Terminator Nitro Bombs
Sebastian Bernheim
Hi
I just saw the Terminator (Arnold Swatzennager, sp) on VCR
last night, and one scene bothered me...
Can you actually make Nitroglycerine the way they do it in the
movie? Mothballs, and other household products in a motel
kitchenette? It seems unbelievable.... Can anyone tell me the truth
about this?
--
_______________________________________________________________________________
O++O Sebastian Bernheim
=\/=
"Love them little mousies!"
"Ma che sciagura d'essere senza coglioni!" (something like that)
Disclaimer: I just work here, they don't pay me enough to think!
_______________________________________________________________________________
Robert Dorsett
> Can you actually make Nitroglycerine the way they do it in the
>movie? Mothballs, and other household products in a motel
>kitchenette?
I don't know about nitroglycerine, but one can make a variety of explosive
devices from common household chemicals..
Matt Bartley
>last night, and one scene bothered me...
>
> Can you actually make Nitroglycerine the way they do it in the
>movie? Mothballs, and other household products in a motel
>kitchenette? It seems unbelievable.... Can anyone tell me the truth
>about this?
I don't remember that one very clearly. I have put this into the same general
class as the tricks they show on _MacGyver_. Some of them I know to be real,
and others I don't know about and they might be real.
Nitroglycerin is normally made by mixing up concentrated nitric and sulfuric
acids, then _slowly_ dropping glycerine into it and stirring it up. The
procedure I read said the liquid had to be kept in an icewater bath and not
allowed to go above a certain temperature. If it did, or brown fumes start
forming, dump the whole thing into the big bucket of water you have out,
fast.
I don't think I'd want to be making pipe bombs to throw around out of
nitroglycerin. I think what the showed in _Terminator_ was something else,
"plastique" I remember them saying. Now I'm not sure what they mean by
that. The usual "plasic explosive" is military C-4, and I think is just
about impossible to make. I have heard of other improvised so called plastic
explosives, one of which I tried and it didn't work.
In any case, most such explosive wouldn't work the way they showed in the
movie. Just putting it in a pipe and sticking a fuse in wouldn't do anything
with C-4 or TNT or most high explosives. A much simpler way they could
make those things would be to stuff the pipes full of cut-off match heads.
Note: that's really dangerous and I've heard of many people blowing themselves
up, because match heads can be ignited so easily.
In any case, I don't really know about the stuff they showed in the movie.
It may well work. There's always one way to find out - try making it...
--
Internet: mdbo...@portia.stanford.edu Matt Bartley
Bitnet: mdbomber%por...@stanford.bitnet
Kirk: "Spock! Where the hell's that power you promised?"
Spock: "One damn minute, Admiral." -- Star Trek IV : The Voyage Home
Bill Backus
[A bunch of stuff about nitro and pipe bombs and then]
> In any case, I don't really know about the stuff they showed in the movie.
> It may well work. There's always one way to find out - try making it...
Ummm, I don't think experimentation in making explosives is really a good
idea. At best, in this case failure could be disappointing, success could
be tragic. I know common sense should prevail but the nightly news and
the daily paper show it to be a dwindling resource.
Also, no offense to the original poster, you ...[pause a moment
for some slight earth tremors out here is the bay area of CA..
where was I? Oh yeah..] you just gotta wonder about advice from
somebody with the moniker mdbomber. Although, admittedly, explosives
are likely a subject in which he's capable.
Bill Backus
io!att!bgb
Andy Soravilla
#>>movie? Mothballs, and other household products in a motel
#>>kitchenette?
I think you are thinking of napalm, you can make a very good
substitute in your kitchen sink.
Sean Casey
Probably the easiest high explosive to make is ANFO - Ammonium Nitrate
and Fuel Oil. Both are readily available to anyone that wants to buy them.
I don't have the details with me, but the stuff is really easy to make,
has middle-of-the-road stability, and is very cheap. Many places doing
explosion research (pressure welding, etc) use this because it is so cheap.
Note that any high explosive can do horrifying things to you if you
screw up. Don't play with it until you've been taught by an explosives
expert.
Sean
--
*** Sean Casey se...@ms.uky.edu, se...@ukma.bitnet, ukma!sean
*** "Well, heck's farr, Jim, it gives mah computer sumthin' to do when
*** Ah'm out brandin' capacitors." -DM
Matt Bartley
>are possible mdbomber%por...@stanford.bitnet replies
>[A bunch of stuff about nitro and pipe bombs and then]
>> In any case, I don't really know about the stuff they showed in the movie.
>> It may well work. There's always one way to find out - try making it...
>Ummm, I don't think experimentation in making explosives is really a good
>idea. At best, in this case failure could be disappointing, success could
>be tragic. I know common sense should prevail but the nightly news and
>the daily paper show it to be a dwindling resource.
May I add something to the end of my text you quoted?
:-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-)
Seems like that's needed.
C'mon, I'm not being serious here. But after all, it *is* the scientific
method of hypothesis and experiment. :-) :-) <-- hope it clearer there
>Also, no offense to the original poster, you ...[pause a moment
>for some slight earth tremors out here is the bay area of CA..
>where was I? Oh yeah..] you just gotta wonder about advice from
>somebody with the moniker mdbomber. Although, admittedly, explosives
>are likely a subject in which he's capable.
You felt the earthquakes? Where? I didn't notice them here.
As for my username. It's an old alias that dates back several years to the
days of BBS's and it's kinda stuck. It was bestowed on me by acquaintances.
Seems like if you know anything about fire more advanced than a cigarette
lighter, many people think you're a pyromaniac. And modified, since the damn
computer won't let usernames be more than 8 characters...
I'm knowledgable about some sorts of improvised explosives, the sort of things
that would turn up in things like _MacGyver_ and _Terminator_. What I've
actually tried is pretty tame, most of them derived what what we learned in
a lab in high school chemistry (that's a long story).
The most powerful stuff I've experimented with was ordinary garden
fertilizer. I usually would stick to flares, smoke pots, and the like, and
that was years ago. I haven't been crazy enough to try making nitroglycerin.
I am interested in these things, like the stuff in _Terminator_ and the
stunts in _MacGyver_, in learning the chemistry in them because I find it
fascinating, while not intending to use them. (Yeah, you've heard *that*
one before, but I'm serious.)
>Bill Backus
>io!att!bgb
A JETSON News User
Nitrogen (as in Ammonia) is a major ingredient in quite a few explosives.
TNT=>Tri-Nitro-tolulene. Iodine crystals can be used with Ammonia to make
a wicked little explosive. This stuff is unstable as hell when the
crystals are dried. An ex-friend of mine used to coat bird seed with it
and watch birds blow their heads off. One reason he's and ex-friend.
In olden days, the red dye used in playing cards could also be used as
an explosive. Don't bother trying it now, they changed the dye a while ago.
Eddie McCreary
U. of Houston "Just a few household chemicals in the proper
ho...@elroy.uh.edu proportions..." TREMORS
Matt Bartley
>In article <10...@portia.Stanford.EDU>, mdbo...@portia.Stanford.EDU (Matt Bartley) writes:
>> In article <Apr.5.12.06....@aramis.rutgers.edu> bern...@aramis.rutgers.edu (Sebastian Bernheim) writes:
>>> I just saw the Terminator (Arnold Swatzennager, sp) on VCR
>>>last night, and one scene bothered me...
>>> Can you actually make Nitroglycerine the way they do it in the
>>>movie? Mothballs, and other household products in a motel
>>>kitchenette? It seems unbelievable.... Can anyone tell me the truth
>>>about this?
>> [response by me]
> Note that didn't list ALL the ingredients used (did they? its been a while.)
>Nitrogen (as in Ammonia) is a major ingredient in quite a few explosives.
>TNT=>Tri-Nitro-tolulene. Iodine crystals can be used with Ammonia to make
>a wicked little explosive. This stuff is unstable as hell when the
Ah yes. Nitrogen Tri-Iodide. Another valuable gem of knowledge learned from
high school chemistry class. :-) We'd leave bits of the stuff on small pieces
of paper outside to dry. When the breeze swept up one of the papers.... BANG.
No, nothing happens to you if you step on it (wearing shoes!) - that happened
a number of times becuase a few tiny grains of it would inevitably end up on
the floor and dry. When the next class came in some of the students would
get quite a surprise! :-)
>crystals are dried. An ex-friend of mine used to coat bird seed with it
>and watch birds blow their heads off. One reason he's an ex-friend.
Yuk! That's not fun at all.
>In olden days, the red dye used in playing cards could also be used as
>an explosive. Don't bother trying it now, they changed the dye a while ago.
Yeah, I remember something about that. I think I saw instuctions on how to
make a pipe bomb with red-suit playing cards. Truth is stranger than fiction
sometimes..
Jeffrey Michael Gerber
his book "Big Secrets" talks about such a thing. He doesn't seem to
believe in it, however. Here's what the recipe is (note, I have no idea
what this does, so PLEASE be careful and don't blame me) :
You need the red dye from OLD paper playing cards (it contains NITRO).
Then, soak these in alcohol (or even water). Stuff the hearts/diamonds
and othe red features into a tube. You'll need glycerine. Use hand
lotion. Then, you'll need something to set it off. Snake Repellent
is said to work. Put some of that in the tube. Then, leave the tube
on a radiator and RUN!
That's basically it. I have never tried this, so I have idea as to
what it does. Besides, they don't make that kind of playing card
any more.
Peter Deutsch
> are possible mdbomber%por...@stanford.bitnet replies
> [A bunch of stuff about nitro and pipe bombs and then]
> > In any case, I don't really know about the stuff they showed in the movie.
> > It may well work. There's always one way to find out - try making it...
>
> Ummm, I don't think experimentation in making explosives is really a good
> idea. At best, in this case failure could be disappointing, success could
> be tragic. I know common sense should prevail but the nightly news and
> the daily paper show it to be a dwindling resource.
I can only second this advice, along with a personal
anecdote which might help pursuade one or two of the less
thoughtful to refrain from dragging out the old cookbooks.
I used to pay my way through school in California as a
technician for a guy whose hobby was "fireworks". He
always had big jars of various coloured chemicals in
cabinets around the workshop, which I simply ignored. He
claimed he was making fireworks, but it turned out later
that he was a "survivalist", who drove a four-wheel drive
loaded with food and camp gear, loaded his own ammunition
and generally was preparing for whatever version of
Armageddon he thought was coming. As part of this, he was
into experiments with various "homebrew" explosives.
I was trying to pay my way through school, and wasn't
terribly interested in this survivalist's rather strange
(to me) views, but you can imagine how this turned out.
One night I came back from a series of service calls across
town to find the workshop crawling with Sheriff's
vehicles, police etc. The poor guy had been loading a set
of rockets when he managed to blow off a couple of
fingers. Seems he couldn't get the wallop he needed with
his brass hammer, so he turned to a conventional steel
one. Once the cops were called to his house after the
explosion, then followed up with a call on his business.
Really, this stuff aint worth it. The guy was lucky to be
alive.
Oh, yeah. something about film...
How about a discussion piece - Why are Americans
traditionally so horrified by the sight of erotica, but so
in love with violence and death in their entertainment? Is
is really just a reflection of their society? Whole thing
seems a little backwards to me. Arnie, Sylvester, the
splatter films (freddie and his ilk), it really all
strikes me as most unhealthy.
I now live in Montreal and was pleasantly surprised (and
no, not just voyeuristically) to see that the French
language TV channels didn't seem to have the prohibition
on nudity that is virtually complete in the US. Strangely
the English Canadian TV, although not as bad as the US was
not quite so liberal. I have since been told that the
English Canadian channels get a lot of stuff on tape after
it shows in the US so they inherit US censorship.
Films here appear to run with virtually no censorship.
There is a rating scheme, but I understand it is advisory
only.
As a related comment - I remember a conversation I had in
India, while discussion Indian cinema with a native of
Delhi. He complained that Amercian films couldn't address
real emotional issues, as the violence overwhelmed
everything else. The speaker claimed that Indian films deal
with emotions in a much more satisfactory way, a claim
which I would dispute but my exposure to Indian films is
sketchy, to say the least (what I have seen seems to
idolize relationships to an extreme degree, but at least
the level of violence is lower).
I don't think it's enough to say that America is a violent
society. Still, I agree with the implied criticism of
American films. Why do American viewers pay so much to see
so many killings, bombings, explosions, etc?
Of course, this may have already been done to death, but I
didn't see it in the recent "common questions" posting.
How about it - "why are American films so violent?"
- peterd
---------------------------------------------------------------
These are _MY_ generalizations. You want some, go get your own!
---------------------------------------------------------------
john oughton
>
> How about a discussion piece - Why are Americans
> traditionally so horrified by the sight of erotica, but so
> in love with violence and death in their entertainment? Is
> is really just a reflection of their society? Whole thing
> seems a little backwards to me. Arnie, Sylvester, the
> splatter films (freddie and his ilk), it really all
> strikes me as most unhealthy.
>
>
> didn't see it in the recent "common questions" posting.
> How about it - "why are American films so violent?"
>
As another Canadian trying to comment on your question, I'll
probably get flamed to death (more violence) by patriotic,
pacifist Americans for adding my opinions, but what the hell.
OK -- why is violence so popular as entertainment in the
USA? I would add other phenomena like "Rollerball" and
Wrestlemania to support the idea that stylizied violence is big
business south of the border.
First -- America's founding myth -- the Revolutionary War -- is
violence. Americans felt violence necessary to separate from
England -- other countries (Canada, etc.) didn't. The other
mythic war -- mythic in the sense that it formed the US's sense
of self -- was the Civil War. So I would say that Americans
are by virtue of their political history conditioned to
believe that violence solves political problems. Look at the
record of US intervention in Latin America -- over 100 armed
interventions right up to Grenada and Panama.
Second -- the dark side of the American dream that anyone can
prosper is that those who feel (for whatever reason) they're
not prospering can resort to violence to achieve their ends.
And some of them become folk heros for it (Dillinger, Bonnie &
Clyde)
Third, I believe that, the more civilized comforts we have (
cars, airconditioning, VCRs etc.) and the less we physically
have to struggle to keep ourselves alive, the more certain
repitilian parts of our brain go unsatisfied -- the id or
unconscious part that has changed little since caveman days.
We have an organic need to fear, fight, thrill in successful
violence -- when our lives don't satisfy that on a physical
level, we resort ot entertainments like hooror movies, filmed
violence, etc. to get the same adrenaline kick in a civilized
way. As the US has many citizens with the most sybaritic
lifestyle anywhere, their need for simulacra of the raw fight
and flight sensation is greatest.
Fourth -- also related to myths. The central US myth and movie genre
is the Western, in which the good guy solves everybody's
problems by shooting the bad guy. I really believe that Ronald
Reagan perceived his presidency in those terms -- too many
horse operas affected his brains, not too developed to start
with. Some US presidents and diplomats have trouble
appreciating the subtlety of international affairs because of
this kind of black hat /white hat conditioning.
Before the flames start coming from US terminals, let me add a little
asbestos: I like many parts of the US and most of the people
I've met there. I admire many American films and other
products. But I'm glad I live in Canada, where guns are a lot
harder to get hold of.
Roman Rozin
[ ... ]
> OK -- why is violence so popular as entertainment in the
> USA? I would add other phenomena like "Rollerball" and
> Wrestlemania to support the idea that stylizied violence is big
> business south of the border.
Other places plain violence is big business.
> First -- America's founding myth -- the Revolutionary War -- is
> violence. Americans felt violence necessary to separate from
> England -- other countries (Canada, etc.) didn't. The other
> mythic war -- mythic in the sense that it formed the US's sense
> of self -- was the Civil War. So I would say that Americans
> are by virtue of their political history conditioned to
> believe that violence solves political problems. Look at the
You are talking about violence as if it were an entity divorced from all
context, and evil in itself. In fact, the violence you are deploring had
as its goal individual freedom.
> record of US intervention in Latin America -- over 100 armed
> interventions right up to Grenada and Panama.
(You are talking as if reasons for the interventions don't matter - just
like a man who forcibly, violently stops another from raping a woman, is
as guilty, as mindlessly violent as the rapist).
Compare that with the number of armed coups that took place in this century
alone in Africa, or the number of people killed by the communists during their
reign in the Soviet Union (> 50 million), and in China (? millions), by the
Nazis and Fascists in WW1 and WW2 (? millions), and now tell us that Americans
are mythically violent because they used violence to become free and because
they watch violent movies where the good guys beat up the bad guys.
> Second -- the dark side of the American dream that anyone can
> prosper is that those who feel (for whatever reason) they're
> not prospering can resort to violence to achieve their ends.
That is the way plain criminals feel in every country in the world.
> And some of them become folk heros for it (Dillinger, Bonnie &
> Clyde)
Oh, Canada does not have violent folk heroes? (Most countries do).
> Third, I believe that, the more civilized comforts we have (
> cars, airconditioning, VCRs etc.) and the less we physically
> have to struggle to keep ourselves alive, the more certain
> repitilian parts of our brain go unsatisfied -- the id or
> unconscious part that has changed little since caveman days.
Speak for yourself.
>Fourth -- also related to myths. The central US myth and movie genre
> is the Western, in which the good guy solves everybody's
> problems by shooting the bad guy. I really believe that Ronald
> Reagan perceived his presidency in those terms -- too many
> horse operas affected his brains, not too developed to start
> with. Some US presidents and diplomats have trouble
> appreciating the subtlety of international affairs because of
> this kind of black hat /white hat conditioning.
Makes you really wonder then, how come the US is the most powerful, richest,
and freest country in the world, when it has to compete with brilliant
Canadian statesmen and non-violent canadian citizens.
>Before the flames start coming from US terminals, let me add a little
> asbestos: I like many parts of the US and most of the people
> I've met there. I admire many American films and other
I visited Canada and can't say I reciprocate the sentiment.
> products. But I'm glad I live in Canada, where guns are a lot
> harder to get hold of.
Especially for victims of violent crime.
Roman Rozin
Traal
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