A Story About Jamie's Beret 

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Somewhere out there I'll bet there's a MythBusters producer yelling at his screen, "It was NOT easy to get explosives!"

I would bet if Jamie just said to Adam, "I really just want to keep it, it's important to me" Adam would have let him have it without a fight

"The Alameda County bomb squad is one of the most experienced bomb squads in the world because of the 15 years of crap Mythbusters threw at them" I loudly laughed out loud at that one

We know Adam and Jamie are not "buddies" but you can see the respect Adam holds for Jamie.

Adam is such a fantastic storyteller. He could describe how he ties his shoes and it would be thoughtful and entertaining.

Whenever I hear Jamie laugh on Mythbusters, I can't help but laugh along with him. He has a wonderful laugh.

With airbrushing miniatures, I've always advocated for practicing your aim with the primer. You're going to cover the whole thing anyway, why not get some practice in at the same time, doesnt matter if you miss!

That's actually great advice for starting any new technique: practice it on the cheap stuff! And don't forget to document your process! Experience is valuable only if you learn from it. And the best way to learn from it is to review the record of your experiences.

My best tip for those new to airbrushing: You simply *CANNOT* be too thorough when cleaning it after use... The tiniest bit of old paint floating around in the system can be enough to throw it out of whack.

“Phhhthunk!” is one of my favourite onamatapaeia! It’s the grenade launcher noise from Terminator 2 for me 😜

The "cloning an army of Jamies" part turn into a strange cul-de-sac! 😂

Thank you Adam. I've heard you describe the relationship between you and Jamie as not friends and not even friendly but, clearly you have some love for the time and experiences you shared. That's beautiful.

His advice on the air brushing is spot on, also go to flea markets and look for model kits. I've got shelfs full of kits needing to be built that were $15 each. So not afraid to mess those up.

I'd say good advice for learning any new tools is to practice on something you don't care about ruining first, don't pull out something you've spent 20 hours on 40 steps on, and do something for the first time as step 41.

For airbrush beginner, be prepared to fail. When I first started airbrushing, I intentionally did the hardest thing I knew to try. Which was airbrushing cheap acrylic craft paint. Dozens of clogs later and I was a master a tearing it down and cleaning it I also got really good at thinning paint to the right consistency. After that, everything else was so easy to shoot. I am by no means a master of the tool, but I am totally comfortable with it, and will grab it without a second thought when I think it will suit my needs.

I miss the Hynamen so much!

I really love how you had a mutually beneficial arrangement with the bomb squad. You got free C4, they got valuable experience with weird bomb scenarios.

It's been 25 years since I helped make an deer antler horn knife, I can still remember the smell. It was so bad my friends father used brake cleaner to cover it up so he could use his garage 2 days later. You need an outdoor location far away from your living quarters or a massive exhaust system in a work shop. If you ever had a cavity drilled out and caught a whiff of that smell, well it's that filling the room for days.

In the piano restoration industry, the favorite synthetic ivory is Elforyn Super Tusk. It's practically indistinguishable from the real thing. They sell it in a few different form factors.

Been using an airbrush for 60 plus years. I advice is forget everything anyone tells you. Just go for it. If you fall in love with the process there is nothing you can’t do. I’ve had professionals ask how did I get a particular Effect using an airbrush. All I can say is I know my instrument and know what can be done. Practice patience are you friends.

For imitation ivory an option in some cases might be tagua nut. It's a palm nut about the size of a large chicken egg. Usually have a void inside too shaped like a mango pit. But very fun to work with and extremely convincing as ivory. Cons: limited size and shape and it's incredibly hard. You just about need to use metal working tools for it.

Someone out there in Internetland must know where we can all go to hear that sound. Bless us, Hero of the Internet.

This is why Jamie and Adam dont work well on a personal/friendship level. they both couldn't let go of that hat. 😅

Still playing Mythbusters locally . I still look forward to it every week 🇦🇺

I learned to airbrush in college 20+ years ago. I started with a Badger Anthem. My uncle gave me a Paasche VL/S from the 80s when he heard I was learning.

It still blows my mind you and Jamie weren't friends off set. Your chemistry in the show was frankly amazing; you played off of each other so well.

It's really heartwarming to see you still out there sharing your love of building, Adam. Mythbusters was and is the greatest TV show of all time.

Jamie said...As soon as you give me a new one you can have this one.Thats what he said..

Please clone Jamie, we need more Hyneman in the world

Ah, a Jamie relic. The Holey Beret.

It's wild that this treasure of a man said in that other video that he thought ADHD was "behind him" in his life... his perfectly meandering narrative structure is the language of my people!!!!

Airbrushes have 2 stages. 1st blows air and 2nd lets paint flow Always trigger the 1st stage away from your work once before u spray at your work. That clears any spatter risk

I wasnt expecting the Airbrush advice, but BOY do I appreciate it! Ive picked up Automotive Wheel Repair in the past year. I have been struggling to do any better than, "Just knowing how" I also dont have anyone to ask for advice. Idlk how to simplify what I want to look for online either. So its been a struggle. This wasnt the world of info, but it was incredibly helpful! As always. whether its 2014 or 2024 Im still learning loads of stuff and in a fun way, Adam! Thank you so much for being part of my learning experience and my childhood!!

Hearing the excitement in Adam's voice gives me hope for some more episodes. I know I keep hearing no, but I keep seeing yes. Now Jamie... 😶

weirdly enough EXACTLY that episode was suggested to me in the YT algorithm 3 days ago and I rewatched it.... And now Adam drops this video... Weird!

The Mythbusters/Banijay Science channels uploading episodes has been a joy to rewatch - but the real treats are the few glimpses of Jamie’s funny and relaxed side! Sometimes he’d even giggle! Also that beret went in the water a few times, that’s clean enough!

Mercury space suit... Always lovely to see... Thanks!

Many years ago, I worked for a company that made bamboo fly fishing rods. We used a number of exotic materials for the reel seats on some of the more premium models including ivory, mammoth, water buffalo and hippo tooth (this was an absolute nightmare to machine down, kept dulling the bits really quickly). We had good luck with some of the synthetic material (ivory, horn, tortoise) we got from Masecraft Supply Co.

4:03 That is honestly probably the best re-enactment of that sounds on the internet. Well done

"Dude I get to keep this stuff and mounted in my trophy case! - And what am I going to wear? -Oh we'll get you another beret. -Okay you let met know when it arrives."

Bone dust is VERY dangerous to inhale like asbestos or silica.. that smell is the least of your worries 😅

For small ivory pieces try tagua nuts. They carve like ivory.

In fairness, Jamie said you could have the hat, but didn't say when. 🤔😁

3:30 this phunk! sound was so perfect! It sounded exactly like a sound effect pasted in

For beginners watch lots of RU-vid videos. Not just ones that do what you are thinking of doing, but ones that paint pictures, miniatures, war-game miniatures, everything you can find. the 1st thing you'll see is that there are many ways of getting the same results. Then start watching the ones that use the same medium that you'll do most of your work in. Be it water or solvent based Acrylic, Enamel, Lacquer, etc. See how people using your paint type do things. Don't get the very cheapest brush you can find as they're usually not very good but go a step up. Instead of a $15/20 dollar brush get one that costs $25/35. You'll find that just spending that little more gets you a better product. Then when your proficiency gets better get 1 or 2 in the $65 to $100 price range. There are many very good brushes in this price range that will last you for years if properly taken care of. If just getting 1 then decide what you are mostly going to use it for. Detail work, general, priming/base coating, etc. For detail work I'd suggest a needle size of .30mm or less, for priming, general, base coating go with .40mm to .60mm. As important as the brush is learning how to use the paint that your will primarily use. Thinning, cleaning, number and thickness of coats, etc. As I only use water based acrylics for miniature wargaming figures that's my focus for the paints, thinners, flow improvers, cleaners (one of the best cleaners for this is hot water from a kettle or coffee maker), etc. The brands I primarily use (all paid for by me, none given by manufacturer) are: Badger, Gaahleri, Paasche. All cost in the $70 to $150 range. The needle sizes range from .20mm to .70mm so there is a size for everything and every brand and series of paint I use.

Before I tried to airbrush a costume, I got some kid's coloring books and airbrushed them. Keep it in the lines! Also having an ultrasonic cleaner tub is game-changing for airbrush cleanup.

I just noticed Adam is wearing an Omega Speedmaster Professional. I love wearing my Speedy; such an iconic watch. Hey Adam, tells us about why you wanted a Speedy.

As far as ivory substitutes go, there’s also tagua nut, sometimes known as vegetable ivory. It’s a largish nut (ten or fifteen centimetres across) with a hard off-white interior that can be polished up to an ivory-like finish. It’s a traditional material in Japanese netsuke carving.

I had no idea Jamie would hold out on you like this!! 😂😂😂

Re: bone sources. Natural bone needs to be cleaned and degreased if you want it to be a good ivory substitute. A quick and easy option for clean bone (and what I used for the handle scales on my first Bowie knife) is a cow bone from the dog chew aisle at the pet supply store.

To add to the advice for an airbrush: start cheap. A paasche model H can be gotten reasonably inexpensively and many off brands are even cheaper. Learn how to field strip that thing like its your rifle and your life depends on it. Partially so you know how to clean it, partially so you know how it works and how to troubleshoot it. That leads to my next point: clean it. Clean it again. When you think youve got it clean enough, clean it again. And when you arent painting, or storing it away, be ready to clean.

I actually, really laughed out loud at the beret story. Wonderful. ❤️

The hat being 60% Jamie’s skin cells made me spit my drink out

Actually Jamie said he'd give adam the hat if Adam "let me know when it (a replacement beret) arrives". So the Deal was that Adam would give Jamie a replacement Beret, and THEN Jamie would hand over the shot beret.

Not sure if it is the same material shown on camera, but knife handle makers have a faux ivory product they use, mostly for ferrules and butt caps, but it is durable enough for use on a kitchen knife handle.

Regarding the airbrush question--I have to say, I've always admired Adam's thriftiness. I see so many people getting into a new hobby and buying *the most expensive* crap right out of the gate. Honestly when it comes to most tools/implements, there's very little wrong with the cheap stuff. Might not last as long, might not perform *quite* as well, but it's good to learn on. Get the expensive, durable stuff once you *get good* (and decide to stick with it.)

when I first got a dual action, the best advice I got was to practice with Indian Ink and do circles, swirls, dots and lines. It created muscle memory in my hand, arm and fingers

"BLUUUOOORRRPP!!" *uproarious laughter*

Its great you finally got Jamie's beret Loved that episode

I loved the advice to practice on cheep stuff. I have a friend who makes stunningly beautiful furniture and every new piece starts with him using cheap dimensional lumber and plywood to do a full build. It is better to learn what works and what doesn't on cheap stuff instead of the very expensive woods he will use for the finished piece.

With Ivory, there's two major things that I could also suggest. If you're doing something small, there is warthog ivory, it looks a lot like real ivory and is, normally, relatively cheap. If you're wanting an end result that looks like ivory, one workable solution is carve out of a fine grain, softer wood, then use it as a master to mold it and cast with some of the resin mixes. There are several options there for combos of resin, pigments, and mixins that can get a very good ivory look. I've been using stuff that the local hobby lobby has available for it with some things I sculpted and wanted to cast up

I feel a bemused satisfaction when Adam gets excited talking about something and goes "Ah! Oh!..."

Adam should do a challenge where he goes to a Dollar Store buy one of those horrifically bad action figures / toys and make it look like something decent

The army of Jamie's is a truly terrifying thought.

I’ve been dying to ask if you had it. I’m glad someone finally asked 😂

Good source of faux ivory bars and horn? Tobacco pipe making supplies. Go look up Vermont Freehand. He's got all sorts of cool stuff for pipe making including the fake ivory and bone for accent rings and such.

Was it just me that thought Adam was going to run in to the charging cable plugged in to his phone when he got up? Only to realize it was an awesome illusion - talk about perfect placement of the phone. lol

There's also a thing called Vegetable Ivory, which is made from the Tagua nut and others.

Wish you guys would have tested a vacuum vs a pressurized atmosphere without a solid container or how to keep water on a spinning sphere going in four different directions at varying speeds, especially in a vacuum. There's always something to test!

I was so lucky that my art teacher convinced the school board to create the first air brushing class in Minnesota. One of my classmates in art class is now a professional artist that uses airbrush a lot.

I'm told that the paint overlap technique Adam describes is also a basic technique with a painting contractor's sprayer, except the sprayer projects a wider cone; so if you're good at getting even coats with the airbrush, you probably understand the basics of painting entire walls. Another is starting the stroke _before_ the paint hits the desired surface and ending it _after_ the spray leaves the desired surface, and that one's from spray paint cans. If you need to do good work on a certain material, get that material in bulk before getting the model kit, or practice on the sprues first. For example, if you know you'll be painting PVC or ABS, get plastic pipes from the hardware store and use that to mess around.

I just watched the episode a couple of days ago. Was wondering this myself.

On the imitation ivory point, a good material is Tagua nut...it has an appearance similar to ivory with a bit of age to it, it also ages similarly to ivory. Its cons however...cost, amount and shape of material per nut and sometimes they can have a fibrous void in the centre, reducing the useable material. It is great for jewelery and small inlay pieces

I was about to ask the beret question! 😂

Re ivory substitutes: check out tagua. It’s a nut known as ‘vegetable ivory’. The nut is a little smaller than a doorknob, and works and polishes like real ivory. For a very specific kind of real ivory, tear down an antique piano keyboard. You can get a nontrivial amount of ivory sheet and ebony stick. Both are suitable for luthery, where I learned that trick.

Cut to: Alameida Sherrif's Dept doing a Q&A about their crazy training ideas dept, The Mythbusters.

I have found a great airbrush learning channel on RU-vid called, "Night Shift". Martin Kovac makes and details many models, mostly military tanks and also buildings that he has photographic references for to replicate in model form. He has tutorials on basics, weathering, rusting, etc. An amazing channel.

Dear Adam and fans, My next build is the base of a cage for some very spoiled gerbils. I would like advice when buying untreated lumber. They are pretty much mouse sized desert beavers and will eat the wood. Therefore I'm thinking 2×4's are best but finding that untreated at a reasonable cost is proving difficult

Jamie and his Beret... many good storys... Short to say.... it was a Win Win situation for both... The MB Team und JD and his Bomb Squad 😁

I started rewatching Mythbusters recently and I think I know why it succeeded where other copycat shows failed. The team behind Mythbusters cared about the science and finding out something new as their number 1 goal. The explosions and flare were all secondary. Like icing on a cake.

I'm having a full thickness cornea transplant Tuesday April 16th at University of Utah because the VA doesn't do it, so i will not be able to watch your videos for up to a month, but the wife can start them and i can listen, so if pain isn't above 7 i will be listening.

Personally I would say that you should not buy a cheap crappy airbrush as your first one. Reason being that you'll likely get frustrated with it and just give up. Personally I'm a fan of Harder & Steenbeck. They're amazing quality and one of the greatest things about them is how simple they are to strip down when needed. No fiddly little wrenches and crap, it can all be done with just your fingers (at least for stripping it down as much as you'll need in 99.9% of cases). There are other brands which also use similar construction but I have no personal experience with those. This year they released the Harder & Steenbeck Ultra 2024 which is actually made specifically for beginners. It's not cheap at about 100 bucks but I have no doubt you could sell it and get most of that back if you decide not to keep it. And you can upgrade it with parts from their more expensive brushes if you'd like. I'm not paid by H&S, even though it sure sounds like it :D I just really like their products. Also the GM for the company regularly makes videos on youtube talking about tips and tricks, does demos, answers questions from customers etc. And even if you don't go with H&S, try to go for something a bit more quality than the no-name crap you find on Amazon or Ebay for 20 bucks. Spend a bit more and you'll be glad you did. Also, go with a dual action brush and skip single action IMO. It'll take an hour longer to get the hang of, but you'll get much more control out of it, which is likely why you're thinking about an airbrush in the first place.

Awesome story!

Having done airbrush since 1996 my advice is start with a double action. Get the cheapest one you can of course. But bypass single action airbrushes entirely.

New Adam quote merch: "You're welcome for that image everybody."

And another important thing for airbrushing: reliable compressed air source. If you have to choose between a cheap airbrush/expensive compressor and an expensive airbrush/cheap compressor, choose the cheap airbrush/expensive compressor. Hnads down the superior choice.

Advice I always give people who want to try something (like airbrushing for the first time). Get a crappy one. You can learn most of what you need and if you need to get a better one you'll know. And then you can skip the mid tier and get a good whatever-it-is tool

As an ivory stand-in, there is also Tagua Nut, which is also called "vegetable ivory" and is supposed to be great to carve. It only yields rather small pieces, though, and I can't vouch for having ever used it myself.

This makes me more baffled about Edwin Sarkissian's grenade videos

Deer or Elk antlers are a decent ivory substitute. Since it's an antler and not a horn no harm is done to the animal if they're sourced sheds.

Was it not even an option to have the bomb squad handle the grenade part of a grenade-related myth? Also, I bet the bomb squad of Alameda county's sheriff department was bummed out about Mythbusters ending, moreso than the regular viewers and Discovery bean counters.

"The Alameda County Sheriffs Office is one of the most experienced in the world" ...because of us. 😂😂😂

I have a scrimshaw "walrus tusk" made from "cultured ivory". Which is a polyester if I remember correctly. I believe it came from a local tourist shop, but I'm not sure.

Great video sir

A big box of cheap plastic spoons is a great thing to have if you're getting into airbrushing. They are great for doing color and finishing tests on.

The tagua nut is also a good substitute for ivory.

When I was working at a Tandy Leather retail store in the mid 90's we had a beginners airbrush kit that when people asked us about getting started with it we would suggest using just straight water shooting at brown craft paper or cardboard(something that would show the spray pattern easily) and use that to get used to the controls, i.e. if I push down and forward how does it affect the spray, how about turning the pin a half turn clockwise, moving across the field to paint in one second versus X seconds, what angles you can hold the brush at without spilling the paint cup etc. and then use a thinned out low cost air brush paint and working up to the more expensive ones. Of course being a leather store what we usually stocked for use with an airbrush was leather dyes that had about the same consistency as water, because leather would pull that right into the pores and lock the colors in.

I used to live a few blocks from that explosives plant in Alaska. Didn't even know it was there until I moved in. Did not feel safe at all.

I watched that episode about a week ago, and I really wanted to know if you actually got to keep the beret!