Don't take a break when it's hot

[latexeses]

Saturday I was going to do a bit of prototype work for a small project. Just got started and about 20 minutes later remembered there was a ball game on the tube that had some interest to me.

I'll just go catch a bit of the game and get back to the project.

About an hour and a half later.........



Not quite sure how to get the ratchet out of there. It is in-cased in not-so-hot glue......

The end wrench isn't any better and there are a couple sockets in there somewhere...
Even the fly swatter is part of the collage...




I'm just damned glad I didn't have it sitting on the tank. If there is a kick me sign around here I feel like I should wear it for a bit.

[donebysunday]

What is that stuff ? ? ?

[IanDMacDonald]

Looks like some kind of epoxy or glue. Maybe resin for fiberglass?

[3Phase]

Crikey! The entire pack of 28 hot-melt glue sticks melted down while you watched the game?!

[latexeses]

"The entire pack of 28 hot-melt glue sticks melted down while you watched the game?!"

Well, not the entire pack. I had used 2 of the sticks on several other projects.

The glue was a hot glue stick"s". I picked them because they are relatively soft and don't take long to reach a usable state. Or unusable in this case.

Deb actually found them like that. She came back in the house and said "You better check your tools".
Sort of subtle like....

[3Phase]

Here's Your Sign...

I can see her expression! Puzzled bemused amusement with a touch of mild annoyance and relieved superiority -- not good for you, man, not good at all!

Do you think you can maybe rig the wrench and the festive cloth to hold sparklers or something for the next 4th of July so it's not a total waste of a truly superb meltdown?

.

[latexeses]

We talked about some sort of centerpiece. But I think it would loose some of the style by not being able to enjoy the cascade effect of the glue.
I am starting to think about the possibility of a winter "Frozen Ice Fall" motif.

What irks me is the fact that it consumed a new Craftsman wrench and my favorite fine tooth 1/4 inch ratchet.

I think I'll try freezing it to chip it out of there. I am afraid the ratchet is full of the stuff.

Deb is being real careful about giving me the horse laugh. She steps in just often enough....

After 33 years we have gotten to the point where we rat ourselves out first. Seems to lessen the sting a bit. Although I think this might linger a bit.

[fredintoon]

- - - I think I'll try freezing it to chip it out of there. I am afraid the ratchet is full of the stuff. - - -

Hi 'late,
if you don't want to keep the accidental artwork, try boiling it up in a pot on the stove to separate the steel from the stickum.

[Garagamus]

Best idea I can think of would be to mount the mess on a nice wood base and donate it as an XS11.com forum trophy when someone posts a truly unique pic/post of an epic screw-up or half-baked fabrication job. (Believe me, you never wanna be nominated for "the glueball" award.)

[latexeses]

CRIPES FRED!
Don't write stuff like that where my wife might see it!

Could be a job for the Coleman though.

"Garagamus"
Ill look for a suitable base. The photo may be the only lasting evidence of this one.

Rodger

[DGXSER]

I'm with Fred, return the gooey mess to the "scene of the crime". Use a double boiler, just like melting chocolate. You should be able to get the wrench back, the ratchet though, well, hard to say you will get the goo out of its internals.

[natemoen]

Most decent rachets are able to be disassembled for cleaning and lubrication. Usually a snap ring or sometimes screws and the mechanism comes out.

[GLoweVA]

Is the ratchet a Craftsman? You could try returning it?

[LoHo]

It's warming up again this weekend...just leave it outside again.

I have burned my hand when I set a wrench down to adjust something and then picked up the sun-soaked hunk of metal...briefly, to be sure. I started keeping a damp rag to place tools on to avoid the problem. It was 109 that day.

[latexeses]

I'm thinking of stuffing the mess in the freezer and giving it a good smack with a mallet. When I get to a "workable" size I'll make my "wrench soup".

"LOHO"

This mess started out in the sun and when I heard Deb's amused "call to arms" it had been in the shade just long enough to set up. If I'd got to it when it was in the sun I'd probably burnt the crap out of my hands trying to get thing loose.

I'm pretty sure the ratchet is soaked through. The wrench is just encased.
It's not Craftsman and it is a "fine tooth" model. The double boiler might do the trick but I think I might get more satisfaction if I smack it with a rubber mallet first.