Ed Huntress wrote:
"steamer" wrote in message
...
--I've been trying for ages to get my .177 cal mortar to shoot a
pellet more than a foot. I'm using FFG which is the finest powder
available
locally. What I need, I think, is the stuff that's normally packed
into firecrackers. Now' I've toyed with the idea of making a brass
mortar and pestel to grind the FFG powder into something finer but I
thot I'd better ask here B4 becoming a candidate for a Darwin Award.
--Any useful advice appreciated!

Get a ceramic mortar and pestle from a gourmet cooking supply shop,
and do a match-head-sized lump at a time. Wear face protection and
gloves. Keep your supply and container for ground powder eight or ten
feet away, and keep dumping each little bit into the container.

I've done it when I couldn't get good primer powder for a flintlock
rifle. I've also ground up homemade powder this way, when I mixed it
wet and dried it into little lumps. I never had any drama from it.
Patience is better than drama.

--
Ed Huntress

Additionally , use a grounded strap on your wrist and all containers and
work surfaces . A static spark can kill you ! Wear cotton clothing - less
likely to build a static charge - and thin leather gloves for both
sensitivity and burn protection . BP is originally granulated while still
damp , with the exception of FFFFG , which is pulverized in a ball mill .
Every accident I've seen (only a few ,thankfully) involving HE and other
explosives/pyrothechnics has been caused by static discharge ... or sheer
stupidity , as in "hole ma beer an' watch this" .
--
Snag
"Still got ten , two , and two ."