Plastic Classic Forum

This is more of a Rant regarding the way prices of some goods are getting pretty rediculous.

I was working away on my project when I found to my dismay I was totally out of 1/4" SS flat washers. Not to worry, I had planned to go shopping anyway. Now it's been some years since I last bought SS flat washers of any dimension because, when I started my project, i bought them by the bag of 500. having so many, I guess I was a bit cavalier in my handling of same. So what if a few fell on the floor and disappeared into the shop-vac? ... there's plenty more in the can.

Well, yesterday was "wake-up" day. ... I went to Worst Marine, asked for and received, 40 - 1/4" SS flat washers. The bill came to $10 plus tax ... Whoa, i cried, you want HOW MUCH? ... I think there's an error here. ... Not so, said the cashier, they're priced at $0.25/unit ... Huh? says I, ... .25cents each? Ya gotta be kiddin'! ... says I. ... Oh no, says she, that IS the correct price sir.

Just at that moment, i spied some shiny new dimes in the change she had just handed me. I took one of the SS flat washers and compared the two of them for size ... almost identical dimensions.

Methinks from now on I shall obtain a roll of dimes at the bank, stack drill them for 1/4" clearance holes and use these instead of SS washers. Wow! Look at the savings ... only 10cents each from the Bank, compared to 25cents per at Worst Marine.

Another thought just entered my head ... I think I'll ask for 1/4" SS washers instead of dimes in my change.

Ok, I'm done ranting. I'll get back to making sawdust in my shop. ... Which raises another comment. Have you ever noticed when running teak boards through the saw you don't get sawdust? ... only hundreds of $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ signs floating in the air.

I no longer purchase anything from the crooks at Worst Marine. All this time I thought Jesse James was dead, but alas he lives on as Worst Marine. 1/4 inch stainless flat washers are $2.82 per hundred at Hamilton Marine and $3.00 per hundred at Jamestown Distributors. That puts Worst Marine at OVER EIGHT TIMES THE PRICE of both of these retailers. I REFUSE to support that kind of OBSCENE PROFITS.

Bob, although a brilliant idea which could be used with copper pennies as well, I do believe it's illegal to deface American currency.................................the Feds may even confiscate your boat for evidence..............sorry for the bad news.

I have an old single wooden block with a becket and at some point in its life the owner (I presume) replaced the rivet in the becket. When I cleaned the block up I found that he had used an Indian Head Penny for a washer before peening the rivet. Makes a great conversation piece.

Bob

I don't think there is a comparable law about Canadian currency.

Never shop at West Marine!

As one who just returned from a day trip with my pseudo-granddaughter, penny smashing is okay - and it is a really cheap way to entertain a 5 year old when everything else is so expensive. We flattened a penny (cost 75 cent) and it was embossed with the Space Needle and then a quarter (for which we paid $1.25). The kid knows her math! I gave her a $2.00 budget at the Space Needle gift shop. We spent the rest of the day looking for various penny smashers at the various sites we visited. They were all cheaper (only 50 cents) and she went home with a pocket full of fun.

There is a sailing note to this adventure. We went out on the observation deck at the Space Needle and that lasted 5 seconds as it was 15 degrees and she had no interest in freezing to death. We sat inside and observed through the windows instead and there were four large sailboats apparently racing in the water down below. Now I love to sail, but really!

So... if they can do it at the gift shops, surely you can do it for a better cause.

bhartley wrote:As one who just returned from a day trip with my pseudo-granddaughter, penny smashing is okay - and it is a really cheap way to entertain a 5 year old when everything else is so expensive. We flattened a penny (cost 75 cent) and it was embossed with the Space Needle and then a quarter (for which we paid $1.25). T.....

Recall having great fun with my dad flattening pennies on the rail road tracks... :)

... actually, I did the same thing with my son too.

s/v Faith wrote: Recall having great fun with my dad flattening pennies on the rail road tracks... :)

I grew up near the tracks and were constantly trying to make a 6 pence. Place a penny on top of a nickel on the tracks. We never seemed to be able to find it though, so not sure it even works :)

Once, in the poverty of college, I drilled two holes into a penny and used it to replace a lost button on my corduroy pants. It worked great and I wore those pants for years.

As I recall they eventually succumbed to epoxy resin encrustation, with the penny/button intact!

drew

A boat builders dream = Epoxy saturated pants....long wearing and you never have to wash them !

Will the epoxy provide a barrier coat to prevent osmotic blisters on the boat owner's bottom? :-)

There are so many cheaper sources for so much of the stuff we need from washers to paint. If I need something sooner than later I am forced to use Least Marine. But before I go, I sit at the computer and print out the purchase price of what I need from the cheapest source...Defender, Jamestown, Hamilton etc. You just have to show this to them at the register and they will honor that price.

Is this news to you?

It's actually not illegal to deface or destroy coins, as long as you're not doing it for purposes of trying to pass it off as something it's not. E.g., gold-plate a half-dollar and carve the face to try to convince someone it's a gold Walking Liberty or something.

So your plan to drill a big hole in the middle of a penny and use it as a washer is perfectly legal.

The law for paper money is slightly different. But it is in fact legal to destroy or deface coins, as long as it is not for some fraudulent purpose. Just think of the penny-squishing machines you find at amusement parks everywhere.

I bought a bunch of SS hardware from McMaster-Carr. They've got just about everything in the known universe in their catalog.