FWIW I think it would be highly unlikely for the primers to be detonated in the back of the dust-cart.
Primers generally take quite a whack (rather than general pressure) as noted by the numbers I have seen quite dented by a firing pin but not detonated.
If burnt on a bonfire they generally do no more than go 'pop'. (I believe the plastic body melts first allowing the powder to just ignite like flash powder and then the primer just dies or goes pop)?
As has been said by others give the police a call, not on 999, and follow their advice. Bedford were quite happy for me to fetch in a box of .22LR that I found in my last house. They were in good condition and didn't present a hazard though.
Makes you wonder just what is still lying around in attics etc. There was a story a couple of years back on TV of a guy in Norfolk who was in an auxiliary unit from the last war, home guard, who had stashed explosives in his attic and it was only found after his death. Apparently in a rather unstable state, just glad I didn't live next door.
Another press report from about 1970 was of a guy who had bought a piece of ex RAF surplus kit, IFF unit, and stored it in his shed. The shed blew up one day when the self destruct device got fed up of waiting around.
Changes in legislation over recent years, although having no effect whatsoever on gun crime, has closed many (most?) gun shops.
Anyone with any common sense has as little to do with the police as they can. Never forget that they have an agenda, particularly in these days of targets, which does not necessarily coincide with yours.
When my old dad died, we discovered the reason he kept his bedroom, not that you'd want to go in there anyway!, wardrobe room locked. We found about a thousand odd 12 bore, 300 odd 410 bore and misc other munitions left over from WW2 and some other dubious stuff.
Phoned up old bill who suggested that I might take it home with me!, or leave it where it was.
On some instance from myself, let alone what the wife said, they did come and remove it. A day or so later at the funeral an unknown relative turned up who it transpired was a keen shooter, and he took the lot from the police apart from the WW2 items. He seemed to think that Christmas had come early, inheriting that lot!.
Course it might have been a different story if the place had caught fire at anytime previous!, needless to say the next door neighbour was somewhat shocked and relived to hear of our findings.
And that was in addition to the detonators, from the time he used to work on the railways, we found in the shed, almost hit one with a demolition hammer!!!.
Did I mention that he used to be an armourer on Spitfires:))....
As kids we were sensible enough to use a junior hacksaw to open the casing, remove the shot, put the powder down a suitable open ended tube and light it with a match and then clamp the percussion cap in a vice and using a 6 inch nail, hit it with a hammer - obviously making sure no parents were around at the time.
..... if only kids nowadays knew a bit more DIY and then we wouldn't have them hitting complete cartidges with hammers.
Joking aside, its a phone call to the local nick and they will be collected and safely disposed of, anything else is just plain stupid (and illegal)
Don't know if you remember the late 70's TV drama series "Danger UXB" which chronicalled the life of an officer in a bomb disposal unit?
Each week they would be confronted with a new threat (different type of timer / booby trap / anti personel device etc). Quite often there would be a flurry of army activity the day after an episode was screened when loads of people realised that the "interesting bit of WWII pariphernalia" they had stashed in a drawer was in fact a live butterfly bomb or something similar!
Yet another press report I read a few years back was of an ex army guy giving a talk on bomb disposal to a WI, or similar, group and he showed photos of a butterfly bomb. Some one came up to him later and said they'd often wondered what the thing that looked like a tin can was that was caught in the branches of a tree nearby! 1960 something.
Before I get a visit from the anti terrorist squad I had better say that my interest in things that go bang comes from my father who was in battlefield clearance for sometime working for His Majesty. A favourite story of his was of a Dutch farmer who had used det' cord to tie his raspberries up with. Apparently it was quite spectacular when he detonated it, the farmer didn't think so though.
I sawed the blunt end of a 22 cartridge I found once...put it in the vice and hacksawed the end off - well most of it anyway. I was about 14 I think. Deafened me for a day...
Found it in my fathers tool box...war relic I suppose.
I was not aware that possession of cartridges was illegal though: Only guns.
I'd myself burn them, on a bonfire from a considerable distance after proping them to point in a suitable direction.. but then I have an acre to play with and shotgun nosies are a common thing...you could simply open thenuo and remove the shot and powder and chuck the percussion caps on the bonfire. If you know what you are risking :-)
Seriously the police will take em off your hands I am sure, and thats the best thing to do. Or give them to a fireind who shoots...
But I would never use old cartridges: Friend had some that got damp, he owes his face to me, for telling him NOT to reload his gun after the first one had failed to detonate the main charge and left most of the wadding down the barrel.
The police in N wales used to be respected by most of us, now most of us hate them. They only had one crime, speeding moterists, all other crime was not their problem. Seems that they have just found people have taken up a second crime - under age drininking in pubs, so they want to ban the sale of drink in pubs & clubs.
They are not unique in causing "a lot" of problems. They may not even cause "many" problems. For instance :
U.A.D would appear to be a *very* small problem (If you're not Tony Blair). A total of 28 offences in the 7 years up to 2003 in the whole of the Met. police area. An average of 4 per year in the wicked city ! (Not counting Blair's kid)
After the Euan Blair spectacle, in an orgy of over reaction new laws have been added to the statute book to the effect that it's now illegal for a parent to buy a glass of wine for their 17 year 51 week, and 5 day old daughter if they go out for a meal to toast her 18th birthday 2 days before the event (as we did). Probably about half a dozen offences were committed. That's equivalent to 18 months under age drinking offences for the whole of the Met. police area! Something not ading up there?
Noting the recent introduction of fixed penalties for U.A.D offences, and noting also Chief Constables on television talking about U.A.D. as a heinious crime referring to kids in the last month or two of their
17th year drinking responsibly celebrating the end of their A level exams, and last year at school, (and not 13 year olds with 2 litre bottles of cider, and not like Euan Blair, paralytic, in the gutter in Leicester Square at 16, giving a false address and lying about his age). As if an extra 8 or 9 weeks makes a significant difference to one's alcohol capacity.
One is bound to wonder whether "administrative offences" are being created which are easy and safe to police and easy to penalise by fixed penalty. They would tend do that wouldn't they? Found drinking in a club? Lets have a quick scan of your identity card. Ooohhh, right, (dream ticket, this one). Just as I thought - 18 next month. Who bought the drinks for you? Who else was part of the same round? Who served them? Where's the manager? Right you lot, each of you take this "producer". £75 a throw. "Show up at the nick within
5 days with your credit card" or the penalty goes up 6-fold.
AAMOF *The* worst excessive drinking I've ever seen was by gangs of
30+ year old female slappers in City Square one Saturday night at
11-45pm. We had gone into Leeds with the kids to celebrate a family birthday but couldn't get a taxi back. They were "Fornicating" in doorways, and sweeping across City Square in herds stumbling and spilling booze as they went. We just had to stand there amongst it all waiting with the kids 'till the taxi came and picked us up.
We have not done it since. Meaning, of course, we don't subject ourselves to the spectacle of Leeds on Saturday evenings any more.
;-)
As regards speeding I think you will find the actual offence is breaking the speed limit. This does not cause problems except for the penalties. Driving at excessive speed does, but that's more difficult to prosecute, so is not challenged in the UK.
The problem is that the guvmint brings in all these new laws but there is so much bureaucracy in actually arresting and prosecuting something that in many cases the police simply don't.
In Scotland IIRC the legal age is 16 for beer, wine, cider or perry drunk with a meal in a restaurant.
In England too, according to this link (the British Medical Association no less)
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"An exception [from the Licensing Act 2003] will allow 16 and 17 year olds accompanied by an adult to consume alcohol of less than spirits strength with a table meal on licensed premises."
It's the perfectly sensible way to train your children how to drink.
I was going by the Hansard link I posted earlier dated 15/03/2005
"A further under age drinking offence, purchase of alcohol on licensed premises by a person under 18, is to be added to the scheme as set out in a draft Order laid before Parliament on 17 March".
This is a penalty payment scheme. Are there any Gotchas? Such as drinking stood up in the bar waiting for your table? Drinking at your table before your food arrives? Drinking before your official adult arrives/after he's left early? Drinking with your adult but in a pub down the road whilst the group assembles. It's a bit umpty having to stand around waiting in a restaurant while everybody else is sitting at their tables eating their meals, you feel a bit like a street urchin with his node pressed againts the window ogling the food.
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