SA Firefighter
Equipment => All Equipment discussion => Topic started by: CaptCom on August 03, 2006, 01:53:10 PM
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One of our local DEH guys was telling me that he had just ordered a 150lt flame thrower (to be mounted on a 14) and a huge industrial leaf blower....some serious toys to use this season!
He said that the flame thrower was because the usual drip torch is often not enough to ignite some scrub areas...lucky I trust his judgement! :evil:
Do other areas have such exciting toys to play with?/
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I think each CFS Region has an incendiary gun, as well as few DEH brigades....
Load the gun with a thing that looks like a ping pong ball (but filled with pot permanganate, I think) once loaded, the ball is injected with glycol (or was it the other way round, glycol in the ball..injected with pot permanganate..?) anyway, once the two chemicals start to mix, the gun is fired...appears it can go 30-40 metres...the reaction progresses, gives out heat, and (hopefully) you get a fire.....
It is easier than trying to get through the blackberrys & broome with a fire lighter in hand....
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sounds like fun :wink:
i think the yanks use those ping pong balls also, drop them out of choppers into a burn.
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i believe the balls are filled with napalm
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Cool...not what I had pictured but probably safer...except if the ping pong balls go where they shouldn't?? imagine one lobbing in the front seat of an appliance... :evil:
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I know a couple of CFA brigades in the dandy rangers that have flame throwing gear from WW1 and it works well.....
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i believe the balls are filled with napalm
How well do you know your basic chemistry? :?
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if by chemistry you mean drinking, then very well. if by chemistry you mean chemistry, no experience at all!
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Cool...not what I had pictured but probably safer...except if the ping pong balls go where they shouldn't?? imagine one lobbing in the front seat of an appliance... :evil:
In all seriousness that is a highly dangerous and possible outcome. There are a few cases over seas where such devices where shot either in the wrong area, or caught by wind and landed behind crews, in unsafe areas... Like anything, there is a margin of error... Unfortunately you can see where things could seriously go wrong!
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Apparently, the DEH one that is coming is in fact the flame throwing unit...like a pressure cleaner but throws flames..not the ping pong unit..
You are right..it would need some very strict SWP and a very responsible operator to ensure safety of crew at all times...
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Someone Has Been Watching Fire Storm (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120670/)
They Make Use Of The Ping Pong Gun In That And Also The Practial Joke When The Guy Replaces The Ping Pong Ball On The Table With One Of The Explosive Ones.