610 South/288 North Ball-Pien Hammer Sighting

I car pool 4 days each week. I drive on Monday and Tuesdays. My buddy drives on Wednesday and Thursday. I enjoy car pooling with my buddy, we solve the worlds problems, a few work problems and generally have a good time going back and forth to work. It makes the ride more bearable.

Today I saw a ball-pien hammer lying on the shoulder (if you can really call it that) of the on ramp from 610 Loop south to Hwy 288 North. Traffic was flowing nicely.  We have been fortunate.  Traffic has been light since school stopped two weeks ago.

The hammer had a wooden handle and appeared to be in good shape.  The head of the hammer was used but appeared to be in serviceable condition.  The handle was at least 12 inches long and appeared to be unbroken.  I have several ball-pien hammers and at least one ballpien- hammer head.  Stopping was not an option.  Someone else will need to claim this tool.

Hwy 280 Socket Sightings

On the way home from work, I spotted several loose sockets on the side of  Highway 288.  I don't usually go home this way, but I use this route for three weeks every year in March due to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. While the rodeo is in town my usual route home becomes too congested and adds too much time to my commute.  Since I have a  full socket set and lots of extras I probably won't stop to pick them up even though they could be obtained with little exposure to danger.

The sockets are located beneath the Yellowstone overpass on outside shoulder of HWY 288 South.  There were as many as 7 sockets lying across a 40 foot expanse.  Someone will be unhappy with this loss. If I do stop and pick them up I'm hoping they are Snap-on sockets.  I've never found any Snap-on tools (because they are expensive so people really take great pains to protect them).

HWY 288 Hammer Sighting

I spotted this hammer on the way to work. The hammer is lying on the inside shoulder of 288 just south of the Wheeler Avenue overpass.

The hammer appears to be covered in cement. The hammer was all grey, indicating it was used in rockwork or to build and disassemble cement frames. Not a very valuable tool and defintely not worth stopping for since I have a dozen hammers at home.

Hwy 288 Slotted Screwdriver Sighting

I saw this screwdriver on my way home from work today. The screwdriver was lying in the on ramp median where Yellowstone enters onto Hwy 288 southbound. The handle appears to be beat up. The handle is clear with a blue strip near the top of the handle near the metal shaft.

This screwdriver is lying about 100 feet north of the black handled screwdriver I posted recently. I also saw it again today. Anyone stopping for one should go ahead and pick up both.

I-45 North On Ramp Utility Knife Sighting

On my way to work today I spotted a utility knife. The utility knife was lying on the inside shoulder of the on north bound on ramp from Hwy 288/59 to I-45 North. Traffic in the mornings is always rather slow between 6 and 8:30 each morning at this spot.

The knife appears to be the same sliding/hidden blade type utility knife I found about a month ago. It is a dark grey and appears to have been bounced to the shoulder. I don't believe it has been run over. This is a really busy on ramp. The chances of obtaining this knife is slim and none.

Hwy 288 South - Lever Load Binder

I found this Lever Load Binder on the side of Hwy 288 South southbound just north of the Wheeler Avenue overpass. The load binder was lying about three feet off of the road on the inside shoulder. Traffic was flowing along at a swift 15 mph. I spotted the binder, pulled over quickly, threw my emergency lights on, jumped out of my truck, grabbed the binder, jumped back in my truck and upon turning my emergency lights off I found an open spot in traffic and continued on my trip home. The entire episode lasted less than 2 minutes.

The load binder was manufactured by Lebus. This is a simple lever load binder. There are more complex ratcheting binders. The binder weighs over 10 pounds and has an overall length of over 24 inches. To view the size scale of this tool I've included a second photo with a 16 inches by 24 inches metal square for reference. I also located some specifics about Lebus load binders. Overall the binder is in good operating condition, but like most well used binders it is covered in surface rust.

I've always wanted to stop and pick up a load binder, but the opportunity has never presented itself. Something has always prevented me from picking up the load binders I've seen in the past. Bad traffic, broken binders, binders in the middle of the road, late for work, this is just a few of the reasons I've passed up load binders I've seen in the past. Today the planets aligned and I picked up a load binder. Obviously, the binder dropped off of a tractor trailer or maybe even a wrecker. Binders of this type are relatively inexpensive costing around $30 +/-.

This tool epitomizes my odd penchant for spotting and picking up tools on the side of the road. I can say without any hesitation that I will probably never have a need for this tool. I do have a chain I found that I can use with this load binder, but I can't conceive of a time or task that will present the opportunity to use this tool. I will probably clean the binder to stop the rusting and then paint it red with Rust-oleum and hang it on the wall.

Hwy 288 Machete

I found this machete on the interior shoulder of Hwy. 288 northbound underneath the 610 south overpass. I passed by this tool for over 2 weeks before stopping to pick it up in July of 2002. This is an inexpensive plastic handled machete. There was surface rust on the blade. I did not bother to stop the rust since it was pretty severe. I use this tool to cut banana plants and to dig up deep rooted plants like passion flower water sprouts.

Hwy 288 Phillips Head Screwdriver Sighting

My Monday commute home was actually more fruitful than just picking up a boxend offset wrench. I also spotted a Phillips head screwdriver. The screwdriver is lying on the inside median of the 288 southbound lane about 500 feet north of the Binz/Calumet overpass. Traveling at 10 MPH I could have easily stopped and picked up the screwdriver, but I don't need another screwdriver since I have many screwdrivers and bit sets. The rules strictly prohibit stopping for tools I already own.

The screwdriver appears to be about 6 inches long with a clear plastic handle capped by a medium blue base.

Hwy 288 Offset Boxend Wrench Sighting

The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo is in town. I believe this is the last weekend. Due to the increased traffic on Main Street I decided to use a different route to go home. The new route takes me down part of Hwy 288. This time of year the blue bells are growing in the median. The sight is inspiring to see. Here are wild flowers growing in the middle of one of the largest cities in the U.S. It makes me believe that Earth is a resilient place.

Friday, on my way home, I spotted what appears to be an offset box end wrench. The wrench is located on 288 south of downtown near the Cleburne Street overpass on the southbound inside median.

The wrench appears to be one of the larger sizes. Probably a 3/4 or possible a 13/16. If the wrench is there Monday I may stop to get it depending upon the rules.