Making blackpowder

[rodymartin]

Many years ago when I was about 17 (51 Now) I remember a fellow that worked for my dad that made his own shine. What he told me at that time was that you could with a permit from BATF distill for your own consumption. Could only keep 12 gallons on site of still. This is from the late 1960's so things may have changed.

 

:bull:

You have NOT been allowed to distill in the USA long before the 60's, (for personal use)
Only way is to have a distillers lic. such as Jim Beam . Jack Daniels ect.
Proabition was way before the 60's.
This guy was trying to keep someone quiet he was running a still or , he obviously didn't know what he was talking about.

Woody

 

[rodymartin]

Could be he was making illegal shine it was not uncommon in those days here in the upper skagit in Washington state.

 

You would be surprised how many people yet make a shine.
Most now a days do it for a hobby and not for profit.
There is guy who got caught 26 years ago in Va and just got his right to vote back by a pardon from the Govenor, and has been released from jail years ago for doing it in the first place.

Woody

 

[flaming canvas]

:bull:

You have NOT been allowed to distill in the USA long before the 60's, (for personal use)
Only way is to have a distillers lic. such as Jim Beam . Jack Daniels ect.
Proabition was way before the 60's.
This guy was trying to keep someone quiet he was running a still or , he obviously didn't know what he was talking about.

Woody

Wasn't that what the Whiskey Rebellion was all about? Farmers in western PA wanted to turn their corn into whiskey because it cut down on the volume so it was easier to get over the mountains and they could get a better price for it, if I remember my history correctly.

 

[SquirrelsaurusR]

My dad and brother make their own wine and beer, just for themselves, not to sell. But that's all, not the peel-the-paint-off-the-walls hard stuff. They know of some websites where you can buy all the stuff you need. They let it sit for months at a time to age it right. It's a big hobby these days. There are even some magazines devoted to the hobby. They occasionally print up a nice label and stick it on a bottle as a birthday present for a friend or something, but that's the extent of it. They don't try to sell it, and they only make enough for themselves. They don't have the room or the time for any more than that. They like to experiment with fancy new flavors for holidays and stuff like that.

When I was in Saudi (where alcohol was banned), a couple of guys tried to make their own, using balloons for the fermenting process and some other stuff. They didn't know what they were doing and it turned out to be toxic. Killed 'em both.

Getting back to the original question, I'd say your best bet is probably just to go down to the gun shop and buy a can of GOEX. ::

 

[bezoar]

Cant go down to the store and buy a can of Goex where i live. All you can get is Pyrodex or 777, and they demand at least 20 bucks plus tax for a pound.
And avaliability of bp may be going down as states start to eradicate bp firearms. Some states are already turning your flintlock pistol or 36 colt navy into an "assault weapon".

And the "toxic" fermentation doesnt sound right at all to me. all they should have created is a low quality hooch with a decent kick to it. Probably used a can they scrounged from an Iragi WMD shipment. :nono:

 

[SquirrelsaurusR]

...as states start to eradicate bp firearms. Some states are already turning your flintlock pistol or 36 colt navy into an "assault weapon".

I'm not aware of any new restrictions on owning muzzleloaders. Where has this been happening?

 

[Stumpkiller]

There are certain things every man should know and no man should admit knowing.

:winking:

I hear the willow shoots are especially carboniferous this year.

Old technologies should never be allowed to die completely. You never know when you might need them.

 

[graybeard]

I understand New Jersey has some dandy new laws in the works, but what can you expect from those eastern places run by soccer moms? Come on to Michigan. I think either peninsula would be easy to defend. graybeard

 

[shmrck1]

There are certain things every man should know and no man should admit knowing.

what about the man that thinks he knows everything
and really don't know jack sh..?????? :hmm: :hmm:
snake-eyes :hmm: :hmm: eace: :thumbsup:

 

[texaspatriot]

...

 

flaming....the Whiskey Rebellion was about whiskey being taxed. What I remember from recently reading biographies of Hamilton, Washington and Franklin was that the whiskey was about the only way the farmers had to market their corn locally and as you said, it was much easier to transport over the mountains to another market. I don't believe there was any effort at the time to stop distilling, just tax it. Some things never change huh.

I tried to make a small amount black powder a lot of years ago and it went off......well.....let's say it burned. I didn't have any success because then as now I knew precious little about it. Wish I did tho, if just for the knowledge.

Vic

 

[KampKool]

I understand New Jersey has some dandy new laws in the works, but what can you expect from those eastern places run by soccer moms? Come on to Michigan. I think either peninsula would be easy to defend. graybeard

I heard that! I have a friend from NJ who hunts PA & NJ and he has the study guide for his Blackpowder firearms test...that's right a test. He needs to pass that to get the card to be able to buy a muzzleloader in Jersey.

His NJ hunting buddies say they've been told not to purchase any .54Cal 'cause they're gonna' be restricted in jersey.

Now he can walk back into the same NJ store where he bought his PA Non-res license and ask for a muzzleloader stamp, plunk down the money & walk out the door legal to shoot one in PA...Go Figure ::

You CAN get a license to distill alcohol for non-consumption. You need to 'denature' your production. You can make ethanol and add a % of gas to it and use it for fuel in your vehicles. Denaturants make ehtanol undrinkable; a popular comercial one for solvents is rat poison...SDA or specially denatured alcohol end up in alot of consumer items. SD 4 190 proof is ethanol, methylene blue dye [a carcinogin] and nicotine. They spray it on the tobacco to make the amount of nicotine uniform. Yup! they add nicotine to the tobacco, the ethanol takes the nicotine into the leaf while the dye shows where it was sprayed...Still smoking?

 

[robinghewitt]

I have been making my own powder for the biggest part of 30 years now. I produce my own components; ***** and *****.

I am soooo impressed :master: :master: :master:

Squire Robin

 

[TANSTAAFL]

:bull:

You have NOT been allowed to distill in the USA long before the 60's, (for personal use)
Only way is to have a distillers lic. such as Jim Beam . Jack Daniels ect.
Proabition was way before the 60's.
This guy was trying to keep someone quiet he was running a still or , he obviously didn't know what he was talking about.

Woody

Not true, many of the self-sufficiency types produce their own alcohol for running modified internal combustible engines. (just don't get caught running vehicles on the highways without paying the fuel tax)

 

[adbranaman]

There's a book that has a whole chapter on making powder. Looks like a lot of trouble to me, but it's nice to know just in case you can't get it anymore. Restrictions are insane now days. Check out the knife laws of different states. In liberal states if your not cooking with it then it must be a deadly weapon. :youcrazy: :m2c:

 

[shmrck1]

There was a time maybe 20years ago when i bought,sold and
drank shine. Then it was $30 a gallon, sold it for $50
and drank it for nothing. Last contact i had was maybe
10 to 12 years age and it was at the low end $56 a gallon,
it was cut like 3 to 1 but when you are talking 150proof,
it is still a potent drink. People will by it because it
is illegal not because they like it. There is nothing
better than good shine, and trust me there is some not
so good and some(though rare) deadly.... :m2c: :imo:
snake-eyes :hmm:

 

[wwfeatherston]

Perfectly legal to distil, here in New Zealand. You just can't sell or trade or raffle it.

I have a 50 litre stainless steel still that makes 20litres of 45% spirit on each run- takes about 10 hours. This is quite a sophisticated still, but anyone capable of handloading would be capable of using it safely. It's about attention to detail and following procedure strictly.

Been making 'shine for about 8 years now.

When the guns are cleaned and in the safe- quality contol is a lot of fun too!