Dictionary definition of “hundred-mile-an-hour tape”

hundred-mile-an-hour tape

n. a narrow roll of strong plastic, acrylic, or woven fiber backed with a strong adhesive; duct tape. Also two-hundred-mile-an-hour tape. Subjects: English, Automobiles & Transportation, Aviation

Editorial Note: Duct tape is just one kind of adhesive tape that is called “hundred-mile-an-hour tape.”

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Citations: 1991 [Kelly Shuldberg] Usenet: rec.skiing (Aug. 30) “Re: Volkl’s (was Re: SKI SALES)”: The holes they have in them are adequately held together by duct tape, or as we used to call it on the Colorado river, “hunnert-mile-an-hour tape.” And if you run across noisy, obnoxious New Yorkers or Texans, two or three inches does nicely to seal them up, too! 1993 [Aaron] Usenet: rec.bicycles.tech (Mar. 29) “Re: How do I ride to work?”: In General Aviation, they call it “hunnerd-mile-an-hour” tape, for obvious if not comforting reasons. 1995 B. Watson How to Build and Modify Intake and Exhaust Systems (Jan. 12) p. 57: If you are not going to be operating the car in a hot weather environment then grab your hacksaw, your two hundred mile an hour tape and get busy. 1995 Pam Adams Peoria Journal Star (Illinois) (Jan. 28) “‘My favorite Tool’” p. C1: We call it 200-mile-an-hour tape. You can fix a lot of things with duct tape. 1996 Christine V. Baird Star-Ledger (Newark, New Jersey) (Oct. 20) “Born In The Garden State: Duct Tape Devotion” p. 1: However, there’s even a better than best (though some might protest that characterization) known as the “nuclear grade,” which is used at reactors and a “200 mile an hour” tape made by another manufacturer specifically designed for race cars. 2001 Live Today: Lou Waters, Natalie Allen, Jeff Flock (CNN) (May 3) “Getting a Jump on Wildfire Season”: HIPKE: Yeah, we had 100-mile-an-hour tape and a little foam. And it’s just really—it’s rock solid on there. FLOCK: What’s 100-mile-an-hour tape? HIPKE: It’s supposed to last up to 100 miles an hour I guess before it starts peeling off the plane. 2002 Edith Bevin Northern Territorian (Australia) (Mar. 22) “How Joanne was tied up with homemade cuffs” p. 1: During the attempted abduction, the offender used three different types of tape: silver insulation tape for her face, duct tape for her legs and hundred mile an hour tape for her hand restraints. 2002 MSNBC (Dec. 4) “The News With Brian Williams”: The regular tape is called less-than-a-hundred-mile-an-hour tape in the industry, and you use that for a lot of things short of the skin. This speed tape is specifically made for speeds a hundred miles an hour and more. That’s why they use on it the race cars. 2003 Alisha Hipwell Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Pennsylvania) (July 16) “Training To Meet Tragedy Writer Finds It Takes Guts To Be A ‘Victim’” p. N-1: A paramedic’s sure hands took my pulse and felt up and down my extremities for other injuries. “Hundred mile an hour” tape—similar to electrical tape—temporarily sealed my abdominal wound. 2007 Niles Daily Star (Michigan) (Jan. 27) “Even in Iraq, everyday life can become mundane”: To compensate for the darkness we attached chemical glow sticks to the stakes contained in the pit. We used duck tape, also known as “100 Mile an Hour Tape,” to secure the glow sticks. I guess you can chalk that up as another use for the versatile product.

Posted 30 Jan 07 | Permalink | Tell a Friend

Reader comments:

It was called “hundred-mile-an-ho ur tape” initially by American helicopter crewmen during the Vietnam War, then the expression spread to other service members. The variety issued by the Army was medium green in color and two inches wide, and could be used on a helicopter to cover fuselage holes or hold down loose items (cables, equipment, torn metal, etc.) in flight. Like civilian duct tape, it was used for many other things as well, e.g. reinforcing book bindings or holding two M-16 magazines together so you could just flip the pair over to reload.

by Ted McClure 31 Jan 07, 1037 GMT