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Squaddie, in their 20s, wagon full of PE and the chance to blow something up at a police HQ.....

The best way to do it? It's the only way to do it!!!

Why did they have to blow up a black powder firearm???? why not just take it away?

It would be interesting to know more about this - Not a case of "over reaction" surely.

Probably a page filler for the local rag.
Truth be told it was probably a loaded black powder pistol that was handed in and the bomb squad bloke just pulled the trigger to "disarm" it
I cant see them using explosives at the local nick for something like that.

Gazza wrote:Probably a page filler for the local rag.
Truth be told it was probably a loaded black powder pistol that was handed in and the bomb squad bloke just pulled the trigger to "disarm" it
I cant see them using explosives at the local nick for something like that.

the HQ doesn't even have a public facing counter/desk that I'm aware of.

11 Ord strike again - chalk one more up to Felix the Cat!

If it was done inside the building there would have been a limit to the power of the charge used so unless they were using some kind of cutting charge surely all the explosion would've done would be to lodge the gun in the floor/wall it was lying on at the time

X2001xr wrote:http://www.echo-news.co.uk/news/1503444 ... dquarters/

"Is that really the best way to do it?"

Yes it probably was. More often than not they simply pick the offending item and carry it away but occasionally it is deemed safer to destroy or disrupt it in situ. I have witnessed several "controlled explosions" most were a complete non event. More akin to a damp squib than an explosion.

I do however like the comment about what squaddie wouldn't want to blow up a police station.

It might have been the most expedient way, but not the 'proper' one. 'Unloading' a muzzle-loader that either won't fire or can't be safely fired for whatever reason is hardly a new problem. After all, ML firearms were in use for centuries and this situation wasn't exactly unusual.

If my take on this is right, the ball and wadding were pulled and the powder then poured out using a screw device attached to a long rod, called a 'worm' (I think). It was inserted into the barrel and screwed far enough into the projectile to give a good grip and then pulled.

I suspect in this day and age, air pressure or hydraulic methods are options too via the nipple hole if it was a percussion type not a flintlock.

Re Chapuis' comment on controlled explosions being akin to damp squib affairs, the report says it was heard up to two miles away which makes it quite a bang! That may have been journalistic licence / exaggeration of course and 20 yards the actual limit of sound travel