How to make a spark with lead boolits?

[DrCaveman]

When pulling boolits from loads deemed unworthy or questionable, I have only bothered to segregate and save the powder when I was dumping 10+ grains or so, with runs of 10 or more boolits or so. For lighter loads or simply pulling a handful of boolits, the unused powder goes into a dedicated Tupperware tub. Not worth my trouble to go really slow and clean the dish each boolit to prevent cross contamination.

I have been keeping my empty powder tubs as well.

Apologies now if this discussion is dangerous, flag or pull if needed.

I have tried once dumping an ounce or two of the mix into an empty tub, putting the lid on real tight, placing it out about 100 yds, and hoped to see all the terrible results that mixing powder in my loads would lead to. No dice, no nothing other than a powder tub with a few holes in it.

Then I remembered the wonderful attributes of gasoline. Figured a small splash, and shaking up (a different tub) would be better. Still nothing.

I'm lacking a spark to get things going. Since I am getting ready to pull about 50 rounds of light 38s that I stupidly seated the primer out too far (no I don't want to try seating them deeper, the load sucked anyway) and also about 20 rounds of HOT 7.62x39 (from which I may keep the powder) my powder casserole is ready for some eating.

Any ideas how to make these empty powder tubs (with a little go-juice included) into nice 'reactive' targets? I think I just need a little spark, but I ain't about to line the tub with iron...not sure if my lead boolit would make that spark anyway.

Again, sorry if this is inappropriate, and maybe there is a better sub forum for this question.

[Geppetto]

I think it would be pretty tough to get a spark of any kind off a cast boolit. If you're a really good shot maybe you can hit a 209 primer to ignite your target. I can't think of anything that wouldn't be pretty convoluted and sketchy at best. Probably it would be a better plan to spread the powder out over the lawn and then go to the store and buy yourself a couple pounds of tannerite.

[kir_kenix]

I found a bunch of cans of powder at my grandfathers place with tape over the caps and "DO NOT USE! MIXED POWDER!!!" written on them. I messed around with getting them to go boom. Took alot of work, and wasn't worth it at all. Instead of going KA-FREAKING-BOOOM, it just put out a jet of flame. Super lame.

The advice given by Geppetto is sound. Tannerite is easy to ignite, and pretty darn cheap if you buy a decent sized container and seperate them into smaller ones (I use chew cans...Griz Wintergreen fine cut seems to work the best for some reason...lol).

[DrCaveman]

Good thing tannerite is made about 45 min away from me. The makers are usually at the gun shows. I should stock up.

My thinking is that: just like a cartridge, the powder needs to burn in a confined space in order to exert the proper pressure for the task at hand. Since in this case, I am not trying to propel a 150 grain projectile at 2500 fps, the need for a robust, tightly sealed container, with one weak point (the case mouth holding a boolit relatively lightly in place) for the gas to escape after critical pressure is reached, is reduced.

But in order for anything flashy or boomy to occur, there needs to be a rise in pressure then subsequent release of that pressure. My guess is it would be the lid popping off but the tub may also split along a seam. I suppose the boolit entry hole will not help my efforts...leaky.

Hmm maybe this is going nowhere but perhaps someone with the right kind of training can offer ideas.

Damn, this ice is probably getting thinner as I type...

[newton]

Smokeless powder needs pressure to ignite reliably. This is one reason to have a good hold on the boolits in a cartridge because if the primer pushes the boolit out before the powder ignites then sometimes it won't ignite.

Lead ain't going to spark. Gasoline will ignite with a spark, but you would have to have a flame to ignite a tub of powder.

Your kind of wasting your time, in my opinion, it's a lot more trouble than it's worth. Best bet is the gas mix, a whole bunch of strike anywhere matches in a bundle, and aim straight.

[Bigslug]

Zippo cigarette lighter flint inserted into the cavity of a .22 hollowpoint.

You're welcome.

[DLCTEX]

I don't know about gunpowder, but an old friend had a case of dynamite once that began to sweat so he decided to blow it up. He put the wooden box 100 yds away and shot it with a 243 several times with no effect. He then put it in a metal can with a lid (used to get grease in 5 gal. metal buckets)and when he shot it again he blew the windows out of his house on that side from 200 yds. away.

I don't think the dynamite blew due to a spark from the metal can, but rather from the contained concussion of the bullets impact. I once shot a Bullfrog sitting in an overturned gallon can. It was DRT and there was not a mark on him. The concussion from the bullet striking the mud in the can killed him.

[Cadillo]

When I was in the basic academy at FLETC/Glynco, we would shoot steel plates at night with Winchester Silvertips. They would throw off a white flash when they hit a steel plate, which confirmed the hits. I don't know what the tips were made of, but they looked to be magnesium or aluminum. The current Silvertips may or may not react the same.

[cbrick]

While starting a fire may be fun to play with I think a far better disposal would be to sprinkle it on the lawn or flower beds. It is great fertilizer.

Rick

[Wayne Smith]

Great high nitrogen fertilizer. Don't bother putting it on your root crops!

[Tatume]

I don't know about gunpowder, but an old friend had a case of dynamite once that began to sweat so he decided to blow it up. He put the wooden box 100 yds away and shot it with a 243 several times with no effect. He then put it in a metal can with a lid (used to get grease in 5 gal. metal buckets)and when he shot it again he blew the windows out of his house on that side from 200 yds. away.

I like dynamite stories! When I was about 12 years old my Uncle Junior told me to come with him. He had a box under his arm. Turns out the box was a half case of dynamite that was old and sweating. He had me dig a hole under the old tobacco barn, saying it was time to bring the old structure down. Now, that Appalachian barn was built of logs on a stacked-stone foundation, and had been there for a couple of hundred years. After Uncle Junior wired the blasting cap and unrolled the wire, he gave me his flashlight and told me to take a battery out and touch the wires to it. When I was ready, we hid behind a split-rail fence and I touched it off. It rained stones and dirt for what seemed five minutes, and when the dust cleared the tobacco barn was still standing, with a big crater under one side of the foundation.

I'm sixty years old now, and my brother lives on the farm. He has converted the tobacco barn into a garage. It's as sound as ever.

Take care, Tom

[2manygunz]

I'll weigh in with the opinion to go with the lawn fertilizer/tannerite plan. Some things just don't work well when re-purposed.
Now that I think about it, that explains the one really lush area of grass in the back yard. I forgot that I dumped the old mixed powder there.

[paul h]

Just a reminder that smokeless powder is a propellent, not an explosive. While it is a fast burning fuel, it does not burn fast enough to go boom.

I would imagine (note don't try this at home, theory only) that if you ground smokeless powder into a very fine dust it would burn faster and may be capable of a deflagration or detonation. That said playing with energetic and reactive chemicals is a good way to get burned, maimed and sometimes killed.

Might be interesting to mix some powder with tannerite to see if it improves the reaction.

[fourarmed]

I once heard Bob Hodgdon telling stories about his youth. Very hair-raising, as his house was always full of gunpowder. He said a Prince Albert can full of Bullseye could be set off with a high velocity jacketed bullet.

[FLHTC]

My buddies and i did things similar as kids. We used a lit candle behind a gallon pickle jar of gasoline and home made black. Potassium nitrate that could be bought along with sulfer flour at the drug store. Crushed some Kingsford charcoal and after the correct amount of attention, we had a pretty cool display. We walked off about 100 yards and shot it with 22 rimfires. Not sure which of the two made more flame but it was a pretty big mushroom of flame. And we never grew up shooting people or leading a life of crime, we just had fun. We learned early on to respect the power of gunpowder but our parents would have blistered our asses if they knew.

[Raven_Darkcloud]

Put the powder on top of tannerite and shoot it.

[MtGun44]

Silvertips used to have aluminum jackets, no idea if still true. Those flashes
were part of the aluminum burning.

Bill

[dakotashooter2]

You have been HOLLYWOODED..................... Only in the movies do bullets produced a spark with any regularity...................

It is possible a high velocity bullet could do it. I suspect it would involve similar principles and conditions required to produce a dust explosion..............

[beagle]

In VN, we got a stoppage on the 20mm system on one of our Cobras. When we cleared it, one of the 20mm HEI cases had a 7.62mm hole in it and we found the bullet from an AK in the fiberglass of the ammunition container. No powder ignition in the case and this was with a FMJ bullet. Pretty hard to ignite smokeless./beagle

[dsol]

Somebody has been reading Unintended Consequences I see.

Great book!

Zippo cigarette lighter flint inserted into the cavity of a .22 hollowpoint.

You're welcome.