DYI - A Word of Warning

[psycix]

You're back! Sorry to hear this all man, this is just about the worst nightmare of every spudder.
I bet they took every pipe, fitting, tool and junk they could find.

The only thing authorities are good at is overreacting.
Just as good as the media is with exaggerating, could you link a news report?
I'd like to read what kind of BS they've come up with this time.

Good luck with anything that's still coming your way.
What do you expect from the trial?

[velocity3x]

Predictably, some less-than-legal propellants were involved in this endeavour.

Sorry this happened to you. Although I think your endeavors were harmless, it sounds like you made a contribution to your own problem with your choice of propellent.

[Ragnarok]

Well, even if jrrdw hasn't apologised* for declaring DYI inconsiderate (there has been some PM debate between jrrdw and myself on the matter of the thread locking), I will apologise in his place.

(*Yet, at least)

Yes, while DYI's actions in the past had the potential to cause the site trouble (and to be honest, the actions of a vast majority of our site's members, myself included, have at least some potential for that) and could be perceived as inconsiderate from that viewpoint, his warning of others from the same fate (which would bring the site attention from other authorities) is not.

Anyway, best of luck to DYI with whatever other crap the police try to throw at him.

[PCGUY]

As for the issue with the thread locking, jrrdw was just doing his job for SpudFiles, looking out for the best interest in SpudFiles. Since DYI stated he was under suspicion of him being monitored, that could easily give someone fear for it being mixed with our legal and safe discussions of spud cannons. However with the situation this far at this point, there is probably nothing to really worry about and it should only serve as an example as to why we have the rules setup on SpudFiles as they are for what you may and may-not discuss.

[Biopyro]

Always did wonder where you'd disappeared off to. Looks like yet another case of the media knowing nothing and exaggerating to sell papers, and the cops knowing just as much getting whipped up in each other's crap storm, and getting sucked into the mob mentality.
I wish you the best of luck and I damn well hope that as a well meaning scientist you are found not guilty. I don't know exactly where you live but hopefully the laws are at least twistable in your favour.

Thanks for posting it here, sadly it sometimes takes something like this to know people out of their comfortable dream that all their projects here are legal.

[SpudBlaster15]

I remember how shocked and disgusted I was when you told me the details of your predicament last year. Reading your accounts for a 2nd time doesn't change any of that.

Though some of the materials used by DYI were less than legal (And that can be debated, as in our country it IS legal to make very small amounts of explosive materials for the purpose of experimenting) and would likely not be found in the workshop of the average member here, his warnings should be heeded none the less. DYI's experience is a perfect example of how the police force and media can take a small issue and blow it out of proportion. The box of steel pipe fittings and assembled launchers sitting in your shed may have more implications than you think should the cops get word of your endeavors.

Just as good as the media is with exaggerating, could you link a news report?

Here's one, if you can stomach the sheer media stupidity. I love how the tubes clearly read "0.6g", yet the "explosives experts" claimed that there was enough material to 'blow up the town'. I don't know how these people manage to get their jobs...

[Ragnarok]

As for the issue with the thread locking, jrrdw was just doing his job for SpudFiles, looking out for the best interest in SpudFiles.

I can understand why he did something. But I don't necessarily agree with what he did or how he chose to do it.

I've moderated enough to know that if "modding" is being done, it shouldn't be done in anger. Yes, the moderator may be angry/frustrated, but as their actions speak for the site, their own personal emotions should not factor (or come across at all) in what's being done.

No offence intended of course - my personal standards can be somewhat stringent, and it's not necessarily fair to hold everyone else to them.

[SEAKING9006]

I can feel your pain, DYI. The media very clearly over reacted. It's NOT clear why they have not been corrected on what was actually recovered...

Seriously, sometimes I just wonder how they sleep at night knowing that they were wrong and ended up harming someone. There is no way in hell they nabbed 120+ 'land mines'.

Again, the Media Guide to Firearm Identification holds true.

[maverik94]

HAHAHAHAHAHA, SNEAKING9006, that picture made me laugh for about a minute!!!!! The greatest part is, that's totally true!!!!!!

[Biopyro]

Ugh, I hate how the media totally misrepresent stories like this simply because of their total lack of knowledge. Notice that devices is spelt wrong in the article - it probably wasn't even proof-read.

I must add, I didn't realise this was in Canada, I suppose this could have anywhere, but I did think the government was a little more logical there. Are there no laws like in the UK which allow a certain amount (100g) of energetic materials to be manufactured without a licence?

At the very least you can twist this to put it on your CV later down the line if you're applying for a related job (military science and the like)


Edit: Seaking, that picture is so perfect and SO true!

[D_Hall]

in our country it IS legal to make very small amounts of explosive materials for the purpose of experimenting

Just a nitpick, but even in our country what was done was illegal.

Yes, you can synthesize explosives.

What you can NOT do is store them overnight without a license (they must be consumed same day).

Similarly, when you do that synthesizing, you must be some magical distance away from any residential buildings. As I understand it, the shed in question was in DYI's back yard. As such, I doubt he was [magical distance] away.

Honestly? DYI was stupid. But hey, he's a kid. Kids are known to make mistakes. What's beyond comprehension, IMHO, is that his parents (I gather) knew what he was messing with and approved? That is assinine beyond belief. Parents are supposed to provide boundaries and such to help protect kids from themselves. In DYI's case, they clearly were asleep at the wheel and unfortunately he is paying the price for it.

While 7 grams may not be enough to level a city block, it's WAY more than enough to kill you.

[rp181]

I did not know about that overnight thing.
Since you seem to know, and I cannot understand any legal mumbo jumbo, can I ask you some questions?
Lets say its for an educational thing, does that affect anything? What if its done at a school?
What dictates a "explosive"?

I doubt that would help for job positions, even if it was in that field.

[SpudBlaster15]

Just a nitpick, but even in our country what was done was illegal.

Just a nitpick, but DYI and myself don't live in the USA.

Honestly? DYI was beyond stupid. But hey, he's a kid. Kids are known to make mistakes.

He made a few mistakes, but that doesn't make him "beyond stupid". DYI is an intelligent person, and most adults are 100x more mistake-prone and idiotic than he is at his worst.

What's beyond comprehension, IMHO, is that his parents (I gather) knew what he was messing with and approved? That is assinine beyond belief.

Why is that beyond comprehension? He worked safely and performed his tests away from residential areas. If it weren't for a couple of scumbags at school, he would be fine.

While 7 grams may not be enough to level a city block, it's WAY more than enough to kill you.

Under the right circumstances, yes. A charge of that size in a cardboard casing would need to be held directly in front of the face to have a decent chance of killing you.

[D_Hall]

Lets say its for an educational thing, does that affect anything? What if its done at a school?

Some states have laws with exemptions for educational institutions, but I don't believe there are any such exemptions at the federal level. Mind you, this is not a question I have specifically researched so I'd readily defer to somebody who has researched that question.

What dictates a "explosive"?

Pretty much any solid that contains both an oxidizer and a fuel at the molecular level.

I doubt that would help for job positions, even if it was in that field.

Ya lost me there. Huh?

[MrCrowley]

What happened to the person who sustained 'major non-life threatening injuries' as described in the News article SB15 linked?

Good to see you're back though, this isn't exactly suprising considering the involved topics; "teens" and "high explosives". Mix that with the media and you have one helluva sh|t storm.

Though to be fair to the police, it's better they over-react than under-react. They probably thought you were like that Finnish guy who posted on that explosives forum (known to some senior spudfiles members) who went and blew himself up in some shopping mall (IIRC).