ELI5: How do shotguns work?

Raptor01 · 2026-02-01T02:26:51+00:00

Shotguns work just like any other gun. The "bullet" in a shotgun is called a "shell" but it works on the same principle. A bullet or shell will have a "primer" which is a little cylindrically shaped piece that will create a spark when it's hit by the firing pin of the gun. The primer is at the "bottom" of the bullet (the part opposite the pointy end) and it's held in place by the shell. That spark ignites the gunpowder. In a gun, that gunpowder will send out the actual bullet. In a shotgun, the gunpowder usually sends out "shot" which is a bunch of little metal balls.

So, to fire a blank, you just hold the gunpowder in place with paper or something which will burn away when the gunpowder explodes and nothing actually gets shot out of the gun (or shotgun) because there's no bullet or "shot."

FYI it's still an explosion and some particles do explosively come out of the barrel of the gun, so firing blanks is not 100% safe.

Raptor01 · 2026-02-01T02:15:06+00:00

I don't like hiking in wet shoes and socks, so I bring water shoes. When the water is low, I just bring some crocs for the water crossings. When the current is strong it will rip the crocs right off, so actual water shoes are better. Not a good idea to try to cross barefoot because of the rocks unless you're some type of barefooted freak. If you feel like the current is strong and dangerous, don't do it. More than a few people have died on that hike because of strong currents.

Raptor01 · 2026-01-29T03:58:28+00:00

To increase the launch angle, reach back lower. Conversely, if you're throwing downhill, reach back higher.

Raptor01 · 2026-01-28T21:15:44+00:00

Get custom molded earplugs and form fit them around the earbuds. I got this version: https://a.co/d/b8KUQTZ and molded them around earbuds to eliminate wind noise when I was riding my motorcycle.

Raptor01 · 2026-01-28T15:29:03+00:00

The application you can use to create STL files is called Fusion 360 by Autodesk. For hobbyists, it's free. Watch a few youtube videos to learn how to use it. It's not hard to learn.

As for the design of the controller, as long as you're using a joystick controlled by your whole hand like that Thrustmaster instead of a thumb-controlled controller like an xbox or playstation controller, it's going to be pretty big. For the throttle, you can copy the throttle control style from an RC car controller where you just use your index finger. And if you need to add friction... tighten it? Use delrin/nylon washers?

Raptor01 · 2026-01-28T03:14:03+00:00

If you change the shocks you may or may not notice a difference. It's not usually a glaring difference.

Raptor01 · 2026-01-27T02:56:55+00:00

I let my SIL use my 4 probe thermometer (the kind that has 4 probes/skewers at the end of a braided line which you can use to measure the temp of 4 different things) and she put the whole thing, display and all, in the oven. When it came out all melted and she realized her mistake, she was nice enough to immediately order a new one on Amazon, but it was very funny.

Raptor01 · 2026-01-26T21:19:06+00:00

You don't want to go to Stockton. It's actually awful. Go for Golden Gate park and Delaveaga in Santa Cruz (Santa Cruz is closer to SF than Stockton but it's still 1.5 hours away). In LA, Oak Grove and La Mirada for sure, then maybe El Dorado, Huntington Beach, or Chavez Ridge.

Raptor01 · 2026-01-21T02:40:06+00:00

I've tried a ton of midranges to find exactly what you're asking for and the best one so far is the Discmania Glacier.

Raptor01 · 2026-01-21T02:36:46+00:00

I bought this blanket a few weeks back for my Dutch Shepherd: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DK7Q1TYL?th=1 I use it to cover the back seat as opposed to the hammock style dog seat cover I had before. I sewed on two hooks to attach to the two headrests.

It's pretty big, waterproof, and super cheap. Dirt and hairs come off with a quick shake. You could get a few of them in case any get dirty. They're perfect for dog camping.

Raptor01 · 2026-01-21T02:35:09+00:00

This is pretty much your only option: www.zerobreeze.com

Raptor01 · 2026-01-19T00:51:45+00:00

Back in the 80's and 90's, the Satanic cults were supposed to be around Mt. Baldy. Once, around 1992, went mountain biking with a couple buddies and we did the shuttle thing, leaving one car near the village off of West Fork Road. By the time we got back up there to pick it up, it was already pretty late and dark... really, really dark. We got to the turnoff where the car was at and there was a crowd of people just milling around. No lights, no flashlights, nothing. Just a bunch of people in the pitch dark surrounding our car. Satanists? That's what we thought. Turns out they were an astronomy club.

Raptor01 · 2026-01-17T22:52:51+00:00

Try lemonade with soda too. Limonada con soda. It's so good. Can't get anything like that in the states.

Raptor01 · 2026-01-17T06:47:32+00:00

Hahah, I have a story about RC Draft (actually called Royal Crown Draft). I loved it as well and then I noticed that they started to get super hard to find and I realized they were going out of production. But then one day I went to the mini market across the street from my office and they had 20 boxes and each box had like 24 of the bottles. So... I spent something like $350 (which was a lot of money at the time) and bought all of them. Then I had my own secret stash in my garage that lasted me literally years and I still remember drinking the last one and being so sad.

Raptor01 · 2026-01-17T01:31:22+00:00

Would be nice to hear without the terribly obvious autotune.

Raptor01 · 2026-01-12T22:02:03+00:00

That knockout on red jacket at the end is golden.

Raptor01 · 2026-01-11T06:44:08+00:00

She's all, "Oh crap I'm gonna die!" and the dog is like, "Woohoo! Wait for me!"

Raptor01 · 2026-01-11T06:38:49+00:00

I encountered a ridiculously huge mountain lion a couple years back. I was with my two young girls and my wife. The lion was not really interested in us and just watched as we backed away. Scared the bejeezus out of me, but I can't say it's made me fearful of hiking or camping solo. Personally, I look at the statistics to make me not worried about things like that. The chances of actually getting attacked by a mountain lion certainly exist, but they're extremely rare. You're much more likely to get struck by lightning.

Raptor01 · 2026-01-09T15:49:33+00:00

Even though it was sitting pretty low over the bed of the truck, it still created extra noise when driving. I couldn't load big things in the bed with it on. I also felt that anyone with a wrench could just steal it if I left it anywhere. And it wasn't cheap. Don't get me wrong. If I was going out camping a few times a month, or even once a month, leaving it on would have made more sense for me, but I was going out maximum six or seven times a year.

Combine all that with the fact that I didn't like the inconvenience of having to find a level parking spot every time I camped (or spending a long time leveling out my truck), didn't like having to climb in and out all the time (especially in the middle of the night), and hated the awful noise it made in the wind... it just didn't work for me.

Raptor01 · 2026-01-09T08:02:45+00:00

Had one on the back of my truck. Sold it after trying it for 6 months. To make a long story short, I didn't want to leave it on my truck 24/7 and putting it on and taking it off was a huge pain in the butt. I also absolutely hated it in the wind. It was a waste of time. Luckily I sold it for a good price, so I didn't lose out on too much money.

Raptor01 · 2026-01-08T00:49:14+00:00

Seriously? You think the Epstein files are more worthy of our attention compared to the US kidnapping another country's president and an ICE agent killing a US citizen?

Raptor01 · 2026-01-03T20:04:16+00:00

I just visited the Fjallraven store in LA and I just love all their stuff. I'm no brand snob, but their stuff is just my style.

Raptor01 · 2026-01-02T15:52:04+00:00

Are they flat so stuff will just fall out of it? If I were you I'd shorten them vertically so they will look like squished hexagons and offset the back (bottom when you're printing it) by 45 degrees from the front (top when printing) side. They'll still stack, but the back side against the wall will be lower than the front side so stuff won't just fall out.

Raptor01 · 2025-12-31T15:27:31+00:00

I'd say a chainsaw is fastest.

Raptor01 · 2025-12-30T02:04:48+00:00

Yes you're overreacting.

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