RDX Explosive

                                  RDX Explosive

                                 Jack The Ripper


   The reason I wrote this is because the other file I saw on how to make RDX
was so shabby and lame it was probably  written  by  an eight year old mental
patient.  So here is mine easy!  Straightforward!  Comprehendible!


Materials:

Hexamethylenetetramine (drug stores under Hexamin, Urotropine, & Methenamine)
Strong Nitric Acid (chemical supply house or some hardware stores)
Acetone (drug stores and hardware stores)
Scale with gram accuracy
Graduated Cylinder (cc or ml) or measuring cups
Thermometer 20-100 degrees Celsius or 68-212 degrees Fahrenheit
Several large quart canning jars
Two large basins or bowls made of metal or some other heatable metal
Paper Towels


Procedure:

1)  Place one half cup or 120 ml or cc  of nitric  acid in a large
canning jar
    and bring the temperature to between 20  and  30 degrees Celsius
(68-86 F)
    by putting the jar in a basin of cold water.

2)  Keep  the  thermometer  in  the  jar  so  you  can  closely
maintain  the
    temperature between your basins of hot and cold water.

3)  Weigh out 70 grams by weight or 18 teaspoons by  volume of  hexamin.
Then
    start adding the hexamin slowly at 1/2 teaspoon at a time over a 15
minute
    time period.  All the while maintaining the temperature between  20
and 30
    degrees celcius by moving it in and out of the cold water basins.

4)  When all the hexamin is dissolved in the acid  heat  the  solution
to  55
    degrees Celsius (131 F) by placing the jar  in a basin of hot water.
Then
    maintain this temperature for about ten minutes.

Page 21


5)  Now remove the jar from the basin of hot water  and  place it in the
basin
    of cold water and cool the jar to 20 degrees Celsius (68 F).  Now
when the
    solution reaches 20 degrees Celsius add 3 cups (750ml) of  cold
water and
    white salt will appear.

6)  Now the white salt is RDX and should be handled with care.  Now
filter the
    Acid/Water/RDX  solution  through  a  paper  towel  covering  the
mouth of
    another jar.

7)  Wash the RDX crystals off the paper towel and add an additional  3
cups of
    fresh cold water & a  teaspoon of sodium carbonate to neutralize the
acid.
    Now stir rapidly for 3 minutes and then filter it out again.

8)  It is now usable, but I prefer purifying it by filling a quart
canning jar
    2/3 full of acetone & heating  the acetone then adding the RDX
crystals to
    it a half teaspoon at a time until it completely dissolves in the
acetone.

9)  Now that it is all dissolved let the solution cool to room
temperature and
    let it stand for one hour.  The RDX will then precipitate again into
it's
    salt.  Then you must filter it through a paper towel around another
jar &
    rinse it with cold water the same way you did before.   Now you
have  the
    finished product roughly 1 and 1/2 ounces of RDX.

10) Now store your finished product (after it dries) in ajar with an air
tight
    lid for future use.  Seeing that RDX does not lose it's
effectiveness  for
    months.


Uses:

   RDX is a very powerful explosive however it can be compressed into
tubes to
make detonators. Later in this newsletter I will prescribe a method for
making
detonators in  which RDX  will  be  used  along  with  other explosives
before
mentioned.  RDX  however is sensitive  to  friction,  and  can  be  used
as an
explosive by itself.  It is also commonly referred to as Clyclonite.