Shotgun Wax Slugs' Physics Explained - Reverse Granular Impacts

Explaining the physics of how a wax slug works and why it is able to do so much damage. We explain how a connection was made with granular impacts and how the impacts of wax slugs are actually granular impact -- in reverse. I wanted to explain how these improvised rounds differentiate from a normal bullet or solid lead slug. Some of you may be interested in the science behind these unique rounds. A little geeky and dry but I hope you enjoy it and understand the properties.
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The "Box of Truth" How bullets react with sand
http://theboxotruth.com/docs/bot7.htm
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Granular Impacts study
http://scifair.org/news/physics-news/physicists-develop-force-law-for-granula...

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Music by Tunguska Electronic Music Society
Olga Scotland - "Big Cosmic Fish"

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• shooting sports
• shotgun wax slug crayon
• wax
• slug
• lost art
• cut slugs
• crayon slugs
• shotgun
• 12ga
• breaching rounds
• visible
• bullets
• ballistics
• physics
• university of pennsylvania
• granular impacts
• frangible
• round
• slow
• motion
• study
• taofledermaus
• Obverse And Reverse

[KITNARAGNAROG]

i would love to see some ballistic gel testing with this stuff but out of interest is there a better less heat reactive material to pack pellets in?

[taofledermaus]

@KITNARAGNAROG We have some ballistics gel ready to go for the round of testing. I'm hoping that the channel "brassfetcher" will do a test since he has a much faster high speed camera than I do. He just did a video on "cut slugs" so there is a good chance he'll do it. Yeah, I'm thinking the same thing, come summer and it gets to 110F. here, we will probably have some heat issues.

[Pwnzistor]

Holy shit, I'm watching badass ballistics video clips and learning physics at the same time?! Blasphemy!

[taofledermaus]

@Pwnzistor Haha,  sorry about that. Thanks for the killer comment!

[MrTahoe32]

Do a test shooting through multiple walls similar to a home defense situation.

[taofledermaus]

@MrTahoe32 I've made a small "test" wall so we should be able to give that a try maybe this weekend if the weather is good. 

[taofledermaus]

@mark16443 I plan on it. I have a block of gel prepared and ready to go. The hard part is getting friends together to help film this stuff.

[Zeroethorder]

Interesting. I think there's a physics professor at my school who shoots, I'll have to track him down and see what he makes of this.

[jstlookn48]

How do you think mixing lead or tungsten powder with wax would work?

[Aonexia]

Very smart video!

[joehunt1980]

@KITNARAGNAROG I would imagine that hot glue gun sticks could be used but not sure if they can be melted to a thin enough consistency before hitting the flash point of the material... might be worth a try :-j

[westin1985]

Do non lethal bean bags use the same principal of distribution of energy across a large area? Do the bean bags stay together or do they break up into pellets similar to the wax slug? Take a hand full of beans or fine gravel and make a wax slug for a potatoe gun. That would be interesting. Spud guns will launch a projectile at a couple hundred fps. Any body done projectile analysis of large bore weapon like a spud gun.

[theloseph]

I would like to see you do this with .410 shotgun, preferably out of a Taurus Judge.

[waveman1500]

This is an absolutely top-class video, I love it. The demonstration of physics concepts which you get with firearms is excellent, which is why both the physics teachers at my high school were gun nuts.

[lemonsodumb]

@gilahappy very safe

[gilahappy]

well. i guess its safe to say that... you'll die when you get shot when you get hit with one of these bad boys.

[doctormoose6]

I've always loved the idea of wax slugs. It's like one massive hollowpoint round.