>> The Thermette, a simple and effective device for boiling water outdoors over an enclosed fire, was invented by Manawatū plumber John Hart and patented in 1931
The Kelly Kettle was produced in Ireland decades before. The Thermette is a knockoff.
Growing up on a farm here in the US, electric fence wire (I think 14ga, not 8ga) was always useful. I almost always had a roll & some snips nearby when doing any maintenance. You can fix some broken electric fence, re-bind the fence paneling to T-stakes, and if desperate cobble together some hinges and a latch for an impromptu gate, all with a simple roll of wire.
A foot or two of this wire and you can whip up a stabilizer for hanging any old tool off of a single nail in the barn. A couple feet of it makes a tie-down for any plant or tree branch, sometimes you don't even need a stake, the wire can be pushed deep enough and into a J shape underground that it'll often hold on its own.
This tradition of Kiwi ingenuity is often known as the ‘no. 8 wire’ attitude, a reference to a gauge of fencing wire that has been adapted for countless other uses in New Zealand farms, factories and homes.
Number 8 wire is fencing wire.
The rural dictionary usage of the phrase refers to fixing things with fencing wire.
Baling wire is also not as thick. 12 gauge, 10 gauge at the very most. Baling wire can be cut with those snippers you keep in your toolbox. Fence wire? Eh, better get bigger wire cutters.
The wire equivalent of duck tape. It represents ingenuity using a humble/simple item such as plain fencing wire to solve a wide variety of problems the item was not originally intended for.
Strangely missing from the article: instant or soluble coffee was invented and patented in 1890 by David Strang of Invercargill, New Zealand, under patent number 3518 sold under the trading name Strang's Coffee citing the patented "Dry Hot-Air" process.
>> The Thermette, a simple and effective device for boiling water outdoors over an enclosed fire, was invented by Manawatū plumber John Hart and patented in 1931
The Kelly Kettle was produced in Ireland decades before. The Thermette is a knockoff.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kelly_Kettle
This article forgets to mention the “she”ll be right mate” that goes along with it.
Followed usually by "bugger!".
It's puckerooed
Yeah nah!
New Zealand's history sailing in the America's Cup is another good example of their ingenuity and technical innovation with yacht design.
What does 'no. 8 wire' mean?
> a reference to a gauge of fencing wire that has been adapted for countless other uses in New Zealand farms, factories and homes.
But that doesn't really make the reader any wiser, as the article doesn't talk about any of its uses in New Zealand.
They're much the same as any ad hoc uses of stiff thick fencing wire anywhere really.
Has the world really come to the point where an essay on how to MacGyver with wire is required?
Emergency muffler reattachment, temporary gate latch, ...
It’s the essay on the New Zealand McGyver using no. 8 wire that the world needs.
Growing up on a farm here in the US, electric fence wire (I think 14ga, not 8ga) was always useful. I almost always had a roll & some snips nearby when doing any maintenance. You can fix some broken electric fence, re-bind the fence paneling to T-stakes, and if desperate cobble together some hinges and a latch for an impromptu gate, all with a simple roll of wire.
A foot or two of this wire and you can whip up a stabilizer for hanging any old tool off of a single nail in the barn. A couple feet of it makes a tie-down for any plant or tree branch, sometimes you don't even need a stake, the wire can be pushed deep enough and into a J shape underground that it'll often hold on its own.
>Growing up on a farm here in the US, electric fence wire (I think 14ga, not 8ga) was always useful.
My dad will mention number 9 clothesline wire in a similar context. Also baling twine and baling wire are common for farmers for the same reason.
The rural dictionary usage of the phrase refers to fixing things with fencing wire.
Thanks for the answers, very appreciated.
Once I yanked out about 20m of old phone wire (copper) out of a wall, and now it's my duck tape wire.
In the US I have heard it referred to as "bailing wire". Often used for an emergency or temporary fix.
“Baling” wire. Used to bind bales of hay.
Baling wire is also not as thick. 12 gauge, 10 gauge at the very most. Baling wire can be cut with those snippers you keep in your toolbox. Fence wire? Eh, better get bigger wire cutters.
#8 on (British) SWG scale is about the size of a #11 wire (never seen this size in real life) on the AWG scale.
The scale is explained in https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Standard_wire_gauge
The wire equivalent of duck tape. It represents ingenuity using a humble/simple item such as plain fencing wire to solve a wide variety of problems the item was not originally intended for.
No 8 wire on the British Standard Wire Gauge (SWG) scale is slightly larger than a #12 conductor on the American Wire Gauge (AWG) scale.
#8 SWG is 4mm diameter, that's way larger than #12 AWG, closer to #6 AWG
Strangely missing from the article: instant or soluble coffee was invented and patented in 1890 by David Strang of Invercargill, New Zealand, under patent number 3518 sold under the trading name Strang's Coffee citing the patented "Dry Hot-Air" process.
It's in the article.
Reminds me of my dad, he used to always talk about number 9 clothesline wire.
I did a different way and called my lan center 8wire for Ethernet cables. This is interesting as well haha