| Lego Warrior | 16 May 2015 7:03 a.m. PST |
Hi All, Not sure where to post this but here goes. If you shoot the old fashioned dynamite sticks would they blow up? In films etc they do… but I think they are filled with gun power which needs a flame and so would not always explode… Your thoughts are welcome thanks |
| John the OFM | 16 May 2015 7:17 a.m. PST |
Dynamite does not have gunpowder in it, but nitroglycerine that has been stabilized in … cellulose?
Old dynamite that has "sweated" out the nitroglycerine is very unstable, and can be detonated with a blow. Fantastic movie on the subject:
imdb.com/title/tt0076740 I am guessing, but I think that a blow from a bullet would not be sufficient to detonate stable dynamite. the whole point of dynamite is stability. It is designed to be detonated only with a fuse or blasting cap. |
Dn Jackson  | 16 May 2015 7:17 a.m. PST |
Dynamite is sawdust soaked in nitroglycerine, not gunpowder. So yes, a kinetic force might be enough to set one off. When dynamite gets old it is notoriously unstable. |
| John the OFM | 16 May 2015 7:18 a.m. PST |
You could have crossposted to Pulp and Old West too!  |
| coryfromMissoula | 16 May 2015 7:41 a.m. PST |
Yes it will, but not reliably with any given shot. Dynamite shoots at 1000 yards used to be regular part of turkey shoots in these parts. |
| Moe Ronn | 16 May 2015 7:51 a.m. PST |
Scuba tanks blow up much more reliably. |
| David Manley | 16 May 2015 10:30 a.m. PST |
As do car petrol tanks :) |
| brass1 | 16 May 2015 9:05 p.m. PST |
Dynamite is sawdust soaked in nitroglycerine, not gunpowder. The original 1867 Alfred Nobel formula for dynamite used diatomaceous earth; sawdust was used later by manufacturers who wanted a cheaper product. A fair amount of "dynamite" produced in the US after 1885 didn't contain nitroglycerine at all. It used ammonium nitrate, which you can shoot at all day without setting it off. LT |
| Klebert L Hall | 17 May 2015 6:04 a.m. PST |
If it is old and sweating, yes. Otherwise, you probably want to have it rigged with a blasting cap if you want it to explode reliably when shot. That's the way I've seen it done at machinegun shoots.
-Kle. |
| Lego Warrior | 17 May 2015 6:24 a.m. PST |
Brillent Guys thanks very much |
| goragrad | 17 May 2015 6:49 p.m. PST |
Not sure, but imagine that most 'dynamite' shoots these days are using Tannerite - Tannerite is the brand name of a binary explosive marketed primarily for making exploding targets for firearms practice.[1] It is a patented[2] combination of ammonium nitrate (an oxidizer) and aluminum powder (a fuel) that is supplied as two separate powders that are mixed and shaken to produce an explosive. The combination is relatively stable when subjected to forces less severe than a high-velocity bullet impact, such as a hammer blow, being dropped, or impact from a low-velocity bullet or shotgun blast.[2] It is also not flammable – an explosion cannot be created by a burning fuse or electricity. Could ask the Gateway Fire Department, they just had a dynamite shoot Labor Day and my be having another on Memorial Day or the Fourth. Ten dollar entrance fee and a dollar s shot. I may be misremembering, but my recollection is that dynamite shoots used to be conducted with old dynamite – it was a way to dispose of it without just burning it (which might see it explode anyway). P.S. Saw a link that advertised 'do it yourself tannerite' when doing the websearch for tannerite but didn't follow it as I am probably already in the NSA database for enough other shooting/historical searches… |
| ScottS | 18 May 2015 9:24 a.m. PST |
In the 1890s the US Navy experimented with a ship that fired dynamite with compressed air. Look up USS Vesuvius for more info. |
| 49mountain | 18 May 2015 1:03 p.m. PST |
I seem to recall the US using a dynamite gun during the Spanish American War. Does anyone know if this is correct? |
| Henry Martini | 18 May 2015 5:26 p.m. PST |
Correct; and they later turned up in Mexico during the revolution. |
goes to sea with the Terrain Mat.
