Pluggers by Rick McKee for August 07, 2023

Eh but me is never wash me bear hands with that.

Yup, but only in a real pinch. really rough on your hands, and smell lasts for day or two no matter what.

I did a few times when gas was cheap. Not any more.

Or overhauled a 1950’s Ford flathead V8.

I’ve always taken cleaner solvent. What’s good for the machine is good for the hands, too. ;)(No, of course it’s not good. If you try it, make sure your skin is unhurt and cream it afterwards.)

Then you can’t get the stink of gasoline off your hands. I use “Goop” hand cleaner, followed by “Lava” hand soap.

Been there … Done That !

If you then lit a cigarette you might not be a plugger any more.

The smell on your hands lingers long enough to ruin dinner.

I washed oil, well, work, clothes, in gasoline

Gasoline was originally a cleaning fluid before it was used as a fuel.

Ah yes, the good old days of using what was on hand regardless of the danger or smell. If you smoked, you had to wait a good thirty minutes to be safe.

OH, man, that’s a good one. Ah, memories of younger days, getting the lawnmower ready for the season…

Washed my hands with gasoline to get the oil based paint of my hands.

People actually tried that? Would that not be a health hazard?

A lifetime of washing their hands with leaded gasoline could explain a lot about plugger behavior.

Uncle had a tub of oil to wash your hands in. Works surprisingly well. Gas tends to dry the skin but for those stubborn stains…

I’ve done a lot of outdoor work, but never washed my hands with gasoline.

Common practice for all backyard mechanics…. until we all knew better. My Uncle was a real mechanic, and he would wash his hands in that tank of solvent used to clean car parts. Whew… (He lived into his early 90’s)…

I’m definitely a Plugger then…

Try toluene. I got hit with 3/4 of the content of a 1 qrt pressure pot filled with fluorescent orange Imron paint. Guy dropped it just as I walked by. I got hit from shoes to head with the stuff. Nothing would take it off. Had to shave the head, wiped off what I could with toluene when it first happened, wore the rest off over a couple of weeks.

Quite often back in the days. Not an unusual thing. Wouldn’t be afraid to do it today except the gasoline is not nearly as good.

I have used gasoline to wash away oil paint. And when I worked in the auto industry, we would use degreasers like MEK and TCE for the same purpose. Both toxic and both nasty on the skin. Can’t recommend any of them. Older and wiser.

Nope – we used GoJo & Lava soap at this Plugger’s house when I was growing up.

I wear gloves whenever possible when working with solvents or vehicle related lubes…that stuff’ll get absorbed into your body and can cause some nasty results to your organs over time. (admittedly sometimes ya just can’t use gloves cuz they’ll just get in the way…even the thin nitrile ones. But when I go to clean my hands I start with something benign and work my way up to the potent solvents, but only if I have to)

We used to get road tar on our bare feet from the chip and seal roads in our neighborhood. Hot sun would generate small pools of tar that were just irresistible to us kids, especially when there were bubbles in it that begged to be popped. Dad worked as a metallurgist and had access to chemicals, so he used ether to get the tar off but had to use it outdoors, so we didn’t get high from the vapors.

So very much not recommended!

What do you think goes in solvent wash tanks currently used in small shops today? It ain’t water and dishwashing soap.

I had a neighbor who would spread gasoline on his concrete driveway and scrub it with a push broom. I kept waiting to call the fire department, but never happened.

I used diesel more often in the Air Force. Never get that stuff in an open cut!

poor man’s degreaser in the old days and there weren’t as many additives in it back then

So what Mark Stanley is saying is, “if you have brain damage from lead poisoning, you’re a plugger!”

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