Comedy gold

   

I would totally do the firecracker thing.

They must not have sloped the sewers enough, allowing the rot to generate methane. *Kaboom!*

   

When I was young and dumb, we dropped firecrackers down open sewers all the time. The firecrackers sink into the water and go off with a whump!

We also mounted 25 shot Saturn Missiles in cardboard tubes and fired them like a bazooka.



God we were stupid!

   

You should not give me ideas like this.




But we lived! I think that's what's missing nowadays. Kids are not allowed to make mistakes. Playing with that can of engine starter (ethyl ether) is dangerous, but gives you respect for the danger in it and things like it. Big mistakes only mean you were doing something worthwhile with great learning potential.

   

That was when I was in my early 20s and invincible (or so I believed).

When I was a teenager, my buddy and built ourselves a small cannon out of a brass pipe, with a soldered penny on one end. Then we drilled a hole in the top. Then we crushed a couple Estes rocket engines, loaded the back end of the cannon with it, stuck a small ball bearing in it and lit a fuse.

It worked and punched a hole through the wall of our friends wooden playhouse (just standard plywood walls supported by 2x4s).

The problem for us was that when we fired it a second time, we both forgot to cap the jar with the rocket powder and a spark from fuse landed in the jar and ignited all of it, singeing my buddy's arm and wasting all of it.

God we did dumb things back in the day, but it was really fun and like you said, we learned a lot of things...like putting the cap on the gunpowder jar.

   

^^^

My buddy and I did similar things with rocket engines. edit: and lighter fluid + tennis balls in loose heating ducts and PVC pipe.

The big mistake my buddy made was with emptied shotgun shells into a loose pile, and instead of the traditional trail of powder leading to the pile, he held the lighter over the pile. He regretted it the second he lit the lighter. Not too serious burns, but we got in a whole lot of trouble.

   

I believe I created and used my first chemical weapon at 4 years old. Ahhh... Chlorine Gas.

   

Mixed some rocket fuel wet, decided to dry it in the oven at a low temp.
That wasn't the problem.
Left the metal tray with the scrapings in the kitchen and Mom grabbed it to use as an ashtray to put her smoke in as she answered the phone........
WHOOOOOOSSSHHHHHH!!!!!!
Months later she asked what the white powder was in the envelope in my bedroom. I answered it was just baking soda to delay the burn rate between the rocket fuel and the parachute detonator.
Good! Because I ate a spoonful in case you've started doing LSD or something.....

   

What could go wrong?