Does dynamite "go bad"?
 

The old gentleman who lived across the street from me passed away some months ago at the ripe old age of 93. He had a little house which is situated on about a half acre of unfenced land. He was an absolute packrat and a collector of the most amazing assortment of items - bath tubs, lengths of wire fence, building supplies, metal wash tubs - you get the idea. Much of this stuff is just lying around outside his house. I sometimes take a shortcut across the upper part of his property when I'm walking back home.

Well, the other day, Starshine slipped off her leash and happily ran off to inspect the many treasures scattered around his place as we were going back toward my house. I finally managed to catch her when she had got into an old shed to chase after a ground squirrel. There was a punch of discarded lumber in the shed and 4 sticks (very old) of TNT.

I must confess that the thought of having my very own stick of dynamite had a certain allure, and the old guy wasn't going to be using the stuff, so I swiped one of the sticks.

I'm not planning on blowing anything up at the moment, but I'm wondering if the stuff would still work after 20 years or so of laying around? Does anyone know? I suppose I could go way up in the mountains somewhere, light the fuse and run, but is there any other way of finding out?

light the fuse and run
 

I'm pretty sure that's the only way, let us know if it went bad.

umm... old dynamite is VERY UNSTABLE!!! if it shows any crystalline paticles on the wrapper that is NITRO GLYCERINE, it can explode on contact! But it can already have decomposed to Nitro on the inside so that the least shock can set it off.

My advice to you: Call the police and hope that they have a bomb squad.

WOW! Does that mean that if the ground squirrel ran across one of the other three sticks still sitting in that shed, it could blow everything up? The stick I took doesn't have any crystalline particles on the wrapper, but I didn't inspect the other 3 that are still laying in there.

YIPES! :worried:

Dynamite does sometimes "go bad", but most commonly dynamite "goes boom"! Good dynamite can "go boom" and bad dynamite can "go boom". Sometimes "good dynamite" "goes boom" unexpectedly. This is the major reason for saying "Bad dynamite!"

Call the freakin bomb squad.

9-1-1

Understand, Mari, that I hold you in the highest regard when I say, "Are you nuts!!!???" This is like a poster-child example of making a bad decision. The concept is to think about the possible repercussions of your actions and the possible benefits before taking said action. In this case, you are risking your life and the life of your dog (and maybe the neighbors?) for the sake of being the first (well, second) on your block to have a stick of dynamite.

That's not to mention that the police tend to get all upset over private citizens having bombs in their homes.

Mari - you seem like a nice person. But this was a really really bad decision.

no. she seems like a big fucking LIAR.

the puppy 'slipped off his leash' as she was 'cutting through his property', and 'chased a ground squirrel into the shed'

give me a fucking break. you fucking people that believe this shit are nearly as bad.


you heard the old prick died, then went snooping with your dog. you stole a stick of dynamite from his estate. you're probably going to do something stupid with it, like blow up your exboyfriend's car and we'll have another drama.

or you made the entire thing up.
this smacks of an eposide of Little House.

must i remind you fuckers of her bullseye into the ex's PO box lock with a staple from a staple gun?

gah!

Dar, I gotta agree with you. I acted on impulse. Also, I had no idea that the stuff actually could still be dangerous. Its very old and must have been laying around in that shed for years. I actually took it as a sort of joke to have around. Thank you all for letting me know that my "joke" could actually be a lethal one!

Upon due reflection, I am going to go back and carefully replace that stick where I found it with the other 3, and call the police to inform them that I chanced across 4 sticks of dynamite while taking a short cut across the old guy's yard. If I happened across them, someone else is bound to. I've already seen signs that some homeless person is sleeping in one of the old rusty cars that is part of the general junk collection over there.

The next person who chances into that shed may know something about explosives and have more sinisters ideas than I, and even if its just a ground squirrel that happens to ignite the stuff, the resulting exposion could send debris flying that would probably go pretty far and possibly hurt not just me, but any of the neighbors around here.

LJ, shouldn't you be watching one of your sales staff bang a customer's wife in the men's room? :eyebrow:

Mari , if this is true ( I don't doubt you but,,,,, )
DON'T HANDEL THAT STICK OF DINOMITE ANY MORE !!!!!
DO NOT FUCK WITH EXPLOSIVES IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING !!!!!!

1) Evacuate anything you love and want to keep from the imediet area ( at least 100 yards )
2) Old Dinomite leaches Nitro Gliseren , that shiney stuff that looks like sap on the out side , this can and WILL go BOOM just because it wants to !!!
3) call the cops to despose of what you found !!! I Guarantee it will freak them out !!!!!
4) DO ALL THIS NOW!!!!!!!!
5) hope like HELL you don't end up in jail for doing this DUMB ASS THING !!!!!!!

This is from a Former Marine trained in demolitions !!!!!!!

Well, I feel incredibly stupid. :blush: I guess I AM incredibly stupid about stuff like TNT. I thought the stuff became harmless after a few years. I really did. And I'm glad I asked about it, even if if I did reveal how dumb I am. Better dumb than dead. I already tippy toed over and put it back without incident, Zippy. I'll call the cops about the old guy's stash first thing in the am.

pathetic

Are you referring to your penchant for having and viewing live porno shows at your dealership?

As for me, I've already admitted to being very foolish. What I'd like to know is what my deceased neighbor was planning on doing with 4 sticks of dynamite and why he'd leave them in a shed on top of a pile of old pieces of lumber. He was sharp as a tack right up to the end - worked in his yard, added to his junk collection and could talk reasonably about most any subject you cared to bring up. He'd been the town mayor years back. I wonder what HE figured to do with the stuff? :unsure:

Some days the posts just write themselves.

Old dynamite sweats.

The sweat is nitroglycerin.

Old dynamite can explode when you walk near it too loud.

You are a fucktard.

Leave everything where it is, including your criminal enterprise, leave your house immediately, and call 911.

Don't wait. Call now. It's the darndest thing. Police, like convenience stores, are open 24 hours.

proble some left over dino, possibley from some mineing . that had been found on his watch as Mayor , ( turn it in or just hide it )
I but an alarm in a OLD state cops house one time , up in the attic was a BIG box of sawed off shotguns and the such ( some WAY home made !!!!)
He found me looking at the box of weapons and said
" You didn't see that !!!!"
Amazing what can be found in an attic if you just look .

Birthday candles.

There was no "sweat" on it.

The old man must have walked past that shed every day. StarShine was trying to root under the pile of lumber. Ground Squirrels must scamper around in there constantly if they have a nest in there. Deer and other wild animals stroll around that old guys yard (and everyone else's here), ALL the time. The old car the tramp appears to be sleeping in is maybe 20 feet from the shed. Frankly, I think if the stuff was going to blow, it would have done so long ago.

While the police are open 24 hours, its just a bit wierd to make such a report at this late hour. The stuff obviously has been sitting out there for years. 6 more hours isn't going to hurt anything.

I'll admit to complete ignorance about the stuff, but I have heeded everyone's advise, carefully replaced the one stick where it was, and will alert the police in the AM.

Fucktard, yourself!

No, you're boring.

You are either lying, as lumberjim suspects, or lucky.

Don't push it, particularly where unstable explosives are concerned.

I'll treat you all to the pics of the bomb squad and the haz mat team when they arrive tomorrow morning. :morncoff:

You may call me fucktard only after I have done something as egregiously stupid as you just admitted to doing.

And you may call me egregiously stupid when I did something as egregiously stupid I did; however, you may not call me a fucktard without expecting to be called the same appellation back. :p

I'm made of rubber, and you're of glue, whatever you say bounces off of me and sticks on you.

Nyaah.

You named your dog starshine? Christ you are stupid.

What an entertaining thread.

Please let us know what happens when you call the cops. If we don't hear from you for a while, I'll assume it's because you aren't able to post from your jail cell.

I think it is simply too soon to judge whether the dynamite has gone bad until it does something wrong. Ageism is rampant in this country, despite the fact that the average age of the US is slowly skewing higher as the babyboomers reach geriatic age. Just because dynamite is old doesn't mean that it is somehow wrong or evil. That's like saying that my grandpa must have Alzheimers just because he's 85.

Give old dynamite a break, people. It is, after all, the politically correct thing to do in this enlightened age.

yeah. why not have atropos drop in and pose with them? probably road flares. did they have little plastic caps on the end?

Mari,
don't believe all the bullshit that they're saying about the tnt. They are the fucktards. Here's what you do to "freshen up" an older stick of tnt.

preheat your oven to about 450ºf, then get a cookie sheet out and place the tnt on it and cover it with aluminum foil.
pop it in the oven for about a half an hour.
when you pull it out it will be as fresh as the day it was made.

Don't believe all the naysayers.

Well, LJ for once you were right about SOMETHING. No, they didn't have little plastic caps on the ends, They had long ribbon-like fuses. However, the cops just came out and looked at them and said they were probably the most ancient 4 road flares still in existance.

I'm certain the incident will recieve an entire sentence in the town paper's police blotter page when it comes out next week. The cops are still over across the street (Probably checking the homeless guy's nest for stolen merchandize or drugs), so if they come up with a revised opinion as to the nature of the sticks, I'll be sure to let you know.

I don't have any pictures of flippant, but if I ever run into her, I'll let her know that you are pining for her. Sorry to break your heart, but I don't believe she misses you a bit. I'd say it was time and then some for you to get over it and move on. :p

[JJ.]There is no bad dynomite.[/Walker]
foot cubed you are killing me.

Yeph. Birthday candles.

I'm sure you would say that. Well, your memory seems much better lately. It bothers me when you insult the collective intelligence here by telling tall tales. It bothers me almost as much when people continue to talk to you in spite of it.

actually, it might bother me more.

quit it

Are you talking to me or yourself? So, just how long have you been bothered by yourself? Do you find yourself bothering yourself more often these days? Maybe you should put yourself on ignore and then you wouldn't have to be aware of the fact that you continue to talk to me. Maybe you should just go lie down quietly for a while. I'm sure you'll feel better in the morning. :rolleyes:

see, i'd threaten to chase you away again, but I don't think I have the free time that needs to be applied to that endeavor. And it didn't take the last time we did it, so....

instead it think I'll just put it before the collective to keep in mind that you are apparently compulsive in your lying, and hope that they won't fall for them. yet, someone needs to clue the newbies in from time to time. Would someone with a little free time link some previous lies for the newbies to enjoy? that way we can just link this thread if the topic comes up again......or should i stay up late tonight and start a 'Marichiko Lies" thread?

Oooooh, LJ! You'd stay up late doing a thread just for ME? :love:

Heh! Heh! Heh! Go for it, big guy! I can't tell you how gratified I am that you feel me worthy of that much of your free time! Aren't you supposed to have a wife and kids and a long commute? hmmmm...

Well, I have none of the above, and I'm going out for pizza and a glass of wine. Have fun! I'm going to.

- later!

You forgot, Badda-boom. :fuse:

That would be the cherry on top! Good one, xoB!

I have been working with weapons and explosives all my life: These are the facts:

One: The story sounds like bullspit to me.
Two: Originally stated the stick was TNT, not dynamite
Three: Most TNT is NOT is stick form, still possible
Four: TNT is NOT Dynamite.
Five: Dynamite IS essentially sytabilised Nitroglycerine, and does indeed become unstable after a time....If dry, it will not neccecarily crystalize....Assuming it really exists, and is really not TNT.
Six: What are the marking on the stick? It says something I promise you. This will give an indication as to it potential danger....ranging from "Very High" to "Oh my frigging God!!)
Seven: If it is Dynamite, the handler would have the most horrific headache if handling it without gloves....I suspect no gloves would have been involved....No headaches were mentioned.
Eight: Maybe you stole an old road flare.

Welcome to the Cellar, Col_Hogan. :D

Uh, you're about 4.5 years late, to this party. :haha:

Col_Hogan :thumb:

Great response. Welcome. Tell us about yourself.

Wow. I saw the thread title and I thought, "Wow, that's the kind of kooky thread you don't see much around here lately."

Then I saw Marichiko's name and it all came back, The CO, the ciggies, The staple gun mail box attacks, the stolen road fla- I mean dynamite.

Ahh, where are the loons of yesteryear?

And Welcome Col Hogan!

hahahahaha - Holy crap - where is that video of Tony shooting
1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 staples.... Bwahahahaha