[TheForge] Another stupid mask idea -- no metal content

[Dave Smucker]

One of the best paper towel materials is disposable shop towels.  They are a much tighter weave than kitchen type.  I still would use two layers.

So far I have not had to make any myself since I still have a few N95 masks from my shop for use when doing high dust jobs.  Also I have little need to go out except to purchase groceries once every 10 days or so.  I like to cook and my wife likes to bake so eating at home is normal for us.  I am retired from a job where I travel a great deal and was away from home for 100 to 150 days a year much of it international so I hate to eat out anyway.

One of my current pet peeves is all of the BS about the masks not protecting you.  If this is true why did we require works to wear N95 Masks.  We had lots of brick masons who would be dying of silicosis if we did not require them to wear N95 masks.  (Brick masons, did the relining of melting furnaces).  I know this was dust and not a virus but still they do work and are not hard to learn to use.  Anything else is BS.

We are not going to get 100 percent safety from a home made or a N95 mask but improving the odds is what it is all about.

Dave Smucker
Brasstown, NC

-----Original Message-----
From: theforge-bounces at mailman.qth.net <theforge-bounces at mailman.qth.net> On Behalf Of Bruce .
Sent: Thursday, April 2, 2020 9:18 AM
To: Blacksmithing List Sponsored by ABANA <theforge at mailman.qth.net>
Subject: Re: [TheForge] Another stupid mask idea -- no metal content

Saint:
Use paper toweling between the layers of bandana, or do as I do and put them plus Kleenex inside the bandana.  The tissues are to help keep the paper towels dry and to provide a better skin feel, the paper towels are the filter.

My masks are a derivative of this idea:
https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.consumer.org.hk%2Fws_en%2Fnews%2Fspecials%2F2020%2Fmask-diy-tips.html&amp;data=02%7C01%7C%7C7b5d001e66444588308b08d7d7088b0d%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637214303991852945&amp;sdata=Hnr8bUameO73iX6DxXhaS%2FhuZlqz9Y%2FVGaT%2FCH7NmmE%3D&amp;reserved=0
I didn't have plastic-coated wire, so I cut 4"x1/2" strips from a disposable aluminum roasting pan and folded them lengthwise.  (Others use twist ties, but the wires in those aren't strong enough.) I didn't have much elastic, and its use complicates the assembly.  Instead I just staple the paper layers to an ironed bandana (folded on the diagonal), which I find easy to tie behind my head.  I sometimes use a spring clip on the half-hitch knot as well, as this makes it more secure but still allows me to snug up the bandana by tugging on its two ends.
The slowest part of assembling these masks is ironing the bandana.  The biggest hangups were (1) finding a store with full-sized paper towels available, and (2) allowing for the fact that tissues and paper towels apparently have different dimensions here than in Hong Kong.

Bruce
NJ


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