HOMEMADE BREAD & BUTTER PICKLES

LIQUID
1 cup white vinegar
2 cups sugar
2 tablespoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon celery seed
1 tablespoon mustard seed

7 - 14 cups pickling cucumbers, blossom and stem ends trimmed, sliced into rounds if small and half-rounds if larger (see NOTES)
1 cup onion, sliced thin in rounds or half rounds, rings separated

Bring the liquid ingredients to a boil, let cool a bit. Place the cucumbers and onions in a large crock or glass jar. Pour hot liquid over top. Weight the cucumbers to submerge in the liquid (see NOTES). If desired, add more cucumbers over the next day or so. Refrigerate and let stand for at least 24 hours after the last cucumbers are added. Transfer to freezer containers and freeze until ready to use.

KITCHEN NOTES
Use the smallest pickling cucumbers you can find, otherwise they'll be full of seeds which aren't inedible but do affect the aesthetics of the pickles and don't agree with some digestive systems.
Add about 7 cups of sliced cucumbers straight off. They'll shrink considerably so add more cucumbers the next day as room is made.
For weighting the cucumbers, I used a small plate topped with an empty glass jar filled with water.