Wow, that was more than I could stand to watch or hear.Jago668 wrote:Article said 3 pounds.flintknapper wrote:Let's see............2 pounds of tannerite stuffed into a old riding lawn mower.
There have been a few stories of people injured, and I know of at least one killed, by putting tannerite into things. Why people think putting pounds of explosives into metal containers is a good idea I'll never know. Especially when they take zero precautions.
It's not just the tannerite detonation, as stated before, he compounded the issue by "packing" it into a metal container (the lawnmower).
He made a really nice pipe bomb, of sorts. The initial explosion was compressed by the metal lawnmower, not allowing it to vent.
The pressure was contained and compressed until the metal fatigued - even for a few thousandths of a second....resulting in much bigger and focused explosive event. The metal lawnmower parts just went where the blast sent it.
I feel sorry for the man, losing his leg. But he seriously underestimated the physics of the blast he was creating.
oljames3's 155 mm howitzer shell has such a destructive blast radius; the explosion is contained within the shell for a few thousandths of a second to create a serious over-pressure explosion fragmenting the shell and sending metal shards flying at several times the speed of sound.
Warnings are for cautions people. Reckless folks will never read them in the first place. Maybe he'll keep someone else from doing the same thing.
In NC, where I'm from, most of these stories begin with..."Well, me and Delbert was drinkin' and....".
LabRat