Amanda has drawn the assignment of testing an antique bellows foot pump. These pumps were often used to inflate imprinted balloons - often difficult-to-inflate airships - in shoe stores and other retail establishments. Amanda begins by measuring its volume. She is surprised at how small it is, so for a reality check, she measures a modern pump of similar construction. In each case, she takes care to press the pedal as far as it will go. This requires her toes to flex quite a bit, but fortunately, her thong sandals have no trouble keeping up with her limber feet. She then proceeds to test th...

Amanda has drawn the assignment of testing an antique bellows foot pump. These pumps were often used to inflate imprinted balloons - often difficult-to-inflate airships - in shoe stores and other retail establishments. Amanda begins by measuring its volume. She is surprised at how small it is, so for a reality check, she measures a modern pump of similar construction. In each case, she takes care to press the pedal as far as it will go. This requires her toes to flex quite a bit, but fortunately, her thong sandals have no trouble keeping up with her limber feet. She then proceeds to test the pressure capabilities of the antique pump. Finally, the time comes to blow up a balloon - a Q646. It takes a few hard strokes to start it, and lots of pumping due to the small volume. This prompts her to try one by mouth, which goes to show that any store with one of these pumps would have been better off to simply hire a young Amanda to blow their balloons! Finally, she decides to try a smaller, more difficult balloon - a Q350. This also works on the old pump, which has a harder time with the initial pressure, but an easier time with the reduced volume. Now it's Amanda's turn to blow a 350 by mouth. She's done them before, so she is a bit disappointed with how much she struggles this time. She even tries using her feet to help pull the balloon, but it's still a struggle. It looks like she'll need to spend more time with these in the blowing gym!