Amidol causes quite a stir at company mail room!

[bmac]

I got an urgent voicemail from our company mailroom this morning. I received a suspicious package. It didn't have a return address and made a "Rain stick sounding" noise when the box was turned upside down. I went down to the mail room and watched as they opened it up inside what can only be described as a sand blasting cabinet looking device. And low and behold, it was my order from artcraft! LOL! It was kind of funny watching their faces as I tried to explain why I had to order raw chems. One of them asked why I didn't get my pictures developed at Wallgreens. hehe. An exciting morning indeed!

 

[fhovie]

It wouln't surprise me if the UPS guy turned me in one day - I get packages that are for hazardous materials, I am always receiving containers of chemicals and powders. He has got to wonder what is up. I tell him it is just for photography! I wouldn't blame him for being wary. Everyone knows photography is all done digital now.

Frank

 

[Thilo Schmid]

Well Brian, I guess they have plenty of bare walls in the mailroom. You should do something against that grievance and those silly questions ;-)

 

[Donald Miller]

Brian, You might have indicated that the chemical was relatively neutral and safe so long as it wasn't exposed to an oxidizer or oxygen.

 

[Aggie]

..

 

[Ole]

Bian, try FSA toning next

I had a lot of fun getting hold of the raw chemicals (Formamidine Sulfinic Acid) - It really is explosive!

In the end, I discovered that 10g was listed as "explosive", but 250g was "Mostly Harmless"...

Some weird postcards will be going out - if I can find more postcard paper stock.

 

[Bill]

Jeez guys, I'm not sure if you are going to want to hear this or not. It appears that under the Homeland Security Act and its brethren your government will be tracking online purchases of things like chemicals. So... you're cool as long as the tracker understands that you can't make a bomb with amidol. It seems probable that the trackers will be in a minimum-wage job, so don't feel too comfortable about their knowledge of photographic chemistry. I wouldn't be surprised if UPS, Fedex, etc eventually get instructions to notify the watchers about suspicious packages.

I'm not excessively paranoid (I think), but nonetheless I'm keeping my chemical purchases to vendors inside Canada - that way I shouldn't have to worry about someone knocking on my front door. If I do need something quick I drive down to Glazers in Seattle - they carry some of the Photographer's Formulary line - sufficient to my needs anyway. Canada Customs doesn't care that much as long as I pay duty.

 

[Ole]

Ehrm Bill...

I don't know if I should tell you this, but you CAN make a bomb with Amidol...

All it takes is a university degree in chemistry and a bit of military training in sabotage.

But I'm not going to say how to do it

 

[Tom Duffy]

yeah, but... too expensive.

I'm making mine out of Dektol!!!

 

[shooter]

A bit after the September 11 mass murder I sent Amidol to a friend who had ordered some from me. I got a visit from the FBI a short time later. They had intercepted it & their lab couldn't identify it and they wanted to know what it was. Sure does make you feel safer, doesn't it?