Sabotaging gunpowder...

[klwilliams]

If you wanted to sabotage someone's gunpowder, in, say, the nineteenth century, and wanted it to look and feel normal but just not work when lit, how would you do it?

Comments

[sartorias.livejournal.com]

Wet.

Wet it, let it dry

[learnteach.livejournal.com]

and break up some of the clumps--the burn rate of gunpowder is determined by the particle size of it (the grain size) and if the gunpowder lumps together, it burns slower, and thus doesn't explode. (Or doesn't explode as much) http://www.dangerouslaboratories.org/foxfire5.html

Paper cartridges came in during the 18th century and were used into the 19th (and 20th, in shotguns). The big question is what size gun is the powder for? Naval guns used powdermonkies then bagged powder, and rifles and pistols depended on the type. In any case, until the relatively modern adoption of nitrocelluouse powder, getting the powder wet and letting it dry would mess it up, and be harder to detect than leaving it wet. YMMV, etc.

[maryosmanski.livejournal.com]

My husband the science teacher (chemistry and physics) says that wetting won't work because you can't disguise that when it's still wet. Letting it dry means that it will work again--perhaps not as well, but it will still work.

If the gun powder is in paper cartridges, in theory you could empty them and refill with something else, but that's so complicated it's impractical.

If it were possible to get to the gunpowder while it was still in the manufacturing process, you could just leave out some key ingredient that would affect its efficiency but not its appearance. But that's probably also too complicated to be practical.

I don't suppose there's any chance the folks whose powder is being tamper with would not recognize what had happened, it there? In the 19th c., I guess it's unlikely that gunpowder would be used in a situation where absolutely no one present had any prior experience with it, right? Okay, maybe the tamperer himself could be present, masquerading as a totally inexperienced person in order to avoid suspicion, but....

[klwilliams.livejournal.com]

Thanks! Good suggestions.

[birdsedge.livejournal.com]

This was a plot point in one of the Bernard Cornwell Sharpe stories. (Early 19th century.) I can't remember whether it was in a book or just the TV series, (the latter I think), but they mixed the gunpowder with something powdery that made it so weak it went fizzpop insetad of bang and the ball virtually fell outof the gun at Sharpe's feet instead of shooting Patrick Harper through the head. (Sharpe was being tested by some wicked person whose army he'd infiltrated.) Sharpe recognised something about the smell of the powder so knew it had been tampered with, but Harper on the other end of the gun muzzle didn't. I have vistors tonight, but will try and check the DVD for you if no one else comes up with anything.

[klwilliams.livejournal.com]

Thanks! This is good info.

[birdsedge.livejournal.com]

Also, for bits of information like this the _litte details_ community on LJ is very iuseful.

[dame-cordelia.livejournal.com]

We are such a geeky crowd. I KNEW somebody would have a good answer.