Anybody remember M-80's?

[tod evans]

This poor guy is in the clutches of the ATF for manufacturing a lesser grade of pyrotechnics.

His attorney claims he won't plead out.

I'm betting somewhere above 20yrs... :eek:


Man accused of dealing in explosives outside Hooters


ATF arrested Peter Westhaver after they found thousands of explosives in his van in a Hooters parking lot
Westhaver has been charged with dealing in explosive materials without a license.



A Washington man is facing federal criminal charges after authorities say they found thousands of explosives in his van in a Hooters parking lot last Friday.

According to federal court documents, a witness told Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms officers that they had obtained two small explosive devices from 53-year-old Peter Westhaver. The devices were described as small red plastic balls filled with 36 grams of flash powder and a pyrotechnic fuse, which the arrest affidavit said are commonly known as “ping pong ball bombs.”

The affidavit noted that the witness who implicated Westhaver agreed to cooperate with authorities “in an attempt to mitigate potential charges or sentencing arising out of his/her possession of the devices.”

Undercover officers met with Westhaver at a Spokane Valley Hooters on June 28, the affidavit stated. They went inside the restaurant, where Westhaver allegedly “talked extensively about his explosives manufacturing operation” and told them he had the devices in his Ford Windstar in the parking lot.

At that point, Westhaver was taken into custody and consented to a search of his vehicle, according to the affidavit. Officers said they found 18 orange Home Depot buckets inside, each filled with “approximately 300 individual ‘ping pong ball bombs.’”

Westhaver has been charged with dealing in explosive materials without a license and is being held without bond in Spokane County Jail. If convicted, he could face up to ten years in prison, First Assistant US Attorney Joe Harrington said Tuesday.

Andrea George, director of the public defender's office representing Westhaver, declined to comment on the details of the case, but she told HLN that he will enter a not guilty plea if he is indicted

[madengr]

Yeah what a bunch of bullshit. I remember M-80s and quarter sticks. What fun.

[tod evans]

Yeah what a bunch of bullshit. I remember M-80s and quarter sticks. What fun.

Had to dig up and replace more than one whistle pipe due to 1/4 sticks and youthful exuberance. :cool:

[phill4paul]

Yeah, it's all B.S. today. Every man is a child in need of discipline to the government.

[Johnnybags]

Yep, we had m-80's but ole Dad got to use real dynamite sticks on the 4th to shoot 55 gallon drums high into the air. Must have been a terrorist back then.

[r3volution]

uhh a local fireworks store has m-80 & m-150 in packs of 100 here for like $15 . not to mention a lot stronger stuff . all imported from china .

[Kluge]

They want to destroy all chemists who don't work for the gov't. :(

[tod evans]

uhh a local fireworks store has m-80 & m-150 in packs of 100 here for like $15 . not to mention a lot stronger stuff . all imported from china .

They're not M-80's from years back....

One would blow the sides out of a country mailbox.........Or ruin the plumbing in a HS bathroom..

[Pauls' Revere]

Do I ever! :D

Put one in a large metal sewer pipe that ran under a street. This amplified the noise from the blast, yet wasn't powerful enough to do damage to the industrial grade metal. Good times.

[Dr.3D]

Sounds more like their ‘ping pong ball bombs’ were more like what I remember as being a "Cherry Bomb". They were about the size of a quarter in diameter, red spheres. They would go off with one hell of a bang. If anybody was stupid enough to hold one and try to throw it before the fuse burned down, they would sometimes lose fingers. I guess people were ignorant of the fact, some fuses burn way faster than planned. Especially if they had been bent back and forth a bunch of times.

[Anti Federalist]

They're not M-80's from years back....

One would blow the sides out of a country mailbox.........Or ruin the plumbing in a HS bathroom..

This is correct.

Due to property damages and bodily harm caused by M-80s, Class C fireworks—now known as Consumer Fireworks (class 1.4G), as opposed to Display Fireworks (which were Class B, and are now 1.3G)[5]— civilians are no longer allowed to carry a pyrotechnic device containing more than 50 milligrams of pyrotechnic flash powder. In 1966, M-80s and cherry bombs were banned by the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and the Child Protection Act of 1966. Furthermore, they were then made illegal by the ATF (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives) in the 1970s. In 1975, U.S. federal regulations were passed to limit all consumer-grade fireworks in the United States to a maximum of 50 milligrams flash powder, down from a previous maximum of 200 milligrams (though firecrackers mounted onto a rocket stick, or other aerial firework devices, such as Rockets, Roman Candles, and Cakes, may have up to 160 mg).

[Professor8000]

For a government that "has no responsibility to protect you" it sure does like to use it as an excuse to limit the things it allows you to do.

[WhistlinDave]

Bogus. Don't they have some lesser charge that would be more appropriate, like "Dealing in Illegal Fireworks" or something?

[r3volution]

Bogus. Don't they have some lesser charge that would be more appropriate, like "Dealing in Illegal Fireworks" or something? nope , they will indict him on 3 explosives felony's and then offer him a plea for 1 felony with 6 months in fed prison and 5 years supervised release too keep the machine going . thats how they roll .

[The Northbreather]

"We need to take this guy down!

He's making money selling unapproved fun!

He's going to buy chicken wings with that money and look at waitresses in orange shorts too!

We need a full swat style beat down on this criminal."

[oyarde]

Yes , I remeber M 80'S and Cherry Bombs , no , you cannot trick me into confessing to anything else .

[pcosmar]

Real M-80s had waterproof fuses. You could use them for fishing.

;)

[Dr.3D]

Real M-80s had waterproof fuses. You could use them for fishing.

;)

Yeah, but they would float so you had to put them in a bag with a weight. ;)

[tod evans]

Carbide + water + weight in a glass mason jar works for "fishing" too...

[Dr.3D]

Carbide + water + weight in a glass mason jar works for "fishing" too...
What lights the acetylene? Or is it just the pressure of the created gas that causes the explosion? If so, then vinegar and baking soda would also work.

[phill4paul]

Real M-80s had waterproof fuses. You could use them for fishing.

;)

Well, at least for gathering bait for the trot-line. My Papaw would cut slices of dynamite, push in a fuse and twist it up in foil. First light he would pop a school of Shad. Then off to the lines. Never see those days again in modern America.

[tod evans]

What lights the acetylene? Or is it just the pressure of the created gas that causes the explosion? If so, then vinegar and baking soda would also work.

They do, but they react too fast, with carbide the reaction is slow enough that the jar sinks

[tod evans]

Well, at least for gathering bait for the trot-line. My Papaw would cut slices of dynamite, push in a fuse and twist it up in foil. First light he would pop a school of Shad. Then off to the lines. Never see those days again in modern America.

Sucks too!

"Americans" must have government supervision of anything that goes bang. :mad:

[tod evans]

They do, but they react too fast, with carbide the reaction is slow enough that the jar sinks

[edit]
More of a "pop" than an explosion but it will stun fish.

[phill4paul]

Sucks too!

"Americans" must have government supervision of anything that goes bang. :mad:

"Americans" must have supervision of everything. He took to catfishing after a stint in prison for moonshining and decided to go on the straight and narrow. He never had a fishing license and demanded cash only from his sales to restaurants. These days his fishing activities would probably lead to more jail time than his moonshining ones. :mad:

[Demigod]

Why didn't they just take the firecrackers and give him some kind of a fine.Putting someone in jail for firecrackers is bullshit.

[Dr.3D]

Why didn't they just take the firecrackers and five him some kind of a fine.Putting someone in jail for firecrackers is bullshit.

But he was selling weapons of mass destruction. /s

[KingNothing]

An America where I can't buy bootlegged fireworks from some dude out of his van is not the America I grew up in.

In all seriousness, don't the cops have better things to worry about than planning elaborate sting operations to catch some guy who sells things that we all used to use when we were 10?

[fisharmor]

In all seriousness, don't the cops have better things to worry about than planning elaborate sting operations to catch some guy who sells things that we all used to use when we were 10?

Are you still confused about the purpose of the constabulary?
This is their purpose.
Unless, of course, we can claim that Washington is free of theft, fraud, battery, property destruction, kidnapping, and murder.
Since law enforcement is instead the biggest promoter of those, you're kind of stuck with kidnapping and imprisoning people selling fireworks as the job definition.

[tod evans]

Wait and read the indictment, then the accompanying press releases.........In the history books it will read that the government agents involved singlehandedly saved all of Washington state from a terrorist attack.....




An America where I can't buy bootlegged fireworks from some dude out of his van is not the America I grew up in.

In all seriousness, don't the cops have better things to worry about than planning elaborate sting operations to catch some guy who sells things that we all used to use when we were 10?

[Anti Federalist]

"Americans" must have supervision of everything. He took to catfishing after a stint in prison for moonshining and decided to go on the straight and narrow. He never had a fishing license and demanded cash only from his sales to restaurants. These days his fishing activities would probably lead to more jail time than his moonshining ones. :mad:

Count on it.

I realized I needed to get out of commercial fishing when I saw that I would potentially spend more time in prison for 20 "short" fluke, than for a pound of coke.

[brandon]

Yeah what a bunch of bullshit. I remember M-80s and quarter sticks. What fun.

My buddy brought over a bunch of home made quarter, half, and full sticks to my 4th of July bbq last year. Tons of fun. Towards the end of the night, I guess he underestimated their power and placed one under one of these in the street behind my house. Launched the thing about 50 feet in the air...freaking nuts lol.

http://www.timesignsmfg.com/images/Drum.jpg

[Pericles]

Best said by Gunowners of America: "We are ruled by a tyranny. Prepare accordingly."