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Posted: 5/29/2009 9:08:41 PM EDT
A neighbor of mine came in and seen my reload room today and said I needed to have a ground rod with wire coming from it and attach it to myself when loading powder so I don't blow myself up. Never heard of this before but is static that much of a concern for some. He said he's reloaded for years and seemed to know what he was talking about.
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| Take some gun powder and sprinkle a little on the concrete and take a lighter and see how long you have to hold it to the powder to get it to start burning, I've burned several piles of spilled powder and it takes a couple seconds of direct contact with a flame from a lighter to ignite. So I don't think a little spark from some static electricity will ignite gun powder, but I could be wrong. JMO |
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Powder can and does stick to the inside of the powder measure due to static cling, been some discussions here on Armory=>Reloading in the past. As I recall, dryer sheets worked just as well. Yes but he's talking about catching himself on fire or blowing his loading room up due to static electricity. |
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I'd venture to say that it's more a thing w/ blackpowder re-loaders vs. smokeless powder re-loaders.
But, IF you just touch a grounded metal plate every once in a while.......it wouldn't hurt to be on the safe side either. Ever notice the signs at the gas station's pump? 
Aloha, Mark PS.......ME......I don't worry about it. But, everyone is different. |
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If I'm not mistaken there is graphite in most smokeless powder to prevent clumping, keep the powder from creating static when shaken, and also to help keep it from igniting due to static.
A guy here posted photos of grains of powder being touched with electricity and he wasn't able to ignite any with way more power than static can create (at least not that you would be dealing with reloading) |
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But, IF you just touch a grounded metal plate every once in a while.......it wouldn't hurt to be on the safe side either
All you really need is to be at the same voltage level (potential) as the reloading equipment. So if you are generating sparks when you cross the room, just touch the reloading machine at a point well away from the powder, and you'll be GTG. |
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Quoted: If I'm not mistaken there is graphite in most smokeless powder to prevent clumping, keep the powder from creating static when shaken, and also to help keep it from igniting due to static. A guy here posted photos of grains of powder being touched with electricity and he wasn't able to ignite any with way more power than static can create (at least not that you would be dealing with reloading) That is it. Furthermore, I have loaded Bullseye into those "snap pop" things, the twirled tissue paper things filled with coarse sand, coated with a tiny bit of explosive. Did those set off Bullseye? Not a bit. Even when I disassembled 5 of the snap caps, then mixed in a bit of Bullseye. Nothing. It just sat there. Primers spray a very hot stream of burning metal particles, focused through the flash hole. A spark from static electricity isn't likely to cause a problem...with powder. Primers? Well, they are mostly metal BUT static could easily zap primer dust. |
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A neighbor of mine came in and seen my reload room today and said I needed to have a ground rod with wire coming from it and attach it to myself when loading powder so I don't blow myself up. Never heard of this before but is static that much of a concern for some. He said he's reloaded for years and seemed to know what he was talking about.
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Having worked in the McAlester Army Ammunition Plant and Depot in Oklahoma, grounding is necessary. It depends on the scale of powder or primers near the arc. So you spark a small amount of powder, no big deal.
You spark even a small amount of powder where tons are being used, it is a big deal. Don't wear wool or polyester in very cold conditions, don't shuffle your feet across carpet, etc. and you will prevent most static electricity. It happens in very dry conditions. |
| Saw a demonstration on TV where they had a small pile of gunpowder and they took an electronic tool and showered the powder with sparks and it did not light. I wouldn't be concerned about grounding anything but would be concerned if my loading area caused static sparks everytime I touched something. |
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Almost fifty years of reloading and never grounded anything, never had a problem. Sounds like Chicken Little. Black powder is a totally different situation. 'Borg I have to agree...but geez....almost 50 years of reloading experience?.... I thought that I was old with over 30 years of reloading....:-) |
| Gun powder takes a lot of energy input to start burning. If grounding was needed there would be a lot of news stories of reloaders burning there benches down. Ask your neighbor if you should stop smoking at your loading bench also? And you might let him know, if there is ever a fire you have a large extingisher in your garden shed between the drum of diesel and 1000 lbs of lawn fertilizer. |
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It is possible to ignite powder using an ESD. No one can credibly deny that. It is all a matter of how much energy how it is directed at the powder, what the powder is sitting on (how it's grounded), etc.
What you want is a static dissipative work surface, neither conductive (metal) nor insulating (plastics). A wooden workbench on a concrete slab is a very good static dissipative work surface. Plastic measuring pans, covers, hoppers, flip trays etc = bad jujuj. Now, let's talk about grounding your body and clothing so they don't charge. Think cotton and leather soled shoes. |
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A neighbor of mine came in and seen my reload room today and said I needed to have a ground rod with wire coming from it and attach it to myself when loading powder so I don't blow myself up.
Thats just one more reason why you don't tell your neighbors that you're reloading. Most often they have no understanding of the hobby and react with fear. |
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has anyone tested this out such as, pour a small amount of powder and build up a charge? YES! When I started reloading I was worried about this also. Being in Arizona where the humidity can be in the single digits I decided I needed to test this. I sprinkled about 5 grains of Bullseye onto a piece of tinfoil (leftovers from my hat making project pictured above) and shuffled my feet over the carpet and built up a whopping charge. The foil was positioned on the stove for good grounding. I reached out and touched the foil near the edge of the charge and all it did was scatter the powder a little. No ignition. I did not test primers as the neighbors may have called the law if one had detonated. ETA–– I did not test blackpowder either. |
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A neighbor of mine came in and seen my reload room today and said I needed to have a ground rod with wire coming from it and attach it to myself when loading powder so I don't blow myself up.
Thats just one more reason why you don't tell your neighbors that you're reloading. Most often they have no understanding of the hobby and react with fear. Explain to your neighbor the difference between black powder and smokeless powder. Also explain every car that crashes on TV explodes, and in real life, they seldom do. Your neighbors brain may be grounded, that's my guess. |
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Quoted: But, IF you just touch a grounded metal plate every once in a while.......it wouldn't hurt to be on the safe side either All you really need is to be at the same voltage level (potential) as the reloading equipment. So if you are generating sparks when you cross the room, just touch the reloading machine at a point well away from the powder, and you'll be GTG. Quoted: Having worked in the McAlester Army Ammunition Plant and Depot in Oklahoma, grounding is necessary. It depends on the scale of powder or primers near the arc. So you spark a small amount of powder, no big deal. You spark even a small amount of powder where tons are being used, it is a big deal. Don't wear wool or polyester in very cold conditions, don't shuffle your feet across carpet, etc. and you will prevent most static electricity. It happens in very dry conditions. I live in Denver, CO and there are few places dryer than this. In the winter, the humidity reading of untreated heated air in one's would typically register in the single digits! That's why we all use humidifiers with our heaters. In addition, most of us have learned to grab our wives by the arm before we give them a kiss because a static spark from lip to lip hurts! All that said, a simple piece of thin wire run from one of the mounting bolts on the underside of your bench to an electrical outlet ground is sufficient to bleed off any static build up on your press. I have an aluminum handle on my Dillon so I've gotten into the habit of grabbing it when I approach my bench. Some of my friends with plastic handles just grad the press. Both ways bleed off any charge. Even though I work on carpet, I have a plastic chair mat which keeps the area clean and reduces the build up of static. My system works well enough so that I don't need to use the dryer sheet on my plastic powder measure tube. |
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has anyone tested this out such as, pour a small amount of powder and build up a charge? YES! When I started reloading I was worried about this also. Being in Arizona where the humidity can be in the single digits I decided I needed to test this. I sprinkled about 5 grains of Bullseye onto a piece of tinfoil (leftovers from my hat making project pictured above) and shuffled my feet over the carpet and built up a whopping charge. The foil was positioned on the stove for good grounding. I reached out and touched the foil near the edge of the charge and all it did was scatter the powder a little. No ignition. I did not test primers as the neighbors may have called the law if one had detonated. ETA–– I did not test blackpowder either. If you wanted the ESD to ignte the powder, you should not have reached out and touched the foil. You'd want to configure the set up so the discharge is to the powder granules themselves, not the foil they rest on. For example, cut a small (1/4") hole in a paper plate. Cover the hole from the rear with a small piece of foil. Ground the foil via a wire or via touch contact with a grounded surface. Place the powder over and completely covering the foil, as viewed from the front. Now, go charge yourself and reach out to touch the powder. |
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has anyone tested this out such as, pour a small amount of powder and build up a charge? YES! When I started reloading I was worried about this also. Being in Arizona where the humidity can be in the single digits I decided I needed to test this. I sprinkled about 5 grains of Bullseye onto a piece of tinfoil (leftovers from my hat making project pictured above) and shuffled my feet over the carpet and built up a whopping charge. The foil was positioned on the stove for good grounding. I reached out and touched the foil near the edge of the charge and all it did was scatter the powder a little. No ignition. I did not test primers as the neighbors may have called the law if one had detonated. ETA–– I did not test blackpowder either. If you wanted the ESD to ignte the powder, you should not have reached out and touched the foil. You'd want to configure the set up so the discharge is to the powder granules themselves, not the foil they rest on. For example, cut a small (1/4") hole in a paper plate. Cover the hole from the rear with a small piece of foil. Ground the foil via a wire or via touch contact with a grounded surface. Place the powder over and completely covering the foil, as viewed from the front. Now, go charge yourself and reach out to touch the powder. I did touch the powder near the thinner edge of the pile. I was thinking it would be more likely to ignite near the edge like paper. Maybe have to set this test up again Mythbuster style and work up charges of increasing intensity until it ignites. 
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Almost fifty years of reloading and never grounded anything, never had a problem. Sounds like Chicken Little. Black powder is a totally different situation. 'Borg I have to agree...but geez....almost 50 years of reloading experience?.... I thought that I was old with over 30 years of reloading....:-) DANG WHIPER-SNAPPER! |
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