Clever Little Ideas Save Time
“For years I picked raspberries in a plastic ice cream bucket with the handle through my belt loop,” says Denny Skaro, a southern Minnesota farmer. “The bucket was handy, but I always spent a lot of time picking bugs, leaves and other stuff from the pail of berries when I was done. A friend told me about a little picking device, so I made one and it works fantastic.”
Skaro’s hand held “super picker” is made using duct tape and a plastic drinking glass or Solo cup. First Skaro cut one piece of duct tape into 1-in. strips about 6 in. long, then stuck the strips together. He taped one end of the 6-in. strip, which is smooth on both sides, onto the side of the glass with two pieces of 1 in. wide duct tape. One piece of tape wraps right under the lip of the cup and the second one just below it. Skaro says the tape should only be 1 in. wide so it fits around the glass without wrinkling. About 4 in. of the vertical piece is left free on top to make a loop. The 4-in. vertical piece is then folded over into a loop and two additional pieces of duct tape hold it tight to the glass.
“I made a couple of these before I had the loop the right size,” Skaro says. “The hole in the loop should be just large enough so your middle finger will fit through it. That way you hold the glass with your middle finger, your ring finger and your little finger. You pick berries with your thumb and point finger, and drop them right into the glass.” Skaro says his “super picker” cuts picking time in half and keeps the berries a lot cleaner, too.
Copper Air Wand
Skaro is also real happy with a simple wand that he had made for his high pressure air hose. “I probably broke 2 or 3 of those threaded aluminum wands the first fall I had the compressor when they bent or broke off at the handle,” Skaro says. “I went to a local hardware store, told the owner about the problem, and he made a wand that I’ve used for 3 years. It’s light, durable and I can even bend it slightly to reach into tight spaces.”
Skaro’s hardware handyman made the device using two pieces of threaded brass fittings about 1 in. long and a single piece of 3/8-in. ID copper tube about 42 in. long. He soldered the fittings onto the copper tube, then attached a high pressure nozzle to one end of the wand and screwed the other brass end into the handle control. Skaro says the wand is very sturdy and lightweight so he can maneuver in and around tight spaces on a combine or planter without getting a lot of dirt on himself.
“This wand cost me about $15 and it’s way better than any of those aluminum ones that I had before,” Skaro says.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Denny Skaro, 39399 Cty. 1 Blvd., Dennison, Minn. 55018 (ph 507 263-5561).
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Clever Little Ideas Save Time CROPS Miscellaneous “For years I picked raspberries in a plastic ice cream bucket with the handle through my belt loop ” says Denny Skaro a southern Minnesota farmer “The bucket was handy but I always spent a lot of time picking bugs leaves and other stuff from the pail of berries when I was done A friend told me about a little picking device so I made one and it works fantastic ” Skaro’s hand held “super picker” is made using duct tape and a plastic drinking glass or Solo cup First Skaro cut one piece of duct tape into 1-in strips about 6 in long then stuck the strips together He taped one end of the 6-in strip which is smooth on both sides onto the side of the glass with two pieces of 1 in wide duct tape One piece of tape wraps right under the lip of the cup and the second one just below it Skaro says the tape should only be 1 in wide so it fits around the glass without wrinkling About 4 in of the vertical piece is left free on top to make a loop The 4-in vertical piece is then folded over into a loop and two additional pieces of duct tape hold it tight to the glass “I made a couple of these before I had the loop the right size ” Skaro says “The hole in the loop should be just large enough so your middle finger will fit through it That way you hold the glass with your middle finger your ring finger and your little finger You pick berries with your thumb and point finger and drop them right into the glass ” Skaro says his “super picker” cuts picking time in half and keeps the berries a lot cleaner too Copper Air Wand Skaro is also real happy with a simple wand that he had made for his high pressure air hose “I probably broke 2 or 3 of those threaded aluminum wands the first fall I had the compressor when they bent or broke off at the handle ” Skaro says “I went to a local hardware store told the owner about the problem and he made a wand that I’ve used for 3 years It’s light durable and I can even bend it slightly to reach into tight spaces ” Skaro’s hardware handyman made the device using two pieces of threaded brass fittings about 1 in long and a single piece of 3/8-in ID copper tube about 42 in long He soldered the fittings onto the copper tube then attached a high pressure nozzle to one end of the wand and screwed the other brass end into the handle control Skaro says the wand is very sturdy and lightweight so he can maneuver in and around tight spaces on a combine or planter without getting a lot of dirt on himself “This wand cost me about $15 and it’s way better than any of those aluminum ones that I had before ” Skaro says Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Denny Skaro 39399 Cty 1 Blvd Dennison Minn 55018 ph 507 263-5561
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