Posted: 5/5/2008 5:32:51 PM EDT
I don't know if making this stuff is legal or not, and DO NOT want to get myself in trouble. That being said, a friend of mine over the weekend said he went to a farm over the weekend where they were making a "version" of tannerite and shooting it. His "recipe" was an equal mixture of ammonium nitrate and gun powder. That in and of itself doesn't sound safe.  But my curiosity is peaked and I did some research ...the interweb recipes call for 95% ammonium nitrate and 5% aluminum powder. 1. Is it legal to make and shoot this stuff? 2. Is it safe to make this stuff? 3. What is/are the preferred recipe (s) for this stuff? 4. What is considered a safe distance to shoot this stuff? 5. Am I going to get banned for bringing this up? Blake |
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Look into the explosive laws for your state. Some states require licensing for binary explosives, Florida in particular, (yeah I know what Dan Tanner claims). You cannot legally transport mixed explosives, you cannot legally store mixed explosives without an approved magazine. If you intend to play with Tannerite, you have to mix and use on site the same day and for it's intended purpose which is noise making. If you blow stuff up with it or start mixing large quantites, you are treading on thin ice with both state & federal law. Tannerite is fun stuff and it's dangerous as hell when obstructed. Even Dan Tanner suggests suspending it from a string as a target to prevent flying debris. |
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Thanks for the replies. When mixed, I am assuming you put it in some type of container, i.e., a soda bottle, right? Thanks for clarifying weight vs. volume for mixing purposes. Do most people weigh all the way down to grams? WOW, that is precise. Keep any additional thoughts and/or precautions coming. Thanks again. Blake |
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I had my first tannerite experiences over the weekend. That stuff is awesome. It's right up there with .50 caliber rifles as far as making grown men giggle. It comes in containers in which you can mix it and then shoot it. If you're just doing single charges, they're perfect. They even have a nice high-viz orange label on them. If you're mixing up larger batches, like the 2.5 pound one we did, you need a bigger container. We used a disposable tupperware-type thing. |
What comes in containers? Tannerite? I thought you had to make your own. How big of an explosion did the 2.5 .lb make? How far back were you when you shot it? Blake |
Mix it in a Ziploc baggie and wrap it tightly with duct-tape. Now you are ready to set it off with something that has a high velocity impact. |
You can make your own, but tannerite is a brand name. You buy the stuff and it's shipped to you. This is what we had, as delivered by UPS. Cardboard box with several canisters of white, granular stuff - that was the ammonium nitrate. There was one larger cannister of the aluminum powder, and a little measuring spoon. To use it, you'd open up one of the canisters of white powder, mix in a spoonful of the aluminum powder (which turns the white stuff gray), and then put the top back on. Fire away. When we did the single canister shots, we were probably about 50-60 yards away. Only thing we ever put on top of it was an old paint can, and there was one blob of old, congealed paint that came back pretty close to where we were. As for the 2.5 pound charge, we were probably about 300 yards away from that one. Farther than we needed to be, since we weren't blowing anything up with it. Hard to describe the boom - it was freaking loud, and apparently was heard over two miles away at the house of a relative of the guy whose property we were at. It left a nice crater in the Texas clay and blew the grass off the ground in about a 5 foot diameter circle. ETA: This was the 2.5 pound charge. 
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Wow! Welcome to the club! I didn't realize that there were so many gun people that haven't experienced Tannerite! |
I'd bet that most folks who play with the do-it-yourself tannerite weigh it down to the gram. German Darkhead (the aluminum) from fireworks manufacturing sites is around $25 per pound, which only gives you 454 grams. If you mix it in a 95/5% ratio, that only gives you around 19 one-lb charges. You can go higher on the AL portion of the ratio and get more "flash" with the boom, but it's not necessary. I usually mix mine at 96/4% to get more charges out of a lb of AL, and it still works just fine. Please be careful. |
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250lbs of tannerite shot with a 90mm anti-tank gun..... from the Big Sandy shoot (the following shoot they did 350lbs, but I don't have video) Bigger is better-just make sure you open the windows on your RV first. (range is about 350-400 yards) Watch the shockwave. |
I heard he uses a screw driver and hammer to make "fake bullet holes" in his plane. You know, just so it looks battle worn... |