Mythbusters Recap: Shop 'Til You Drop
This is another episode that isn't quite the same as others, in that there isn't any mythbusting going on. Instead, we're taken around the area and shown where Adam and Jamie get the toys that they use for busting the myths, and we're also shown a lot of highlights along the way.
Machinery and Equipment Co. in Brisbane, CA. This is the source for the tank for the Killer Quicksand myth during the Quicksand episode and also for the funnel used during the Forest Fire Scuba Diver segment in the Scuba Diver, Car Capers episode.
Urban Ore in Berkley, CA. There are all sorts of odd things here, including the appliances dropped into the tub in Appliances in the Bath, also in the Quicksand episode. Adam also finds a stimulator, which he says that he is going to use on Jamie!
House of Fans in San Francisco, CA. This is, oddly, where to go if you want to find fans. For the show, this is where they found the first two fans for the Killer Ceiling Fan segment of the Ming Dynasty Astronaut episode.
A&G Vacuum in San Francisco, CA. This is the store where Adam decided to see if his lips really would be pulled toward the vacuum cleaner motor (they were, in a classic bit of video). This is the shop where the guys bought the motors used in the Levitation Machine segment of the Elevator of Death, Levitation Machine episode and it is also where Tory later went for the Shop-Vac Jet Engine myth shown during the Breaking Glass episode.
Best Music in Oakland, CA. This is where the team bought the trombones that they blew up in the Mad Trombonist segment during the Sinking Titanic, Goldfish Memory, Trombone Explosion episode.
Alameda Discount Center in Alameda, CA. Want to get a beret just like Jamie's? This is where you'll want to go. This is also where you should go if you want to find some authentic convict-type clothing, such as what Adam and Jamie wore during the Escape From Alcatraz segment of the Escape from Alcatraz, Duck Quack, Stud Finder segment, and you might even stumble across a parachute!
Mojave Airport in Mojave Desert, CA. If you're looking for a plane, but don't need it to fly, this is the place for you, and this is where Adam and Jamie went to test the Explosive Decompression myth during the Explosive Decompression, Frog Giggin', Rear Axle episode. At just $3500, the old Hawaiian Airlines DC-9 was a steal!
Interface Aviation in Hollister, CA. Strangely enough, the plane might be cheap, but if you want to buy a vacuum toilet like the one used in Stuck on You in the Vacuum Toilet, Biscuit Bazooka, Leaping Lawyer episode, it will set you back a cool $9000 here. Or maybe you can borrow one, like Adam and Jamie did.
Golden Gate Meat Company in San Francisco, CA. If you go from planes to pigs, you might be watching Mythbusters. If you then need four of the beasts, such as in the Blown Away myth seen in the Brown Note episode, this is the place for you. These four hogs cost $1125, and they collectively weighed 670 pounds.
For reasons not mentioned, they didn't use Golden Gate for the pig stomachs used in the Pop Rocks and Cola Can Kill You myth, as seen in the Jet-Assisted Chevy, Pop Rocks and Soda, however. They had to drive all the way to Modesto, CA, and pay $20 for each of 4 stomachs to get the whole stomachs, from an unnamed shop.
Bischoff's Medical Supplies in San Francisco, CA. If you need to get the whole hog, as in one that died from natural causes, then you'll need to go somewhere else, such as this medical supply specialist, and that's just what Adam and Jamie did when they needed two pig corpses for the Stinky Car myth in the Stinky Car, Raccoon Rocket episode. They cost $709.50.
Circosta Iron and Metal Co. in San Francisco, CA. Sometimes cars aren't worth much and no one else wants them. In this case, they just take them to the scrap yard. This is the place where they take the cars from myths like JATO Car (from Jet-Assisted Chevy, Pop Rocks and Soda), Jet Taxi (from Buried in Concrete, Daddy Longlegs, Jet Taxi), and Drive Shaft Pole Vault (from Exploding Port-A-Potty) after they are finished with them. If you visit, just be careful where you park your car or you might be walking home.
Drive Shafts by Frank Wallace in San Francisco, CA. This creatively-named company provided the drive shafts used in the Drive Shaft Pole Vault myth mentioned earlier, and without this specialist they wouldn't have been able to get that Fury off the ground at all.
San Antonio Hobby Shop in Mountain View, CA. All the remote control car work that Jamie does would not be possible without this hobby shop specialist. This is where he gets all those great little toys for building things that keep everyone safe.
East Bay Vivarium in Berkeley, CA. Jamie's favorite pet store is also the nation's oldest and largest retail pet store, and they provides many of the animals used on the show, especially the creepy ones. Most notably they were the providers of the creep crawlies used in the Fear Test during the Ultimate Mythbuster episode. This is also home to Spot, the monitor lizard who appeared in the 1990 movie The Freshman.
Liberty Duck Farm in Sonoma County, CA. This isn't so much a shopping destination as it is a trivia answer. This was the first home of Bob and Roy, the two ducks who helped to prove that a duck's quack does echo during the Does A Duck's Quack Echo myth, shown on the Escape from Alcatraz, Duck Quack, Stud Finder episode.
Critter Control in San Francisco, CA. The Vivarium can fulfill plenty of needs, but sometimes you need something else. For instance, maybe you need a skunk, such as when you want to see if you can clean up the smell of the skunk, like the Skunked myth in the Ancient Death Ray, Skunk Cleaning, What is Bulletproof episode.
Now Adam and Jamie answer some reader questions.
Sequoia Publishing is the place to go if you want a copy of the Pocket Ref, the little book that Jamie and Adam use to figure out how many pounds of pressure are being exerted on the window in the Falling Lawyer myth, shown in the Vacuum Toilet, Biscuit Bazooka, Leaping Lawyer episode.
Foxy Lady Boutique and Mr. S. Leather in San Francisco, CA. These are the places that Adam and Jamie go when they need something that's, well, just a little different, like the underwear used in the Cell Phone + Gas Station = Explosion myth shown in Cell Phone Destruction, Silicone Breasts, CD-ROM Shattering or perhaps the latex suits used in Is It Worth Running in the Rain myth shown in Ice Bullet, Exploding Toilet, Who Gets Wetter.
Triangle Machinery and Tool Co. in San Jose, CA. This is an industrial surplus stores where Adam and Jamie go to get all sorts of parts that they might need to put something together quickly. As Jamie says, "This is my Tinker Toy set!"
At the end of the show, Adam and Kari tell us how to make ballistics gel. First, you have to order the powder from Gelita USA in Sioux City, Iowa. A 50 pound tub costs about $350. This keeps forever and will make a lot of ballistics gel.
It works best if you add the powder to the water. You then mix 10 parts hot water to 1 part powder with an automatic mixer. Dissolve all the granules in the water. Don't try it by hand. Then, because the mixture is foamy, you add cinnamon leaf oil, which makes the foam go away, and makes it smell nice too. Lastly, you add proprionic acid (use gloves - this is acid!) which acts as a preservative. Store it in the refrigertor (or on ice) overnight.

















