OK, that’s nosy, but I’m curious for legitimate reasons. You see, my father worked for many years at the opposite end of explosives: he made them. No, not actual bombs, the raw materials: he was an explosives chemist (in industry, not the military). PhD degree, his name on patents, the normal life of a professional chemist, except for stuff going BOOM with unusual vehemence.
Anyway, he was a VERY patient and careful personality, the kind of man who actually read instruction manuals, who never drove over the speed limit in his life, never got a ticket for any reason to my knowledge, and when he was passed by faster drivers, would say, “Good. I want him up in front where I can watch him.” According to my mother (I was too young to remember), the people he worked with were the same way: “the safest drivers you ever saw, never took chances. They got enough excitement at work.”
So now I’m wondering if the people who dismantle bombs are the same calm, cautious, “type B” personalities as the people who design the stuff that goes into them. Any comments? What are your classmates like?
So when you were in The HORSE did you have a really funny, smart, kick-ass section commander?? Just wonderin’…
Glad to hear you finally got into EOD! I know you’ve been working for this for a LONG time! I’m assuming you aren’t traveling alone? If yall get a free weekend, you should come up to “The Intellectual and Leadership Center of the Galaxy”. I’ll buy you a beer and we can reminesce about getting “Boone”-ied, Lt Col “Uhhhh” G, and the “RED HORSE Bob” formerly known as Colonel!
So on to my question…how soon do you get to start blowing things up? Will you learn how to make things that blow up first, then learn to diffuse them? (okay, so it was two questions…)
Fine print: Yes, I know you and if you think about it, you’ll figure out who I am too!
Holy crap on a stick shell! If I’d had a GoGurt for every time the missus and I wondered if you ever took us up on our hint. . . well, I’d have eaten a lot of yogurts.
Man alive, you’ve made my day (again)!
[hijack]
Oh, and yeah, I ran into “Bob.” Last I heard, he’s coasting over at ACC still . . . I’ll be sending you an email shortly to catch up.
[/hijack]
But yeah, I do remember a smart, kick-ass section commander–IIRC, that individual kept a bottle of Jack Daniels in the desk too. It was a shame when I had to take all of his money at the poker table at “Bart’s” place.
Tripler
Damn fine to see you here on the boards, ma’am!
Well, apparently, there are several ‘divisions’ of the class I have to accomplish before I go to the “Demolition” division–I figure about 6 weeks or so before I actually get to go hands-on. I suspect they teach us the basic physics of explosives and electricity before we go hands-on with anything. Then after we master that, we get to proceed to demolition (I suspect using C-4 and det cord), and then progress to ordnance subjects.
Tripler
I hesitate to say more than that, lest I prove myself wrong.
Any poker night at Bart’s that didn’t end with me cleaning up someone else’s puke was a good poker night. Any poker night at Bart’s that didn’t end with me cleaning up MY OWN puke was an even better night!
As long as Zerk the Jerk isn’t there…but I digress. Can’t remember if I ever told you that story. Email me at work and we’ll catch up!
First off, may you have a long, safe and happy career! You have my utmost respect!
I have one question about “movie” bombs.
The fancy dancy count down timer. It is typically a digital display counting down from some preset limit, often in 10/ths of a second, Nice dramatic effect, but SERIOUISLY, why would anyone do that in real life.
NOT THAT I EVER WOULD, but if I was gonna make a time bomb, I wouldn’t make it easy in any way for a potential defuser. I would have a 555 IC timer circuit (no display), with a pressure switch instant BOOM rigged to the container lid, and under the bomb package. I would throw in a bunch of dummy wires, fake batteries in, and other distractions. Hell, I would probably have a remote cell phone trigger…
Hell, I would even put in a fake timer… with a display, that had no real function…
All that aside, though… do bomb makers ever REALLy use a display witha count down on it?
I could see a need for it, if ever someone wanted to adjust a time. Heck, anything with a variable setting, such as a camera flash, or my li’l ham radio reciever would justifiably use a display of some sort. Problem is, that involves more circuitry and more time to build. In my ‘shadowing’, I don’t recall ever seeing them, nor in the IED situations I’ve seen.
Um, this part makes me a little skittish, with the whole “fine print” thing. But your diversionary stuff is most often seen right through and ignored. The EOD techs I’ve spoken with are knowledgeable enough to cut right to the chase, and eliminate the primary causes of disaster (or at least mitgate 'em).
Tripler
But I do thank you for your kind comments!
Really, I wouldn’t I am a pacifist, and curated a war museum. One reason I was given full access to all that armament was my involvment in various pacifist causes, the idea of using violence to promote any idea sickens me.
It may take time for humanity to learn peace, but I really beleive it will happen.
Well, he doesn’t like when I yell at him, if that counts. Maybe if they had a bomb that emitted a woman’s disappointed shrieks before detonating, men would disarm it faster.
I have done cool things. And today, I have ‘snot’ on my hands.
Allow me to describe the bittersweet joy one has, when one assembles a 1,000 lb NEW “shot” of explosives: You get creative when you stack your Bangalore torpedo kit, nestle some 40mm grenades underneath the Mk 83 bomb, and lay the twelve 155mm HE shells together. It’s a wonderful thing when you pack the fuze wells full ‘o’ C-4 (where the snot came from–it got warm outside and the C-4 got all gooey), and lace them altogether with detcord. Throw a few satchel charges here and there, step back, judge, and decide “Ah, what the hell. I’ll put another three satchels here.” A few old grenades here and there, and voila! Rodin himself would be a thinker about this sculpture!
You step back and suddenly realize that all of your artistic creation will soon detonate at 21,000 feet per second, vaporizing all within 40 feet, thus rendering Hell asunder on this Earth. But it soon grows sweet again when you get two miles away to the bunker, and the concussion literally socks you in the gut. True, our initial ‘practice’ shots of C-4 were fun, but when you do the “big one”, it puts it all into perspective.
But I digress.
The real news is that God called this afternoon. Apparently He asked, “Dudes, what the hell was that?!? You guys wanna warn me before to do that again?” Apparently we jolted His coffee cup off His desk and onto the cloud.
Tripler
I have go wash the snot out from under my fingernails now. It’s been a good day.
I just want to add my congratulations, and wish you ‘good luck’ (or whatever the appropriate phrase is in your world.)
Study hard - I say that because my nephew was in the program a few years back, he didn’t make it through all the tests and flunked out. I feel bad for him because it was a long-time dream of his to make it through.
I’ve always wanted to do this with my life but feared that my inability to distinguish some colors would make this an impossibility. Did you have to take a color-blindness test before entering the program, and if so, how extensive? Just a few Ishihara tests or what?
Much obliged! I’m sorry to hear about your nephew. It’s a lot of hard work, and even those that would otherwise deserve it seem to be tripping up on the knowledge tests. I’m not acing everything (I should be), but am doing alright. My class seems to be sticking together well also–we’re helping each other out: across branches, and across Enlisted/NCO/Officer lines as professional as can be.
Nope, I didn’t have to take any special physicals or anything. I get my annual checkup (or the now-computer based questionnaire), but that’s it. No special qualifications or abilities that I know of. Of course, this is the Navy EOD school–civilian institutions may differ.
It’s been a lot of hard work already. I damn near flunked one test in this past division. The only thing that saved me is that I asked permission to reenter the range when I exited “the work area” prematurely. Yes, it is little things like that. It’s a whole ton of information to memorize as well, but I’ve found that if I don’t focus on just memorizing shapes, numbers, and letters but why those facts are important–or discovering all their relationships–it’s a lot more easier to remember, and frankly, more interesting to learn as well. Yeah, I can memorize what goes in a fruit salad, but I’d rather learn why one likes grapes, apples, oranges, and those little honeydew melon balls in the mix.
It’ll be tougher over the next few weeks, and I predict I’m going to be drawing a lot off of my Boy Scout days–lotsa knots and ropework apparently.
Tripler
What? You don’t know why they put honeydew in fruit salad?
This thread got me thinking. Something I should have thought of months ago.
Anyone want to see something of theirs blown up? I mean, do you have some shit laying around from an exwife or something that you would really, really, love to see blown to hell? I’ve got about three weeks left. If someone wants to get pics/vids of some loathed personal item blown to bits with C4, PM me and I’ll give you my address.
Did you see the bomb squad episode of Grey’s Anatomy? It seemed to me that they were inadequately protected. How does this match up with a real life scenario? Also, a lot of tv shows depict explosives as randomly volatile. Did you see the dynamite episode of Lost? How unpredictable and spontaneous are old explosive material/ordinance/ etc? Any other examples from tv that were well depicted or especially fraudulant?
Depending on the configuration, with or without test set, wirebound box or wooden box:
$111.00 to $125.00 each reference various stock numbers in Fed Log.
Includes plastic mine case, firing device, M6 non-electric blasting cap and firing wire wound up on plastic spool, bandoleer, instruction sheet, C-4 with taggant, and ball bearings. And 1 test set per 6 mines in the box.
I do ammunition and explosives in Iraq (US stuff mostly). Anything suspicious, heavily damaged, or unknown enemy ammo - I go get EOD. That their business and they are very professional.
But it soon grows sweet again when you get two miles away to the bunker, and the concussion literally socks you in the gut. True, our initial ‘practice’ shots of C-4 were fun, but when you do the “big one”, it puts it all into perspective.