Shooting a container of "non-Newtonian fluid"

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Snowdog

Snowdog

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My Play-doh has gone bad and needs to be replaced. I used this same 50+ pounds of play-dough (store bought) for around 10 years kept in a 5 gallon bucket. It didn't dry, but it did suddenly get moldy.

I'm planning on making the next batch of play-doh myself and perhaps 20 pounds this time since I will only be testing handguns from now on.

While looking up various recipes, I found something called non-Newtonian fluids (specifically a rheopectic non-Newtonian fluid). I remember playing with similar stuff as a kid called crazy slime or something along those lines. It was kept in a ziplock bag and had the consistancy of a very thick ketchup when held, but if hit, it felt like a solid.
I wondered even back then how it would react if shot with something of high velocity. Would it act upon the bullet as a solid and shatter, or would it behave like something closer to play-doh?

Though I plan on sticking with play-doh since it behaves similar to 10% ballistic gelatin and provides picture perfect expansion of both SP and JHP bullets, I would like to see if how a JHP would react to this stuff.
I must know if it will expand as designed against a liquid or flatten as if hitting a solid.

Before trying, has anyone done this before? I understand Silly Putty is also a non-Newtonian fluid and will shatter if shot with a bullet. Has anyone seen this happen?
 
You can make your own non-newtonian fluid with corn starch and water, I don't remember the ratio. A little google-fu can find it for you. I would expect it to shatter upon impact (a la cinder block), and of course then revert back to a liquid state.
 
If I remember correctly someone has experimented with different variations of non-newtonian fluid for body armor. In an attempt to develop a layer that is malleable but will get extremely hard when pressure is exerted on it.

Sadly, I have never attempted to shoot it.
 
If I remember correctly someone has experimented with different variations of non-newtonian fluid for body armor. In an attempt to develop a layer that is malleable but will get extremely hard when pressure is exerted on it.
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Mythbusters did on their show. :D


Based on what they came up with... if you want a non-newtonian fluid to stop a bullet. You're going to end up with a gun shot wound, or dead.

They were using thin sheets of it, but if you had a thick enough amount... I'm sure it would stop one... probably... maybe.
 
V-Tac supposedly has a new non-newtonian fluid glove, but information on it has proved hard to find. Non-newtonian fluid body armor would probably be prohibitively heavy.
 
Not all non-newtonian fluids are cornstarch and water, but that's just the easiest one to make with common household materials ;)
 
Just made a little batch, this stuff is AWESOME!! Gonna make another little batch next time I go out shooting and see what happens. Should be interesting!
 
PICTURES!! Please!!

Did MB do NN fluids specifically to stop bullets? I haven't seen that one. I must admit to being amazed when they made a huge batch in the "walking on water" episode and Adam walked across it. Very cool.
 
There was talk a few years ago about using the cornstarch solution as hip protectors for the elderly. (So often a broken hip leads to the grave in a few months' time). I don't know if it ever went anywhere, but the idea seemed sound. Still, getting Grandma to wear bags of slime under her skirts might not fly.
 
I can't tell you the ratio, but make a thickish solution, and you'll know it's right when you can stir it slowly with your spoon, but speed up and the solution seems to thicken and resist your efforts.
 
My daughter told me about silly putty having that property when she was 10. So, of course, I had to take it to the next level. I placed it on the concrete floor of our shop and hit it with a sledge hammer. It shattered and flew everywhere, including my wife's open mouth. Never found most of it, and no piece larger than the fingernail of my little finger. Had to buy some new silly putty.

If you shot it, I would assume it would disintegrate into tiny pieces. A nice big plastic bag of corn starch and water would be interesting to try.
 
I saw a program on TV where they filled a swimming pool with that corn starch stuff and people ran across it. The slow ones went down.
 
I'm guessing it would shatter like a solid, but then the small pieces would melt back into goo, possibly while midair. It would mainly be fun to see in slow motion, with a high-speed camera.

You can also try hitting some of the stuff with a hammer, for a similar and easier to see effect. It hardens and gets all kinds of cracks in it, then melts again.
 
My Play-doh has gone bad and needs to be replaced.
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Ahhhh! Thats SO sad! I Hate when that happens! :(

Seriously though:
You might check out DuxSeal putty as used to seal sheet metal ductwork by the HVAC guys.

Works great, and is available in big containers.
And I have never heard of it getting moldy.

Many years ago, before ballistics gel became common, all the big boys used it for bullet testing.

rc
 
I'm guessing it would shatter like a solid, but then the small pieces would melt back into goo, possibly while midair. It would mainly be fun to see in slow motion, with a high-speed camera.
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This make anyone else think of T-1000?
232323232%7Ffp537%3C%3B%3Enu%3D333%3A%3E%3A53%3E648%3EWSNRCG%3D3448%3C%3B96%3C8336nu0mrj
 
i've used plumbers putty, it's like play-doh but never dries out or molds and can be had cheaply and in quantity. stopped a 22 in about 1 1/2"
 
Gonna make up a batch today to shoot at.

Just gonna use the .22, but I was thinking I'd fill a plastic water bottle with, well, water; then fill another bottle with the cornstarch mixture.

My train of thought (usually a runaway) is this:

When I shoot bottles of water with a round nose bullet, it leaves a clean entry and exit with maybe a small amount of splitting of the plastic.

Since the NN fluid should turn to solid as the bullet impacts and makes it shockwave through the material, the bottle should experience a lot more "traumatic injury" as a result.

I'll be heading outside in a couple hours, so if you guys have a better idea that won't take all day to set up, I'm all ears.

Unfortunately, I don't have a video camera, but pictures will definitely be taken of the results.
 
Yup. My plan is to fill the bottles all the way to the rim and screw the caps on tight. If I can find it, I'm gonna tape the lids on; they're those little tiny eco-friendly caps that pop off if you look at them funny.

I'm torn between whether I should use a really fast solid, CCI's SGB; or a copper hollowpoint, another of CCI's offerings with the cavity enlarged.

I'd start a poll, but I'm too impatient for that. I wonder if I have enough cornstarch to do one of each?

More importantly, I wonder if the wife will notice I wasted all the cornstarch?
 
Well, I just used the rest of the cornstarch.. and botched the mix. :banghead:

Too much water. So now I"m on my way to the store to get another can. Be back soon!!
 
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