17x03 - Game Calls/Mayonnaise/Traditional Razor Blades/Butterfly Safety Razors

[bunniefuu]

Narrator: the invention
of mechanized game calls

In the middle
of the 19th century

Allowed hunters to mimic
the sounds of their prey.

Before these devices came along,

Hunters whistled and made noises
with their hands

To lure birds or animals
into sh**ting range,

And their efforts
weren't always on the mark.

[ Calling ]

Whether it's a mating call
or just a sociable "hey, there,"

A game call is about
speaking the language.

Of course, it all translates
into big trouble

For birds and animals
who respond.

There are dozens
of different game calls,

From duck to goose to elk.

Each game call is
a precisely crafted instrument.

To make one, they don't have to
look far for raw material.

A bamboo crop flourishes

In the backyard
of the louisiana factory.

Bamboo is one of
the fastest-growing plants

On the planet, so there's always
a ready supply.

The stem is hollow,

Which makes it ideal for
the game call's larger barrel.

After the bamboo cane has been
dried for six to eight weeks,

They cut it to length --
about 3 inches.

But bamboo isn't the only wood

They use
for making call barrels.

Others are constructed from
walnut, cherry, or exotic woods.

They're harder
and a bit more rugged,

But, of course,
they're also solid.

A boring machine hollows out
these solid walnut blanks.

They load them six at a time
into the machine's slots,

And then lower a holding bar
to secure them for drilling.

A carriage moves
the drill bits forward,

And they hit the walnut blanks
dead center.

A worker locks a hollow barrel
in a lathe.

As it spins,
he manipulates a blade

To carve
a slightly concave profile.

This will make it
easier to grip.

He also cuts designs
into the wood,

Which identify this instrument
as a certain duck call.

Each call has its own
distinguishing design.

As the duck-call barrel
continues to spin,

He sands away
any burrs or splinters.

What was a simple, wooden tube

Now has flowing lines
and a defining design.

Next, they spin a stone
on each end of the barrel,

Creating a burn that blackens
and smoothes the rims.

The game-call barrels
then funnel

Into the clutch of prongs
on a revolving wheel.

As the wheel turns,

The barrels brush against
a series of sanding belts,

Each one with a finer grit
than the last.

This final sanding
makes the barrels super smooth.

With a set of pincers, he dips
the barrels in a solution

To seal the wood inside and out.

The sealant will protect
the wooden barrel

From rain, humidity,
and the user's saliva.

After dipping,

He leaves the parts in the sun
for several hours

To bake on the sealant.

Meanwhile, they machine
a smaller barrel

Which will hold
the noise-making parts.

Using a reaming tool,

The worker tapers the opening
of the larger barrel,

And the two barrels
now fit snugly together.

A worker buffs the barrel
with steel wool

As it spins on a mandrel.

The buffing gives the wood
a silky texture,

And prepares it
for a final sealant.

Production now turns
to the noise-making insert.

A worker pounds a die
into a strip of rigid plastic

To punch out the reeds.

It's this part that vibrates
against the tone board

To produce sound.

The reed's shape varies

Depending on the kind of call
being made.

He aligns the reed
with the wooden tone board,

And then inserts them

Part of the way into the barrel
of the game call.

He sands a little, wooden wedge

That will hold everything
in place.

He pushes it into the space

Between the barrel and the reed
and tone board.

Then, using a metal file,

He forces the wedge
even further into the opening

To ensure the parts won't budge.

He slides the larger barrel

Over the protruding reed
and tone board.

After some tuning,
the game call is ready.

In a way, hunting calls
are like musical instruments --

It takes practice and know-how
to use one successfully.

But once mastered,

This instrument could attract
flocks of admirers.

[ Calling ]

After all, every game call
has a target audience.

[ Calling ]

Narrator:
according to one theory,

Mayonnaise originated
in the town of mahón in spain,

Where it was known
as "salsa mahonesa."

Mayonnaise
makes sandwiches zestier,

Turns canned tuna
into tuna salad,

Hard-boiled eggs into egg salad,

And is a creamy dip for
french fries, belgian-style.

Mayonnaise recipes vary,

But all have eggs and oil
as the main ingredients.

The eggs can be all yolks,

All whites,
or a combination of both.

At this mayonnaise factory,

The raw eggs arrive
in liquid form by tanker trunk.

They've been pasteurized

To k*ll off salmonella
and other common bacteria.

The egg supplier

Has also cleaned
and sealed the tank valve,

An additional
food-safety precaution.

A worker clamps a sanitary
evacuation hose to the tank.

Then, with a few blows
of a mallet, releases the valve.

A pump draws the eggs
through the hose

Into a refrigerated
receiving tank.

The second main ingredient,
soy bean oil,

Arrives by railway tanker car.

Like all bulk-ingredient
deliveries,

For food safety, the tank
is sealed at the supplier

To ensure it isn't opened
prior to arrival here.

A pumping system transfers
the oil to a large holding tank.

Meanwhile, factory workers
weigh out the ingredients

That make up this company's
secret blend of spices.

Next, they mix this spice blend

With white vinegar,
cider vinegar, and salt.

Then they add
liquid natural flavors.

They pour this mixture

Into a large tank
of room-temperature water,

Producing what they call
a "slurry."

The raw eggs, meanwhile,
have been transferred

Into a large,
refrigerated holding tank.

So now there are three
holding tanks at the ready --

A slurry tank, an egg tank,
and an oil tank.

A computerized
proportioning system

Extracts the required amount
from each tank

And sends it to a mixing vessel.

A couple of minutes of mixing
at high agitation

Merges the eggs, oil, and slurry
into tangy, creamy mayonnaise.

The factory
draws samples periodically

And sends them to
its quality-control department

For analysis.

The lab technicians there
evaluate several criteria,

Such as color, consistency,
and, of course, flavor.

In this test, for example,

They mix the mayo
with phenolphthalein,

A ph-level indicator,

And de-ionized water
to check the acidity level.

Once the mayonnaise passes
quality-control inspection,

This rotary filler dispenses it

Into recyclable
polyethylene jars.

It fills each jar
in just a quarter second.

The next machine
twists on a plastic cap.

Inside the cap is a foil seal.

This machine
uses targeted induction heat

To fuse the seal
to the rim of the jar

Without heating the mayonnaise
in the process.

The seal preserves freshness

And indicates the jar
wasn't tampered with

After leaving the factory.

The labeling machine
glues on one end of the label,

Spins the jar
to wrap the label around,

Then glues down the other end.

The quality-control lab

Also performs some
post-production spot-checks.

In this test, technicians use
a machine called a viscometer

To measure
the product's consistency.

The factory
also packages its mayo

Into single-serving pouches.

They're made of polyethylene
film on one side,

Foil printed with the
product label on the other.

This multi-tasking machine
forms rows of pouches,

Inserts about four ounces
of mayonnaise per pouch,

Then seals and separates
the pouches.

These pouches are shipped
to ready-made sandwich vendors

And fast-food restaurants whose
customers need mayo on the go.

Narrator: cavemen
sharpened pieces of flint

And used them
to shave their facial hair.

Modern man can simply go
purchase a pack of razor blades

For his shaver.

While several styles of shavers
and blades exist,

Many men believe the traditional
type of razor blade

Gives the closest shave
of them all.

They're paper-thin, yet sharp
enough and strong enough

To cut through
the coarsest beard.

Razor blades are made
from a stainless-steel strip

That's a mere
.004 of an inch thick.

The strip first enters
a punching machine

That stamps out
the overall blade shape.

These dull-edged blades-to-be
are called blanks.

At this stage of the process,

The stainless steel is very
soft -- as pliable as paper --

So they now harden
and strength it

Through a four-step
heat-treatment process.

Step one -- they heat the blanks
in a furnace

To just over 2,000 degrees
fahrenheit for about 30 seconds.

Step two -- they briefly
submerge them in cold water.

This is called quenching.

Step three -- they chill them
for about 20 seconds

In a deep-cooling chamber at
a temperature of -58 fahrenheit.

All this progressively
re-structures the molecules,

Hardening the metal.

However,
the metal becomes brittle,

Necessitating re-heating
the blanks for 20 seconds.

The now-hard blanks
then move through a printer,

Which applies
the razor-blade brand name.

Gas flames
instantly dry the wet ink.

Now it's time for the blanks
to become blades.

They enter a grinding
and polishing machine.

Within it
are three grinding stations

Which first sharpen the contour,

Then produce
two super-sharp cutting edges.

The blades then pass through
a polishing station

That removes burrs
left by the grinding.

Until now, the blades have been
connected to each other.

As they exit this machine,
a knife separates them.

The factory's
quality-control lab

Pulls samples
from the production line

And checks,
among other criteria,

The quality of the grinding and
geometrics of the cutting edges.

Then, every single blade
the factory produces

Is examined
for cutting-edge defects.

Technicians assemble blades
in packs of up to 800,

Then shine fluorescent light
on the two cutting-edge sides.

This makes defects visible.

Blades that pass this inspection

Are washed with solvent
to remove contaminants...

...then dried.

The now-pristine razor blades
go into a vacuum chamber.

It draws a chromium-based
coating onto the surface,

Rendering the cutting edges
harder and more wear-resistant.

Next, spray nozzles
apply a non-stick coating,

Which will help the blades
glide smoothly over the skin.

To adhere the coating
permanently

To the blade surface,

They bake it on for 20 minutes
at about 660 degrees fahrenheit.

Quality-control technicians
test samples again,

This time to ensure the blades
meet strength specifications.

This test machine
measures the force required

For the blade to cut a thick wad
of wet paper to a certain depth.

Back in production,

Workers submerge the razor
blades in organic oil

For about half an hour.

This provides additional
protection against corrosion.

On the packaging line,

The equipment wraps each blade
individually in wax paper.

The wax coating on the paper

Helps protect the razor blade
against corrosion

During storage.

Wax paper is also stronger
than regular paper,

So the blade's razor-sharp edges
don't cut through it.

The edge of these razor blades

Are about 10 times thinner
than a human hair.

A blade typically lasts
about six shaves,

So the average male goes through
quite a few,

Considering that,
over the course of his lifetime,

He'll have spent more than


Narrator:
in the age of disposable razors,

The butterfly safety razor
still has an edge.

This precision metal tool

Is good for a lifetime
of clean shaves.

A few twists of the handle,

And the butterfly mechanism
opens

To allow cleaning
and replacement of the blade.

With it, getting rid of stubble
is very little trouble.

Invented in the last century,

The butterfly safety razor

Has done its part
to prevent injuries.

The blade can be replaced

Without actually touching
the sharp edge.

The butterfly doors
also close around the blade

For a safer shave.

Also known
as the twist-to-open razor,

This grooming tool
is anything but simple.

It's comprised
of about 20 parts.

Production begins
with solid zinc bars.

They melt down the bars
in a big cauldron.

The machine
then presses the melted zinc

Into a mold
of three razor parts.

The zinc instantly cools

And solidifies into the shape
of the parts.

They're linked
by more hardened zinc.

A worker separates them,

Revealing a support structure
for the blade,

A framework
for the butterfly flaps,

And the outer casing
for the blade-support part.

Breaking them free from one
another leaves ragged edges,

So a worker grinds them smooth.

But there are still
a few blemishes

To rub off the surface.

The parts toss about
in a tumbler

Filled with abrasive
synthetic pellets.

After about half an hour, the
surface irregularities are gone.

Next, a computerized drill

Bores into the center of a
spinning aluminum dowel

As a second tool
contours the outside.

This transforms the dowel into
nuts for adjusting the blade.

They shape the aluminum handle
the same way.

Now they apply
a more durable chrome finish.

This process involves
three electro-plating baths.

The first one gives the parts
a copper coating.

Then it's into the nickel bath.

In this case, nickel
is a go-between kind of finish.

It will allow chrome
to stick to the part.

After a chemical treatment
for a matte finish,

They plunge the parts
into the chrome bath.

A quick rinse in water
reveals the result.

The parts now have
a resilient matte-chrome finish.

Once all the parts
have been fabricated,

It's time to assemble
the butterfly razor.

A worker
drives a threaded insert

Into the outer casing
for the blade support.

She installs a similar insert
in the adjustment nut

We saw being fabricated
early on.

These inserts enable her
to screw the two parts together.

She sets aside the nut
and blade-support assembly.

She slides a spring
onto the razor's center rod.

This spring pushes up the rod
to open the butterfly flaps.

She dabs thread-lock glue

On the threaded section of
the butterfly-flap support part,

And then screws the part
to the razor's center rod.

Next, she installs the butterfly
flaps on the support part.

The various sub-assemblies
now need to come together.

She begins with
the blade-support structure

And brass stem.

She attaches a spring

And slides the adjustment-nut
assembly onto the stem.

She inserts a plastic washer
into the assembly,

Allowing her to screw the handle
onto the adjustment nut.

She now pops the center rod
with the butterfly doors

Into the assembled framework

And adjusts the assembly.

She threads a set screw onto the
center rod and into the handle.

The screw will prevent the user
from turning the handle too far

And compromising
the butterfly mechanism.

An end cap attached to the base
holds the center rod in place.

Finally, she tests the handle
and screw-rod mechanism

That opens the butterfly flaps

And confirms
that they're fully functional.

It's taken about 20 minutes

To produce
this butterfly safety razor.

With regular cleaning
between blade changes,

It should last for many years.

Good thing, because there will
always be a growing need

For this reusable shaving tool.