What would happen if a shotgun shell off, outside of a shotgun?

Question

Like, if I put a BB on the primer, and hit it with a hammer, would it shoot? What would it do?

Answer 1

It would be a stupid, dangerous stunt.

Impacting the primer of the shotgun shell will cause the shell to go off. Shells are designed to be in a metal chamber when that happens. If they are not the shell simply explodes in every direction. The pellets are bad enough but you also have the shrapnel from the brass bottom of the shell to deal with. Even the concussion from the exploding shell can injure you since you would be so close. Finally, don't forget Mr. Newton's law, "For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction." You hit the shell with a hammer, shell goes off, hammer gets shoved back into your face.

Make sure your medical insurance is up to date.

Answer 2

The bb's would go in every direction because as I would understand a shotgun and how it works: When you pull the trigger a firing pin hits the primer of a shotgun shell and the front part is shot out w/ the bb's directing it out of the barrel thanks to all of the energy and gases. Then when it leaves the barrel they all just spread out.

The gist of it is that the bbs would go in every or almost every single different direction. No garrentee's because I was never "clever" enough to try it!

Answer 3

I would STRONGLY discourage you from attempting this dumb act. But, If you insist at least video tape it and post it on the web so we can see the results. It has to be very entertaining!
Very important, if you live in the USA please wait until you visit another country, Some idiot politician may use you as an excuse to ban the possession of shotgun shells and hammers!

Answer 4

You can manage to hurt yourself or somebody else if you work at it hard enough. When the powder burns, the expansion of gasses occurs in all directions, and the plastic or paper casing isn't much. The back pressure and sideways expansion are supposed to be stopped by the gun's chamber, and the barrel directs the force in the proper direction. If you take away all control, all bets are off.

Answer 5

-----I think the case would rupture; something could put your eye out, you could get burned. If you were holding it in your hand, you could blow your hand off. The shotgun shell is a low pressure item, it would not be much, but it would still be risky. Do not do it, or figure out a way to do it remotely, like 100 feet away inside a cardboard box wearing safety glasses, like electrically. They are made to go off inside a gun; they should be only used that way, it is foolish to use shotgun shells, or any type of ammo otherwise. ---Jim

Answer 6

pending on how fast you could recover the hammer from the back of the shell it would either shoot backwards, like how a full metal jacket does if thrown in a fire, or the shot (the BB's) will go on all directions, without a barrel to focus them on a target

Answer 7

DON'T!!!!!! you will lose a hand or arm go blind and burned and seriously hurt. the bbs will just fly everwhere. if you must do it, go REALLY far away , put on hearing protection and tinted sunglasses and shoot the primer with a .22

Answer 8

You are the one of the biggest reasons I leave my weapons in the gun cabinet and have not hunted for years! D _ _ N this site is suppose ta' assist one in helping answer legit questions annnnnd suicide ain't legit!!!! Do me a favor along with a lot of others and leave the computers alone, unless of course you want ta' put your finger in the electrical outlet and see what that does!?

Answer 9

the barrel of the gun makes the shot(the little BBs inside) shoot toward a certain direction. If you just hit it with a hammer then there would be a little eplosion but it shouldnt send the shot flying everywhere.

Answer 10

It would likely be a sort of miniture grenade, the shot would spray in every direction as there would be no barrel to guide it, the powder would also have no focus and spray in a spherical pattern.