RPG vs. bullet-proof glass

Science


C’mon, you can’t say it’s never crossed your mind: “Would bullet-proof glass hold up to a Soviet-built RPG-7?” The Internet: Always here to answer the vexing questions that keep you awake at night.

Rocket Launcher vs. Glass – Link

Casey in Comments wrote:

Glass? Please. The RPG’s hollow charge can penetrate FEET of steel.

I figured someone would say something like this. So… Part Two of

RPG vs. bullet-proof glass

Rocket Launcher vs. Glass – Link

24 thoughts on “RPG vs. bullet-proof glass

  1. Casey says:

    Glass? Please. The RPG’s hollow charge can penetrate FEET of steel.

  2. nick says:

    Sooo, how do we build an RPG-7? or bullet proof glass?

  3. 0troy says:

    The RPG warhead is not a simple explosive, it’s a shaped charge which uses an explosively formed projectile to penetrate extremely hard materials and explode within. Since the EFP is dependent upon an exact distance from the intended material to be penetrated, I’d be more interested if it would penetrate the bullet proof glass if they put some steel grates in front of the window… (probably still would, but with reports of metal grating greatly decreasing the effectiveness of RPGs in Iraq, I think it’d be interesting :)

  4. Tim says:

    Yeah, what are we to “make” out of this?

  5. Gareth Branwyn says:

    >Yeah, what are we to “make” out of this?

    Um, we don’t just blog items here that you can make. We also blog items of possible interest to makers.

  6. The Thompson Five says:

    I think the smart thing to do would be to just open the window. Either that or stop standing in front of it trying to signal a touchdown when you live in a tiny pink house built on a firing range.

  7. Jonah says:

    >I think the smart thing to do would be to just open the window. Either that or stop standing in front of it trying to signal a touchdown when you live in a tiny pink house built on a firing range.

    I agree,

  8. Simon says:

    Just open the window? Kind of like this you mean? From one of Peter (Lord of the Rings) Jackson’s early movies:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHlmNVoY0W8&feature=related

  9. whatever says:

    I wonder what the reason for the lacking penetration abilities are. In the first mov it looked like the projectile penetrated the glass even before explosion, but in the second movie it exploded upon impact. Usually hollow charges penetrate the materials they hit by making it “fluid” by extrem pressure and heat. For some reason that seems not possible with the glass. Maybe the pieces of shattered glass keep the spike formation from happening. Another reason could be that it is not a hollow charge…

  10. Daniel says:

    Did anyone else notice he missed the window in the second one. He caught the frame of the window, which was probably reinforced. The RPG didn’t break the glass, because it didn’t hit it. The explosion sure broke it though.

  11. Mike says:

    The difference between the two videos was simply the thickness of the “glass”. The second video probably had 6 inches of laminated PC and Glass. That much PC can absorb an incredable amount of energy without breaking.

  12. AnoymousSpook says:

    Inert round or safety flight arm , note very close distance from gunner and very small explosion.

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Gareth Branwyn is a freelance writer and the former Editorial Director of Maker Media. He is the author or editor of over a dozen books on technology, DIY, and geek culture. He is currently a contributor to Boing Boing, Wink Books, and Wink Fun. His free weekly-ish maker tips newsletter can be found at garstipsandtools.com.

View more articles by Gareth Branwyn

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