# Mythbusters question **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 1, 2011, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mythbusters-question/604717 "2011-12-01T17:24:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2011, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mythbusters-question/604717/1 "2011-12-01T17:24:20Z")
I caught the end of a Mythbuster’s rerun episode yesterday. It was the one where they were trying to crack a safe open after filling it with water. They said it was based on a movie scene but they didn’t identify the movie in the part of the show I saw. (They did say it may also have happened in a real robbery but this was unconfirmed.) Does anyone know what movie (or movies) it was that used the idea of filling a safe with water in order to blow it open? ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2011, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mythbusters-question/604717/2 "2011-12-01T17:26:45Z")
IMDb says it was [The Score](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0227445/). I’m linking to the main page. The details are on the trivia page with other spoilers. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2011, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mythbusters-question/604717/3 "2011-12-01T17:28:36Z")
A great movie, BTW. ---
**Author:** ![Alka\_Seltzer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c89c15/32.png) [@Alka\_Seltzer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alka_Seltzer)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2011, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mythbusters-question/604717/4 "2011-12-01T17:30:21Z")
Sniped on preview. Yes, it was The Score. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2011, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mythbusters-question/604717/5 "2011-12-01T17:44:49Z")
It’s just physics. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2011, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mythbusters-question/604717/6 "2011-12-01T18:11:16Z")
I haven’t seen this one. I should probably check it out. Thanks all. ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2011, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mythbusters-question/604717/7 "2011-12-01T18:18:26Z")
Did it work? How did they get the water into the safe? ---
**Author:** ![smiling\_bandit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@smiling\_bandit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smiling_bandit)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2011, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mythbusters-question/604717/8 "2011-12-01T18:23:00Z")
> [@Skammer](#): > > Did it work? How did they get the water into the safe? In reverse order: a drill, and not really. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2011, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mythbusters-question/604717/9 "2011-12-01T18:47:03Z")
They found that if you could fill a safe up with water it would make it easier to blow it open with explosives. But there were a lot of practical duifficulties with the plan. They found it very difficult to stop the water from leaking out and the explosion damaged the contents of the safe they were supposedly trying to steal. ---
**Author:** ![Spatial\_Rift\_47](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a8b319/32.png) [@Spatial\_Rift\_47](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spatial_Rift_47)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2011, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mythbusters-question/604717/10 "2011-12-01T19:55:48Z")
There’s also the potential flaw that a safe’s contents of interest might be paper documents, or paper money. ---
**Author:** ![slitterst](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecc23a/32.png) [@slitterst](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slitterst)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2011, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mythbusters-question/604717/11 "2011-12-01T20:57:56Z")
> [@Spatial\_Rift\_47](#): > > There’s also the potential flaw that a safe’s contents of interest might be paper documents, or paper money. Paper money dries very nicely. After all, US currency is made up of 75% cotton. Calling it “paper” is somewhat inaccurate. And I would hope anyone with the resources to crack a safe has a good idea of what’s inside before they choose their method. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2011, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mythbusters-question/604717/12 "2011-12-01T20:58:08Z")
Paper money will survive getting wet. ---
**Author:** ![obfusciatrist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/4af34b/32.png) [@obfusciatrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obfusciatrist)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2011, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mythbusters-question/604717/13 "2011-12-01T22:14:24Z")
True, the paper money will survive, but it should be noted that the presidents will drown and that should make us all sad. ---
**Author:** ![mlees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@mlees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mlees)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2011, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mythbusters-question/604717/14 "2011-12-01T22:16:17Z")
“Think ya used enough dynamite there, Butch?” ---
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2011, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mythbusters-question/604717/15 "2011-12-02T01:49:44Z")
> [@smiling\_bandit](#): > > In reverse order: a drill, and not really. Not a drill, a thermal lance. Which also busted the myth, because they had to use more than one unlike the movie, and they ended up setting the contents inside on fire. ---
**Author:** ![smiling\_bandit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@smiling\_bandit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smiling_bandit)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2011, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mythbusters-question/604717/16 "2011-12-02T02:50:21Z")
> [@AlsoNamedBort](#): > > Not a drill, a thermal lance. Which also busted the myth, because they had to use more than one unlike the movie, and they ended up setting the contents inside on fire. On second look, you are right. They tried a drill and failed to get through in any reasonable time. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2011, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mythbusters-question/604717/17 "2011-12-02T17:42:09Z")
> [@slitterst](#): > > Paper money dries very nicely. After all, US currency is made up of 75% cotton. **Calling it “paper” is somewhat inaccurate**. > > And I would hope anyone with the resources to crack a safe has a good idea of what’s inside before they choose their method. (bolding mine) People say that all the time, and it’s simply not true. Paper need not be composed only or even primarily of wood pulp. Paper is made of _celluose_ pulp, which can come from grasses or rags as easily as pulp.