Zappy
March 24th, 2004, 02:23 PM
The structure in question is just your average tool shed, well, sort of. It's a homemade job measuring roughly 8' long by 5' wide and 7' high, not counting the peak. It consists of 1x8" clapboards nailed to the wooden frame (trusses?), which itself is built from 2x4s. The roof comes to an "A" shaped peak (sorry for the lack of proper construction terms!). Anyway, the building is quite dilapidated and has become an eyesore, and I would like to remove it sometime later this spring or summer.
Right now I'm trying to decide between the only two explosives I can obtain or manufacture: Pyrodex (cheap BP substitute) or acetone peroxide. I've had plenty of experience with both, though I've never tried to destroy anything this large. Since Pyrodex is a very slow-burning explosive (slower than BP, actually) it would need a lot of confinement. I'm guessing a simple pipebomb (piece of steel coupling with threaded end caps) with a charge of about 200g Pyrodex would produce enough of a shockwave to destroy the building. The goal here is to reduce it to managable pieces of wood which I could easily gather up afterwards - not to launch the thing into orbit.
My only concern with Pyrodex (or even BP, if I could obtain some) is the noise level that such a device would create. Although this is not a populated area, there are a number of homes some 1/4 mile away, where the occupants may not appreciate having their windows rattled. Fragments from the steel pipe are not a huge concern, as this building is in a remote location and the actual blast would be fired by remote ignition.
As for AP, I have a couple of concerns with this. First of all is it's sensitivity; I've been fortunate never to have had any mishaps with this stuff, and I handle it with the utmost caution, but I still worry nontheless. The most I ever made at a time was 80g, and this required a LOT of 3% H2O2 (boiled down). The second concern are it's actual detonation properties. Although it has a lot of shattering ability (hence it's potential to remove fingers!) it doesn't seem to have much "heave". If an 80g amount were used on this toolshed, my worry is that it would only displace the clapboards (if that) and leave the frame intact. On the plus side however, AP doesn't produce the vibration that BP / PX does, and when confined inside an object it doesn't seem to produce nearly as much noise.
The plan for charge placement, would be to hang the charge(s) horizontally in the very center of the building, ensuring that the shockwave would be evenly distributed, flying debris would be minimized, and that the end caps of a pipe charge (if used) would fly only straight up or down. The building would be tightly sealed (windows boarded from the inside, door nailed shut) in order to produce as much confinement as possible.
These are the only two explosives I have access to right now, although I may eventually be able to make some KCLO3 and produce something more suitable with it.
Obviously, this job could be accomplished much more easily with a can of gasoline and a match but hey, what would be the fun in that?? ;)
Looking forward to any input you might have on this subject.
Right now I'm trying to decide between the only two explosives I can obtain or manufacture: Pyrodex (cheap BP substitute) or acetone peroxide. I've had plenty of experience with both, though I've never tried to destroy anything this large. Since Pyrodex is a very slow-burning explosive (slower than BP, actually) it would need a lot of confinement. I'm guessing a simple pipebomb (piece of steel coupling with threaded end caps) with a charge of about 200g Pyrodex would produce enough of a shockwave to destroy the building. The goal here is to reduce it to managable pieces of wood which I could easily gather up afterwards - not to launch the thing into orbit.
My only concern with Pyrodex (or even BP, if I could obtain some) is the noise level that such a device would create. Although this is not a populated area, there are a number of homes some 1/4 mile away, where the occupants may not appreciate having their windows rattled. Fragments from the steel pipe are not a huge concern, as this building is in a remote location and the actual blast would be fired by remote ignition.
As for AP, I have a couple of concerns with this. First of all is it's sensitivity; I've been fortunate never to have had any mishaps with this stuff, and I handle it with the utmost caution, but I still worry nontheless. The most I ever made at a time was 80g, and this required a LOT of 3% H2O2 (boiled down). The second concern are it's actual detonation properties. Although it has a lot of shattering ability (hence it's potential to remove fingers!) it doesn't seem to have much "heave". If an 80g amount were used on this toolshed, my worry is that it would only displace the clapboards (if that) and leave the frame intact. On the plus side however, AP doesn't produce the vibration that BP / PX does, and when confined inside an object it doesn't seem to produce nearly as much noise.
The plan for charge placement, would be to hang the charge(s) horizontally in the very center of the building, ensuring that the shockwave would be evenly distributed, flying debris would be minimized, and that the end caps of a pipe charge (if used) would fly only straight up or down. The building would be tightly sealed (windows boarded from the inside, door nailed shut) in order to produce as much confinement as possible.
These are the only two explosives I have access to right now, although I may eventually be able to make some KCLO3 and produce something more suitable with it.
Obviously, this job could be accomplished much more easily with a can of gasoline and a match but hey, what would be the fun in that?? ;)
Looking forward to any input you might have on this subject.