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Old January 10, 2000, 08:25 PM   #1
Coinneach
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I'll quit asking someday, really.

OK, so I managed to yank the bullets out of my uncharged cases. In a bullet-pulling frenzy, I thought of the old milsurp .303 in the ammo cabinet... the stuff that only goes bang after 3 or 4 hits.

I grabbed the boxes, and set to work. This is what came out of the case after the bullet:



[color=#FF0000]█[/color][color=#FF0000]█[/color][color=#FF0000]█[/color] is *this* stuff? Not the grey powder, I know what that is... what the hell are those rods? Is it what I think it is (starts with a C)? If so, how do I dispose of it?

------------------
"If your determination is fixed, I do not counsel you to despair. Few things are impossible to diligence and skill. Great works are performed not by strength, but perseverance."
-- Samuel Johnson

[This message has been edited by Coinneach (edited January 10, 2000).]
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Old January 10, 2000, 09:11 PM   #2
labgrade
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Cordite.

Read Forsythe's Day of the Jackel for an interesting "get out of work" application.

This is great! Reminds me of the "give the guy a fish & he's fed for a day, but teach him to fish ... "

BTW, used to be able to scrape the red off of old-style playing cards as they were a nitrocellulose mixture - supposedly could improvise a "powder mixture" for some things that go bang. (Have no idea why I mentioned that.)

Damn, Coin. I can see you hookin' up your bullet puller to your toothpaste tube next. It's a nifty enough device but it does have limited applications.

Leave the cat alone!
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Old January 10, 2000, 09:17 PM   #3
labgrade
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Oh yeah. As far as diposing of "that stuff" ... call OSHA (they do house visits now) or EPA (it's really nasty stuff & if you open a cartridge & can see it, it's in close enough proximity to kill ya) or you can take it out back & carefully light a match to it & watch it burn just like any other gun powder.

Don't have your head right over the top of it, BTW.

Or you can really just throw it in the garbage can. Probably wouldn't hurt to soak it a few in water just for grins.
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Old January 10, 2000, 09:26 PM   #4
Coinneach
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All right, buddy, you put the idea in my pointy head...





teach him to fish ...
...and he'll ask endless questions about fishing.

I suspected the stuff was cordite, since it's... well, cordy. Never seen it firsthand.

Don't have your head right over the top of it, BTW.

You mean like in the pic?

Thanks again, Alan.



------------------
"If your determination is fixed, I do not counsel you to despair. Few things are impossible to diligence and skill. Great works are performed not by strength, but perseverance."
-- Samuel Johnson
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Old January 10, 2000, 10:31 PM   #5
labgrade
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Ahhhahaha

Just too GD funny!

But, do you have cats?

We DO have to get together & have a coupla brewskis.
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Old January 10, 2000, 10:41 PM   #6
Coinneach
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I do have cats (2 of them), and they normally make themselves scarce when I start flailing away with bizarre tools. Smart kitties.

------------------
"If your determination is fixed, I do not counsel you to despair. Few things are impossible to diligence and skill. Great works are performed not by strength, but perseverance."
-- Samuel Johnson
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Old January 11, 2000, 12:08 AM   #7
Art Eatman
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Yeah, probably Cordite. Just burn it. Backyard, driveway...No le hace. It's not as good as a half-a-matchbox worth of black powder, to leave in an ashtray just before you leave the bar you don't care much for...

On bullet-pulling: My inertia-puller hid under something and I fell back on pliers, to pull some unknown 30-06 loads. Used the press, with no die in the way; ran the ram up, grabbed the bullet, pulled the ram down. The wedging action tightened the pliers and out came the bullet.

Little hickeys on the ogive-part of the bullet, of course. I figured they'd do fine as "plinkers". Loaded some; they grouped as well as brand-new bullets...It's amazing what doesn't really matter!

FWIW, Art
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Old January 11, 2000, 12:51 AM   #8
Mal H
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Art - this is off topic but I gotta say you are so right about how amazing it is what doesn't affect accuracy. A couple of days ago I was cycling some expensive ammo through a 10/22T and noticed that it was dinging the bullets badly. The dings were deep and about a milimeter wide. I was thinking that sure can't help accuracy. So I loaded a group of 5 one at a time by hand and got a grouping of .35" at 50 yds. When I just let 'em fly from the magazine then I get groupings of ... .35". Again, "it's amazing what doesn't really matter".
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Old January 11, 2000, 05:39 AM   #9
Blue Heeler
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It is cordite for sure---we used to get it
out of .303 cases when we were kids.You can
do lots of cool stuff with it too.
If you tape a string of it together you can
detonate small bombs of pottassium chlorate
sulphur and charcoal--scares the **** out of
elderly neighbours and animals---mind you we
wouldn't do that now would we?
When I was a kid Australians used to be able
to set fire to anything they wanted to--just
to see what happened--It's lucky we survived.
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Old January 11, 2000, 07:28 AM   #10
M1A1John
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I have always heard about that stuff, but never eyeballed any, thanks for the pics,

Last night....

I thought I was a great reloading sort- of- dude, I turn the primer tube upside down with out the keeper in place, and let 100+ primers fly onto the shop floor, KA-Rap......see bubba on the deck picking up primers.
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Old January 11, 2000, 02:09 PM   #11
ML
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What I want to know is how did the Brit's mass produce ammo with cordite? From the looks of it I do not think it going into my powder measure.
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Old January 11, 2000, 02:18 PM   #12
Dr.Rob
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Yep that's cordite.. slow burning smoky stuff that was in the hold of the Lusitania when she was torpedoed.( Its also called "gun cotton" in some circles bcuase its made in strands I think) Lots of old "african" cartidges were loaded woth Black Powder or cordite and are therefore NOT restricted to the 50+ caliber rule (thanks to someone here for that info).

The 416 rigby was loaded with a BUNCH of those strands to get its power (old Shooter's bible article)

Didn't think there was much of it left around. Burn it or soak it in oil to render it useless. Burn it in the open.. keep your face away from it and don't even think of putting it into a closed container.

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Old January 11, 2000, 02:43 PM   #13
Coinneach
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Well, after I get done yanking the bullets out of the rest of the cases, there'll be even less cordite around.

I'll soak the cases (including primers) in oil when I'm done. I grew out of the pyro phase some years ago.

------------------
"If your determination is fixed, I do not counsel you to despair. Few things are impossible to diligence and skill. Great works are performed not by strength, but perseverance."
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Old January 11, 2000, 07:35 PM   #14
HankL
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Ah Coinneach, why not put one strand on the anvil and give her a good whack with the hammer! Might be great fun if it's still in pretty good shape.
Hank
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Old January 11, 2000, 11:31 PM   #15
labgrade
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I dunno about gun cotton = cordite. GC's a wash of nitric acid over real cotton (which supplied the carbon base), etc. I think cordite's an early nitrocellulose based stringy thing-a-ma-goo (technically speaking, of course). Correct me if I'm off base on this.

I still wanna see a cat picture! Grab one BEFORE you start flailin' away.

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