# Blowing up Watermelons **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 2, 2004, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blowing-up-watermelons/253142 "2004-07-02T00:43:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![simply\_cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8c91f0/32.png) [@simply\_cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/simply_cats)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2004, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blowing-up-watermelons/253142/1 "2004-07-02T00:43:03Z")
My friend’s children have been badgering him to blow up a watermelon for months now, so we have decided to give it a go on Sunday. My question is, how on earth do we do it safely; but still satisfy their desire to see fruit blown to smithereens?? Thanks, Dopers 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2004, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blowing-up-watermelons/253142/2 "2004-07-02T00:47:17Z")
What a terrible waste of food. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2004, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blowing-up-watermelons/253142/3 "2004-07-02T01:05:07Z")
I tried to blow up a car once, but I burnt my lips on the exhaust pipe. **simply\_cats** - are amateur fireworks legal in your locality? ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2004, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blowing-up-watermelons/253142/4 "2004-07-02T01:22:59Z")
Is this a traditional American custom? 😕 Here we generally eat watermelons. ---
**Author:** ![simply\_cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8c91f0/32.png) [@simply\_cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/simply_cats)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2004, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blowing-up-watermelons/253142/5 "2004-07-02T01:37:41Z")
I’m guessing amateur fireworks are quite illegal here in Indiana. Now, I have shot a 2-liter bottle of soda before with spectacular results, but I am thinking it would be less than dynamic with a watermelon. What I am really going for here is some sort of mass destruction of the melon. Any kinds of suggestions are welcomed. ---
**Author:** ![Reeder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Reeder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeder)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2004, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blowing-up-watermelons/253142/6 "2004-07-02T02:48:29Z")
00 buckshot would work nicely. And be legal. ---
**Author:** ![Bear\_Nenno](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bear_nenno/32/3358_2.png) [@Bear\_Nenno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bear_Nenno)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2004, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blowing-up-watermelons/253142/7 "2004-07-02T03:02:55Z")
Wrap it in det cord. ---
**Author:** ![AZRob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/azrob/32/3003_2.png) [@AZRob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AZRob)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2004, 6:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blowing-up-watermelons/253142/8 "2004-07-02T06:33:56Z")
… and post pics 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![rjk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ed655f/32.png) [@rjk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjk)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2004, 6:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blowing-up-watermelons/253142/9 "2004-07-02T06:43:46Z")
Not really for the kids, but it might be fun for adults: [Blowing Up a Watermelon](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=195331) ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2004, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blowing-up-watermelons/253142/10 "2004-07-02T15:04:43Z")
> [@simply\_cats](#): > > I’m guessing amateur fireworks are quite illegal here in Indiana. Maybe by local ordinance, but not statewide. ---
**Author:** ![diku](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4af34b/32.png) [@diku](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/diku)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2004, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blowing-up-watermelons/253142/11 "2004-07-02T16:04:48Z")
When I lived in Northern Kentucky, it was legal for us to by fireworks in Indiana, as long as we didn’t set them off there. So we set them off in Ky., where they’re completely illegal. ---
**Author:** ![Trigonal\_Planar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/0ea827/32.png) [@Trigonal\_Planar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trigonal_Planar)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2004, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blowing-up-watermelons/253142/12 "2004-07-02T16:39:15Z")
Dry ice will solve all your exploding needs. Get a small plastic bottle with a screw-on lid (like a pop bottle). Add a little water, throw the dry ice in and secure the lid. Insert bottle into fruit (carve out a hole beforehand). The dry-ice-in-bottle method makes really nice explosions. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2004, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blowing-up-watermelons/253142/13 "2004-07-02T16:54:24Z")
What ever happened to a picnic, a ball game, and some gee-whiz fireworks? What the hell is the mentality today? Too many reality shows, is my guess, and yes, I’m feeling somewhat cranky. What of it? ---
**Author:** ![Berkut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a88e57/32.png) [@Berkut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Berkut)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2004, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blowing-up-watermelons/253142/14 "2004-07-02T17:15:51Z")
A hollowpoint from almost any decent sized firearm will do it. Something like a .308 or .30-06 with good varmint ammo should prove spectacular. Or at least a medium handgun cartridge. ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2004, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blowing-up-watermelons/253142/15 "2004-07-02T17:30:03Z")
There’s too much illegal/dangerous advice seeping into this. It’ll only get worse. Closed. **samclem** GQ moderator