traveling with your bp

[gtpkeeper]

how do you carry your black powder when driving to the range,wooden box or ??
i carry them vials 26 of + 4 spare per pistol, in a wooden dominoes box
works well,
when i take a second pistol there in plastic bait box

[Turnup]

If using pre-weighed charges then I transport them in plastic vials in a plastic .44 magnum MTM case. If planning to use a flask at the range, I carry the powder in it's original container for transfer to a powder flask at the range. I prefer not to transport BP in a flask as I find it leaks somewhat, and I am also concerned about absorption of water vapour - I guess putting the flask in a plastic ziplock would solve both concerns.

A member of my club travelled to the Vesuvit importer (somewhere North - about 200 miles each way) to procure 32x1kg plastic tubs of their finest as a bulk purchase for the club. He became concerned about transportation so he asked the importer who informed him that he could carry up to 50Kg in his car without any extra paperwork or precautions . They also supply it in a 16kg plastic bag in a cardboard box (slightly cheaper but a faff to divide up later) and this is also OK up to 50kg. Surprised the hell out of me but it is legit.

IIRC about 1lb of BP will self confine (transition from "woof" to "boom") if ignited in a loose pile, so I am sure that a 16kg bag will .

[tacfoley]

IIRC about 1lb of BP will self confine (transition from "woof" to "boom") if ignited in a loose pile, so I am sure that a 16kg bag will .

The late Mr Fawkes was counting on that happening.

tac

[loiner1965]

Saw a programme on YouTube where they tried to set off bp and nitro by static charge.....they couldn't even set it off with a tazer

[tacfoley]

Saw a programme on YouTube where they tried to set off bp and nitro by static charge.....they couldn't even set it off with a tazer

Do tell.

tac

[20's plenty]

This site http://www.ctmuzzleloaders.com/ctml_experiments.html covers static and black powder and some other interesting experiments including electronic ignition.

[tacfoley]

This site http://www.ctmuzzleloaders.com/ctml_experiments.html covers static and black powder and some other interesting experiments including electronic ignition.

Thanks for that - VERY interesting. However, there is 'static' and 'static'. Many a magazine or temporary gunpowder store has become a large smoking hole thanks to lightning.

tac

[airgunnut]

I use glass vials (black powder quickly discolours pastic) but I also take a brass powder tube flask but I never carry it full, I transport powder for the flask in small plastic bottles (bottles that contained ink to fill a continues ink feed system for a printer) the bottles holds just enough to fill the flask my theory is that if an electrostatic charge does somehow light the powder in the plastic bottle then all you will get is a big genie, the plastic will melt and not hold any pressure unlike the brass tube flask, a friend drilled holes in the base/filling cap of his brass tube flask and put some duct tape over the holes, now if a spark does get into the flask then it will blow the tape off before any real pressure builds up and blows the flask.
Black powder is sold in plastic containers that resemble 2 pint milk cartons, so to me putting it into a smaller (and a bit more sturdy) plastic bottle makes perfect sence.

[Turnup]

I use glass vials (black powder quickly discolours pastic) but I also take a brass powder tube flask but I never carry it full, I transport powder for the flask in small plastic bottles (bottles that contained ink to fill a continues ink feed system for a printer) the bottles holds just enough to fill the flask my theory is that if an electrostatic charge does somehow light the powder in the plastic bottle then all you will get is a big genie, the plastic will melt and not hold any pressure unlike the brass tube flask, a friend drilled holes in the base/filling cap of his brass tube flask and put some duct tape over the holes, now if a spark does get into the flask then it will blow the tape off before any real pressure builds up and blows the flask.
Black powder is sold in plastic containers that resemble 2 pint milk cartons, so to me putting it into a smaller (and a bit more sturdy) plastic bottle makes perfect sence.

I figure that the container the BP came in was designed for the purpose, and I cannot be found negligent if something goes wrong. While I see that decanting into a smaller container would naturally reduce the scale of a problem, a container that used to contain ink may have different static and mechanical properties to the original material. Some plastics distort when suddenly stressed, some shatter - and not all of those which shatter are rigid - some years ago a thread on rec.pyrotechnics about home made aerial mine launcher (mortar tube for fireworks) revealed that one of the obvious choices was in fact known to be quite dangerous as it shatters into shrapnel rather than tearing - I forget exactly what material it was but it was readily available as thick walled tubes in various sizes, easily glued, soft and reasonably rigid and on the face of it ideal for the job - IIRC it was manufactured as gas or possibly water supply pipeline.

Having conducted some modest experiments, I predict that a plastic container and a flask load of BP within, even with no lid on it will produce a loud and percussive bang rather than a big genie when ignited. How the container itself will behave is anyone's guess. I am advised that about a pound of BP in a loose open pile will self confine and go bang if ignited. From personal experience, FWIW about 20 grains of loose BP in a tube about 2cm dia and 6cm long, sealed at one end only and about one grain of coffee creamer powder sitting on top of it, ignited electrically at the sealed end, makes a sound much like a shotgun, as I and quite quickly my neighbours discovered . (Before you ask was trying to make a small fireball effect)

Drilling a pressure relief hole in the flask is a sound idea. Friend of mine lost the top joint of his trigger finger to a freaky priming flask (i.e. very small flask) explosion, and now all his flasks have a large hole plugged with a cork. He calls himself stumpy now.