June 9, 2009

Page Mr. Chamberlain! (Feb, 1940)

Filed under: Impractical — @ 12:08 pm
Source: Mechanix Illustrated ( More articles from this issue )
Issue: Feb, 1940
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Page Mr. Chamberlain!
BRITAIN’S prime minister would undoubtedly be fascinated by this latest rainy-day gadget, which is called the “Umbrubber.” Made to protect the user against sudden showers that might spring up, the device has a special handle of plastic which contains a pair of light-weight rubbers. In the event that the user is one ‘of those people who won’t wear rubbers, no matter what the weather, the handle can be used as a container for cigars, cigarettes, candy, or cough medicine.

April 30, 2009

Balloons on Helmet Make Targets for Cavalry Combat (Jul, 1931)

Filed under: Impractical, War — @ 12:17 am
Source: Modern Mechanix ( More articles from this issue )
Issue: Jul, 1931
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Balloons on Helmet Make Targets for Cavalry Combat

PUNCTURING a balloon on the head of an opponent with the skillful thrust of a rapier is the unique means employed by cavalry students to score points when engaging in “armed combat” at Urban Military Academy at Beverly Hills, California. The balloons are tied to the helmets of the combatants, and the first fighter to burst the balloon of an “enemy” wins the encounter.

Although swordsmanship is a thing of the past, as far as modern warfare is concerned, this kind of practice is of service in teaching agility, alertness and horsemanship. The contest is a part of the training for the annual spring maneuvers of the academy.

April 6, 2009

Machine Reads Your Head Bumps (Jul, 1931)

Filed under: Impractical — @ 10:17 pm
Source: Modern Mechanix ( More articles from this issue )
Issue: Jul, 1931
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Machine Reads Your Head Bumps
YOUR character read while you wait is the amazing feat performed by a new machine called the “Robot Phrenologist.” A cap equipped with a battery of fingers fits over the head and sends electrical impulses to a recording device, shown below.

March 1, 2009

Manpower Flight Greatest April Fool Joke (Jul, 1934)

Filed under: Aviation, Impractical — @ 11:32 pm
Source: Modern Mechanix ( More articles from this issue )
Issue: Jul, 1934
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Manpower Flight Greatest April Fool Joke

PHOTOGRAPHS of a man flying through the air by his own power, the dream of scientists for centuries, completely fooled outstanding U. S. newspapers recently.

Captions on the photographs, coming from Germany, explained that Pilot Erich Kocher took off with a pair of rotor wings strapped to his chest. Kocher supposedly blew into a box which converted the carbon dioxide of his breath into fuel to operate the rotors. The turning rotors developed a vacuum ahead pulling the man through the air.

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Scientist’s New Theories May Aid in Forecasting Weather Conditions (Jun, 1930)

Filed under: Impractical — @ 11:28 pm
Source: Modern Mechanix ( More articles from this issue )
Issue: Jun, 1930
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Scientist’s New Theories May Aid in Forecasting Weather Conditions

THEORIES which may explain the formation of the earth’s surface features, and eventually make it easy to predict both storms and earthquakes, have been evolved after years of research by Halbert P. Gillette, retired engineer and former instructor in science at Columbia University.

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January 13, 2009

PLAYGROUNDS IN THE SKY (Apr, 1957)

Filed under: Architecture, Impractical, Sports — @ 10:45 pm
Source: Mechanix Illustrated ( More articles from this issue )
Issue: Apr, 1957
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PLAYGROUNDS IN THE SKY

Here is MI’s hold plan to fight juvenile delinquency and get kids off the street.

THE scene is your city on a sticky, sweltering twilight in midsummer. Lights are beginning to wink on and kids are starting to gather in the streets after the evening meal.

A few years ago this was the danger hour in your city. You remember it well—the nightly muggings would begin about now and young girls would be afraid to venture out alone. Beatings were commonplace and gang wars, fiercely fought with knives and zip-guns, were a frequent occurrence. But things are different now.

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January 12, 2009

Cut Hair with Your Electric Shaver (Feb, 1957)

Filed under: Impractical, Personal Appearance — @ 11:28 pm
Source: Science And Mechanics ( More articles from this issue )
Issue: Feb, 1957
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Cut Hair with Your Electric Shaver

With the Electric Shaver Haircutting Guide anyone owning a Remington, Schick or Norelco shaver can give a good haircut. Made of metal, the wire guide has an overall length of eight inches and a width of three inches.

In use, the shaver is inserted in the adaptor which holds it in position and the entire unit is placed against the head. One hand holds the guide while the other hand moves the shaver up and down as illustrated. Included in the $2.98 guide price are complete instructions. If you do not have a shaver, a $30.50 price includes your choice of Remington Deluxe or Schick, while a $25.95 price brings a Norelco with the guide.

Spuriscope (Nov, 1949)

Filed under: Impractical — @ 12:04 am
Source: Mechanix Illustrated ( More articles from this issue )
Issue: Nov, 1949
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So, why couldn’t the counterfeiter buy one of these?

Spuriscope tells the difference between a counterfeit bill and a genuine piece of money. The user dials the serial number which is on the currency and there appears on the machine an alphabetical series designation. If the bill in question does not bear the same letters, it’s counterfeit. Accurate Molding Corp., Long Island City, N. Y. makes it.

December 29, 2008

You Can Swat That Fly in Mid-Air (May, 1932)

Filed under: Impractical — @ 12:40 pm
Source: Modern Mechanix ( More articles from this issue )
Issue: May, 1932
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You Can Swat That Fly in Mid-Air
ONE of the many unique contraptions shown at the International Patent Exhibition in Philadelphia recently is the novel fly-swatter shown below.
This method of trapping the unwary fly is guaranteed to be much easier than putting salt on its tail. With this device flies can be killed on the wing.

December 2, 2008

Postpone Irrigation of Sahara (Sep, 1929)

Filed under: Impractical — @ 12:39 am
Source: Modern Mechanix ( More articles from this issue )
Issue: Sep, 1929
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Still waiting…

Postpone Irrigation of Sahara
PLANS for turning the Sahara desert into a rich agricultural territory by means of diverting waters of the Mediterranean sea into depressions of the wasteland have been postponed for some time due to the death of the man whose idea and capital furnished the incentive. Dwight Braman, prominent American financier, was recently stricken with heart attack and died. It was his intention to begin the work of letting the sea into the desert this fall. American engineers and machinery were to be used, and following his return from Algeria before his death, Mr. Braman was highly enthusiastic of the possibility of making the “Sahara blossom like a rose.” Some of Mr. Braman’s friends are considering taking over the plans for the project.

October 18, 2008

Vision Perpetual Motion In This Rubber Band Engine (Dec, 1933)

Filed under: Impractical — @ 12:01 am
Source: Modern Mechanix ( More articles from this issue )
Issue: Dec, 1933
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Vision Perpetual Motion In This Rubber Band Engine

AN ENGINE run only by a single rubber band—does it have possibilities of perpetual motion?

Many who saw it on exhibit at the Hall of Science in Chicago’s Century of Progress Exposition believe it has. The engine, shown on the left, obtains its energy from heat directed on the rubber band. Many persons visioned the probability of substituting solar heat for the electrical heaters used in the exhibit. However, perpetual motion is an impossibility as the machine would run only during life of band.

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September 11, 2008

New Burglar Alarm Set Off by Vibrations of Heartbeat (Jan, 1933)

Filed under: Crime and Police, Impractical — @ 12:35 am
Source: Modern Mechanix ( More articles from this issue )
Issue: Jan, 1933
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I hope they don’t have rats at that bank, because it sounds like just about anything would set that alarm off.

New Burglar Alarm Set Off by Vibrations of Heartbeat

THERE have been numerous inventions to foil bank bandits in their hold-up attempts but the latest one is the most original. The vibrations of the human heart-heat set off an alarm bell.

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