All language subtitles for S10E11 - Pocket Knives; Soapstone Products; Electric Pole Transformers; Snowshoes (1080p AMZN WEB-DL x265 Garshasp)_track3_[eng]

>> narrator: today on "How it's

Made"...

Pocketknives...

Soapstone products...

Electric pole transformers...

And traditional snowshoes.

-- captions by vitac --
Www.Vitac.Com

Pocketknives can be used to cut

Rope or slice an orange.

Just unfold the blade,

And you're good to go.

Folding knives actually date

Back to ancient rome.

Many centuries later, the

Smaller pocket-sized versions

Came along so people could carry

Their knives without shredding

Their pockets.

Pocketknives can pack a lot of

Punch.

They often contain several

Blades and tools, all of which

Can be retracted into the

Handle.

To make pocketknives, rollers

First feed a strip of stainless

Steel to a series of dyes.

Then dyes punch out blade

Shapes.

They cut holes in the handle for

Installation, stamp on the

Company logo, and create grooves

So the user can get a grip.

A trip into a fiery furnace

Hardens the metal.

It's the first step in

Heat-treating the blades.

Once they're cool, the blade

Shapes are placed on the

Magnetized rim of a rotating

Carousel.

It moves the base of the blades

Under an induction-heating coil.

The heat anneals that end,

Making it pliable enough to bend

And easier to fit in the

Pocketknife handle.

A robot now transfers a blade

Shape into a computerized

Grinder that bevels the edge but

Leaves it blunt.

It won't get its cutting edge

Until later.

Here you can see the difference

The grinding makes.

Vibrating ceramic pellets polish

The blades with paste for 32

Hours to achieve a mirror

Finish.

A magnetic belt collects them

And transfers them to the next

Station.

Meanwhile, a rocking cutting

Tool carves ridges into a piece

Of cow shinbone, which will

Adorn the pocketknife handle.

A bag of those ridged shinbones

Are dipped in dye, tinting them

A vibrant green.

Cow shinbone is just one of the

Many materials used to adorn the

Knives.

Some are synthetic, and some are

Natural, like this material --

Mammoth ivory.

Using epoxy adhesive, workers

Decorate these pieces of bone

With embellished metal inlay.

Then they trim the excess bone

So that it's flush to the metal

Liner.

Next, they place a spring on the

Underside of the bone and brass

Part followed by a rocker arm

And a spacer.

This sandwich is finished off

With another bone-covered brass

Liner.

Workers insert blades in one

End, first dipping them in oil

For lubrication.

A pin holds it all together.

A separate set of blades goes in

The other end of the

Pocketknife, and another pin is

Inserted.

A pneumatic tool flattens the

Ends of the pins, riveting all

The parts together.

Sometimes a shim is pounded

Between the layers so the knives

Can move more freely.

It's a little fine-tuning.

The pinheads are grinded down to

Blend them to the rest of the

Pocketknife.

Sparks fly as workers hone the

Beveled edges against a belt

Sander until they're sharp

Enough to cut.

Next, all the blades are

Retracted, and the knife is

Buffed until it shines.

Here a laser edges an insignia

Into the bone handle.

The engraving is enhanced with

Paint.

And now you have a pocketknife

That's sharp and sharp-looking.

Coming up, soapstone products --

A real rock-'n'-roll story.

>> narrator: dig deep into the

History of civilization, and

You'll find plenty of soapstone.

Over the centuries, it's been

Used to make everything from

Cookware to countertops to the

Kitchen sink.

Soapstone doesn't stain or burn,

And that's why it continues to

Be a rock-solid material.

But before you can make

Something out of soapstone, you

Need raw materials.

Several deep holes are bored

Into a soapstone hillside.

The horizontal and vertical

Holes form an intersecting

Lattice.

Miners loop one end of

A long diamond-encrusted cable

And attach it to a rod.

This makes it easy to maneuver

As they snake the cable through

One of the vertical holes.

A coiled snare is attached to

The cable's other end and

Inserted in one of the

Horizontal holes, jiggling it

Around it until the snare snags

The loop.

Next, the cable is threaded

Through the rock.

Two ends of the cable are

Crimped together to create one

Big circle over 200 feet in

Circumference.

A section of the diamond cable

Is wound around mechanical

Wheels.

The machine moves backward as

The wheels turn the cable

Through the rock, and slowly but

Surely the tiny diamonds saw

Through the soapstone.

The process kicks up a lot of

Talc, the mineral that gives

This stone its soapy texture.

So water is sprayed into the cut

To minimize the dusty fallout.

As the cable exits the rock, it

Snaps off the wheels, so

Everyone has to steer clear.

It has taken about 20 minutes to

Slice through this soapstone

Hillside.

Now it's time for the excavator.

As it pulls the soapstone away

From the hillside, the slab

Breaks into chunks, each one

About two or three square yards.

The chunks are washed.

Then they're lifted up by a

Front-end loader and delivered

To a band saw.

Like the cable, the saw has a

Diamond edge that easily cuts

Through the stone.

They get several one-inch thick

Slabs from each block, perfect

For a countertop.

The smaller-end slabs are used

To build apron sinks.

This type of sink was first

Popular a century and a half

Ago.

But these days, computerized

Blades and lasers make the job

Of building one a whole lot

Easier.

The laser lines serve as guides

While the blades cut the

Soapstone to precise dimensions.

This piece will be the bottom of

The sink.

A precision grinder tapers the

Sink bottom from the center out

So that liquid will flow down

Into a drain in the middle.

Next, a drain hole is punched

Out.

A constant flow of water keeps

The cutter cool and the dust

Down.

Epoxy resin is mixed with

Hardener for a high-strength

Waterproof adhesive.

It's quickly applied along the

Edge of the sink bottom so it

Doesn't dry.

Then a sink wall is pressed onto

The glued surface.

They piece together the rest of

The sink, and it's ready to

Blend in with the soapstone

Countertop.

From the shower floor to the

Stove surround soapstone can

Perform many functions with

Style.

When we return, the shocking

Truth behind electric pole

Transformers.

>> narrator: electric

Transformers -- we see them

Everywhere but often take for

Granted the big part they play

In our everyday lives.

Their job is to transform the

High voltage from electrical

Power lines to the lower voltage

That's suitable for home use.

Without them, raw electrical

Power would be virtually useless

To the average person.

Transformers are a critical part

Of modern life, but did you ever

Stop to wonder what's inside

Those canisters?

To build a transformer, workers

Start by taking paper that's

Coated with epoxy glue and tape

It to a wooden block.

Next component -- an

1/8-of-an-inch-thick aluminum

Strip.

It's a metal that can withstand

The heat that a high-voltage

Current produces.

As the block is rotated, the

Paper and the aluminum strip are

Wrapped around it.

An aluminum bus bar, called the

Low-voltage lead, sends low

Voltage current out from the

Transformer.

Workers fold the lead and move

The unit to another rotating

Block for more wrapping.

The insulating paper has epoxy

Glue on both sides.

This glue will later melt and

Bond several components in

Place.

On the next block, a worker

Tapes on more epoxy paper along

With epoxy-coated copper wire.

He covers the paper...

Then repeats the same process,

Forming a second layer of copper

Wire.

He solders a high-voltage lead

Wire to the copper wire then

Rolls yet another layer of

Copper wire.

Next, he welds on what's called

The lead wire out, the wire that

Will protrude from the

Transformer cylinder and

Attaches vinyl-coated wires that

Will connect to different

Voltages out of the transformer.

This completed unit is called

The coil.

Now using electrical steel,

Workers build the transformer's

Other main component, called the

Core.

The coil and core are tightly

Secured together with metal

Strapping, which will help to

Fix the assembly in the tank.

Then it's into an oven where

They bake for 8 hours at 275

Degrees.

The heat improves insulation by

Removing any traces of humidity.

It also melts the epoxy glue,

Fusing together the paper, the

Aluminum strip, and the copper

Wires.

The assembly now goes into a

Steel tank.

A rubber gasket is hammered

Around the perimeter, and a

Grounding wire is bolted on.

Then three thermoplastics

Bushings are inserted.

Workers connect the low-voltage

Lead to the thermplastic

Bushings then bolt the bushings

To the tank.

They adhere an oil-filling guide

To the side of the tank then

Position an automated filling

Machine.

A machine fills the tank with

Mineral oil, drawing a vacuum to

Make sure the oil disburses

Throughout the coil and core.

The oil is used for its thermal

And insulating properties.

An internal fault detector will

Alert maintenance crews if

There is a short circuit.

A worker runs lead wire through

The thermoplastic bushing and

Secures it in place.

Next comes the high-voltage

Connector.

Finally, the tank cover is

Bolted shut.

The transformation, so to speak,

Is finished.

Before transformers go into

Service, they have to undergo

Some truly electrifying tests.

This equipment simulates a

145,000 volt lightning strike.

Then it's into a water tank to

Test the transformer for leaks.

If it passes muster, it could

Soon be appearing at a pole near

You.

Up next, how they make snowshoes

Step by step.

>> narrator: historians believe

The ancestors of north american

Native peoples brought snowshoes

With them when they migrated

From central asia some 4,000

Years ago.

Today, the tradition of snowshoe

Making lives on thanks to

Skilled artisans who combine an

Age-old craft with a few modern

Improvements.

Every snowshoe frame comes from

A single piece of hardwood,

Usually white ash.

Craftsmen start with a two-yard

Strip about 3/4 of an inch

Thick.

Using a planer, they thin the

Middle down to about half an

Inch.

Then it's on to a table saw,

Where each end is tapered to a

Fine point.

They take the trim pieces known

As bows and hammer steel braces

Onto each one.

These support the wood where

It's thinnest so it won't break

Later on during the bending

Process.

The bows go into a steam chamber

To soften the wood.

30 minutes later, they're damp

Enough to bend without breaking.

The craftsmen start working from

The middle, the area called the

Toe, where the wood is thinnest

And easiest to bend.

They wrap it around a steel form

On a bending jig...

Then lay one tapered end over

The other and tack them

Together.

Now back to the steamer for a

Second bow to complete the pair.

A temporary crossbar helps hold

The shape.

Different steel forms are used

To shake different snowshoe

Models.

The frame is set on a bending

Machine called a press break.

Then a wooden bar is positioned

On the frame to act as a

Fulcrum.

As the press comes down, it

Curves the tip of the frame

About 2 3/4 inches upward.

A crossbar is inserted

Lengthwise to hold the bend in

Place.

Still damp from the steam

Chamber, the frames will need to

Dry out for several days.

Only then can the temporary

Crossbars safely come out.

The craftsmen then sand the wood

To a smooth finish.

They drill slots on the inside

For the two permanent crossbars

While another machine stamps

Those bars with the company

Logo.

It takes just a quick stretch to

Insert the bars -- one near the

Toe, the other near the heel.

Now the frames go for a dip in a

Vat of oil-based varnish to seal

And waterproof the wood.

Once the varnish dries, the

Frames are ready for lacing.

In keeping with tradition, the

Laces are made of animal hide.

Wetting it makes it easier to

Cut into the long strips.

A skilled weaver threads her

Needle then begins by hooking

The rawhide lace through a nylon

Thread that runs along the

Shoe's inside perimeter.

She nimbly builds up a pattern

Of webbing that always begins

And ends with a series of

Triangular shapes.

This intricate weaving technique

Is a traditional skill passed

Down through generations of

Native canadian women.

She finishes by wrapping up the

Heel end of the frame with

Rawhide then pulls it tight.

Now that the toe piece is

Finished, she starts weaving the

Middle piece.

Using a large width of rawhide,

She builds up another web of

Triangles, this time knotting

The strips directly onto the

Frame.

Finally, she weaves an opening

To leave room for the bindings

That hold the snowshoe to your

Boot.

Once the rawhide dries, the

Webbing will lie taut across the

Frame.

The last step -- another coat of

Varnish to seal and protect both

The wood and webbing.

And now these traditional

Snowshoes are ready to make

Some tracks.

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