Comment by supernova87a | Hacker News Reader

Comment by supernova87a | Hacker News Reader

I amuse myself by thinking that Sidney Alford (the expert in the video, who by the way appears to have passed away last year) looked like, and was, the modern Grand Maester, conjuring up magical (but yes, destructive and terrible) explosives for the use by kingdoms against each other. He should've been given a cameo part in Game of Thrones...

I got onto the topic years ago when watching the Dambusters. Related to this, he also has a video showing how putting a simple tube/bag of water behind an explosive charge magnifies its force incredibly. I believe he started a company that built and sold explosives with such a water-fillable jacket that could be used to knock down doors by police forces.

edit: here's the water filled explosive knocking down a door: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_80gWlDQdHg

  >here's the water filled explosive knocking down a door

Seems more like it's blowing a hole into a wall.

What wall? ;)

does that make the rainbow six siege breach charge somewhat accurate? In that, if it doesn't knock the whole wall down like the first part of the video, there would be a door-shaped hole.

https://rainbowsix.fandom.com/wiki/Breach_Charge/Siege

Yes, "wall breaching charge"

I have some combat explosives training. What I see in the picture there is sort of inspired by a real thing, but weirdly stylized.

The real thing: Take stiff cardboard slightly larger than the hole you want to make, any shape. Using wire or such to hold it in place, arrange flexible "rope" of plastic explosive in loops on the cardboard, in any shape you want. It's going to be a continuous rope, not separate bits like in that image. Make it a triangle: 3 layers, then 2 on top, then 1. This is the "shaped explosive" part, and directs the force toward the wall. Nail/etc flat side of cardboard to door/wall you want a hole in, move to side & to safe distance. Make it go boom.

I've converted a thick wood door into toothpicks with that.

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