weapons, although usually thought of as kids toys, can be made into rather dangerous
weapons.
SPECIAL AMMUNITION FOR BB GUNS
A BB gun, for this manuscript, will be considered any type of rifle or pistol that uses
compressed air or COý gas to fire a projectile with a caliber of .177, either BB, or lead
pellet. Such guns can have almost as high a muzzle velocity as a bullet-firing rifle. Because
of the speed at which a .177 caliber projectile flies, an impact detonating projectile can
easily be made that has a caliber of .177.
Most ammunition for guns of greater than .22 caliber use primers to ignite the powder in
the bullet. These primers can be bought at gun stores, since many people like to reload
their own bullets. Such primers detonate when struck by the firing pin of a gun. They will
also detonate if they are thrown at a hard surface at a great speed.
Usually, they will also fit in the barrel of a .177 caliber gun. If they are inserted flat end
first, they will detonate when the gun is fired at a hard surface. If such a primer is
attached to a piece of thin metal tubing, such as that used in an antenna, the tube can be
filled with an explosive, be sealed, and fired from a BB gun. A diagram of such a projectile
appears below:
_____ primers _______
| |
| |
| |
V V
______ ______
| ________________________ |-------------------
| ****** explosive ******* |------------------- } tassel or
| ________________________ |------------------- cotton
|_____ _____|-------------------
^
|
|
|_______ antenna tubing
The front primer is attached to the tubing with a drop of super glue. The tubing is then
filled with an explosive, and the rear primer is glued on. Finally, a tassel, or a small piece of
cotton is glued to the rear primer, to insure that the projectile strikes on the front
primer. The entire projectile should be about 3/4 of an inch long.
SPECIAL AMMUNITION FOR .22 CALIBER PELLET GUNS
A .22 caliber pellet gun usually is equivalent to a .22 cal rifle, at close ranges. Because of
this, relatively large explosive projectiles can be adapted for use with .22 caliber air
rifles. A design similar to that used in the begining of this document is suitable, since some
capsules are about .22 caliber or smaller. Or, a design similar to that in this document
could be used, only one would have to purchase black powder percussion caps, instead of
ammunition primers, since there are percussion caps that are about .22 caliber. A #11 cap
is too small, but anything larger will do nicely.
2 10.Rocketry by Exodus
Rockets and cannon are generally thought of as heavy artillery. Perpetrators of violence do
not usually employ such devices, because they are difficult or impossible to acquire. They
are not, however, impossible to make. Any individual who can make or buy black powder or
pyrodex can make such things. A terrorist with a cannon or large rocket is, indeed,
something to fear.
ROCKETS
Rockets were first developed by the Chinese several hundred years before the myth of
Christ began. They were used for entertainment in the form of fireworks. They were not
usually used for military purposes because they were inaccurate, expensive, and
unpredictable. In modern times, however, rockets are used constantly by the military,
since they are cheap, reliable, and have no recoil. Perpetrators of violence, fortunately,
cannot obtain military rockets, but they can make or buy rocket engines. Model rocketry is
a popular hobby of the space age, and to launch a rocket, an engine is required. Estes, a
subsidiary of Damon, is the leading manufacturer of model rockets and rocket engines.
Their most powerful engine, the "D" engine, can develop almost 12 lbs of thrust; enough to
send a relatively large explosive charge a significant distance. Other companies, such as
Centuri, produce even larger rocket engines, which develop up to 30 lbs of thrust. These
model rocket engines are quite reliable, and are designed to be fired electrically. Most
model rocket engines have three basic sections. The diagram below will help explain them.
_________________________________________________________
|_________________________________________________________| --
cardboard
\ clay | - - - - - - - - - - | * * * | . . . .|c| casing
\_______| - - - - - - - - - | * * * | . . . |l|
_______ - - - thrust - - - | smoke | eject |a|
/ clay | - - - - - - - - - | * * * | . . . .|y|
/________|_____________________|_______|________|_|_______
|_________________________________________________________| --
cardboard
casing
The clay nozzle is where the igniter is inserted. When the area labeled "thrust" is ignited,
the "thrust" material, usually a large single grain of a propellant such as black powder or
pyrodex, burns, forcing large volumes of hot, rapidly expanding gasses out the narrow
nozzle, pushing the rocket forward.
After the material has been consumed, the smoke section of the engine is ignited. It is
usually a slow-burning material, similar to black powder that has had various compounds
added to it to produce visible smoke, usually black, white, or yellow in color. This section
exists so that the rocket will be seen when it reaches its maximum altitude, or apogee.
When it is burned up, it ignites the ejection charge, labeled "eject". The ejection charge is
finely powdered black powder. It burns very rapidly, exploding, in effect. The explosion of
the ejection charge pushes out the parachute of the model rocket. It could also be used to
ignite the fuse of a bomb...
Rocket engines have their own peculiar labeling system. Typical engine labels are: 1/4A-2T,
1/2A-3T, A8-3, B6-4, C6-7, and D12-5. The letter is an indicator of the power of an
engine. "B" engines are twice as powerful as "A" engines, and "C" engines are twice as
powerful as "B" engines, and so on. The number following the letter is the approximate
thrust of the engine, in pounds. the final number and letter is the time delay, from the
time that the thrust period of engine burn ends until the ejection charge fires; "3T"
indicates a 3 second delay.
NOTE: An extremely effective rocket propellant can be made by mixing aluminum dust
with ammonium perchlorate and a very small amount of iron oxide. The mixture is bound
together by an epoxy.
BASIC ROCKET BOMB
A rocket bomb is simply what the name implies: a bomb that is delivered to its target by
means of a rocket. Most people who would make such a device would use a model rocket
engine to power the device. By cutting fins from balsa wood and gluing them to a large
rocket engine, such as the Estes "C" engine, a basic rocket could be constructed. Then, by
attaching a "crater maker", or COý cartridge bomb to the rocket, a bomb would be added.
To insure that the fuse of the "crater maker" ignited, the clay over the ejection charge of
the engine should be scraped off with a plastic tool. The fuse of the bomb should be
touching the ejection charge, as shown below.
____________ rocket engine
| _________ crater maker
| |
| |
V |
_______________________________V_
|_______________________________| ______________________
\ | - - - - - -|***|::::| /# # # # # # # # # # # \
\__| - - - - - -|***|::::| ___/ # # # # # # # # # # # \
__ - - - - - -|***|::::|---fuse--- # # explosive # # )
/ | - - - - - -|***|::::| ___ # # # # # # # # # # # /
/___|____________|___|____|____ \_______________________/
|_______________________________|
thrust> - - - - - -
smoke> ***
ejection charge> ::::
Duct tape is the best way to attach the crater maker to the rocket engine. Note in the
diagram the absence of the clay over the ejection charge Many different types of
explosive payloads can be attached to the rocket, such as a high explosive, an incendiary
device, or a chemical fire bottle.
Either four or three fins must be glued to the rocket engine to insure that the rocket flies
straight. The fins should look like the following diagram:
|\
| \
| \
| \ <--------- glue this to rocket engine
| \
| \
| \
| |
| |
| |
leading edge |
-------> |
| |
| | trailing edge
| | <--------
| |
| |
| |
| |
\_____/
The leading edge and trailing edge should be sanded with sandpaper so that they are
rounded. This will help make the rocket fly straight. A two inch long section of a plastic
straw can be attached to the rocket to launch it from. A clothes hanger can be cut and
made into a launch rod. The segment of a plastic straw should be glued to the rocket
engine adjacent to one of the fins of the rocket. A front view of a completed rocket bomb
is shown below.
|
fin | <------ fin
| | |
| | |
| __|__ |
V / \ V
---------------| |---------------
\_____/
|o <----------- segment of plastic straw
|
|
| <------ fin
|
|
By cutting a coat hanger at the indicated arrows, and bending it, a launch rod can be made.
After a fuse is inserted in the engine, the rocket is simply slid down the launch rod, which
is put through the segment of plastic straw. The rocket should slide easily along a
coathanger, such as the one illustrated on the following page:
____
/ \
| |
cut here _____ |
| |
| |
| / \
V / \
_________________/ \________________
/ \
/ \
/____________________________________________\
^
|
|
and here ______|
Bend wire to this shape:
_______ insert into straw
|
|
|
V
____________________________________________
\
\
\
\
\ <--------- bend here to adjust flight angle
|
|
|
|
|
| <---------- put this end in ground
|
LONG RANGE ROCKET BOMB
Long range rockets can be made by using multi-stage rockets. Model rocket engines with an
"0" for a time delay are designed for use in multi-stage rockets. An engine such as the
D12-0 is an excellent example of such an engine. Immediately after the thrust period is
over, the ejection charge explodes. If another engine is placed directly against the back of
an "0" engine, the explosion of the ejection charge will send hot gasses and burning
particles into the nozzle of the engine above it, and ignite the thrust section. This will
push the used "0" engine off of the rocket, causing an overall loss of weight.
The main advantage of a multi-stage rocket is that it loses weight as travels, and it gains
velocity. Multi-stage rockets must be designed somewhat differently than a single stage
rocket, since, in order for a rockets to fly straight, their center of gravity must be ahead
of their center of drag. This is accomplished by adding weight to the front of the rocket,
or by moving the center of drag back by putting fins on the rocket that are well behind
the rocket. A diagram of a multi-stage rocket appears on the following page:
___
/ \
| |
| C |
| M | ------ CM: Crater Maker
| |
| |
|___|
| |
| |
| |
| C | ------ C6-5 rocket engine
/| 6 |\
/ | | | \
/ | 5 | \
/ |___| \ ---- fin
/ /| |\ \
/ / | | \ \
/ / | | \ \
/ / | C | \ \
| / | 6 | \ |
| / | | | \ |
| / | 0 | \ |
|/ |___| \|
| / \ |
\______/ ^ \______/ ------- fin
|
|
|
|
C6-0 rocket engine
The fuse is put in the bottom engine.
Two, three, or even four stages can be added to a rocket bomb to give it a longer range.
It is important, however, that for each additional stage, the fin area gets larger.
2 11.Basic Pipe Cannon by Exodus
A simple cannon can be made from a thick pipe by almost anyone. The only difficult part is
finding a pipe that is extremely smooth on its interior. This is absolutely necessary;