Our Fall whitewater kayak class at the
West Cook YMCA has begun. Thirteen students in an amply chlorinated pool means one of two things: suggest they buy nose plugs, or make them.
.JPG) |
| President John F. Kennedy admires a new set of nose plugs, drying on a homemade rack between dips. |
Today we invested in $8 worth of wire and $13 worth of
Plasti Dip--enough material to make hundreds of nose plugs--and began clipping, bending and dipping.
.JPG) |
| Clipping... |
.JPG) |
| bending... |
 |
| ...and dipping. |
Soon these nose plugs will adorn the faces of our students, allowing them to learn to paddle, brace and roll without getting a chlorinated nasal irrigation.
.JPG) |
| Wire cut, bent, and waiting to be dipped. |
.JPG) |
| After a second and third dip, the nose plus will dry and be ready to use. |
.JPG)
.JPG)
.JPG)
.JPG)
.JPG)
6 comments:
What type of wire was used? I've used bike spokes from an old taco'ed bike wheel that I had laying around. It worked well.
Cheers,
Bryan
A closer look at the photos tells me that it is "Multi-purpose Wire, Galvanized Utility Wire - 14 Gauge".
I used Gnarlydog's method using a mixture of silicone and cornstarch for the pads. Don't laugh, it works!
http://gnarlydognews.blogspot.ca/2011/10/diy-nose-clip-for-rolling.html
Cheers,
Bryan
Hey Bryan, stainless steel spokes sound good, but harder to bend and more costly. We decided to use the inexpensive galvanized wire which was $8.00 for 100'. Each clip only uses 4" of wire, so that's a lot of nose clips even if they eventually break. We looked at the tip for making your own moldable silicone clay. Very cool! The Plasti Dip works well and is durable, but we suspect the silicone clay would be easier, and take less time. We will try that and see how they compare. Thanks for the tip.
Alec and Sharon
I kind of considered Plasti Dip for my nose clips but I thought it would be too runny; nice to see that I was wrong.
In your pictures you show the Plasti Dip creating a little "bump" where is resting on the wire while curing. Do you cut that bit away once the paint is hard? or it is where the lanyard is attached and doesn't matter anyway?
The Plasti Dip is actually pretty thick (though it does take 3 dips to get the right buildup). It's comfortable and I think will hold up well. the spot where they hang from the wire creates a little bit of a bump, but it doesn't contact your nose so it isn't a problem. We are still looking for the right cord and I think it will get tied on to that spot anyway. I like your idea of using the Sugru. I think it might be a bit faster to assemble. I wonder how it holds up in the long run?
Alec and Sharon
Hi,
Will you please post a link to your Blog at The Kayaking Community? Our members will appreciate it.
Members include: Kayakers, Kayaking Experts, Guides, Clubs, Groups, Etc.
It's easy to do, just cut and paste the link and it automatically links back to your website. You can also add Articles, Photos, Videos and Classifieds if you like.
Email me if you need any help or would like me to do it for you.
Please feel free to share as often and as much as you like.
The Kayaking Community: http://www.vorts.com/kayaking/
I hope you consider sharing with us.
Thank you,
James Kaufman, Editor
Awesome - love it!
Post a Comment