Being a mechanic for my short stint in the army, I never was around the mortars when they would be firing, so the report came as a bit of a surprise to me, especially from such a tiny 28 gauge ballistite cartridge.
We both put on M1 helmets, as we were not sure what was going to happen. As soon as the shock of the launch wore off, we both stood up to see where it was going to land. It was a beautiful clear day...not a cloud in the sky. Alas, we saw nothing. We spent close to 45 minutes looking for it too. As I mentioned, it was a run of the mill para round, and empty at that, other than the ballistite. The loss of the round was not that bad, but I didn't like losing the little end cap. Many of the rounds I have are missing that little item.
I think we both mentioned that it was too much fun to be legal, although if it is illegal, I haven't seen the section of the law that would encompass it. I guess the controlled goods might come into play, but really that act can cover just about anything. This certainly is not any kind of new technology.
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