Home made black powder.

[thx997303]

Well, since most on this site like to do things on their own, here is a write up on how to make your own black powder.

Black Powder from Literally Nothing. Part 1 (http://thx997303.blogspot.com/2009/10/black-powder-from-literally-nothing.html)

[jim4065]

I don't understand. You gather the crystals (and set 'em aside?) Then gather the dirt (which no longer has the stuff in the crystals) and pour water through the dirt and a bed of wood ash. You then allow the water to evaporate. I guess that gives you even more crystals. Do you combine them with the crystals that you set aside earlier? :confused:

[thx997303]

Gah! Yes, the crystals you harvested from the pile are salt peter. But there is still more saltpeter in the earth.

Once the pile has stopped producing the crystalized saltpeter, you then filter the mound in order to get the remaining salt peter out before you dispose of the pile.

Need to correct that thanks!

[TCLouis]

Depending on the level of involvement in the process don't they refer to amateur black powder producer as "stumpy, or "the recently departed"?

[thx997303]

No, I have made black powder more than a few times.

The blackpowder is wet during processing and is mostly inert until dried.

Read part 3 of my write up.

[Hellgate]

I suggest you forgo irritating all your neighbors with the smelly manure pile so they don't report you and go to your local garden supply and buy a 5 lb box of STUMP REMOVER which is straight KNO3.
OK, we got the KNO3, whatabout the sulfur?

[Lead Fred]

Nice article, It was printed, and stuffed in the bottom of my black powder box.
Along with homemade cleaner and lube.

Ya just just never know.

[JeffinNZ]

I suggest you forgo irritating all your neighbors with the smelly manure pile so they don't report you and go to your local garden supply and buy a 5 lb box of STUMP REMOVER which is straight KNO3.
OK, we got the KNO3, whatabout the sulfur?

Sulphur is dead cheap the garden section of your hardware store. Not that I am advocating making your own BP. The way I see it, if the commercial boys can blow up a factory with all their precautions............well, I like living.

[rhead]

I suggest you forgo irritating all your neighbors with the smelly manure pile so they don't report you and go to your local garden supply and buy a 5 lb box of STUMP REMOVER which is straight KNO3.
OK, we got the KNO3, whatabout the sulfur?

Tell them that you are an organic gardner and it is your compost heap. They will love you for it.

[thx997303]

Sulphur is not required for a good blackpowder. Though it does give a more powerful powder, but not to a really noticeable degree.

If you would rather use sulphur in it, The procedures are the same, with the exception that you have to mill the sulphur as well. For best batch consistency, you should mill the blackpowder and sulphur in the same way for the same amount of time as the charcoal.

Note, this is not a thread discussing whether or not to make your own blackpowder, it is merely a dissemnination of information so you would know, just in case.

I do agree that so long as it is available, commercial BP is the way to go.

And as for the saltpeter mound, probably not a good idea to do this one if you live in the suburbs.

[JIMinPHX]

In addition to the danger involved in this type of organic chemistry, I think that there are also some rather unpleasant legal issues involved. Just FYI.

[delmar]

Don't know if it has me on any kind of watch list, but it doesn't seem like the government cares if you make a couple of lbs of powder to shoot in your own muzzleloader. They haven't raided my home yet anyway. I never make more than a pound at a time though.

[jim4065]

I would be surprised to discover that there were legal issues with making a small quantity of Black Powder for your own use. What law would be broken - a local fire code maybe?

[Idaho Sharpshooter]

According to BATFE there are no restrictions against making BP unless you plan to sell it or give it away. It's considered about as insidious as making homebrew. We made some back in the early eighties when Black jumped from $5-6 a pound to $10 and that plant blew up. It worked pretty good, making percussion caps from the tap-a-cap tool and rolls of caps from the kid's fanner fifty stash was even easier.

Rich

[I Haines]

I found this on another site-

(d) Except for the purposes of subsections (d), (e), (f), (g), (h), (i), and (j) of section 844 of this title, "explosives" means any chemical compound mixture, or device, the primary or common purpose of which is to function by explosion- the term includes, but is not limited to, dynamite and other high explosives, black powder, pellet powder, initiating explosives, detonators, safety fuses, squibs, detonating cord, igniter cord, and igniters.

(h) "Manufacturer" means any person engaged in the business of manufacturing explosive materials for purposes of sale of distribution or for his own use.

(n) "Distribute" means sell, issue, give, transfer, or otherwise dispose of.

http://www.atf.gov/firearms/rules/gennotices.htm

[thx997303]

Yep, don't go distributing any of your homemade blackpowder.

[northmn]

It was claimed that the long barrels of the long rifle were for utilizing the home made black powders of the day. Considering the differences one gets in using different granulations such as 3f vs 2f how does this stuff stand up? I would think that unless you developed a good screening system the stuff would be mostly cannon powder.

Northmn

[Ricochet]

If I were to think of trying any experimentation along these lines today, I'd look into the old "cocoa powder" recipes. (Much of that stuff didn't use any sulfur.) And I'd "corn" it by pushing the wet paste through a coarse screen or grate, then letting it dry. No breaking up of dry cake for me! That's the step where most powder plant explosions occurred. Also during incorporation, if they let the paste start to dry out.

[thx997303]

Did you read part two and three Richochet?

I described a wet and reasonably safe method, though there are others.

[Ricochet]

I hadn't, but have now. Same idea.

The "Cocoa Powders" typically used dark toasted (not fully carbonized) rye straw for the "charcoal."

[thx997303]

Interesting idea. Though I have had a certain measure of success with the recipe I wrote about.

I wonder, how do they compare to commercial powders?

[rmark]

Sulfur lowers the ignition temperature, making bp work with flintlocks.

Anyone interested in bp and fireworks should check out the Skylighter website.

[wills]

Anyone interested in bp and fireworks should check out the Skylighter website.

Easier to get stuff from Skylighter than mine outhouses.

[Ricochet]

Interesting idea. Though I have had a certain measure of success with the recipe I wrote about.

I wonder, how do they compare to commercial powders?
Can't say much about that, though the brown powders became highly favored as artillery propellants right at the end of the BP era. There's an article in the back of recent editions of Cartridges of the World that talks about them a bit and gives some recipes. Reportedly the toasted straw contains some tarry or gummy organic compounds that ignite readily and also aid in incorporation of the grains as they're plastic like sulfur. There's a theory that the explosion of the Maine in Havana's harbor was actually caused by spontaneous ignition of the brown powder in the ship's magazine due to heat buildup from oxidation of those organic compounds. I don't know whether that killed it commercially. More likely, the intense developmental effort then being applied to smokeless propellants (which also gave plenty of problems with spontaneous ignition in bulk storage) took precedence, BP was regarded as a technological dead end, and they just kept making it by traditional methods and recipes for the demand that continued. Good enough was good enough. When Pyrodex and the later BP substitutes came along, the brown powders were unpatentable old technology, and may not have offered any advantages over conventional BP for fire and transportation safety regulations.

[StarMetal]

Can't say much about that, though the brown powders became highly favored as artillery propellants right at the end of the BP era. There's an article in the back of recent editions of Cartridges of the World that talks about them a bit and gives some recipes. Reportedly the toasted straw contains some tarry or gummy organic compounds that ignite readily and also aid in incorporation of the grains as they're plastic like sulfur. There's a theory that the explosion of the Maine in Havana's harbor was actually caused by spontaneous ignition of the brown powder in the ship's magazine due to heat buildup from oxidation of those organic compounds. I don't know whether that killed it commercially. More likely, the intense developmental effort then being applied to smokeless propellants (which also gave plenty of problems with spontaneous ignition in bulk storage) took precedence, BP was regarded as a technological dead end, and they just kept making it by traditional methods and recipes for the demand that continued. Good enough was good enough. When Pyrodex and the later BP substitutes came along, the brown powders were unpatentable old technology, and may not have offered any advantages over conventional BP for fire and transportation safety regulations.

John, I read where that brown powder was actually more stable then the then new smokeless powders. The early smokeless powder broke down chemically, whereas the brown/black powders didn't. Another big argument is spontaneous combustion in the coal bunkers which were next to the magazines.

What's really killing off BP sells in many states now, in addition to the licensing and magazine bunkers required in cities and town, are the new National Security laws listing it as a definite explosive and wanting readily availability of it stopped.

Joe

[Charlie Sometimes]

What's really killing off BP sells in many states now, in addition to the licensing and magazine bunkers required in cities and town, are the new National Security laws listing it as a definite explosive and wanting readily availability of it stopped.

Joe

Then I am going to make more effort to study this process more intently. I have a basic understanding and knowledge of it- it just needs "refined". :groner:

As the old Boy scout motto states- "BE PREPARED" surely wouldn't hurt in these times. ;-)

[halfslow]

The definitive book about saltpeter production was written during the civil war for the confederate govt:
http://docsouth.unc.edu/imls/lecontesalt/leconte.html
Download a copy and get the straight scoop.