wound. You will be missed little bud. Even Ms TPA was sad to see it go. She has one in pink.

Fortunately, I have many, many spares still in boxes. I buy them in bulk when they go on sale and I give these away as gifts and even tips.

 

[IMA SOL MAN]

Thing that just works...backing up to a door frame, and rubbing my itchy back against the edges. Free. Plentiful, as I have many doorways in my home. Another thing that just works is having my XYL scratch my back with her fingernails. Nope, decided not to go there, you know what I mean.

 

[PhotonWrangler]

Freeze Spray (for troubleshooting thermal issues in electronics). I found an off-label use for it over the weekend. I accidentally got a blob of soft chocolate on a piece of clothing. I was dreading the idea of trying to scrape it off with a paper towel, which would wind up smooshing lots of it into the fabric. So I hit it with freeze spray. This allowed me to brush off the frozen chunks into a wastebasket, leaving only a thin film of it to be rinsed out.

Keep in mind that this stuff gets %!@#$ cold! Don't spray it on your skin.

 

[TPA]

We used to use cans of Freon for that. It was great at taking chewing gum out of carpets in school, among many other uses.

 

[orbital]

+

Charge alot of LFP batteries off my solar panels.

Have a few different inverters, mostly 24V
last year I picked up a 1000W 12V pure sine unit specifically because it had two PD (type C) outputs. One is 60W and the other is 45W.
I use those PD 'outs' all the time,,,,, soo handy to be able to go LFP~type C without a big loss in juice.

Important edit: When using the Type C 'PD' you don't turn On the inverter power switch,, that's only for AC powering of things.
..so going from your battery to PD is DC~DC and no efficiency loss.
(you don't get the display when just using PD, all that info is AC readings)

The brand put their inverters on sale and I couldn't resits getting the 2000W unit for $112 (they were like $179 last year)
having the type C on those is a win

amazon has them ^

 

[The Hawk]

This 18650-powered battery operated fan:

https://www.amazon.com/efluky-3-Speed-Portable-Camping-4-9-Inch/dp/B00Y1VZ00E

I bought mine in 2016. It's been with me all over the world, used nightly, often 24/7. Literally, this thing goes wherever I do. Outdoor restaurants, theme parks, outdoor work, warm offices, in hotel rooms, etc. It really saved my butt during hurricanes. We had to turn them off one time after a hurricane because we were getting too cold! Runtime is 9 hours on low, although I usually run it off USB in hotel rooms.

That one was still going strong after 10 years...until last night when I accidentally knocked it off a high shelf onto a porcelain tile (not ceramic) floor which is mounted to a poured concrete foundation. It's fallen many times over the years, but this time cracked the case and bent the fan spindle. The motor keeps trying to work, but alas it was a fatal wound. You will be missed little bud. Even Ms TPA was sad to see it go. She has one in pink.

Fortunately, I have many, many spares still in boxes. I buy them in bulk when they go on sale and I give these away as gifts and even tips.

I just received my fan. It is incredibly powerful! I like the lights on it too. Thanks for the suggestion.

 

[gurdygurds]

Pentel P series mechanical pencils. Became fascinated with these the first time I saw them on my Dad's desk when I was a little kid. I'm partial to the P209 lead size so I swap the guts from those into different colored bodies. This Rhodia notepad is sweet as well.

 

[Jean-Luc Descarte]

Pentel P series mechanical pencils. Became fascinated with these the first time I saw them on my Dad's desk when I was a little kid. I'm partial to the P209 lead size so I swap the guts from those into different colored bodies. This Rhodia notepad is sweet as well.View attachment 91511

You can say that again!

Spoiler: Details (spoilered for post size reasons)

The 'original colours' set on top stays on my bedroom/office desk's pen cup.
The ones on the lower left travel in my EDC bag.
All of them see very constant use during my study sessions, be them on language or more general seminars, depending on where I am.

The other two are oddballs.
The white one (actually transparent) is a P209 I purchased for on-person carry and practically lives behind my ear. I'm also partial to 0.9mm for general use, it's a comfortable one and makes my handwriting look less jagged.
The brown P203 is a lost one that I've found.

Not sure how popular this opinion is, but with the lightweight grip I use, I actually find the P20X a really comfortable writer, no matter the lead size.

 

[gurdygurds]

You can say that again!

View attachment 91512

Spoiler: Details (spoilered for post size reasons)

The 'original colours' set on top stays on my bedroom/office desk's pen cup.
The ones on the lower left travel in my EDC bag.
All of them see very constant use during my study sessions, be them on language or more general seminars depending on where I am.

The other two are oddballs.
The white one (actually transparent) is a P209 I purchased for on-person carry and practically lives behind my ear. I'm also partial to 0.9mm for general use, it's a comfortable one and makes my handwriting look less jagged.
The brown P203 is a lost one that I've found.

Not sure how popular this opinion is, but with the lightweight grip I use, I actually find the P20X a really comfortable writer, no matter the lead size.

Yessir! Nice collection there.