# How Do Daredevils Do The 'Box Of Dynamite' Act? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 29, 2018, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-daredevils-do-the-box-of-dynamite-act/817026 "2018-06-29T23:29:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2018, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-daredevils-do-the-box-of-dynamite-act/817026/1 "2018-06-29T23:29:38Z")
You know how at the county fair, these low-rent carnival daredevils do this stunt where they enclose themselves in a box with dynamite? The hype man plays up the danger to the crowd, the explosives detonate, and after an appropriate amount of tension & drama, the daredevil emerges alive! How do they do that, exactly? I have a couple of ideas: First, I imagine they point their feet towards the explosives, in order to limit their bodies’ exposure to the shock wave. Second, I imagine they control the amount of air in their lungs in some way. Science isn’t my strong suit, but I imagine the difference in air pressure can be mitigated with some controlled breathing. So how do they do it? Don’t need answer fast. ---
**Author:** ![OldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3bc359/32.png) [@OldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldGuy)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2018, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-daredevils-do-the-box-of-dynamite-act/817026/2 "2018-06-29T23:33:11Z")
I don’t know, but my first guess would be not real dynamite. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2018, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-daredevils-do-the-box-of-dynamite-act/817026/3 "2018-06-29T23:43:51Z")
I vaguely recall it’s a carefully directed charge? The explosive force doesn’t hit the person. It’s going outward and away from the box. Not a theory I would test. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Arkcon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Arkcon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arkcon)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2018, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-daredevils-do-the-box-of-dynamite-act/817026/4 "2018-06-30T00:19:16Z")
I think Dennis Hopper gave a men’s magazine interview where someone did it to him. Basically, he said they balance the charges so they perfectly counteract each other, and all you feel is a slight pressure. Again, not something I’d test. Also, Dennis Hopper could have been exaggerating for the interview, and its not very forceful stuff. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2018, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-daredevils-do-the-box-of-dynamite-act/817026/5 "2018-06-30T00:30:42Z")
A lot of flash, a lot of bang, and small explosive charges to propel the sides of the box(which are actually pre-broken into lots of little pieces carefully secured together and ready to break apart on impact), with the top of the box slammed by the occupant to propel it upwards. Just guessing, of course. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2018, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-daredevils-do-the-box-of-dynamite-act/817026/6 "2018-06-30T02:10:31Z")
Probably a lot like the ‘fire someone out of a cannon’ trick. That involves no shell or explosion at all. The occupant is in a sliding tube projected by compressed air, a loud boom & a bunch of smoke from the cannon, and the audience all think someone was shot from a cannon. ---
**Author:** ![BobBitchin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7ea924/32.png) [@BobBitchin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobBitchin)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2018, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-daredevils-do-the-box-of-dynamite-act/817026/7 "2018-06-30T03:28:37Z")
The info I’ve been given is small charge, weak box, directionality of blast. But the big secret is… They get hurt alot sometimes and a bit Everytime. Remember when we thought pro football players were just sacrificing their joints, now we know about the irreversible, cumulative brain damage. If anybody knows an old auto painter, bunches of em ain’t right. Tons of these guys never used respirators, and the fumes got em little by little. They come off like drunk/druggie/crazy homeless guy. Too friendly, too quick to anger etc. My stage hand bretheren have told me stories about old stunt men that sound just like old boxers/footballers etc. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2018, 10:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-daredevils-do-the-box-of-dynamite-act/817026/8 "2018-06-30T10:09:33Z")
> [@Arkcon](#): > > I think Dennis Hopper gave a men’s magazine interview where someone did it to him. Basically, he said they balance the charges so they perfectly counteract each other, and all you feel is a slight pressure. > > Again, not something I’d test. Also, Dennis Hopper could have been exaggerating for the interview, and its not very forceful stuff. _Mythbusters_ tested that one. You get hit with the blast from each side. Counteracting doesn’t happen. ---
**Author:** ![Willcross](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b2d939/32.png) [@Willcross](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Willcross)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2018, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-daredevils-do-the-box-of-dynamite-act/817026/9 "2018-06-30T12:16:57Z")
I’m not familiar with the trick. Is it possible he’s not really in the box when it goes off? ---
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2018, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-daredevils-do-the-box-of-dynamite-act/817026/10 "2018-06-30T14:36:17Z")
> [@Willcross](#): > > I’m not familiar with the trick. Is it possible he’s not really in the box when it goes off? I'm pretty sure she stays in the box the entire time, but there could be some magician's trick at play here that escapes my notice. Not that she also says “if I exhale at the wrong time…” leading me to believe that there’s a breath-control aspect to the trick. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2018, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-daredevils-do-the-box-of-dynamite-act/817026/11 "2018-06-30T14:39:44Z")
> [@Willcross](#): > > I’m not familiar with the trick. Is it possible he’s not really in the box when it goes off? It could be done that way but it’s been done with a 360 degree view and the daredevil had to be in the box. I think the act done on AGT last week didn’t use dynamite. It looked like special effects charges designed to simulate the effect of an explosion, perhaps with that mildly explosive stuff that I can’t remember the name of used to make it look like an explosion when a can of it is hit with a bullet. The explanation I’ve heard (aside from not using such powerful explosives) is that the daredevil is lying flat on the ground and the force is directed away from them. The box is flimsy and doesn’t offer much resistance to the explosion. I have no idea if that’s a valid explanation if real dynamite is used (which I doubt). ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2018, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-daredevils-do-the-box-of-dynamite-act/817026/12 "2018-06-30T14:41:07Z")
This statement > [@HeyHomie](#): > > low-rent carnival daredevils. and this statement > [@Arkcon](#): > > they balance the charges so they perfectly don’t exactly go hand in hand. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2018, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-daredevils-do-the-box-of-dynamite-act/817026/13 "2018-06-30T18:45:13Z")
> [@HeyHomie](#): > > I'm pretty sure she stays in the box the entire time, but there could be some magician's trick at play here that escapes my notice. > > Not that she also says “if I exhale at the wrong time…” leading me to believe that there’s a breath-control aspect to the trick. I know nothing, but I’ll say this: If that explosion didn’t have an element of danger to it, then her Dad is **one hell** of an actor. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2018, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-daredevils-do-the-box-of-dynamite-act/817026/14 "2018-06-30T18:57:49Z")
> [@TruCelt](#): > > I know nothing, but I’ll say this: If that explosion didn’t have an element of danger to it, then her Dad is **one hell** of an actor. He is. They’re circus folk. Their fear is real because things can go wrong, but it’s a well practiced response honed for audiences as well. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Krupe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ebca7d/32.png) [@Leo\_Krupe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Krupe)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2018, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-daredevils-do-the-box-of-dynamite-act/817026/15 "2018-06-30T22:10:10Z")
[Here](https://books.google.com/books?id=K9kDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA276&lpg=PA276&dq=dynamite+box+stunt&source=bl&ots=QHOD_RVdFS&sig=zbOhKJ7NRWlwxEmtt_dDDC022Nc&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjhnfGesfzbAhVM1oMKHaWjAeoQ6AEISjAK#v=onepage&q=dynamite%20box%20stunt&f=false) is a Popular Mechanics article from 1950 about “Suicide Simon”. > [@](#): > > After wasting almost a box of explosives, he used a milk bottle to test the pressure inside the plates. When it did not break, he crawled inside a wooden box himself and set off the dynamite. The blast sent him spinning like a whirligig for over 20 feet. [A UPI article from 1987](https://www.upi.com/Archives/1987/05/31/Explosive-show-not-a-bomb-with-audiences/7202549432000/) > [@](#): > > Bly said there are no tricks involved in the stunt. It’s just knowing how to point the dynamite so the blast blows away from her. [Another article about Allison Bly](http://articles.baltimoresun.com/1993-08-07/news/1993219037_1_dynamite-lady-frederick-keys-blow) > [@](#): > > Outside the stadium, Ms. Bly assembles her box of plastic foam, about 3 feet wide and 4 feet long. She mixes her own explosives, “my home brew,” she says. > > This home brew, the ingredients of which she keeps secret, is about equal to the power of one stick of dynamite, she says. She pours the powder into two tubes and places the tubes at one end of the box. > > Next to the tubes she stands two 3/4 -inch sheets of plywood. That is all there is between the Dynamite Lady and the explosive when, in her words, “I climb in, put my head between my knees, and kiss my butt goodbye.” So no trick, just a lot of guts and knowing how to place the right amount of explosives so it’s a good show, but not deadly. ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2018, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-daredevils-do-the-box-of-dynamite-act/817026/16 "2018-06-30T22:16:44Z")
> [@Leo\_Krupe](#): > > So no trick, just a lot of guts and knowing how to place the right amount of explosives… Yeah, because carny type folks would never lie. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Krupe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ebca7d/32.png) [@Leo\_Krupe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Krupe)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2018, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-daredevils-do-the-box-of-dynamite-act/817026/17 "2018-07-01T15:10:35Z")
> [@Lucas\_Jackson](#): > > Yeah, because carny type folks would never lie. That’s funny. Perhaps there’s an alternate explanation you favor? Maybe the performer merely pushes the box open with their arms and legs, while simultaneously turning on flashlights and small smoke bombs? It seems perfectly reasonable that these performers are using enough explosives to blow the box apart, while using a small enough amount to keep from killing themselves. It’s more flash than bang, but there’s definitely a lot of bang to it. How do you think it’s done? ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2018, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-daredevils-do-the-box-of-dynamite-act/817026/18 "2018-07-01T15:32:00Z")
I think he saying you can’t believe what they say about the explosives. I seriously doubt dynamite is actually used, or how powerful the explosives are compared to dynamite. You’ll note this time of the year you’ll see talking heads on the news and occasionally public officials claim an M-80 firecracker which is full of flash powder is somehow equal to 1/4 stick of dynamite. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2018, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-daredevils-do-the-box-of-dynamite-act/817026/19 "2018-07-01T15:46:58Z")
> [@Leo\_Krupe](#): > > [Another article about Allison Bly](http://articles.baltimoresun.com/1993-08-07/news/1993219037_1_dynamite-lady-frederick-keys-blow) Carnivals are a bag of tricks. If a carny said the event was on the up-and-up, would you believe him? If so, you are the sucker they love and the ones they make money from. > [@](#): > > Outside the stadium, Ms. Bly assembles her box of plastic foam, about 3 feet wide and 4 feet long. She mixes her own explosives, “my home brew,” she says. Who says? \*She says. \* Is this a good source of fact? Would a carny ever lie? > [@](#): > > This home brew, the ingredients of which she keeps secret… Of course. Could there be the slightest reason the ingredients are kept secret? Revealing the ingredients might show that it’s baking powder and vinegar. > [@](#): > > … is about equal to the power of one stick of dynamite, she says. Who says? _She says._ Our unimpeachable witness, right? With no ax to grind? No show to put on? > [@](#): > > She pours the powder into two tubes and places the tubes at one end of the box. She does? Have you verified that? Could there be any misdirection, and the powder ends up somewhere else? Could the explosive power be switched with talcum or cake flour? > [@](#): > > Next to the tubes she stands two 3/4 -inch sheets of plywood. How do you know that? She says it? Have you verified the depth and composition of the object? Could it be two sheets of plywood with a steel plate between? > [@](#): > > That is all there is between the Dynamite Lady and the explosive when, in her words, “I climb in, put my head between my knees, and kiss my butt goodbye.” “In her words…” here we go again. What you believe is exactly what she wants you to believe, but it may be far from the truth. You, Sir, may very well be Mr. Gullible. Since I have never seen this act, and don’t know how it’s done, Ms Bly could be telling the truth, but I doubt it. We humans are easily fooled by experts whose job it is to fool us. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Krupe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ebca7d/32.png) [@Leo\_Krupe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Krupe)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2018, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-daredevils-do-the-box-of-dynamite-act/817026/20 "2018-07-01T16:43:36Z")
> [@Musicat](#): > > You, Sir, may very well be Mr. Gullible. Possibly. I will never say I’ve never been fooled, nor will ever be fooled. The performance is a lot of showmanship. So was Evel Knievel’s. But he still made jumps. My argument in this discussion is that there’s a genuine element of risk involved. How much risk, and how dangerous it really is, is something I can’t say. I’m sure the performers make it look much more dangerous than it is, but that doesn’t mean it’s no more dangerous than a football team running through a paper banner during introductions. And in my defense, as if I have to defend myself, I tried to find documentation showing that real explosives are used, and not just making guesses as to how it’s done. If someone has a definitive source showing how the trick is done, by all means, show it. After all, that’s what the SD is about, right? And especially General Questions? I missed Tri-Polar’s response: > [@](#): > > I think he saying you can’t believe what they say about the explosives. I seriously doubt dynamite is actually used, or how powerful the explosives are compared to dynamite. You’ll note this time of the year you’ll see talking heads on the news and occasionally public officials claim an M-80 firecracker which is full of flash powder is somehow equal to 1/4 stick of dynamite. Actual dynamite may or may not be used (what’s the difference between say 1/4 stick of dynamite and an amount of explosive equal to 1/4 stick of dynamite? Nuclear weapons don’t use TNT, but they’re measured in comparable tons of TNT…), but I stand by what I said: it’s theatrics coupled with an element of risk. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-daredevils-do-the-box-of-dynamite-act/817026.md?page=2)