>From: Peter Osman <PeterO_at_ambri.com.au> >Velcro fastenings seem to be regarded with suspicion. Maybe like knots, >they >can be good or bad? The paddling gloves I once used were fastened with >Velcro and were hopeless. Fell apart in water as soon as you looked at >them. >My Klepper spray deck is fastened to the coaming with Velcro and it's >worked >for a year very well, but mostly under light sea conditions. The personal >and paddle tethers I use are made for surfboards and are fastened by >sandwiching 3 separate strips of Velcro together. They seem very secure. Right you are Peter, the problem of good and bad Velcro has puzzled Catholic theologians for centuries. Seriously, though we use the term Velcro for any "hook and loop fastener" (the proper generic term), Velcro is in fact a brand name, and was the orginal (the Swiss boffin who invented it is said to have been inspired by various plants whose seed pods hook onto the fur of animals for wider distribution.) Anyway, like any other product, what's available varies widely in quality, durability, and gripping power. Reputable manufactuerers (Klepper etc.) are undoubtedly careful to source only quality stuff, propably actual Velcro, rather than one of the numerous knock-offs now on the market. How can you tell the good from the bad? Simply test it as you did the gloves. If you're buying your own to use in home projects, test the male and female halves in the store to see how strongly they resist being torn assunder from side-to-side and vertically. Happy sticking. Philip Torrens N49°16' W123°06' *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
Philip Torrens wrote: > Velcro is in fact a brand name, and was the > orginal (the Swiss boffin who invented it is said to have been inspired by > various plants whose seed pods hook onto the fur of animals for wider > distribution.) Swiss??? Isn't Velcro a Canadian invention (like the paint roller and the Robertson screwdriver).? Mike PS - someone on a kayak trip this summer showed me a book they were reading - Canadian Firsts (or something like that) - a book on inventions and first achievements by Canadians. The author... Ralph Nader.?!?!? *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
At 10:50 PM 09/14/1999 -0400, Michael Daly wrote: >Philip Torrens wrote: > >> Velcro is in fact a brand name, and was the >Swiss??? Isn't Velcro a Canadian invention (like the paint roller and the >Robertson screwdriver).? Hi Mike et al! Actually, I think velcro is a NASA invention, developed originally to keep tools and other materials from wondering off in a zero-G environment. You would be amazed at the number of everyday technologies that are NASA spin-offs! Your tax dollars at work! ByeBye! S. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
In a message dated 9/15/99 4:35:01 PM Central Daylight Time, jernigan_at_chester.uccs.edu writes: Actually, I think velcro is a NASA invention, developed originally to keep tools and other materials from wondering off in a zero-G environment. You would be amazed at the number of everyday technologies that are NASA spin-offs! Your tax dollars at work! ByeBye! S. Velcro was invented by Georges de Mestral a Swiss scientist who, after finding how difficult it was to remove the burr of the burdock plant from his clothing and his dog's fur, examined the burrs under a microscope and figured out how to reproduce the hooked shape of the burr and came up with Velcro. (Vel for velvet and Cro for crochet which is French for "hook"). From Velcro Corp's web page which was recently visited in helping my kid do a project on the Burdock plant. Good discussion on tethers, I hope it is being archived on the Paddlewise site. Dan Williams *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
>From: Steve Jernigan <jernigan_at_chester.uccs.edu> >To: Michael Daly <michaeldaly_at_home.com> >CC: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net >Hi Mike et al! > >Actually, I think velcro is a NASA invention, developed originally to keep >tools and other materials from wondering off in a zero-G environment. You >would be amazed at the number of everyday technologies that are NASA >spin-offs! Your tax dollars at work! >ByeBye! S. Hi Steve, Nope, you damn yankees didn't invent everything you know :-)! (I'm allowed to slander yanks 'cause my mom was one!) Check out http://www.velcro.com/htm/loop/invent.htm - not Canadian, not American, but Swiss in origin. By the way, contrary to popular misconception, Teflon was not a NASA invention either, although your president seems to be making full use of it:-) Philip Torrens N49°16' W123°06' *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
At 03:13 PM 09/15/1999 PDT, Philip Torrens wrote: >>Actually, I think velcro is a NASA invention, developed originally to keep >>tools and other materials from wondering off in a zero-G environment. You >>would be amazed at the number of everyday technologies that are NASA >>spin-offs! Your tax dollars at work! >>ByeBye! S. > >Hi Steve, >Nope, you damn yankees didn't invent everything you know :-)! (I'm allowed >to slander yanks 'cause my mom was one!) >Check out http://www.velcro.com/htm/loop/invent.htm - not Canadian, not >American, but Swiss in origin. By the way, contrary to popular >misconception, Teflon was not a NASA invention either, although your >president seems to be making full use of it:-) Hi all! Well! If we "damn Yankees" don't invent it, we'll just have to steal it! I'm certain I remember reading an article a couple of years back hyping NASA's contributions to the world-at-large. Among many other items it designated as NASA developments was the hook -n- loop (I visited the above web site, they're adamant that the product isn't "Velcro") design. Can't remember if the article was a NASA publication or not, but I guess I'll have to see if I can find it again to satisfy my curiosity; it wouldn't be the first time a "Yank" organization garnered the glory (and incidental profits) from someone elses' hard work! Sorry to be responsible for the dissemination of misinformation; there's more than enough of that available on the web already without me adding my $.02! ByeBye! S. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
On a visit to Roswell, N.M., my wife and I were were advised that velcro and fiber-optics came from "them" - i.e. the aliens that crashed in the desert. Don't know if them aliens were Swiss or not, but this obviously confirms the Yankees as stealers of all things good that originated from other civilizations ;-) <snip> >Well! If we "damn Yankees" don't invent it, we'll just have to steal it! >I'm certain I remember reading an article a couple of years back hyping >NASA's contributions to the world-at-large. Among many other items it >designated as NASA developments was the hook -n- loop (I visited the above >web site, they're adamant that the product isn't "Velcro") design. Can't >remember if the article was a NASA publication or not, but I guess I'll >have to see if I can find it again to satisfy my curiosity; it wouldn't be >the first time a "Yank" organization garnered the glory (and incidental >profits) from someone elses' hard work! >Sorry to be responsible for the dissemination of misinformation; there's >more than enough of that available on the web already without me adding my >$.02! >ByeBye! S. >*************************************************************************** >PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List >Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net >Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net >Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ >*************************************************************************** > > Sam Isaacs saisaacs_at_netcom.ca *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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