How It's Made (2001–…): Season 15, Episode 13 - Leather Wallets/French Horns/Soy Sauce/Children's Ride-On Cars - full transcript
Leather wallets; French horns; soy sauce; and children's ride-on cars.
-- Captions by vita -&www.M
Captions paid for by
discovery communications
Narrator: The pocket wallet was
invented in the 17th century.
Europe had switched
to paper money,
And the gents of the day
Needed a handy way
to pocket their cash.
There's a slot for everything --
Credit cards, I.D.,
and, of course, cash.
And yet these wallets
remain slim enough
To fit into a trouser pocket.
These fine
hand-crafted pocketbooks
Are made from high-grade
vegetable-tanned leather.
An employee selects a hide
and arranges it on a work table.
Then he chooses a die shaped
Like one of the wallet's
inside pockets.
Using this hydraulic press,
he punches out the part.
He cuts 11 different components
for the wallet's interior,
Using a custom die for each one.
He chooses tougher leather
in a contrasting color
For the wallet's exterior.
He now measures the thickness
of the interior components.
Using what's called
a skiving machine,
He shaves them down
to .7 of a millimeter.
Another worker pre-heats
an embossing machine.
It hot-stamps a pocket part
With the company name
and the royal warrant logo,
Which signifies
that the prince of wales
Purchases this company's
leather goods.
Using a different
skiving machine,
They shave down the edges
of the exterior wallet parts.
This thinner border
Will make the parts easier
to assemble later.
The next worker
applies a water-based adhesive
To a leather strip.
It will reinforce
the top of a fabric square.
With this manual device,
She turns the top edge
to fold it in a straight line.
This leather-trimmed
fabric square
Will be used to create
a credit-card pocket.
She stamps a thin groove
onto the leather trim
To give it some definition.
Next, she builds a credit-card
slot with two of the squares.
Using an awl,
she scores a line in the fabric.
The line serves as a guide
As she stitches the squares
together to complete the slot.
She layers a third
leather-trimmed block of fabric
To create a second slot
Then adds a leather panel
That forms the third
credit-card slot.
She glues and tucks
the excess leather
Over the back
of the fabric pocket.
Then she checks
the alignment of the slots
With a tool
called a bone folder.
The next worker
Sews the credit-card
compartment together.
There are two of these
per wallet.
They glue both compartments
to the wallet's spine
Made of fabric and leather.
This spine is called
the bend section,
Because it bends
to fold the wallet in two.
She attaches the bend section
To a divider
for the money pocket.
This divider is a bit longer
Than the assembled
interior components,
To facilitate
the bending action.
She glues a lining to
the wallet's leather exterior.
Here, she uses a special hammer
To ensure the interior
and exterior components
Of this wallet adhere well.
Then she trims the corner
of the rim to make it look neat.
She rounds the corners
of the wallet
To give them a gentler profile.
Now she stitches
the assembly together,
Leaving the bill pocket
open at the top.
The next worker tucks
a metal wedge under the rim
To protect
the rest of the wallet
As she trims the rim
close to the stitch.
Removing these few slivers will
make the wallet more flexible.
She slides the bone folder
into each credit-card slot
To remove excess glue.
Finally, a few dabs
of leather preservative,
And this luxury wallet
is ready for retail
With a price tag to match.
The only question is,
will that be cash or credit?
Narrator: The french horn
has a four-octave range
And distinctive mellow sound.
As with other brass instruments,
The musician plays
certain valve combinations
And alters lip tension
to produce the right notes.
However, on a french horn,
The mouthpiece
is relatively small,
Making this instrument one
of the most challenging to play.
The french horn is made up
of 13 feet of coiled tubing,
A set of valves,
and a flared bell.
To make the tail end,
They shape a sheet of brass
around a steel mandrel
Then braze the edges together
to form a tube.
With a burnishing tool,
an artisan rounds out the shape.
Next,
they lubricate a brass disc
As it spins on a lathe.
Using a variety of tools,
they shape it into a bell.
This plasma-weld machine fuses
the bell and tail together.
Back on the lathe, they trim
the diameter of the bell...
...Then roll the edge
into a rim called a bead.
This reinforces the bell.
Next, they fill the bell
With a hot, tar-like liquid
called pitch.
Once the pitch cools,
They put the tail
into a forming block
And carefully bend it.
The hardened pitch
provides support,
Preventing the tail
from collapsing.
They verify the bend
against a template.
Using the same technique,
They shape the pieces
that form the horn's tubing.
Of all the brass instruments,
The french horn
has the most complex bends.
These valve knuckles
connect the tubes
To the cases
that will house the valves.
Some french horns
have three valves.
This double french horn
has four.
Each valve case goes
onto this alignment device,
Which pushes in the knuckles
to the correct depth.
After brazing the knuckles
to the cases,
They hollow out the case
interiors with a cutter.
Then they solder the valve cases
to each other
With connecting rings.
They insert the tubing parts
into the valve knuckles.
These curved tubes
are the horn's slides.
The musician
tunes the instrument
By adjusting them in and out
of the straight tubes.
After soldering the straight
tubes to the knuckles,
They remove the slides for now
to make other areas accessible.
Then they solder this partially
assembled valve section
To the tail and bell.
Now they apply buffing compound
And polish the horn's
interior surfaces.
They polish
the more accessible surfaces
With a cloth buffing wheel.
Then they wash off the compound
And coat the entire surface
in a protective lacquer.
Now final assembly
of the valve section can begin.
They install rotors
in the valve cases
And levers to activate them.
Unlike piston valves on a
trumpet that move up and down,
These valves rotate
to direct air flow
Through specific
tubing combinations.
A lever connects to each valve
via a rod and nylon cord.
With the valve section
now complete,
They reinstall the slides
Then do a final wipe-down
To remove grease residue
and fingerprints.
This pristine finish complements
the superb sound quality.
[ french horn plays ]
Narrator: Soy sauce is a staple
of asian cuisine,
Used as both a condiment
and cooking ingredient.
Its roots are in the seasonings
of ancient china.
Today, you can buy artificial
or chemically enhanced versions,
But authentic soy sauce
is all-natural
And made the traditional way
By brewing soy beans and wheat.
At this small soy-sauce company,
They use the centuries-old
slow-fermentation method
And just five ingredients --
Soy beans...
Water...
Wheat...
Sea salt...
And yeast.
They begin by pouring soy beans
Into a cooking device
called a steam kettle.
After thoroughly rinsing
the soy beans twice,
They fill the kettle
with water...
...Then close the lid
And boil the beans
for four hours.
Meanwhile, they pan-roast wheat
in a skillet
For about 25 minutes.
Then they put the roasted wheat
through a mill.
The mill's steel rollers crack
each grain into several pieces.
This will enable the yeast
to better penetrate the wheat
During the fermentation process.
When the soy beans are ready,
they take them out of the kettle
And spread them out
in large trays to cool.
When the beans cool
to 91 degrees fahrenheit,
It's time to add the wheat.
After mixing everything
thoroughly,
They sprinkle on yeast
and mix again.
The ingredient proportions
are key
And therefore a company secret.
To activate the yeast,
They transfer the mix
to shallow boxes
And stack them
for about 48 hours
In a controlled incubation room.
This process generates heat,
which rises,
So they have to gradually
move boxes to lower racks
To prevent overheating,
which would kill the yeast.
For the next stage,
they make a brine
By mixing fine sea salt
with spring water.
To give its soy sauce
a distinctive taste,
This company repurposes bourbon
barrels from local distilleries
To use as fermentation vessels.
Traces of bourbon in the wood
permeate the mix as it ferments,
Imbuing the sauce with
a subtle smoky and sweet flavor.
After dissolving the sea salt
in the spring water,
They add the soy bean mix,
creating a moromi,
The japanese word
for soy-bean mash.
They blend for a few minutes
Then seal the barrel
and leave it to ferment.
For the first six weeks,
once daily,
They open the barrel
and mix the moromi
To aerate the gases
that build up.
This keeps the yeast active
and helps develop the flavor.
Then after that, they open
and mix just once a week.
After 12 long months
of fermentation,
It's finally ready.
They open the barrel
and mix one last time.
Then they empty the barrel
onto a sheet of muslin
Lining the tub
of a stainless-steel press.
They fold over the sheet
to enclose the moromi...
...Then lay down planks of wood
to form a solid surface.
The press applies
6 tons of pressure,
Forcing the planks downward
against the moromi.
This squeezes out
all the liquid,
Which is the soy sauce.
It exits through a hose
at the base of the tub
And moves on to be filtered
and heat-pasteurized.
The pressed moromi
gets a new life
As high-protein animal feed.
While many soy sauces
are mass-produced,
This factory brews
small batches at a time.
A batch yields
about 600 bottles,
Each of which
workers here fill manually.
They top each bottle
with a plastic diffuser,
Which dispenses
just a dash of sauce at a time.
Then they twist on a plastic cap
And slip a shrinkable
plastic band over it.
Using a heat gun,
they seal the band
Tightly around the cap
and bottle.
Then the label,
on which they write
The batch code
and bottle number by hand.
A fitting finale
for this signature soy sauce.
Narrator:
Children's ride-on cars
Are, quite simply, fun to drive.
These molded plastic cars
come in hot colors
And often have a friendly face
on the front.
These cars have character,
And that's why
it's often bumper-to-bumper
At the neighborhood playground.
There's nothing like
that new-car feeling,
Especially when it's
your first set of wheels.
Like many toys,
the appeal of the ride-on car
Lies with children's desire
to emulate adults.
And behind the wheel
of their own little vehicles,
A child can feel all grown up.
Today's child-size coupes
are synthetic creations.
They start
with plastic resin pellets.
They mix in chemical additives
and recycled plastic
And grind it all into a powder.
The powder funnels
into a shaking sifter,
Which screens out large pieces
the grinder missed.
It then flows
into a big blender.
The plastic powder
looks a lot like pastry flour,
But not for long.
The next ingredient
is the colorant.
There are various vivid hues
to choose from.
They pour a measured amount of
red colorant into the blender,
And a spiraling beater
evenly distributes it,
Turning the white powder to red.
They portion it into jugs,
Which then shuttle
down a conveyor.
They arrive at a carousel
of molds of car shapes.
A worker empties the jugs
of colored plastic granules
Into them.
These little grains of plastic
Are about to be transformed
into car parts.
They lower the lid,
Which contains the top halves
of the molds.
The mold cage then spins
as it travels through an oven.
The plastic inside melts,
And the spinning action ensures
It completely coats
the inside of the molds
To create solid parts
with a hollow interior.
The cage then rolls
into a station,
Where a spray of water
cools everything down
And causes the plastic inside
to solidify.
The mold cage stops spinning,
And a worker hooks it up
to a crane,
Which lifts the lid.
The powdered colored plastic
Has been transformed
into ride-on-car parts,
And it's taken just 35 minutes.
Some parts fall out,
And others
have to be pulled out.
But it's easy work, thanks to
the mold's non-stick surface.
Seepage during molding
Creates unwanted bits and nubs
on the main car body
That they trim off by hand.
They also shave areas
that appear uneven.
Vents were formed
in the molding process
To release air
in the core of the part.
They now cap the vents
To keep little fingers
from getting stuck inside.
They trim the car roof
to improve its contours.
This also gets rid
of any rough edges,
Making it child-friendly.
They fit company medallions
Into slots in the roof pillars.
And they do a bit more trimming
To improve the profile
of the parts.
Drills now work in concert
to bore assembly holes
Into the main part
of this coupe.
An employee then blasts out
the plastic shavings
With an air nozzle.
He applies a sticker with
production information on it...
And then does
a final inspection.
If he's satisfied
with the quality,
He applies another company logo.
Now flames lick
the plastic roofs and doors
As they briefly torch them.
They melt the surface
just enough
To give it a shiny veneer.
At the end
of the production line,
They pack up all the parts of
this children's ride-on car...
From the roof pillars...
To the tires...
To the steering wheel...
Everything fits neatly
into one package.
Then it will be up to mom or dad
To assemble all the pieces
of this ride-on car.
It's a job that should take
about 15 minutes or so.
Then zoom away --
no driver's license required.
If you have any comments
about the show,
Or if you'd like to suggest
topics for future shows,
Drop us a line at...
Captions paid for by
discovery communications
Narrator: The pocket wallet was
invented in the 17th century.
Europe had switched
to paper money,
And the gents of the day
Needed a handy way
to pocket their cash.
There's a slot for everything --
Credit cards, I.D.,
and, of course, cash.
And yet these wallets
remain slim enough
To fit into a trouser pocket.
These fine
hand-crafted pocketbooks
Are made from high-grade
vegetable-tanned leather.
An employee selects a hide
and arranges it on a work table.
Then he chooses a die shaped
Like one of the wallet's
inside pockets.
Using this hydraulic press,
he punches out the part.
He cuts 11 different components
for the wallet's interior,
Using a custom die for each one.
He chooses tougher leather
in a contrasting color
For the wallet's exterior.
He now measures the thickness
of the interior components.
Using what's called
a skiving machine,
He shaves them down
to .7 of a millimeter.
Another worker pre-heats
an embossing machine.
It hot-stamps a pocket part
With the company name
and the royal warrant logo,
Which signifies
that the prince of wales
Purchases this company's
leather goods.
Using a different
skiving machine,
They shave down the edges
of the exterior wallet parts.
This thinner border
Will make the parts easier
to assemble later.
The next worker
applies a water-based adhesive
To a leather strip.
It will reinforce
the top of a fabric square.
With this manual device,
She turns the top edge
to fold it in a straight line.
This leather-trimmed
fabric square
Will be used to create
a credit-card pocket.
She stamps a thin groove
onto the leather trim
To give it some definition.
Next, she builds a credit-card
slot with two of the squares.
Using an awl,
she scores a line in the fabric.
The line serves as a guide
As she stitches the squares
together to complete the slot.
She layers a third
leather-trimmed block of fabric
To create a second slot
Then adds a leather panel
That forms the third
credit-card slot.
She glues and tucks
the excess leather
Over the back
of the fabric pocket.
Then she checks
the alignment of the slots
With a tool
called a bone folder.
The next worker
Sews the credit-card
compartment together.
There are two of these
per wallet.
They glue both compartments
to the wallet's spine
Made of fabric and leather.
This spine is called
the bend section,
Because it bends
to fold the wallet in two.
She attaches the bend section
To a divider
for the money pocket.
This divider is a bit longer
Than the assembled
interior components,
To facilitate
the bending action.
She glues a lining to
the wallet's leather exterior.
Here, she uses a special hammer
To ensure the interior
and exterior components
Of this wallet adhere well.
Then she trims the corner
of the rim to make it look neat.
She rounds the corners
of the wallet
To give them a gentler profile.
Now she stitches
the assembly together,
Leaving the bill pocket
open at the top.
The next worker tucks
a metal wedge under the rim
To protect
the rest of the wallet
As she trims the rim
close to the stitch.
Removing these few slivers will
make the wallet more flexible.
She slides the bone folder
into each credit-card slot
To remove excess glue.
Finally, a few dabs
of leather preservative,
And this luxury wallet
is ready for retail
With a price tag to match.
The only question is,
will that be cash or credit?
Narrator: The french horn
has a four-octave range
And distinctive mellow sound.
As with other brass instruments,
The musician plays
certain valve combinations
And alters lip tension
to produce the right notes.
However, on a french horn,
The mouthpiece
is relatively small,
Making this instrument one
of the most challenging to play.
The french horn is made up
of 13 feet of coiled tubing,
A set of valves,
and a flared bell.
To make the tail end,
They shape a sheet of brass
around a steel mandrel
Then braze the edges together
to form a tube.
With a burnishing tool,
an artisan rounds out the shape.
Next,
they lubricate a brass disc
As it spins on a lathe.
Using a variety of tools,
they shape it into a bell.
This plasma-weld machine fuses
the bell and tail together.
Back on the lathe, they trim
the diameter of the bell...
...Then roll the edge
into a rim called a bead.
This reinforces the bell.
Next, they fill the bell
With a hot, tar-like liquid
called pitch.
Once the pitch cools,
They put the tail
into a forming block
And carefully bend it.
The hardened pitch
provides support,
Preventing the tail
from collapsing.
They verify the bend
against a template.
Using the same technique,
They shape the pieces
that form the horn's tubing.
Of all the brass instruments,
The french horn
has the most complex bends.
These valve knuckles
connect the tubes
To the cases
that will house the valves.
Some french horns
have three valves.
This double french horn
has four.
Each valve case goes
onto this alignment device,
Which pushes in the knuckles
to the correct depth.
After brazing the knuckles
to the cases,
They hollow out the case
interiors with a cutter.
Then they solder the valve cases
to each other
With connecting rings.
They insert the tubing parts
into the valve knuckles.
These curved tubes
are the horn's slides.
The musician
tunes the instrument
By adjusting them in and out
of the straight tubes.
After soldering the straight
tubes to the knuckles,
They remove the slides for now
to make other areas accessible.
Then they solder this partially
assembled valve section
To the tail and bell.
Now they apply buffing compound
And polish the horn's
interior surfaces.
They polish
the more accessible surfaces
With a cloth buffing wheel.
Then they wash off the compound
And coat the entire surface
in a protective lacquer.
Now final assembly
of the valve section can begin.
They install rotors
in the valve cases
And levers to activate them.
Unlike piston valves on a
trumpet that move up and down,
These valves rotate
to direct air flow
Through specific
tubing combinations.
A lever connects to each valve
via a rod and nylon cord.
With the valve section
now complete,
They reinstall the slides
Then do a final wipe-down
To remove grease residue
and fingerprints.
This pristine finish complements
the superb sound quality.
[ french horn plays ]
Narrator: Soy sauce is a staple
of asian cuisine,
Used as both a condiment
and cooking ingredient.
Its roots are in the seasonings
of ancient china.
Today, you can buy artificial
or chemically enhanced versions,
But authentic soy sauce
is all-natural
And made the traditional way
By brewing soy beans and wheat.
At this small soy-sauce company,
They use the centuries-old
slow-fermentation method
And just five ingredients --
Soy beans...
Water...
Wheat...
Sea salt...
And yeast.
They begin by pouring soy beans
Into a cooking device
called a steam kettle.
After thoroughly rinsing
the soy beans twice,
They fill the kettle
with water...
...Then close the lid
And boil the beans
for four hours.
Meanwhile, they pan-roast wheat
in a skillet
For about 25 minutes.
Then they put the roasted wheat
through a mill.
The mill's steel rollers crack
each grain into several pieces.
This will enable the yeast
to better penetrate the wheat
During the fermentation process.
When the soy beans are ready,
they take them out of the kettle
And spread them out
in large trays to cool.
When the beans cool
to 91 degrees fahrenheit,
It's time to add the wheat.
After mixing everything
thoroughly,
They sprinkle on yeast
and mix again.
The ingredient proportions
are key
And therefore a company secret.
To activate the yeast,
They transfer the mix
to shallow boxes
And stack them
for about 48 hours
In a controlled incubation room.
This process generates heat,
which rises,
So they have to gradually
move boxes to lower racks
To prevent overheating,
which would kill the yeast.
For the next stage,
they make a brine
By mixing fine sea salt
with spring water.
To give its soy sauce
a distinctive taste,
This company repurposes bourbon
barrels from local distilleries
To use as fermentation vessels.
Traces of bourbon in the wood
permeate the mix as it ferments,
Imbuing the sauce with
a subtle smoky and sweet flavor.
After dissolving the sea salt
in the spring water,
They add the soy bean mix,
creating a moromi,
The japanese word
for soy-bean mash.
They blend for a few minutes
Then seal the barrel
and leave it to ferment.
For the first six weeks,
once daily,
They open the barrel
and mix the moromi
To aerate the gases
that build up.
This keeps the yeast active
and helps develop the flavor.
Then after that, they open
and mix just once a week.
After 12 long months
of fermentation,
It's finally ready.
They open the barrel
and mix one last time.
Then they empty the barrel
onto a sheet of muslin
Lining the tub
of a stainless-steel press.
They fold over the sheet
to enclose the moromi...
...Then lay down planks of wood
to form a solid surface.
The press applies
6 tons of pressure,
Forcing the planks downward
against the moromi.
This squeezes out
all the liquid,
Which is the soy sauce.
It exits through a hose
at the base of the tub
And moves on to be filtered
and heat-pasteurized.
The pressed moromi
gets a new life
As high-protein animal feed.
While many soy sauces
are mass-produced,
This factory brews
small batches at a time.
A batch yields
about 600 bottles,
Each of which
workers here fill manually.
They top each bottle
with a plastic diffuser,
Which dispenses
just a dash of sauce at a time.
Then they twist on a plastic cap
And slip a shrinkable
plastic band over it.
Using a heat gun,
they seal the band
Tightly around the cap
and bottle.
Then the label,
on which they write
The batch code
and bottle number by hand.
A fitting finale
for this signature soy sauce.
Narrator:
Children's ride-on cars
Are, quite simply, fun to drive.
These molded plastic cars
come in hot colors
And often have a friendly face
on the front.
These cars have character,
And that's why
it's often bumper-to-bumper
At the neighborhood playground.
There's nothing like
that new-car feeling,
Especially when it's
your first set of wheels.
Like many toys,
the appeal of the ride-on car
Lies with children's desire
to emulate adults.
And behind the wheel
of their own little vehicles,
A child can feel all grown up.
Today's child-size coupes
are synthetic creations.
They start
with plastic resin pellets.
They mix in chemical additives
and recycled plastic
And grind it all into a powder.
The powder funnels
into a shaking sifter,
Which screens out large pieces
the grinder missed.
It then flows
into a big blender.
The plastic powder
looks a lot like pastry flour,
But not for long.
The next ingredient
is the colorant.
There are various vivid hues
to choose from.
They pour a measured amount of
red colorant into the blender,
And a spiraling beater
evenly distributes it,
Turning the white powder to red.
They portion it into jugs,
Which then shuttle
down a conveyor.
They arrive at a carousel
of molds of car shapes.
A worker empties the jugs
of colored plastic granules
Into them.
These little grains of plastic
Are about to be transformed
into car parts.
They lower the lid,
Which contains the top halves
of the molds.
The mold cage then spins
as it travels through an oven.
The plastic inside melts,
And the spinning action ensures
It completely coats
the inside of the molds
To create solid parts
with a hollow interior.
The cage then rolls
into a station,
Where a spray of water
cools everything down
And causes the plastic inside
to solidify.
The mold cage stops spinning,
And a worker hooks it up
to a crane,
Which lifts the lid.
The powdered colored plastic
Has been transformed
into ride-on-car parts,
And it's taken just 35 minutes.
Some parts fall out,
And others
have to be pulled out.
But it's easy work, thanks to
the mold's non-stick surface.
Seepage during molding
Creates unwanted bits and nubs
on the main car body
That they trim off by hand.
They also shave areas
that appear uneven.
Vents were formed
in the molding process
To release air
in the core of the part.
They now cap the vents
To keep little fingers
from getting stuck inside.
They trim the car roof
to improve its contours.
This also gets rid
of any rough edges,
Making it child-friendly.
They fit company medallions
Into slots in the roof pillars.
And they do a bit more trimming
To improve the profile
of the parts.
Drills now work in concert
to bore assembly holes
Into the main part
of this coupe.
An employee then blasts out
the plastic shavings
With an air nozzle.
He applies a sticker with
production information on it...
And then does
a final inspection.
If he's satisfied
with the quality,
He applies another company logo.
Now flames lick
the plastic roofs and doors
As they briefly torch them.
They melt the surface
just enough
To give it a shiny veneer.
At the end
of the production line,
They pack up all the parts of
this children's ride-on car...
From the roof pillars...
To the tires...
To the steering wheel...
Everything fits neatly
into one package.
Then it will be up to mom or dad
To assemble all the pieces
of this ride-on car.
It's a job that should take
about 15 minutes or so.
Then zoom away --
no driver's license required.
If you have any comments
about the show,
Or if you'd like to suggest
topics for future shows,
Drop us a line at...