Newsgroups: sci.space.shuttle
From: henry@spsystems.net (Henry Spencer)
Subject: Re: It's the little details that get ya........
Date: Sat, 13 Jan 2001 18:45:28 GMT

In article <3a67ec9b.85234957@news.seanet.com>,
Derek Lyons <elde@hurricane.net> wrote:
>>...that duct tape is about the last thing you actually wanna
>>use on air ducts--the temperature cycling will cause the stuff to wear
>>badly, fast.
>
>It depends on if you get the real deal, or if you get the cheap stuff
>currently marketed under the name 'duct tape'.

I recently saw "duct tape" in some catalog or other, and a close inspection
of the photo revealed that the package carried a "not for use on air ducts"
warning!

This is all actually a bit silly, because true duct tape is not what you
want for (e.g.) taping people to the wall on board a spacecraft.  What you
use for that is more properly called gaffer's tape.  It looks the same,
but the adhesive is different:  true duct tape has a permanent adhesive
which is formulated not to come off, ever -- meaning that if you do try to
remove it, you get a sticky mess -- while gaffer's tape has a less
tenacious adhesive that will come off cleanly.  90%+ of what is now sold
as duct tape is really gaffer's tape.

It would appear, alas, that we're seeing a change in the meaning of the
phrase -- the incorrect usage having become quite well established -- and
a new name will have to be found for the stuff which *is* meant for air
ducts.
--
When failure is not an option, success  |  Henry Spencer   henry@spsystems.net
can get expensive.   -- Peter Stibrany  |      (aka henry@zoo.toronto.edu)