[lugerholsterrepair]

Steve it really depends on how much he threw in and what type. Gunpowder is not explosive if it is not contained. Yes, it burns fairly rapidly when ignited but not as fast as you might think. If it were shotgun powder it burns less rapidly than rifle powder.

In Vietnam I was a grunt Mortar Gunner in a weapons platoon. You may or may not know this but a mortar round has bags of powder attached and depending on how far you want it to go, you either leave them all on or take some off. At the end of a fire mission you might have several pounds of powder laying there. We commonly and frequently burned them in a sump to no ill effect.

Now if this gentleman who has not lost all of his stupidity threw in five pounds of the stuff I am sure there was quite the flare up! Most would have gone up the chimney though wouldn't it? Jerry Burney