Would these bullets have exploded or something else???

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Because it is getting extremely cold in north Alabama this week I washed one of my son's hunting jacket-shirts so that he could pick it up on the way from work to his new homestead...

I was in a hurry so dried it in the dryer instead of on the "solar" dryer (i.e. clothes line). Then I went on down to check on the rabbits. Husband heard a huge banging (thank goodness it wasn't the CAT in the dryer this time!) and he pulled out a clip of long bullets like son used to use in his SKS when deer hunting!

My question is: would those bullets have exploded or something if they had been left in the dryer for the full 30 minutes while I was tending to the rabbits???

I WILL check pockets a little more carefully from now on!!!

-- Suzy in 'Bama (slgt@yahoo.com), December 12, 2000

Answers

Probably not as the dryer does not get much over 160. You can lay bullets in the sun here and they get hot but will not explode. I have thrown live 45's in the camp fire and they will go off then, but have never done any harm (Scare a few city slickers, but I don't count that). Even if the did go off,the are not contained and therefore do not have the energy to penerate the steel of a dryer.

-- JLS in NW AZ (stalkingbull007@AOL.com), December 12, 2000.

Fear not! Even had you heated those babies far beyond the heat of your dryer you would not likely have had problems. However, the odd chance (about the same that you have of hitting a lottery, about 1/100th the chance of being hit by lightning) that the primer might have been detonated could have produced an exciting sound effect. However, as mentioned before, the noise would have been more frightening than the damage from an unrestrained cartridge(ie. one not contained in the chamber of a firearm). As an aside, I do the laundry as often as my lovely wife. Perhaps you should institute a policy of "do you own"! Blow up the dryer, buy a new one! GL!

-- Brad (homefixer@SacoRiver.net), December 12, 2000.

Know what I did? I left a 16 penny nail in my jeans pocket, and in the dryer it went down one of the little holes on the bottom of the tub. BUT, the head stopped it from going all the way down. My dryer was SCREAMIN' and SMOKIN' like a train comming right at you! It was trying to spin, but the nail was holding it. Totally burned up the belt. You talk about 2 people running fast to see what in the world was going on in our house!

-- Cindy in Ky (solidrockranch@msn.com), December 12, 2000.

I agree with Brad ! Being the fool I am and realizing it was a legitimate question--I ran a clip through the dryer at high heat for the duration of the cycle and the good news is --we still have a functional dryer. Nice to see you back again, Brad !

-- Joel Rosen (Joel681@webtv.net), December 13, 2000.

Before I put anything with pockets in the washer I make sure those pockets are empty, then there are no surprises.

-- Hendo (OR) (redgate@echoweb.net), December 13, 2000.


I am always washing things that shouldn't be washed....everytime I do laundry it's like payday. My best and biggest find was about ten years ago when I got $50!!! I never have washed a full clip, but those 22 shells are easy to miss in a bunch of pockets.

-- Doreen (animalwaitress@excite.com), December 13, 2000.

That's basically what Husband said but I wanted to make certain I hadn't almost blown up the house!

-- Suzy in 'Bama (slgt@yahoo.com), December 13, 2000.

I left a half package of bb's in the pocket of my jeans recently, and washed them. When the washer went into the spin cycle, I couldn't decide what the strange noise was, until later when I took the clothes out and found the little envelope, empty. Never did tell hubby what the noise was, and I guess they all went down the drain, and didn't get stuck in the pump, which is what I feared would happen. I NEVER leave things in my pockets, so didn't check! (Never, that is, except this time!) Jan

-- Jan in Colorado (Janice12@aol.com), December 13, 2000.

Susie......Hubby is always dealing with guns, handguns, long guns, rifles, shotguns, and anything else that comes down the line. Only problem is, he's not very organized, and is constantly sticking bullets in his pockets. I couldn't begin to tell you how many bullets I've washed and dried over the years. Never had one go off though, so unless the 16 penny nail you left in there too hits the primer, you're pretty safe. :~)

-- Julie (rjbk@together.net), December 15, 2000.

I keep a pouch of .357s and .38s in the glove compartment of my truck. Outside temps in the summer are up to 135º, so you know it's pretty dang hot inside a closed up truck. Been doing this for years and nothing has exploded.

-- ~Rogo (rogo2020@yahoo.com), December 16, 2000.


i go with the previous answers. now, i would not trust these bullets to hunt with. water may have damaged the powder or primers. i once washed and dried some .22 long rifle ammo. they would not fire after that. i would certainly shoot the ammo for practice, but look out for hang fires or other quirks!

-- stuart a. reder (stureder@gci.net), December 18, 2000.

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