Tip for the week

[davebParticipant @daveb17630]

Posted by Ian S C on 07/09/2016 14:23:26:

Cleaning wounds, if your out in the bush, pee, it's generally sterile.

Ian S C

Really tricky if you've cut the back of your head though!

Dave

[MikeParticipant @mike89748]

Useful stuff, if you look up its uses. James Bond used it as secret ink in one of the original Ian Fleming books, and US Cavalrymen were told to pee down their gun barrels when no other cleaning agents were available. The Romans used it for washing clothes, and I think I read somewhere that it was used in the early production of phosphorus. I'm sometimes full of useless knowledge…..

[Ian S CParticipant @iansc]

It was used to make nitride?(what ever) to make gun powder, the place where the GP was made had an area where all were required to pee, there was an article in ME a few years back about the manufacture of gun powder.

Ian S C

[John HinkleyParticipant @johnhinkley26699]

Posted by Ian S C on 07/09/2016 14:23:26:

Cleaning wounds, if your out in the bush, pee, it's generally sterile.

Ian S C

Really tricky if you've cut the back of your head though!

Dave

Dave,

That's when you find out who your friends really are!

John

[Gordon WParticipant @gordonw]

I have been told, but can't find any back-up, that spider web was gathered and exported. This was from the north of Scotland before and during the first world war. The mind does boggle a bit at the packing and transport, 30 foot containers? It does sound possible tho'.

[Swarf, Mostly!Participant @swarfmostly]

Posted by Ian S C on 08/09/2016 10:23:30:

It was used to make nitride?(what ever) to make gun powder, the place where the GP was made had an area where all were required to pee, there was an article in ME a few years back about the manufacture of gun powder.

Ian S C

In 'ye olden times', when we English peasants lived in thatched cottages with 5' ceilings and earth floors, officials of the government were entitled to temporarily evict us every so often and dig up said earth floors to extract the nitrates, ditto the livestock from their stables/cow sheds.

Best regards,

Swarf, Mostly!

[Jon GibbsParticipant @jongibbs59756]

Posted by Gordon W on 08/09/2016 10:52:55:

I have been told, but can't find any back-up, that spider web was gathered and exported. This was from the north of Scotland before and during the first world war. The mind does boggle a bit at the packing and transport, 30 foot containers? It does sound possible tho'.

Are you sure it wasn't sphagnum moss?… **LINK**

Jon

[nigel jones 5Participant @nigeljones5]

Pee – most definitely very unsterile (wife lectured me on this when it was quoted on tv once, and trust me, she is very well qualified). Indeed pretty much every hospital has a dedicated laboratory which analyses urine for diagnostic purposes. It always has bacteria in it regardless of your state of health and picks up more bacteria as it exits the body. It also used to be used as a key ingredient of gunpowder, extracting the Nitrate to form Potassium Nitrate. People used to pee in a bucket which was collected daily and they were paid for this, thus the saying referring to the poorest people came about, "so poor I don't have a pot to piss in".

[Gordon WParticipant @gordonw]

Jon- I am not sure of anything, I was not around in those days so just passing on stories. But do not think anyone would get spider web confused with moss, we have both round here.

[V8EngParticipant @v8eng]

I think human pee was also used in the production of Alum.

[IanTParticipant @iant]

Unfortunately my eyesight is not what it was and it's likely to decline further following plaque treatment a few years back but I've managed to get by with various magnifying devices up to now. Being at a loss as to what to ask for as my birthday present (my wife is persistent and I'd looked right through various vendors on-line shops) and finding that a) I either had one already or b) I really couldn't think of a use (e.g. exc-use) for having one – I finally thought it would be nice to have both hands free when working on small things without the magnifying glasses on stands etc getting in the way.

So (having examined the options) I asked Herself for an 'Optivisor' – not the cheapest of choices – but I decided my eyesight might be worth it. I then faffed about worrying about what magnification to use – as this effects the working distance. I finally settled for the x 2.5 pus the swing in 'loop' (another x2 I think).

Well – my tip for the day (which I thought worth sharing with folk here) is that this is something I should have done a long time ago! I've had it a couple of months now and it gets worn all the time in the workshop (and sometimes elsewhere) and it has not only helped considerably ease my eyestrain but I can actually see detail now that I'd forgotten existed. It gets flipped up and down without too much conscious thought, depending what I'm doing or looking at.

In short – I'm a very happy Optivisor customer and would recommend others consider them if they do smaller or detailed work (usual disclaimers – no connections with suppliers etc etc)

Regards,

IanT

[MikeParticipant @mike89748]

They say "Buy cheap, buy twice". True in my case – bought a cheap magnifying device which turned out to be all but useless. Then saw a TV documentary about the talented men and women who restore paintings worth millions, and noted they used Optivisors for the fiddly bits. I bought the same model as IanT, primarily for dressing trout flies but nowadays used for many other things. Highly recommended (same as Ian, usual disclaimers etc…..)

[Gary WoodingParticipant @garywooding25363]

Posted by V8Eng on 08/09/2016 14:46:29:

I think human pee was also used in the production of Alum.

In the 15th and 16th centuries, the papal states controlled the production and distribution of alum, which was highly prized as a mordant for use in dyeing cloth.
When Henry VIII split off from Rome the supply of alum dried up so another source was required.
It was discovered that shale from East Yorkshire could be calcined by burning with wood and subsequently converted into alum by the addition of stale urine.
To meet the enormous demand for alum a large amount of stale urine was required, which was collected daily in London and shipped to East Yorkshire on a continuous basis. Since the ships were rather unpleasant only the meanest of captains deigned to captain them.
If some unlikely man stated he was a ship's captain, he was often accused of "taking the piss".

[john fletcher 1Participant @johnfletcher1]

If you Google Ravenscar you will find out more regarding the use of urine and the Alum mine works at Ravenscar. Part of the works is still visible and the National Trust have installed informative plaques around the site. Nicolas Crane and Coast programme did a documentary about making Alum at the site. Plenty of free car parking near by and a wonderful view of Robin Hood Bay also the afternoon tea at the Hotel have to be experienced to be appreciated. Just a satisfied customer.John

[SillyOldDufferModerator @sillyoldduffer]

The correct name for stale urine used for industrial purposes is lant. Also, urine from women is generally unsuitable for conversion to lant due to their complicated hormones. But "Maiden's Water" was thought to be a superior product.

I know a lot of rubbish. If it wasn't for this forum my entire catalogue of useless knowledge would die with me…

Cheers,

Dave

[duncan webster 1Participant @duncanwebster1]

Posted by SillyOldDuffer on 08/09/2016 20:42:41:

The correct name for stale urine used for industrial purposes is lant. Also, urine from women is generally unsuitable for conversion to lant due to their complicated hormones. But "Maiden's Water" was thought to be a superior product.

I know a lot of rubbish. If it wasn't for this forum my entire catalogue of useless knowledge would die with me…

Cheers,

Dave

I've read that Methodists could demand a higher price as their urine was alcohol free. On that basis you wouldn't get much for mine

[John Stevenson 1Participant @johnstevenson1]

Maidens water must be priceless then.

Last know sighting of a virgin was on a Cadbury's works outing in 1926. This was the outboard trip though and history doesn't tell up what happened on the trip back.

[SillyOldDufferModerator @sillyoldduffer]

Posted by John Stevenson on 08/09/2016 21:12:12:

Maidens water must be priceless then.

Last know sighting of a virgin was on a Cadbury's works outing in 1926. This was the outboard trip though and history doesn't tell up what happened on the trip back.

1926! Even you must have been pure back then!

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