Drac, lol, not really.
BTW, who was able to bring your drunken friend to the hospital? Or was it too late?
M-80s were invented by the military (hence the M) earlier last century to simulate gunfire/grenades during training missions. Soon they became extremely popular with the public, and were sold as large firecrackers. They were powerful devices capable of blowing a human hand to pieces, and needless to say, caused many thousands of injuries over the years. This inspired congress to pass the Child Protection Act in 1966, which made M-80s and cherry bombs illegal to manufacture in the United States (companies were given until 1976 to sell off the rest of their M-80s). Unfortunately, many people today still don't believe that the devices are dangerous, and continue to manufacture/sell/buy M-80s despite the severe criminal penalties that could await anyone caught doing so. Another assumption people make is that M-80s have some relation to dynamite; as the terms "quarter-stick" or "M-80 half-stick" are widely used to describe the power of such explosives. Anyone who thinks so has no idea what they're talking about. The compositions used in M-80s and cherry bombs are completely different than those used in dynamite, and the two can't even be compared. M-80s cannot be compared with high explosives!
"But the guy down at the reservation was selling M-80s and tennis-ball bombs! That *must* make them legal!" Think again. They are illegal everywhere in the United States. EVERYWHERE. No exceptions. Just because you find someone selling these things does not make them legal. Not even on Indian reservations. Putting flash powder into a tennis ball (or other object), inserting a fuse, and selling it for 20 bucks is a very easy way to make money for people who have nothing better to do, which is why they continue to be sold. The legal consequences of selling or possessing these devices can be severe. Anyone caught doing so can face prison time and devastating fines.
As mentioned before, M-80s, cherry bombs, silver salutes, and other such devices are extremely dangerous. The number of emails I get and the horrible injury stories I hear regarding these things just shows how ignorant people are of the dangers of M-80s/Cherry Bombs and what they can do to you. Unlike fireworks, which must adhere to strict safety guidelines (like the amount of pyrotechnic composition they can contain), M-80s and Cherry Bombs are NOT manufactured with your safety in mind. Consumer fireworks, by law, can contain no more than 500 grams of pyrotechnic composition. Firecrackers can contain no more than 50 milligrams of flash powder per cracker. On the other hand, M-80s contain up to 3 grams of flash powder - sixty times the legal limit. These devices are powerful enough to blow a hole the size of a fist in thick plywood - even if it's only sitting on top of the wood (see the pictures below)! The damage they can inflict on the human body is even worse - I've seen many disgusting, disturbing emergency room photographs showing a bloody, blackened stump of what used to be a human hand or foot. Usually this happens when someone tries to light the fuse (which is usually only an inch long) and throw the device, only to have an unexpectedly fast burn rate cause it to blow up in their hand. Is this how you would want to spend the 4th of July? Losing a hand, arm, or even dying from playing around with M-80s? The potential "fun" or "entertainment" M-80s and Cherry Bombs may provide is vastly outweighed by how incredibly dangerous they are.
Drac, lol, not really.
BTW, who was able to bring your drunken friend to the hospital? Or was it too late?
M-80s were invented by the military (hence the M) earlier last century to simulate gunfire/grenades during training missions. Soon they became extremely popular with the public, and were sold as large firecrackers. They were powerful devices capable of blowing a human hand to pieces, and needless to say, caused many thousands of injuries over the years. This inspired congress to pass the Child Protection Act in 1966, which made M-80s and cherry bombs illegal to manufacture in the United States (companies were given until 1976 to sell off the rest of their M-80s). Unfortunately, many people today still don't believe that the devices are dangerous, and continue to manufacture/sell/buy M-80s despite the severe criminal penalties that could await anyone caught doing so. Another assumption people make is that M-80s have some relation to dynamite; as the terms "quarter-stick" or "M-80 half-stick" are widely used to describe the power of such explosives. Anyone who thinks so has no idea what they're talking about. The compositions used in M-80s and cherry bombs are completely different than those used in dynamite, and the two can't even be compared. M-80s cannot be compared with high explosives!
"But the guy down at the reservation was selling M-80s and tennis-ball bombs! That *must* make them legal!" Think again. They are illegal everywhere in the United States. EVERYWHERE. No exceptions. Just because you find someone selling these things does not make them legal. Not even on Indian reservations. Putting flash powder into a tennis ball (or other object), inserting a fuse, and selling it for 20 bucks is a very easy way to make money for people who have nothing better to do, which is why they continue to be sold. The legal consequences of selling or possessing these devices can be severe. Anyone caught doing so can face prison time and devastating fines.
As mentioned before, M-80s, cherry bombs, silver salutes, and other such devices are extremely dangerous. The number of emails I get and the horrible injury stories I hear regarding these things just shows how ignorant people are of the dangers of M-80s/Cherry Bombs and what they can do to you. Unlike fireworks, which must adhere to strict safety guidelines (like the amount of pyrotechnic composition they can contain), M-80s and Cherry Bombs are NOT manufactured with your safety in mind. Consumer fireworks, by law, can contain no more than 500 grams of pyrotechnic composition. Firecrackers can contain no more than 50 milligrams of flash powder per cracker. On the other hand, M-80s contain up to 3 grams of flash powder - sixty times the legal limit. These devices are powerful enough to blow a hole the size of a fist in thick plywood - even if it's only sitting on top of the wood (see the pictures below)! The damage they can inflict on the human body is even worse - I've seen many disgusting, disturbing emergency room photographs showing a bloody, blackened stump of what used to be a human hand or foot. Usually this happens when someone tries to light the fuse (which is usually only an inch long) and throw the device, only to have an unexpectedly fast burn rate cause it to blow up in their hand. Is this how you would want to spend the 4th of July? Losing a hand, arm, or even dying from playing around with M-80s? The potential "fun" or "entertainment" M-80s and Cherry Bombs may provide is vastly outweighed by how incredibly dangerous they are.