Greetings:

While in Home Depot to get some parts to fix our vent for the dryer,
I noticed something very dusy on the shelf behind the vent parts. I
picked it up and found a "Air Duct Calculator". It's a pretty nifty
looking slide rule (is it proper to call this one a slide rule?) and
gives you the ability to calculate:

Friction
Velocity--FPM
Round Duct Size
Weight per linear foot of round duct
Surface area in square feet per linear foot of round duct
Rectangular equivalents of round duct sizes
Weight per linerar foot of rectangular duct
and
Surface area in square feet per linear foot of rectangular duct.

The manufacturer was Leslie Locke or LL Building Products, Inc., of
Atlanta (GA).

When I went to check out, I decided to purchase this as well. What do
you know, despite having a SKU and barcode they could not find it in
the computer--the rule had been sitting on the shelf for quite a
while and was pretty dusty (the store is nearly a decade old).
Finally they sold it to me for $2.00, which I figured was a bargain.

Other sightings...

Anybody ever read the so-called "Mad Scientists' Club" stories by
Bertrand R. Brinley? Some appeared in "Boy's Life" in the 60's, and
then appeared in a couple of books. Purple House Press is publishing
them again in special anniversary editions. So far I've picked
up "The Mad Scientists' Club" and "The New Adventures of the Mad
Scientists' Club".

The interior title illustration of the first book shows the gang on a
street corner...one of the members (the one who comes up with the
details of the schemes, Henry Mulligan) manipulating a slide rule
(can't tell what kind). In one of the stories in the book, "Night
Rescue", in which the gang rescues a downed Air Force pilot, Henry
uses a slide rule to do calculations to try and determine where the
pilot came down. And, the cover illustration of "More" shows the gang
on a similar street corner. Henry is reading a book, has another book
under his arm. Looks like a slide rule sticking out...

Fun stories, almost as fun as they were when I first read them!

Fred Kiesche