vlad
Well-known member
A few years back a friend had just finished everything in preparation to drying and sealing an artillery projectile with polyurethane.
This was a 12 pounder-case shot [it had small lead balls inside with the black powder.] The first thing you do is drill it, CAREFULLY,
then flush out the black powder, then run it through electrolysis to get any salts out of the iron, and finally soak it in distilled water to get the chemicals out.
So he takes it upstairs from his cellar/lab, and puts it in the electric oven to dry out. About 10 minutes later there was a "WHUMP" and the whole house shakes. He ran up to find the door blown off the oven, and the oven bulged in every conceivable way. Turns out he did not get all the powder out. BUT he did have EVERY piece to a Confederate Borman-fused case shot.
Well, his wife got a new oven, and to this day his "cannon-balls", even bolts, are banned from HER kitchen.
[The flash point for black powder is around 400 degrees.]
This was a 12 pounder-case shot [it had small lead balls inside with the black powder.] The first thing you do is drill it, CAREFULLY,
then flush out the black powder, then run it through electrolysis to get any salts out of the iron, and finally soak it in distilled water to get the chemicals out.So he takes it upstairs from his cellar/lab, and puts it in the electric oven to dry out. About 10 minutes later there was a "WHUMP" and the whole house shakes. He ran up to find the door blown off the oven, and the oven bulged in every conceivable way. Turns out he did not get all the powder out. BUT he did have EVERY piece to a Confederate Borman-fused case shot.
Well, his wife got a new oven, and to this day his "cannon-balls", even bolts, are banned from HER kitchen.
[The flash point for black powder is around 400 degrees.]
