Posted on 02/27/2009 5:39:30 AM PST by shove_it
Can Vise-Grips save a life? Sure, and they can replace a stick shift, save a marriage and clamp blood vessels. They can do all this, and so much more. PM shares ten "unbelievable tales" of rescue and ingenuity from Irwin's "Tell Us Your Vise-Grip Story" contest.
In the movie Gran Torino, Clint Eastwood's character hands a novice tool user a roll of duct tape, a can of WD-40 and a pair of Vise-Grips. He tells the youngster that any man worth his salt "can do half his household jobs with these three things."
Well, Clint was right on the money, as Vise-Grip manufacturer Irwin proved in a recent contest called "Tell Us Your Vise-Grip Story." Over the course of four months last year, Irwin received 845 entries from regular folks using Vise-Grips for everything from ad hoc auto fixes to emergency bovine surgery to–perhaps most surprising–marriages whose very existence hinged on a special pair of pliers.
Irwin recently announced three finalists and will soon announce a winner, but PM got to check out all the entries. We've gathered a few of our favorites here–they don't all get our endorsement as proper repairs, and we can't guarantee that they're true, but we certainly applaud the creativity.
[...]
(Excerpt) Read more at popularmechanics.com ...
I’ll read this later bump.
No doubt! I hope the inventor made billions. It’s been worth every penny.
Back in the 80’s I had a hand in the construction of a major American building in Moscow. I was the US laison for a subcontractor that employed all Russian workers. I assisted in procurement of tools and other jobsite necessities.
Vise grips were unknown to the Russians and would disappear as soon as they were replaced in the tool boxes.
Most of the workers were women. To induce overtime, panty hose were provided on the day the overtime was scheduled. Panty hose were also unknown and much treasured when available
Please tell me vice-grips were not used to hold up the panty hose.
Isn’t capitalism grand, compared to communism or Obammunism?
Why would anybody want to be a commie, except the ruler...
I clamped a small one on the broken nub of a clutch handle after some chickens**t kicked my motorcycle over one night. It got me back to town...
Under Obama, vice grips will be taken from those who have many vice grips and given to thse who are vice grip-less.
I heard Hilliary had a unique use for them.
(And yes, I am)
Vise Grips - along with the pushrod V8 and the SR71, a bona fide masterpiece of American engineering.
I've done this.
Lets face it, IBMG... You just have too many tools. Nobody needs as many tools as you have. It is unfair that you should have so many pairs of Vice Grips while others have so few.
Obama will only take Vice Grips from the top two percent of Vice Grip owners, those who have 16 or more in their tool box. If you have fewer than 16 Vice Grips, this siezure will not effect you, and you have nothing to worry about.
Everyone knows that the correct use for vise-grips is to round the heads of bolts & nuts so they can never be removed.
Vice Grips, WD-40, Duct Tape, a good Pocket Knife, a small coil of stout cord, a Zippo lighter with extra fluid and flints — these are the things you’d want if you were shipwrecked on a desert island...
...oh yeah, and the pretty blonde would also be nice to have, too.
Russian panty hose. We would call them waders.
The battery post cable end broke in two on an old car I owned in high school. Vice-Grips clamped what was left to the battery and it started and ran that way for a year...
But he assures us the “Vice Grip-Less Assistance Act of 2009” will only benefit the most deserving grip-less individuals and families. The new White House Office of Toolbox Equity will carefully evaluate vice-grip need.
VISE-GRIPS: Generally used after pliers to completely round off bolt heads. If nothing else is available, they can also be used to transfer intense welding heat to the palm of your hand..
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