Dirty Jobs - Fireworks Technician

Charles Madsen

2 months ago

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Transcript

00:00My name's Mike Rowe, and, uh, this is my job.

00:08Oh, jeez. Ah, you dirty!

00:10I explore the country looking for people who aren't afraid to get dirty.

00:14Smells like money to me.

00:15Well, somebody left their money in their a**.

00:18Hard-working men and women who earn an honest living.

00:20Now, that one's full of human, uh, doo-doo.

00:22Doo-doo's good.

00:23Doing the kinds of jobs that make civilized life possible for the rest of us.

00:27Now, get ready.

00:30To get dirty.

00:33Coming up on Dirty Jobs.

00:35That's a five-inch ultra salute.

00:36It's a firecracker.

00:37A big one.

00:38If you want more bang for your buck, you can't do better than little big shots in Pennsylvania.

00:42You make the firecrackers to the 4th of July.

00:44Depends on them.

00:45It's run by a guy called Albert.

00:47He'll make sure you have a blast.

00:49But seeing stars for a few seconds takes hours of work.

00:53With enough combustibles to clean your clock, that makes for a very dirty job.

00:57We'll quit burning eventually.

00:58I'll be dead eventually.

01:00Ten later.

01:01My cousin Simon said he saw a cow at the state fair with a window in its belly.

01:06A letter from a viewer takes me to Arkansas to meet Blue Bell.

01:10Modified.

01:11Modified.

01:11Yes, a little surgically.

01:13She's a bovine who puts the hole in holy cow.

01:16That is just a heck of a thing.

01:17That's what she's eating right now?

01:18Oh, God.

01:22That's what she's eating right now.

01:23Oh, God.

01:23Back there, beyond the fog, are the rolling hills of Pennsylvania.

01:39Over there, beyond the fog, are the rolling hills of West Virginia.

01:42Here in Somerset County, on the rolling hills, we have some horse crap and some high explosives.

01:49This is Albert. He blows things up for a living. How are you?

01:51Nice to meet you.

01:52Nice to meet you. What exactly am I holding?

01:55That's a 5-inch Ultra Salute.

01:57It's a firecracker.

01:58A big one.

01:59You make the firecrackers that basically the 4th of July depends on.

02:03Yes, sir.

02:04Are there any of the big holidays where these things really...

02:06Sometimes Memorial Day, birthday parties.

02:10Yeah, but really, your business...

02:11I haven't done any bar mitzvahs.

02:13No?

02:13No.

02:13The name of your place is Little Big Shots?

02:15Little Big Shots.

02:16Why do you call it a salute?

02:18I guess, I don't know. That's somebody else's name.

02:20I just adopted. Yeah, it makes a noise. A salute.

02:23Large salutes like these cost $34.50.

02:27Smaller ones are 2 1⁄2 inches in diameter.

02:29They sell for $3.

02:30Obviously, this is not the kind of thing you can purchase on the open market.

02:33This is completely controlled.

02:34You have to be licensed by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms.

02:37I don't have matches or anything.

02:40There you go.

02:41No?

02:41Oh, here we go.

02:42Yeah.

02:42Albert sells fireworks to 30 distributors across the country.

02:46They're used in hundreds of events.

02:48Albert himself puts on several dozen displays a year near where he lives.

02:52That's an ordinance.

03:06Oh, your neighbors hate you.

03:08Yeah.

03:08In a way.

03:09No wonder you don't have any neighbors.

03:11It hits you right there.

03:12Yeah.

03:12It hits you right in the air.

03:13That's what you want.

03:14Let's go make one of those.

03:17Start with a bucket and place it on a scale.

03:19This is a very specific scale, though.

03:21Yes.

03:21Okay, you need an oxidizer, which is potassium perchlorate.

03:25It's in the green bucket behind you.

03:27Five pounds, 11.2 ounces.

03:29All right, we need sulfur.

03:31You like that?

03:31Yeah, that'll work.

03:32Now you can reach in there and hand mix that.

03:34And this part of the mix right now is...

03:37That would just be a fuel and an oxidizer,

03:39but it's not enough fuel to make that mixture dangerous.

03:42It's relatively safe.

03:43Relatively safe?

03:45It's like this show.

03:46Now you're going to put this screen up on the table very carefully.

03:50You want your movements to be meticulous, controlled.

03:53You just get in that habit when you're working with flash powder.

03:57Fluid.

03:57When a guy who works with explosives all day, in and out, tells me to be careful, I listen.

04:03Earlier, Albert had given the crew and me a little safety primer.

04:06When the static spark jumps from you to a product that you're mixing,

04:09it could be enough to ignite it.

04:10You can't bang anything around in here.

04:12You can't drop something.

04:14Like, say, for instance, a 40-pound camera.

04:16Don't drop the cameras.

04:17Is this a cigarette layer?

04:19Yeah, we didn't want that in this building.

04:21What about cell phones?

04:22Did I get a call?

04:23You should turn it off, yeah.

04:25Turn off your phones.

04:26Oh, did you?

04:27Oh, right, never mind.

04:28I didn't know.

04:29How'd you get into this, anyway?

04:30I liked fireworks.

04:31I was fascinated with them, and it kind of started out as a hobby.

04:35Got a little out of control.

04:36Yeah, all hobbies, you know.

04:37Then you have to have insurance, and the next thing you know, you're buying property,

04:40and the next thing you know, you have to pay bills.

04:43I really do listen.

04:44I just don't always remember what I've been listening to.

04:47Try not to get in the habit of banging.

04:49Right.

04:49That was tapping, not banging.

04:51Albert was splitting hairs.

04:53In here, though, splitting hairs can prevent the unintentional splitting of much larger body parts.

04:59Now we need the additional fuel.

05:01When we add that, now what we're dealing with is extremely sensitive and explosive.

05:07The additional fuel is powdered aluminum.

05:09It's what puts the bang in the bang.

05:11We're making flash, basically.

05:13Yes, sir.

05:14Is that right?

05:14How interesting is it going to be for us to go through the airport when they do that little screening thing?

05:18Those screening things generally look for organic explosives.

05:22I think that they're probably used to you guys smelling like all kinds of things.

05:26Grab yourself a core.

05:31Yeah, don't be scared.

05:32It's a lot of mixed messages going on here.

05:36This is a time fuse.

05:38Look at the tin man.

05:39Strange.

05:40The aluminum man.

05:42The fuse is hot glued in place to seal the contents and prevent them from detonating prematurely.

05:48Of course, our specialty besides the salutes are color-changing color shells.

05:53It starts out as one color, changes to another, changes to another.

05:56This is a star that's going to go in our color shells.

05:59I cut this one in half so you can see the different layers.

06:03The little white thing you see in the middle is a core that we start with.

06:06And then we'll roll a layer of color on that and then another layer of color on that.

06:12And it'll burn and then it'll change color when it hits that next color layer.

06:16And then it'll change color again when it hits the final color layer.

06:19Is that the thing they go in?

06:22Can I solve it?

06:22Yes, yes.

06:23So we're going to fill one of these with a bunch of those?

06:26Yes.

06:27And we're going to shoot that up in the air too?

06:28Yes, we hope.

06:30So we need 9 pounds, 14.4 ounces of potassium nitrate.

06:36Close enough.

06:374 pounds of salt?

06:38That's close enough.

06:402 pounds of charcoal.

06:43And sodium bicarbonate.

06:441 pound, 9.6 ounces.

06:47And you need a binder.

06:49What specifically is the binder?

06:50Dextrin, which is a cornstarch that's been prepared in some way or another.

06:54You're going to use a pound of it in there.

06:56All right, now I always hand mix it.

07:01Now as far as being careful?

07:03Not like before.

07:05No, you can bang this stuff around fairly well.

07:11Okay, it's dirty.

07:12You haven't even started.

07:14All right.

07:16Gets in the eyes too.

07:17Yeah, when you take a shower tonight, it's going to burn.

07:20So why is it going to burn?

07:21The dextrin burns your eyes.

07:23When you lay down to go to bed, and your eyes start to burn, and the water's running out of them, don't rub.

07:30Just lay there and just let them water and just let everything run out.

07:35What the?

07:36Okay.

07:38You're saying after my disappointing, painful shower, your best advice is to get into bed and lie there quietly and weep.

07:44I do it every night.

07:49You know, this isn't flash powder, but you still have to be a little bit careful about bang, bang, bang, you know?

07:58Okay.

07:59Just easy dust.

08:02All right.

08:03So the reason my eyes burn right now is because of the dextrin.

08:06Dextrin.

08:06Are you burning right now?

08:08My left one is, yeah.

08:09Feels good when it's shut.

08:10Welcome to the fireworks, dude.

08:12The good thing about the last color is we mix that in a different way.

08:19What do you do?

08:20Bring in a monkey?

08:21I'd like to have a monkey to do this.

08:23You kind of do today.

08:24Yeah.

08:25I've got all my fingers.

08:27At this point.

08:28I manage to keep all my body parts up to this point.

08:31It's a good goal to have, personally, any business.

08:34Now, if memory serves, I'm going to push this through the screen.

08:37What are the total man hours that go into whatever this thing, this golden strobe?

08:43I don't know.

08:44How long have you been at it?

08:45A couple weeks, it seems.

08:47Yeah.

08:47The thing goes up in the air and it blows up and it's really pretty for five seconds.

08:51Eight seconds.

08:52Eight seconds.

08:53So how many hours do you need to get those eight seconds?

08:56I don't even want to think about it.

08:58You're bored now.

08:59You've got to be me.

09:00You're standing for hours and hours and hours.

09:02Other than two part-time helpers, Albert does all the work himself.

09:06Most of what he makes is built to order, but he does keep small stockpiles of the most popular items.

09:12They're stored in a controlled, low-humidity environment and stay functional for decades.

09:17What do you call this place?

09:18Does it have an actual name?

09:19The mixing building.

09:21That's clever.

09:21The Den of Death.

09:23Den of Death has a snap to it.

09:25Now, there's a sign.

09:25Coming up.

09:28Forgive me, my eyes are closed a lot, so if you're pointing to things, there's only a quick moment where I might actually be able to see it.

09:34Before the fireworks go boom.

09:36I'm blind.

09:37I'm completely blind.

09:38There's a fireworks maker going, ouch.

09:40Oh, that's much worse.

09:42Searing.

09:42Searing pain.

09:44Front of her.

09:44Hand laid it.

09:45So she's standing there eating feeds while we go ahead and look inside her.

09:48A cow's stomach has four chambers.

09:51Oh, good grief.

09:51And in Bluebell, one of them is a room with a view.

09:54Well, you're seeing the wall of the room, man.

10:03I don't want to overstate it, but where I felt like I became one with the machine.

10:09When it comes to machines, I'm quite a natural.

10:11No, no, no, no, no.

10:14Oh.

10:16I need little, if any, direction.

10:18Up, up, up, up.

10:19That one up, this one up, that one down.

10:22That thing there is razor sharp.

10:24Except if the machine can kill me.

10:28Whoops.

10:29Then I insist on directions.

10:31That's something else I wanted to warn you about that I forgot.

10:34Yeah.

10:34If your hand happens to be a hold of the board, the hand and the gate will meet, and neither

10:38will refuse the meeting.

10:42We need magnalium.

10:44Magnalium?

10:45Magnesium and aluminum.

10:46Still burning.

10:49Yeah.

10:49A lot of pain.

10:50It'll quit burning eventually.

10:52I'll be dead eventually.

10:54The fireworks industry in this country is a big business.

10:57Brings in almost a billion dollars every year.

11:00It's a lot of stuff blowing up, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms is here to

11:05keep it safe.

11:06The ATF visits Albert about once a year, unannounced, to check that his license is valid, and that

11:12his supplies are stored properly and safely.

11:14You happy with that?

11:15Bliss, I don't think, is a too strong word.

11:18Looks like birdseed.

11:19I think they're a type of ceramic material, is what they are.

11:22Oh, that's definitely different than birdseed.

11:24We're going to use them as our cores.

11:25And reach in there and scoop some out.

11:27This one?

11:28Use this.

11:29Forgive me, my eyes are closed a lot, so if you're pointing to things, there's only a quick

11:34moment where I might actually be able to see it.

11:35In your milk, your sieves, and go into here.

11:42I'm blind.

11:43I'm completely blind.

11:46Do you want to stop and clean your eyes out?

11:49Well, how would that work?

11:51Well, we can, uh...

11:53You sprinkle some more charcoal in there?

11:54No, we can take some clean water, and you can wash them out, and they'll burn full out,

11:59and then eventually they'll quit.

12:02There's something in my eyes, I think it's called, uh...

12:05What is it called?

12:07Dextrin.

12:08Dextrin.

12:13Oh, that's much worse.

12:15Searing.

12:16Searing pain.

12:17Yeah.

12:19I missed.

12:21It's that fleshy thing in the middle of my face.

12:25Oh.

12:27Yeah, this job is not, um...

12:30Pleasant?

12:31It's not a good job for, uh...

12:33People?

12:34People?

12:35Breathing.

12:36Breathing problems.

12:37It's not if you're a breathing person.

12:40What's this thing called?

12:41That is actually considered a coating pain.

12:44Like, put the outer coating on a pill.

12:45Uh-huh.

12:50Okay.

12:51Throw your wet beads into the bottom of the, uh...

12:53I mean, it'll start sticking and going around, but that's okay.

12:55Just throw them real hard.

12:57Whoop!

12:57You want to take some of your powder.

13:00If you want to sprinkle right towards the back of this area.

13:06And this is where patience comes in.

13:08I stand here and I think about light.

13:12So...

13:12I'm just thinking about how much of that stuff I got back in my eye just now.

13:16It's just like a magnet.

13:18All right.

13:18At some point, you're going to be able to spray it.

13:20And the moisture on the pellets.

13:24It's enacting the dextrin.

13:26It makes them sticky.

13:28And it helps it to pick up more of the powder.

13:30So, with every turn, the diameter of these old things increases ever so slightly.

13:35This is our core.

13:36This is the last color that we're going to see burn.

13:40You're doing a nice job.

13:41Look at how uniform.

13:43This 20 pounds is eventually going to be 20 12-inch shelves at $190 a piece.

13:50You're looking at $2,000 worth of value.

13:52If somebody said, well, you had to work for a day to make $2,000 worth of material, you'd say, okay.

13:57I've had worse days.

13:58I'm all born.

13:59And believe you me, I do have to keep telling myself that.

14:03I believe you.

14:05Any advice for iron maniacs out there?

14:09Don't get into the business.

14:10Don't do it?

14:10When you're a hobbyist or you just like fireworks or just want to read about them or make a couple fireworks a year, that's one thing.

14:16The second you get into the business, you've got to stay in there for hours on end doing what you're doing.

14:21It's not fun anymore.

14:22When you turn your avocation into a vocation, you get no vacation.

14:27As the balls get bigger, they need to be turned in a different drum so they remain round.

14:33Normally, Albert has the other drum already set up, but he also normally doesn't have to share this room with four other people and three cameras.

14:41I have a problem. I generally stand on the outside.

14:44That's okay.

14:51Coming up.

14:52You would think with a name like Igniter, it's just right on the verge of going up in flames.

14:55Well, it's Black Powder.

14:56Prime's not Black Powder?

14:57Prime is Black Powder.

14:58Prime's Igniter.

14:59No, this is Igniter.

15:01The players are Prime, Igniter, and Black Powder.

15:04And the game?

15:05Who's on first?

15:06But you said that was Black Powder, too, even though it's brown.

15:09No, no, no.

15:09I said that's Igniter.

15:10I'm confident I've just confused anyone.

15:12I'm confused and I'm standing next to you.

15:14Good man.

15:15And later.

15:18Yeah, she's not very nice.

15:19If a thorn in your side makes you cranky, imagine how Bluebell feels.

15:25Is she contracting?

15:26Uh-huh.

15:26Yeah.

15:33Introducing the Skid Steer Loader, or as it's better known, the Bobcat.

15:37You've driven a Bobcat before?

15:39Oh, yeah. You should see me in a Bobcat.

15:40Originally introduced to make labor-intensive jobs easier.

15:44I think it's going pretty well.

15:45It's got a roomy cabin designed for comfort.

15:47Woo!

15:48And its compact size is built for maneuverability and handling.

15:53Bobcats are tricky.

15:54Go for it.

15:55There you go.

15:56The Bobcat will turn any tough job into no job at all.

16:00Provided, of course, you know how to use it.

16:05Oh, you killed her again.

16:07Yeah, me and the Bobcat, we're like this.

16:15This roller is very good.

16:17It's making things very even in size.

16:20The next step for these stars is the drawing room, which is 225 feet away from the mixing building, as required by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms.

16:29All right, so the little balls that we just spent a lifetime making slightly larger will now dry for approximately three days in the drying room.

16:42Yes.

16:42If they were done drying and they were back down here, you were back down here with them, what would they look like?

16:48Just like that.

16:50All right.

16:50Because this is a three-color changer, we've only completed one color.

16:55The next step is to roll an igniter on there.

16:58What color is this currently?

17:00That's gold strobe.

17:01That's gold strobe.

17:02Right.

17:02The igniter goes on the outside of the gold strobe, and then you put another color on top of the igniter.

17:06Yes, sir.

17:07Then up.

17:08No.

17:09Another layer of igniter.

17:11A layer of willow.

17:13Who's willow?

17:14Willow is a black powder composition.

17:16Makes a nice spark trail that you'll see initially when the shell breaks.

17:19Then it goes up.

17:21No.

17:21A layer of prime.

17:24Prime.

17:25What's prime?

17:25Prime ignites the willow.

17:27So does anything go on top of the prime?

17:29No.

17:30Nothing?

17:30It's the last, yeah.

17:31So it is.

17:31Then we're ready to go into the canister.

17:33This is the canister?

17:35Yeah.

17:35This is the prime.

17:36Okay.

17:37Yeah.

17:37What's more flammable?

17:39Prime?

17:39Prime.

17:40Igniter's pretty flammable, too.

17:42You would think with a name like igniter, it's just right on the verge of going up in flames.

17:46Well, it's black powder.

17:47That's black powder?

17:48Yes.

17:49Prime's not black powder?

17:50Prime is black powder.

17:52Prime's igniter.

17:53No.

17:54This is igniter.

17:55But it's just black powder.

17:56But you said that was black powder, too, even though it's brown.

17:58No, no, no.

17:59I said that's igniter.

18:00In an attempt to simplify things and sum things up, I'm confident I've just confused anyone

18:05within any proximity of a TV.

18:08I'm confused, and I'm standing next to you.

18:09Good man.

18:13I'm going to put the willow on these.

18:15Oh, look at the...

18:15What the heck is this?

18:17Goggles.

18:17Well, I would have given you maybe $1,000 for these a little while ago.

18:21Seriously, that was loud.

18:40Yes, it's very loud.

18:41But we're not done yet.

18:43You said we're blowing stuff up.

18:45We're going to blow stuff up, but we need something to start.

18:48I mean, we need a burst charge in our shells.

18:51That's not primal?

18:51No.

18:52The burst charge is what creates the pressure inside of the hemisphere that blows the stars

18:56out of the shell.

18:58All right, how do we do that?

18:59Burst charge is rice hulls covered with black powder.

19:02These are rice hulls?

19:03These are rice hulls.

19:04The only thing around here messier than making stars is making rice hulls.

19:10So, they're wetted down and mixed with powder outside in a dedicated mixer.

19:14Who knew making firecrackers was just dirty?

19:17No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.

19:23I wish it were that easy.

19:25No, you're going to hand me like a teaspoon now, right?

19:27No, no, no.

19:27We're going to stand here.

19:28This time, we get to use a cup.

19:33Grab yourself a cup of powder and just whip it in there.

19:36When you whip it.

19:39Hit it.

19:40This wasn't dirty enough for you before.

19:43I don't know what's going to happen next.

19:44We're going to flop around in that mud puddle over there.

19:52I missed the hole.

19:53I missed the hole?

19:58Yeah, I got a little more water.

20:03Didn't see that coming.

20:06Sarcasm's kicking in.

20:07Oh, come on, man.

20:08The sun's going down.

20:09All I've done is mix the noise.

20:12I mean, this is a hell of a place you got here.

20:17At what point in my future will something explode?

20:20Real soon.

20:22Try to hit the bucket.

20:24Coming up.

20:25All right, you need to do that again.

20:27Of course.

20:27Because nothing ever happens here once.

20:30Getting fired can mean losing a whole lot more than a job.

20:33No, no, no.

20:34No.

20:34What?

20:35In here.

20:35Oh.

20:36It's not the end of the world.

20:37But it could be.

20:38It could have been.

20:40Then.

20:40To be perfectly honest, I find this movie making thing exhausting.

20:45But there'd be job in more ways than one.

20:47I know what it's like to be a Playboy bunny posing naked now,

20:51because they all say it's rough work.

20:54We're rolling on this record.

20:55And later.

20:57Can I pull some of this out?

20:58Sure.

20:58She's got plenty.

20:59Reaching for the inside scoop and knowing when you're in too deep.

21:03Could you stick your arm out her mouth?

21:05That is something else.

21:12The forklift is quite a handy machine.

21:15Hang on.

21:17That's probably not what you had in mind, was it?

21:19No, that wasn't.

21:20It can lift heavy objects with care and precision.

21:23Whoops.

21:24And if you're ever stuck in a tight spot, the forklift will maneuver out with ease.

21:29Crap.

21:32Mike, Mike.

21:33I'm almost certain that's bad.

21:37Oh, boy.

21:42What do you call this?

21:43This is the assembly building.

21:45The house is boomed.

21:45And this is where we finish products.

21:48Like so.

21:49And then we'll put two marks on it, so we can orient it later.

21:53Right.

21:53Just like that.

21:55We're going to work at the table here.

21:56Mm-hmm.

21:57What we're going to do, we need burst charge weighed out.

22:00That's good.

22:00Shake it over top.

22:05All right.

22:06You need to do that again.

22:08Of course.

22:09Because nothing ever happens here once.

22:11Other items you can buy from Albert are thunder bombs, a cuckoo fountain, Saturn's vengeance,

22:16blue hurricanes, and a crackling silver dragon cone.

22:20No, no, no.

22:20No.

22:21What?

22:21In here.

22:21Oh.

22:23That's why I gave you another one.

22:25It's not the end of the world.

22:27But it could be.

22:28It could have been.

22:30For the more traditionally minded, Albert also sells bottle rockets and Roman candles.

22:35What you want to do is spread them around and get like two layers of stars, and that's

22:40it.

22:42Two layers of stars.

22:43Now this just gets sprinkled in?

22:45Yeah, sprinkle about a handful in.

22:47Don't be shy.

22:48Sprinkle in there.

22:50There you go.

22:51What you do is you take your hands and go like this, kind of brush it a little bit.

22:54Right.

22:54Brush it down into the...

22:55Filling in the holes.

22:55Filling in the voids.

22:57Keep working up the sides.

22:58Put your hand here and just keep dumping them on, working your way around.

23:02You're pounding them up so you're lining the outside.

23:05You don't have to be so tedious.

23:07Just put them in there.

23:08You actually said I don't have to be so tedious.

23:11That's funny.

23:12Yeah.

23:13We're going to do the same thing again on the other hemisphere, aren't we?

23:15Yeah.

23:16We're going to put some tissue paper in there.

23:17All right.

23:18All right.

23:19All right.

23:20All right.

23:21We're going to put some tissue paper in there.

23:22All right.

23:23All right.

23:24All right.

23:25All right.

23:26All right.

23:27All right.

23:28We're going to put some more stars.

23:29I'll be perfectly honest.

23:30I find this movie-making thing exhausting.

23:33This thing we're doing today?

23:34Yeah.

23:35Oh, you have no idea.

23:36Put a glass eye to sleep.

23:37I know what it's like to be a Playboy bunny posing naked now because they all say it's rough

23:42work.

23:43We're rolling on this right.

23:44Coming up, Alfred naked.

23:45Pinned up.

23:46Albert.

23:47That's not split hairs.

23:48The important thing is we're still alive.

23:49Eh!

23:50What we're going to do is tap on the outside of this.

23:51And what that's going is settling the contents.

23:52You've got to hold them down.

23:53Oh.

23:54Yeah.

23:55We'll start the other hemispheres.

23:56You want to put tissue paper in there.

23:57Go ahead and push it all the way into the bottom.

23:58Tedious again.

24:11Oh, I'm bad.

24:12I'm bad.

24:13I'm bad.

24:14I'm bad.

24:15I'm bad.

24:16I'm bad.

24:17I'm bad.

24:18I'm bad.

24:19I'm bad.

24:20I'm bad.

24:21I'm bad.

24:22I'm bad.

24:23I'm bad.

24:24again. Oh, I'm being tedious, right? Yeah. I have a 10 o'clock curfew. Thank God. There you go.

24:31Now we're building shells. How many of these can you pack in a day? I can assemble one in about

24:3615 minutes. This has got to be driving you crazy. It is. You can't imagine. All right, dump your

24:46stuff in the middle. Pull this up and tape in the middle there and then just work your way around

24:53again. Remember, we spent 12 hours making this. I remember. I'm just trying not to be tedious.

25:05Just kind of work it all the way around. I'd pour it all in there, yeah.

25:10All right, spread it into your stars a little bit.

25:18Bring this around, probably like that. I'm just going to flip it over.

25:23Line it up as best you can. Keep your hand in there.

25:29Boy, it's going to take a lot of hammering to get this baby together. You know, like this,

25:34and then keep beating on it and turning it and beating on it.

25:38And this doesn't give it any strength. This just keeps the rice hulls from falling out while you're

25:59moving on to your next step.

26:04All the way around.

26:09So you always got to straddle the crack. It's just a question of do you favor the top or the bottom?

26:12Right. We have to give this strength because this is not strong at all. In the old days,

26:17we would hand tape the shell. This shell would take about two hours to tape.

26:21Tell me we've advanced to a new place.

26:22We have advanced to a machine that does this. One of the things about the machine,

26:27it puts the tape all over and we have to be able to find our fuse holes again. So we have magnets

26:32on tape. Now we're headed over to the machine. Coming up. We're going to use the twine to lower

26:45it down into the pipe. After all that tedious work, comes the moment of truth. And I find out

26:49if the Big Bang is more than just a theory. And later. When she swallows, sometimes you can catch

26:57there once she swallows. Yeah, I'm right there. It's not quite food and it's not quite poo,

27:03but it is quite disgusting. Did you get some? Oh yeah. Don't light a match.

27:13When working with an unfamiliar machine, you can't let your early failures get you down.

27:20You okay, Mike? You got to get back to work and not let it get in your head.

27:25I'm sorry, man. I tore it to hell. Because really, they're just machines.

27:32This is like some nightmare out of some crazy old mill. Nothing to be afraid of.

27:38Let go, let go. I don't like this machine.

27:44Good.

27:47This machine was made specifically for this? Yes.

27:50A 12-inch color shell like this sells for $210, and Albert makes an average of 15 of them

27:58every day. In that same period, he can crank out 110 of the 5-inch color shells, which go

28:03for $28 a pop. So to speak.

28:08Hold that out of your way. Remember, we put the two magnets in there. We have to find those

28:12magnets, because those led into the center of the shell. Stand it up. Let it stand up.

28:17Okay, here's a time fuse.

28:23The area where the fuses go is called the crown. Structurally, it's the weakest part of the shell,

28:28so it needs to be reinforced. If it's not, the consequences can be severe.

28:34A few years ago, there was a lot of salutes brought into this country from China.

28:39That they didn't do a very good job with this, and they were exploding when they were fired.

28:46A good many people injured. I believe it was one person killed.

28:49Well, there's no doubt. I mean, this is a serious business.

28:51I had no idea that the key talent required in doing what you do...

28:57It's boredom and frustration.

28:59The chemistry, I understand.

29:01I put people's ashes in shells.

29:05Yeah?

29:05Yeah. It was somebody who really liked fireworks, and they fired them on the 4th of July, you

29:10know, and of course, the families knew that the ashes were in the shell. Somebody says,

29:14build me a shell with so-and-so's ashes in it, and I do...

29:17Do you say short?

29:18Yeah.

29:19We added a rising tail to the bottom of the shell. It'll generate a trail of sparks as

29:24the shell goes up in the air before it explodes.

29:27Are you bored?

29:28No, no, man. I can't get enough of this, putting the same piece of tape over and over again in

29:33the same place. I just hope to heaven this thing does something spectacular.

29:40All right, well, let's take it over here and put a lift charge on this baby.

29:43The trick to it is you don't try to do it all in one day.

29:45The trick is not to try and do it all in one day.

29:49I'll remember that next time I don't come here.

29:51Black powder. Now, this is what's going to shoot it up in the air.

29:56All right, we're good to go.

30:00Okay.

30:01Okay, now, we're going to use the twine to lower it down into the pipe.

30:08Mm-hmm.

30:11Let's keep lowering it all the way to the bottom.

30:12When it goes off to us, should I be looking at it, so I'll just go behind them and be

30:21over your shoulders.

30:22Yeah, you should be behind us.

30:23Whenever something big falls down or blows up on this show, Doug and Troy are there with

30:27multiple cameras to capture it from every angle. They've seen a lot of explosions over

30:31the years, and this one promised to be one of the most spectacular.

30:35So I'm putting it right at the bottom of the frame so we have the most chance of seeing

30:38the explosion at the top.

30:39All right, let's clear out, and we'll bring you guys up the hill just a few distance,

30:43short distance, okay?

30:44Yep.

30:44Okay.

30:45Oh, sorry, Troy.

30:47Hitting out of the head.

30:49So that's your detonator.

30:50Yeah, this is the remote. You're going to press and hold the red button. The green light

30:54comes on, and then press the one, and it'll fire almost immediately.

31:00Green light on.

31:01Press the one.

31:09That's unfortunate.

31:11Holy smokes.

31:16It sure turned the fog a pretty shade of pink.

31:19Yeah, that's terrible, isn't it?

31:20It's pretty much what happens on this show.

31:23Yeah, it's a given, huh?

31:26Well, it was loud.

31:28Yeah.

31:29Sorry you waited around for so long. A long day for us, too. What can you do?

31:34There's nothing you can do.

31:36Well, actually, there is always something you can do in TV. We left a camera for Albert

31:40for when the skies cleared up. Thanks to him and the magic of editing, here's the finale

31:45we wanted you to see, the one you've been waiting so patiently for.

31:50Holy smokes.

32:08So we ended up with a bang after all. Just took a little longer than we thought, but

32:12something else happened after we left.

32:14exactly when Albert said it would.

32:16It's going to burn.

32:17The dextrin burns your eyes.

32:19Just lay there and just let them water and just let everything run out.

32:25Ow.

32:28Ow.

32:31Ow.

32:31Oh, that's good.

32:40Oh, that hurts.

32:44Ow.

32:46Coming up, I understand now why they have ten movements a day.

32:50You're going to make her hungry.

32:51Well, that's ironic because that pretty well destroyed my appetite.

32:54A long time ago, they made a movie called Behind the Green Door.

32:58I just made a sequel, Behind the Brown Door.

33:01Once it becomes poo, when's the transformation happening?

33:04Well, right about there.

33:12One of the perks of my job is that I get to drive fancy vehicles.

33:15I guess I won't be buckling up for safety.

33:17It's a forum to show off my driving skills.

33:23I'm so glad nobody watches this show.

33:26And it doesn't matter the terrain.

33:28Swamp.

33:29Whoa, man.

33:30Whoa, crap.

33:32Ice.

33:34Even mud.

33:35The goal is definitely do not get stuck.

33:38I seem to be going in a direction that I'm not pointed in.

33:42These are all indications that I may be stuck.

33:44You got to suck.

33:49Yeah.

33:54Here's a letter from a kid named Tommy Dugan.

33:57He's ten.

33:58He writes,

33:58Dear Mike,

33:59My cousin Simon said he saw a cow at the state fair with a window built into its belly.

34:07Simon said he could look through the glass and see the food inside of the cow.

34:13Simon doesn't always tell the truth.

34:16And my brother Archibald says he's a big, fat liar head.

34:19I was wondering what you thought.

34:21Have you ever seen a cow with a window built into it?

34:24Your friend, Tommy Dugan.

34:29Tommy, first of all, Simon, I'd be very suspicious around this guy.

34:34He does sound like he can spin a yarn.

34:36Your brother Archibald probably has good instincts.

34:39However, I made some calls on your behalf.

34:43I nosed around.

34:45Guess what I found?

34:46So that's Bluebell back there.

34:50And this is Mike.

34:51And this is Bud.

34:52And we're at the...

34:53Arkansas State University.

34:55Arkansas State University.

34:57Yeah.

34:58You know, this rumor about a cow with a hole in it.

35:03It's got people talking.

35:04It's caught my interest.

35:06And I'm told there's truth to it.

35:08Before we meet her officially, what?

35:10Why does she have a hole in it?

35:12Well, so we can go in and collect partially digested food.

35:18And we'd use it for research.

35:20And we can tell how much is digested.

35:23We was just needing a cow for this.

35:25And so I went out and bought one.

35:27So we brought it back here.

35:28And Dr. Humphrey and Bill, they've...

35:34Modified it.

35:37Modified it.

35:38Just a little bit.

35:38Surgically.

35:39And she's been here for about the last six years.

35:42I'm sufficiently titillated.

35:44Let's bring in Bluebell if we can.

35:46Okay.

35:49Can you feel the anticipation, Bill?

35:51She's got...

35:52She's got a hole in it.

35:54See, Tommy?

35:55I told you.

35:56Come on, Bluebell.

35:57It's very unusual.

36:03We put some feed out in front of her.

36:06So she's standing there eating feed while we go ahead and look inside her.

36:10And when we look inside her, we will.

36:13Okay.

36:14She's eating feed.

36:15Correct.

36:16You want a glove?

36:17If we're reaching in, I'll take a glove.

36:19Yeah, yeah.

36:20Sure.

36:20Well, I always use one.

36:24Go ahead and slip one of these other gloves on.

36:27Over top.

36:28Over top.

36:29She's in no discomfort.

36:31No.

36:32It's just a part of her now.

36:33That's amazing.

36:35Is she a dairy cow or is she a beef cow?

36:37She's a Jersey.

36:38She is a dairy cow.

36:39Mm-hmm.

36:40She was no longer as productive as they wanted her to be, so they sold her.

36:44So it was either this or the slaughterhouse.

36:47That's right.

36:47So we've prolonged our life.

36:49Oh, great.

36:50What you do is you have to push it in first and then pull it back out.

36:58Good grief.

37:01There's the magnet.

37:02The magnet?

37:03We've placed a magnet, and you see all that, that, feel that.

37:07Oh, jeez.

37:08It's metal.

37:09They ingest all kinds of things, even metal.

37:11In a dairy operation, they make them swallow these magnets.

37:15And the reason for that is to keep the metal objects away from the wall,

37:19because the wall, where it's positioned in the animals, is very close to the heart.

37:24Tear the wall with a nail or whatever.

37:26A nail.

37:27That's right.

37:27It's got some grab on it there.

37:29So what you have in here is, this is what it looks like.

37:34So it's not quite as digested as it would be after it's gone through the whole digestive tract,

37:40but it's well on its way.

37:42Well, a cow, bluebell in this case, basically has four compartments to its digestive system.

37:48The first compartment is called the rumen.

37:50So this is the rumen.

37:51This is the rumen right here.

37:53And evidently, this is the best compartment to study the digestibility of various foodstuffs.

37:58And you can see some of that corn she's eating now.

38:01See, it's already made it in there.

38:03That is just a heck of a thing.

38:05And what you're smelling is primarily euteric acid.

38:08They produce enzymes that break down the cellulose.

38:12Right.

38:12And we can't digest it.

38:14But the bacteria in the cow's stomach can break it down and extract the energy from it for the cow to use.

38:20So it's just coming right now.

38:21What's all that?

38:22Well, that's what she's...

38:23That's what she's eating right now?

38:24Yeah, it's moved up.

38:25See, this reticulum is down here.

38:27And it's contracted and pushed it up.

38:29So this thing is always moving, contracting and moving things and mixing.

38:35Chamber to chamber.

38:36Chamber.

38:36Oh, wait.

38:37I'm going to go up to the front.

38:39What?

38:40And it's not very far.

38:42If you stick your arm out her mouth, then I'm actually going to...

38:45If you go down as far as you can, you can feel a fold there.

38:48And that's what kind of separates the reticulum from the rumen.

38:53Why don't you go in first and get oriented?

39:00My fingers are right here.

39:01Yeah, you can feel it.

39:02You can feel it.

39:02Right there.

39:04Now, can you see if you can feel an opening?

39:06That's where her esophagus comes in.

39:08And when she swallows, sometimes you can catch there what she swallows.

39:12Uh-huh.

39:12Yeah, I'm right there.

39:13You feel the opening?

39:15Can you stick your finger in there, up into the esophagus?

39:17Oh, yeah, yeah.

39:18Oh, yeah, I'm in it.

39:19I'm in the esophagus.

39:20You got your finger in it?

39:21I got...

39:21Yeah, I got a couple fingers in it.

39:25Is she contracting?

39:26Uh-huh.

39:26Yeah.

39:27Yeah, she's going to...

39:28So I should feel it going in my hand?

39:31Yeah.

39:31There we go.

39:33Did you get some?

39:34Oh, yeah.

39:37Probably this.

39:38Yeah.

39:39Yeah, no, she just absolutely swallowed that.

39:41I felt it just go right in my...

39:43She's not very nice.

39:47She wants that bucket.

39:49The question is, can we put a camera in there?

39:51Sure.

39:53Oh, good grief.

39:55No.

39:58Yeah.

39:59Yeah, watch her.

40:00She will get you.

40:01She'll bite you, man.

40:02Can I pull some of this out?

40:04Sure.

40:05Yeah.

40:05She's got plenty.

40:06See, this is the kind of diet plan.

40:10That's how you lose weight.

40:10You can get on.

40:11Yeah, get your cell phone.

40:12It's the hole.

40:15Eat as much as you want.

40:17Clean out at the end of the day.

40:18Yeah.

40:19Just like...

40:19Every day is Thanksgiving.

40:21I understand now why they have, you know, 10 movements a day.

40:28You're going to make her hungry.

40:29Well, that's ironic because that pretty well destroyed my appetite.

40:33Well, Tommy Dugan, this should answer your question.

40:36Your cousin was telling you the truth.

40:38They're cows with holes in them, and I can prove it.

40:45So, Bud, come on around this side.

40:47Look at this monitor and tell me what we're seeing.

40:49Well, you're seeing the wall of the rumen, pretty much.

40:53And what just happened there?

40:54She just swallowed?

40:55Yeah, and the reticulum is probably contracted and pushed the food up over that fold.

41:01When's it become poo?

41:03When's the transformation happening?

41:04Well, right about there.

41:06That looks like quite a bit of saliva right there.

41:08Oh, in her mouth?

41:10Yeah, she's swallowed.

41:11Oh, really?

41:14God, don't light a match.

41:17That's a great look.

41:18Look at that.

41:19Yeah, that is good look.

41:21So, there's a ton of room, and then all of a sudden, she contracts.

41:25And it's gone.

41:26And maybe, yeah, there you go, when she lets go.

41:30Oh, dear.

41:35Retire this camera.

41:38Well, it's fascinating.

41:39And we should probably plug her back up and let her do what she does.

41:42Okay.

41:43Okay.

41:45I'm going to work at it.

41:46It kind of is.

41:47I'm afraid to push too hard.

41:51There you go.

41:52That's it.

41:52That cow's plugged back up.

41:55Yep.

41:57Thanks.

41:58You're welcome.

42:00Much obliged.

42:04Bluebell.

42:05No hard feelings.

42:06I've done a lot of things over the years to try and inspire you to go to discovery.com forward slash dirty jobs and suggest my next dirty adventure.