Luger with threaded barrel

[John Sabato]

Originally Posted by sheepherder

I think that most here will respond that it is an attempt to mount a moderator ['silencer']...

But many years ago, I read an article with a bizarre comment that mentioned a pistol with a threaded barrel that was used to set off a 'scuttling charge'...Apparently you would screw the barrel/pistol into a 55 gallon drum full of explosive and set it off with a blank or incendiary ['tracer'] cartridge...Since the trigger would need to be pulled, I can't imagine this setup being very popular...

I know, it sounds preposterous...Take it for what it is...

Many decades ago, while serving in a foreign country (REDACTED), I had the responsibility for a secure room full of classified equipment. The area was a hostile fire zone, but Americans were not being targeted... none the less, we had to be prepared for a total destruction of the room and it's contents. During the year I was there, we had one occasion where our operating situation required preparations for a total destruction. This involved loading all the equipment racks with flat phosphorus destruct devices that were to be triggered by applying an electrical charge of at least 12 volts. We kept a fully charged truck battery by the front door, and should the necessity have occurred where destruction was necessary (for example, if the facility were to be overrun), it was my job as the supervisor to initiate the destruction by attaching two clamps similar to jumper cables to the truck battery and RUN LIKE HECK or turn into a crispy critter.

It was estimated that the temperature of the operations room would rise to about 1000 degrees fahrenheit in about 60 seconds and sustain that temperature for several minutes, also consuming all the oxygen in the room and possibly the entire building... I was VERY glad, we never had to execute that plan. I was never that fast a runner!