Hasta La Ideas

A company called CountyComm designs and manufactures specialty equipment for government agencies, the aerospace industry and Silicon Valley clients. They then sell their overstock to the general public, and their random library of wares perfectly intersects with the EDC market. I’ve often marveled at that market (which I am not part of) and find CountyComm’s creations fascinating.

This Topo Slide Box is made out of Ultem, a high-strength plastic with high heat resistance. It features “ultra secure dual locking ball detents,” and is a bit of a mystery—while CountyComm was contracted to make the thing, they have no idea what it’s for:

“Original government use unknown. We have a limited overrun of [these] boxes. We are not quite sure what Uncle Sam is putting in his lightweight capsules, but we are using ours to keep small important items close and secure. Brand new, never used, overrun from government contract.”

I’m not sure why these Composite Resin Disposable Tweezers are billed as disposable; the company says they’re made of “UV stabilized resin so they can last decades if needed in harsh environments.” Reviewers like them for handling magnetized parts.

This peculiar 8″ Titanium Long Arm Tweezer Kit is like an extreme pair of helping hands. It was reportedly fabricated on a contract basis for a Silicon Valley client, precise purpose unknown.

The design is such that it offers precise holding power a good distance away from the base, and seems it would be handy for soldering:

These silicone Tinker-Man DIY Trays, which come in International Orange and glow-in-the-dark, “are used by military and civilian small arms armorers to keep all those pins and parts from rolling off the work bench and getting lost,” the company writes. “Avionics technicians also use them to those tiny screws from magically disappearing. Features non-slip (inverse golf ball pattern). High semi-rigid walls prevent pins from rolling off the tray surface.”

This 12-Inch Titanium Adjustable Wrench is used by technicians and Boeing, Lockheed Martin and Airbus. Furthermore, its origin story provides the kind of credibility the EDC crowd drools over: “Members of the U.S. military Explosive Ordinance Disposal teams,” the company says, “keep asking for us to make lightweight, non-magnetic wrenches for working on magnetically sensitive devices, and this is what we provide them.” Despite its massive size, it weighs just 14.2 oz.

This TPSK Brass Precision Screwdriver Kit features a “ball bearing concave swivel top.” I can’t figure out what they mean by that; by “concave” are they referring to the dimples in the ball end? In any case, it’s one of those objects I want to touch.

This Abrams Unibody Whistle is also made from Ultem, machined out of a solid block of the stuff. It puts out “an ear-blistering 122 decibels.”

You can see more of the company’s unusual offerings here.