Re: ATF regulations.

At 11:30 AM 10/11/2004, Andrew Tubbiolo wrote:

>     While parusing the ATF web page to look for regulations that would
>apply to liquid O2 - C3H8, and O2 - Kero, I found this ...
>
>http://www.atf.gov/forms/notices/04-7020.pdf
>
>Under the "L" listing, liquid O2 'explosives' is listed as a single entry.
>Also under "P" is listed 'Peroxide based explosive mixtures'. So does this
>mean that a liquid rocket engine using LO2 or H2O2 is considered an
>explosive? If so than a prop flow greater than 62.5g falls under
>regulation and permitting requiremnets? What is the experience of the
>folks who build and test hardware out there?
>
>    Note, the form says the list is not all inclusive. I guess that way
>they can say you fall under regulations for anything.

We have a BATFE explosives permit and a very understanding contact at the 
local BATFE office.  She agrees (off the record) that a lot of the rules 
are stupid, BUT, the Safe Explosives Act redefined an explosive as 
"anything that can be made to explode".  This is so that anyone can be 
arrested if desired (the BATFE "Orange Book" even specifically defines car 
airbag actuators as controlled explosives, requiring that your car be kept 
in a magazine).

There was a court case this last year where someone on the East Coast was 
found guilty of having explosives...some of the evidence was self-lighting 
charcoal briquets.  They really wanted this guy but couldn't find any real 
evidence that he'd done anything wrong (other than being head of a legal 
fireworks club).


----------
Jerry Durand
Durand Interstellar, Inc.
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