Duct Tape, and it's unsung sister, Gaffer's Tape are staples in my home. (Gaffer's comes in about a hundred different colors to blend with anything. The name comes from the "gaffer", or guy who runs the lighting truck in movies.)

I keep several rolls in various colors to use for about any job. Of course I do gigs with the SCA, in which Duct Tape is considered one of the miracles of this world. Their armor is patched with it, the padding beneath is held on with it, tents are repaired with it, and the weapons they use are rattan covered in the silvery stuff.

The best story I ever heard about DT was from a cousin in the Air Firce. He claims that holes in the skin of aircraft were regularly fixed by simply slapping a chunck of the silver miracle substance on them. The resulting patch would hold even at speeds faster than sound!

Of course, this is the same cousin that swears the "three legged chicken" story is true...

Mikal