What is out there one can buy and make at home?

Gun cotton?
Nitrocellulose
Combining stump remover (Potassium Nitrate) to drain cleaner (sulfuric avid) and cotton balls.

Fire starter?
Potassium permanganate and glycerin or sulfuric acid.

Smoke?
Potassium nitrate, sugar, water and baking soda.


This is the short list but I am sure there are many more.

Safety and just research before making at home.
Please use eye and proper protective equipment for these chemical reactions.

Clorox and ammonia makes a good cleaner.
DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME.
make sure your try it in someone else's home.
ETA: this is a poisonous mixture. Makes a poisonous gas. Near instant effects on the nervous system. Don't fuck around with it.

I used to do firework displays, was a PGI member and had an ATF license.
That being said, I'd be worried in this day and age of having my door kicked in over suspicion of running a terrorist bomb factory if I went down and bought some of that stuff.

.

Potassium perchlorate and black aluminum with some iron or magnesium or X or X or X or huhwha?

Well, the vast majority of us are on a list.
Many of these items are everyday household things you can buy right off the shelf of your favorite grocery or hardware store.

You can get stump remover (aka Potassium nitrate) and drain clear (aka Sulfuric acid) at almost any large hardware outlet near you.

Hell if you bought enough fertizer back in the day - you got into a list.

We are not talking about industrial quantities nor are we talking about making bombs and such. No fireworks and gun powder etc.



And then we have the other extreme

Please remember to do some research on how to safely protect yourself from these reactions and remember that the information is free and as you can see always someone willing to throw you under the bus (joke or not).

Please make sure you are totally clear about making a joke when dealing with DEADLY results.

Sulfuric acid at Oreilly auto parts is $25 for 5 gallons.

Lots of videos out there. Lots of common sense safety violations...

Please invest in good gloves, eye protection and mask and just like playing with Fire (have a fire extinguisher) - have some means to neutralize the acid of the reaction gets too crazy AND for goodness sake - do this outside and not in your basement.

Shouldn't this thread be in DIY?

I just own a fleet of junk and have about 30 batteries to maintain is why I know about the SA.
Ive been getting good at desulfating old (some over 10 years old) batteries and making them load test good and hold good voltage.

For once, I have over a half dozen batteries that are great and not needed at the moment!

There are lots of good "recipes" in the US army's "Improvised Munitiions Handbook". It's not hard to find a PDF on the internet.

An even mixture of rubbing alcohol, white vinegar, and hydrogen peroxide works pretty good at killing mold. It's especially good for car interiors at getting that mold smell out. It has no bleach in it so it won't alter the color.

If you have a ORV or Lawnmower with colored plastic and it has been faded by the sun (Honda red used to be real bad for this) try taking used or new motor oil and slather it all over the plastic with a rag. Put it on nice and thick. Now walk away for about five days then come back and wipe all the oil off. Sometimes it doesn't work but sometimes it works really good!

most drain cleaners contain Sodium Hydroxide (lye), which is the main component in bluing salts