What might this powder be? (possibly drugs)

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

I collect Marlboro Miles and anytime I see a discarded pack of Marlboros I pick it up, put it in my bag, then peel off that side of the pack when I get home.

The other day I got off the L and saw a pack of Marlboro Lights on the pay phone box. The platform was empty, so I took it, put it in my bag and went home. I was just cleaning out my bag and came across it. I opened it up and there were cigs still in it, about half a pack. My first thought was “damn, sorry dude” because I know how expensive cigarettes are and there was a possibility someone would have come back for them. I would have!

Then I noticed that some of the cigarettes were scrunched to one side. I looked in the pack and there was something in there. I reached in and pulled out a neatly folded cellophane. It’s the same cellophane that was on the cigarette pack. Inside was some black powder. Not much, just about half a teaspoon. I took a little bit out to look at. It’s a bit more granulated than, say Talcum power (or cocaine, but I’ve never heard of black cocaine anyway). There are some larger granules that easily break into smaller granules when rolled between my fingers. It has a bit of a smokey smell. I licked my finger, touched it, then put a tiny bit on my tongue, and it has kind of an ashey taste, but very mild. I now have a yucky chalky taste in my mouth.

I smoke, so I know what cigarette ashes look like and it’s blacker and the texture is different. If they are ashes of some kind, why put some in a cellophane and neatly fold it up? They were just in one corner of the cellophane and the other side wasn’t dirty, so it looks like it was poured in there very carefully. I’ve never seen gunpowder up close, but what good would such a small amount do?

I’m not into drugs (except maybe weed once in a blue moon if somebody brings it over), so I have no interest in doing anything with this other than flushing it down the toilet, but I’m just curious. Does anyone have any idea what this stuff might be? Are there any tests I can do with vinegar or something? Would it be advisable to take it to the police station?

2

black tar heroin? Prolly not.

3

I never heard of a drug that looks like that but, if you don’t have an answer by Monday, I can ask my patients at the drug rehab.

4

Could just be old pot resin.

5

I know you ruled out gunpowder, but the fact that you found it in a transit station automatically makes me think it had something to do with explosives. You might want to take it to the police station and tell them when and where you found it. If the cellophane was off the pack, it might still have some fingerprints on it.

6

It sounds like the (fictional) drug from the Red Dwarf book ‘Better Than Life’. I forget the name of it but it is described as looking like that and the effects are that it makes you think you God for 15 minutes. It is also addictive to look at and the resulting addiction/after effects lasts for 25 years so, be like carefull dude!

In all seriousness it doesn’t sound like anything to me, possibley heroin as it comes in a lot of different forms but your description of the taste doesn’t sound right. Heroin is very bitter and has a distinct ‘medical’ smell a bit like disinfectant, it also tends to melt into a black puddle like oil when heated. If I were you I would just get rid of it sharpish as you might find out what it is after you have been arrested and the police do a lab test, the argument ‘but I honestly found it officer’ will hold no water whatsoever.

7

Surely such a small amount of gunpowder would more likely just be some kids for using in a firecracker. Why not try lighting it? If it explodes* then it is gunpowder if it melts it is smack. Simple (yet dangerous, this post is in jest)

*I realise that gunpowder doesn’t explode when it is loose.

8

Pics damnit, pics!

9

Another vote for 95% cashed bowl of weed.

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These aren’t as clear as I’d like, but they’ll have to do.

I wish I’d taken a photo before I opened up the package. The sides of the cellophane look very dirty now, but they were not like that before. It clung when I poured out a tiny bit to test (smell, taste).

Someone had to have used some kind of a spout, then folded it up immediately.
http://equipoise.teemingmillions.com/images/cellophane.jpg
After I took that picture, I poured most of it out into a glass dish. This photo shows some of the larger granules, and the big pile is the fine stuff.

http://equipoise.teemingmillions.com/images/granules.jpg

Ogre, I’ve never been around heroin or seen it other than in the movies, but I’d think it would be a bit more sticky and not powdery.

Miller, it’s not pot resin. I know what that smells like. Plus, resin can be a bit gooey sometimes. This is all powder. Why carefully save pot resin anyway? What could be done with it?

Rilchiam, I didn’t rule out gunpowder, I wouldn’t know how. There’s such a tiny amount, though. What would be the point of having so little?

WILLASS, I did take one of the bigger granules, put it in a glass bowl and put a long barbeque lighter to it (standing away and wearing safety glasses) but it just glowed a bit then smoked. I leaned closer to get a whiff of the smoke, and didn’t really smell anything. (No, I didn’t snort up the smoke. I have no desire to get high). When it was cool (after a few seconds) it was still powdery, not gummy.

I think the police have better things to do than arrest a grandmother for something she found on an L platform. At least, I’d hope. I’m not a druggie (I am an old hippie though, which why I know what pot resin is like) and have no connections to anyone who would even have connections to drug people. I’d have no drugs in my system if they gave me a drug test, and the most I could tell them under interrogation is where all the best movie theaters are.

And anyway, I have this thread!
Very odd. Oh, the chalky taste is still in my mouth, very strong, and I only had the tiniest of tastes (one of the smallest granules). I’ve been drinking water and 7Up, and I brushed my teeth and scrubbed my tongue, but it’s still there. Yuck.

11

Um…not for nuthin’, but WHY would you taste something you found in a discarded pack of cigarettes in a train station??

12

Maybe someone’s friend got cremated and is being returned to his old haunts with some cigarettes for old time’s sake?

Actually, those granules look to me like what you get when you burn down matches and crush them together. Probably someone was bored at the bar and was fooling around with matches and cellophane.

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Heroin is usually in the form of a very fine dry powder ranging from brown to white with colours of grey and even blue occasionally coming up, it also can come in the form of a black tar which is very resinous (like really good quality hash oil). What you got in those pics looks a bit liked crumbled hash but you would know the smell so I got to say that I am stumped except to say that it could possibley be DMT, I have seen this come in the form of a black resinous powder so it could be that but just dried out. The smell of DMT is very strong and smells a bit like a weird plastic smell. To be fair I wouldn’t have tried a bit of it though, lets hope you don’t start tripping out or anything!

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Um, well, erm, uh…not for nuthin’ did I post in the Intelectuallly Inferior Dopers, UNITE!! thread!

I don’t know why. I don’t usually do really stupid things, but I’m just a curious person and I figured a bit smaller than a grain of salt wouldn’t hurt me.

That will disturb my dreams more than anything else.

I agree, that’s what it looks like, but the person would have to be a very strange person to carefully pour it in the cellophane (the sides were not dirty), fold it up and put it in his cigarette pack. I guess no more strange than someone who spends time trying to find out what it is (not to mention taste and burn it).

It would have happened by now.

Ah, I’m just going to throw it away.

Maybe someone just did it to mess with someone’s head. Maybe someone just did it to mess with MY head. Maybe I’m on Candid Camera. Oh god, maybe the cops are watching me right now! Oh Jesus, here come the black helicoptors!!!

I’m ok. Really.

A good thread: the weirdest thing you’ve ever done/had something to do with that would completely mystify another person who saw you/came upon your handiwork?

15

Just out of curiousity I lit matches from two different matchbooks, blew them out, let them cool, then crumbled them next to the black powder, and they didn’t look anything like what I had.

Maybe it was Julio, out on a night on the town with his friend.

16

Could it have been snuff tobacco? The kind you stuff up your nose? .

17

It’s been awhile since I’ve seen it, but could it have maybe been opium?

18

That be it. I got a confirmation privately, and the stuff is now winding its way through the plumbing pipes. I wonder how much money I just flushed down the toilet.

Thank you all for pitching in on my black powder mystery!

19

Great. Have you seen Night Of The Hunter? Now you’re gonna have to do the ‘Whistler’s Mother With a 12-Gauge’ all night long while you wait for Robert Davi to show up at your place. Now remember the bandana codes when the bangers show up: “Blue” is Crips, “Red” is Bloods. :smiley:

20

I would still say it is a good idea to notify police. Tell them what you found and that you flushed it or whatever. For record keeping sakes, I guess.