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Post by jayhawker on Nov 2, 2013 19:18:09 GMT -5
Fascinating thread.
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Post by bradshaw on Nov 2, 2013 20:24:16 GMT -5
cmh.... your grandfather probably used nitroglycerine dynamite exclusively. As one might expect, nitroglycerine dynamite is shock sensitive, albeit far less so than nitroglycerine. My first detonation of nitro powder by firearm was after a fellow threw a bundle of ten or so sticks, primed with safety fuse, into the snow. He was nervous and didn't wait to see the fuse SPITTING----throwing sparks from the lit end. I would have been folly to walk up the bundle, which had fallen below line-of-sight in the snow. I drew my Model 29, registered my sights just below the hole in the snow , and squeezed. Nothing. Held second shot a hair lower. What followed was BOOM of my .44, instantly over powered by the KA-BLOOM of the dynamite at 19,000 feet per second. Quite a sensation, to have the concussion of your .44 swallowed by dynamite.
The sensitivity of nitroglycerine dynamite makes it very efficient in wet soil conditions such as ditching. Prime the first stick, push it into the ground. A stick with a detonator in it is called a "primer." Push a stick or sticks into the soil----a pinch bar is handy when you can't just push the stick into the ground----every 12 to 18 inches. Say you want to run the ditch 100 yards: nitro allows you to do it all with one cap. Detonation of the first stick sets off the next, all the way down the line. This PROPAGATION makes for a clean ditch, or pond. There is no berm as for a dug ditch, as the soil sprays out in a mist. While rocks and trees don't turn to mist, they take off.
The sensitivity and PROPAGATION of nitro dynamite makes for a PROPAGATION HAZARD completely inappropriate for SEQUENTIAL BLASTING, as the shock wave easily overrides 25 millisecond (25 thousandths of a second) delay typical of the progressive detonation of charges. Sequential blasting reduces VIBRATION and FLY, while grind rock finer than an INSTANT shot. Great work is done, damage to surrounding property of structures is avoided, and the blasted rock or concrete is digable. As an example, if a 12 series of MS (millisecond delay) caps were primed in nitroglycerine dynamite, to blast rock, the first five (0-25-50-75-100MS) might progress smoothly, while delays 125/1000-150/1000-175/1000-200/1000-225/1000-250/1000 and 275MS detonate simultaneously. R-r-r-r-r-KA-BOOOOM. Bad scene. Rocks floating out of the sky. A proper sequence makes a R-r-r-r-r-r-rump sound; there is no big bang.
Your grandfather probably cut fuse to exactly the same length and tried to have it all spit at the same moment, for a spread INSTANT SHOT. And most assuredly, your grandfather experienced the powder headache.
David Bradshaw
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Post by bradshaw on Dec 8, 2017 12:04:24 GMT -5
Snyd calls for a look at weathered leather. As a mountain pounder, Snyd knows the importance to your anatomy of secure, comfortable carry. A doctrine which states handgun carry must be comforting, not comfortable, will very likely contribute wear to hip and spine. Better to wear out the holster than the carcass wearing it. The American climate varies tremendously by region and season. Animal oils, with pure neatsfoot the ancient standby, protects holster and belt leather for decades. Neatsfoot should only be rubbed sparingly on a water-molded holster of stiff top grain. Neatsfoot is very beneficial in the cold, dry North. However, neatsfoot and other animal oils attract mildew in the hot, wet South.
Mixture of straight mineral oil and pure beeswax is much better at resisting heat & humidity in the South. Likewise, the mineral oil/beeswax treatment works anywhere. Leather is quiet; plastic is noisy. Cold amplifies the advantage of leather and amplifies the disadvantage of plastic and nylon.
Leather shown with the Ruger 03 were made by this shooter years ago. Belt and holster especially show their age and mileage. Reckon I’ll soon have do do something about those particulars. All of this leather has seen its share of neatsfoot oil and, more recently, a mixture of mineral oil and beeswax heated on the stove and applied with rag& forceps while hot. Shave beeswax into mineral oil as it heats. Adjust mixture to your needs. I prefer a slight waxy feel on the leather. Eventually it soaks in.
David Bradshaw
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Post by bigbrowndog on Dec 8, 2017 12:20:37 GMT -5
David, I’ve got a holster that squeaks quite a bit when I walk, will the beeswax/mineral oil mixture help with that??? Good info to know about the BW/MO as I’ve always used a commercial leather dressing that I got years ago from my Sparks leather dealer, but it’s running low.
Trapr
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Post by bradshaw on Dec 8, 2017 13:18:26 GMT -5
David, I’ve got a holster that squeaks quite a bit when I walk, will the beeswax/mineral oil mixture help with that??? Good info to know about the BW/MO as I’ve always used a commercial leather dressing that I got years ago from my Sparks leather dealer, but it’s running low. Trapr ***** Clear, scentless mineral oil is available at pharmacy. Be careful to not buy any scented or otherwise adulterated mineral oil. Beeswax should be available from hardware store, natural food grocery, an apiary, or someone who keeps bees. Shave bits of beeswax, about a tablespoon or two. Heat two or three ounces mineral oil in an 8 ounce soup can. Stir in beeswax until fluid. Do not boil. (Save unused oil for the next treatment.) Apply with rag inside and outside holster, and through belt loop. Make sure to get the edging. Work in to welts, lacing, stitching. Wipe off excess. Use a stiff shoe brush if you have one. Set belt and holster in warm place but do not put on hot radiator or in stove. Know that fine holster leather comes from the relatively rigid upper part of the body. Proper tanning of top grain leather is water molded into shapes which hold. Crap leather and crap tanning is useless; no amount of treatment can save it. Many mass producers use inferior leather, or incorporate inferior cuts. Or split hides too thin. Regulate treatment interval by usage and where you live. My proportions are rough, as I mix according to particular leather and desired result. I use the mineral oil/beeswax treatment on gloves and shoes as well. Re-dye shoes before applying the oil/wax. David Bradshaw |
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JM
.375 Atomic
Posts: 2,454
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Post by JM on Dec 8, 2017 16:15:35 GMT -5
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Post by bigbrowndog on Dec 8, 2017 18:42:59 GMT -5
That’s the product I was given for my Sparks holsters, no issues with it.
The creaky squeaky holster is a simply rugged, super comfortable but squeaky.
Thanks David, I work with a beekeeper so I’ll hit him up for some beeswax.
Trapr
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JM
.375 Atomic
Posts: 2,454
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Post by JM on Dec 8, 2017 19:00:30 GMT -5
I have a small bottle of Lightning Leather.
A li'l dab will do ya!
Wondered if it was a KY jelly type of product?
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Post by bradshaw on Dec 9, 2017 0:56:13 GMT -5
The creaky squeaky holster is a simply rugged, super comfortable but squeaky.
Thanks David, I work with a beekeeper so I’ll hit him up for some beeswax.
----Trapr
*****
Apply powdered graphite mixed with mineral oil or, mineral oil & beeswax mix, to squeaky area.... may quiet it down. The beeswax provides great protection to leather fiber without the softening effect of oil alone
David Bradshaw
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Post by jayhawker on Dec 9, 2017 12:41:59 GMT -5
Leather Lightning is not for treating leather, it is to make the inside of a holster slick. Rosen holsters are wet fit to be extremely tight fit to gun when new, so tight it is difficult to remove the gun. He developed LL so users could put a bit on the tight spots of a holster so the gun will release easily.
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Post by cherokeetracker on Dec 12, 2017 18:38:05 GMT -5
Snyd calls for a look at weathered leather. As a mountain pounder, Snyd knows the importance to your anatomy of secure, comfortable carry. A doctrine which states handgun carry must be comforting, not comfortable, will very likely contribute wear to hip and spine. Better to wear out the holster than the carcass wearing it. The American climate varies tremendously by region and season. Animal oils, with pure neatsfoot the ancient standby, protects holster and belt leather for decades. Neatsfoot should only be rubbed sparingly on a water-molded holster of stiff top grain. Neatsfoot is very beneficial in the cold, dry North. However, neatsfoot and other animal oils attract mildew in the hot, wet South. Mixture of straight mineral oil and pure beeswax is much better at resisting heat & humidity in the South. Likewise, the mineral oil/beeswax treatment works anywhere. Leather is quiet; plastic is noisy. Cold amplifies the advantage of leather and amplifies the disadvantage of plastic and nylon. Leather shown with the Ruger 03 were made by this shooter years ago. Belt and holster especially show their age and mileage. Reckon I’ll soon have do do something about those particulars. All of this leather has seen its share of neatsfoot oil and, more recently, a mixture of mineral oil and beeswax heated on the stove and applied with rag& forceps while hot. Shave beeswax into mineral oil as it heats. Adjust mixture to your needs. I prefer a slight waxy feel on the leather. Eventually it soaks in. David Bradshaw Good Information David,,
This is best to make your own mixture. But for those who are lazy, time constricted, or just challenged in this area, there is an alternative. John Boos makes a cream that is Mineral Oil and beeswax. It comes in a tube ( I think 5 oz) and originally was meant for wooden spoons and butcher blocks, and even wooden cutting boards. But It is the same, as David has suggested. Google John Boos, it is pricey at 9-10 dollars a tube. But it will last a long time, and of course it has other uses. Waxing a "Work Belt" ( both sides ) will make it last longer too. Summertime Sweat is tough on leather. So I prefer to go heavy on the beeswax in this particular case.
Charles
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dmize
.401 Bobcat
Posts: 2,834
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Post by dmize on Dec 19, 2017 22:56:48 GMT -5
Back to the dynamite.
Where I live and my Grandpa grew up we are surrounded by old fire clay pits.
So many humerous stories from my Grandpa involving dynamite.
First story was when he was a kid,he was born in 1915. He was about 12 and he said it was colder than a "harlot's heart" and not much wood at the work site. Small fire going when an old man, to him, grabbed three or four sticks of dynamite,broke them up and threw them into the fire. Grandpa said he cleared about 300 yards before the sticks hit the flame,turned around and saw the prettiest blu/yellow flame as the sawdust/nitro mixture burnt.
It has been a long time but I think he said it took a 60 LbFt shock to set it off.
Later he and another guy was in a pit doing something and got bored,other guy didn't think a 22 would set of dynamite. Stuck a stick in a log and shot at it from about 100 yards. Apparently the guys shooting ability matched his intelligence. Grandpa said he would miss twice,take a couple steps foreward,miss and take a couple steps.etc..etc. until at about 50 yards he finally hit it...KABOOM..Grandpa laughed so hard telling how the guy flew past him in the air while still in the perfect off hand posture.
Then there was the story of the time they shot a string with an old push down generator/detonator. Grandpa said he was screaming to the foreman there was no way all the charges went off. A friend of his hit one of them with a hammer drill and was killed. All work was stopped and Grandpa pulled a truck up and connected the wires from the box to the trucks battery,he said it seemed like half the quarry exploded..
Everytime I want to bitch slap an OSHA inspector I think about that story.
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Post by bradshaw on Dec 20, 2017 10:07:33 GMT -5
Darrell.... Grandpa’s dynamite probably came in one or two flavors, with nitroglycerin representing plain vanilla. Nitroglycerine dynamite is great stuff. Often called “ditching dynamite,” nitro stick powder is shock sensitive, making it great for pond work and ditching in wet soil. Nitro is the very wrong stuff to use for control blasting. Nitro can turn a pattern of sequential delays into an “instant,” as the shockwave fires adjacent powder before the appropriate delay sets it off. What started as a PROPAGATION HAZARD is now just propagation. Takes the “control” out of CONTROLLED BLASTING.
Ditching dynamite may be set off with a bullet, whereas a bullet merely cuts a stick of gelatin or non-nitro in two. I’ve set off ditching dynamite with .44 Mag revolver. Quite a sensation. Makes your hair go backwards, swallows you whole. Rather pleasant, actually.
Unlike plastics: Composition 4, et cetera... brain-crack concussion.
David Bradshaw
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JM
.375 Atomic
Posts: 2,454
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Post by JM on Dec 20, 2017 12:32:13 GMT -5
Spent part of a day with some Southern boys who were attempting to break up a huge Boiler "clinker". They were using long lengths of what looked like EMT to place the explosives as close as possible. The explosives looked like cardboard tubes with plastic end caps. One end cap had a nipple that matched the nozzle on a small bottle of fluid. They would attach the tube to the EMT with duct tape. Wire it & then fill with the fluid. I asked them what the contents were. In a long Southern drawl, I was told: "Chicken Shit & Race Fuel".  |
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Post by bradshaw on Dec 20, 2017 19:50:27 GMT -5
JM.... EMT? Once I was served as an Emergency Medical Technician, EMT. Perhaps in the world of explosives “EMT” means something obvious, which I should instantly grasp, but do not. Please fill me in. Starting into your first sentence, I anticipated a caper with shaped charges. Please fill out the story; sounds good...
David Bradshaw
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