The term powder shot is used for shots that sound like real gunshots but are designed not to cause damage.
There are two main types: powder-loaded cases with a flat cap at the front, usually called a powder shot, and then a regular cartridge with the powder removed, often called a “dummy”.
Actor Alec Baldwin was in the news around the world recently, when he shot and killed his co-worker with a pistol he thought was loaded with powder bullets, but turned out to be loaded with live bullets.
The powder shots can be dangerous for several reasons. The “dummy” bullets, for example, are easily confused with real bullets.
The bullet from such a cartridge can also be released from the case and hidden in the barrel when the gun is then loaded with powder bullets. Then the flat cap from the case end pushes the bullet off very much like if a real shot had been used and that can be very dangerous.
Even though there is usually much less powder in the loose shot than a standard cartridge.
For the same reason, a so-called amplifier is often placed in ordinary guns before they can be used to fire powder bullets. This applies, for example, to automatic rifles that normally use the pressure of a projectile to reload, but cannot reload powder bullets due to the reduced pressure.
Recoil returns a new shot
When firing an automatic gun, the power is used to reload the weapon, but if powder bullets are used, an amplifier must be added.
The amplifier is placed in the barrel, so that it tapers and the recoil of the powder shot becomes more powerful.
Movies use the same technique. The amplifier is hidden in the barrel. The run is drilled out and a bolt with a 3-5 mm hole is screwed into it.
The hole in the screw is smaller than the barrel and therefore the powder shot alone is sufficient to eject the empty case.
