Has anyone every wondered about how the writers came up with some MacGyverisms? Think about it, some things used in the show are pretty "out there" ideas.

This email from writer, Rick Drew, gives a pretty good description of how it happened.

True, a few of them are just flat-out ridiculous, not to say cringeworthy. But most of them make sense, and given the premise, it can eventually come to seem natural. Now that I've had some experience with writing MacGyverisms myself, I 'get' the mentality behind them in a way I never did before.

One of the biggest challenges in plotting isn't making the necessary materials available -- it's reducing the supply of other available materials to the point that Mac's most natural choice is the one you want. Research opens multiple doors, and then you have to close the unnecessary ones, or they'll drag the story off sideways.

Another big challenge is explaining to your friends why you have that funny look on your face as you contemplate some perfectly ordinary object. Although mine have mostly gotten used to it by now.