Insights from the 'Dangerous People' Panel at Open Sauce 2024: Creators Share Risky Projects, Safety, and Close Calls with Authorities

Summary:

The "Dangerous People" panel at Open Sauce 2024, moderated by Mythbusters' Tamara Robertson, features creators Peter Sripol (airplanes), ElectroBOOM (electronics), Styropyro (lasers/chemistry), and Alec Steele (blacksmithing). They share entertaining and often alarming stories of interacting with law enforcement and TSA, who sometimes recognize them, allowing leniency despite questionable items like a Tesla coil gun or 800 pounds of reactive sodium metal. They discuss the machinery they genuinely fear, from powerful metal lathes to high-voltage transformers and even propellers. Addressing audience safety, they explain varied approaches, including self-demonstrating dangers, refusing to share blueprints for "death traps," or simply encouraging basic safety gear. Future projects include a rideable quadcopter, a car-cutting guillotine, and a cardboard airplane, all pushing the boundaries of safety. They recount their most harrowing near-death experiences: Peter taking off without wing nuts, ElectroBOOM getting a severe electric shock, Styropyro’s PVC pipe bomb, and Alec falling through a roof. The discussion also covers surprisingly legal dangerous purchases and the personal challenges of undertaking overwhelmingly ambitious projects, like a $50,000 over-budget commercial research boat or restoring a century-old steam hammer.

Introduction to the Dangerous People Panel [0:00]

The panel introduces five notable creators known for their dangerous and experimental projects.
- Peter Sripol [0:16]: Specializes in building and flying airplanes.
- ElectroBOOM (Mehdi Sadaghdar) [0:20]: Known for high-voltage and low-voltage electrical circuits, often getting hurt in the process.
- Styropyro (Drake) [0:37]: Creates videos involving lasers, high voltage, and chemistry.
- Alec Steele [0:48]: A blacksmith and metal worker, primarily using fire and hammers.
- Tamara Robertson [0:56]: The moderator, formerly from Mythbusters.

Encounters with Authorities: Law Enforcement and TSA [1:02]

Panelists share their most memorable and problematic interactions with law enforcement and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA).
- ElectroBOOM's Tesla Coil Incident [1:19]:
  - Attempted to bring a handheld Tesla coil "gun" through airport security.
  - Typically faces issues due to unusual electronic items in his luggage.
  - A TSA agent recognized him and allowed him through without further issue, highlighting the unexpected benefit of being a well-known YouTuber.
  - A US customs agent also humorously warned him about "blowing stuff up in hotels" [2:09].
- Styropyro's Childhood Sodium Metal Business [2:37]:
  - At 12 years old, sought ways to help his family financially.
  - Decided to buy industrial quantities of highly reactive sodium metal (which explodes upon contact with water) and resell it online.
  - Purchased a 400-pound barrel for less than $1,000 and sold it for $200 a pound.
  - An agent, possibly from the FAA, visited and shut down their operation due to hazmat concerns, but no actual legal trouble ensued [4:10].
- Peter Sripol's FAA Ultralight Investigation [4:37]:
  - Built an ultralight plane designed under FAA 103 regulations, which typically exempts such small aircraft from strict government regulation.
  - Was reported to the FAA for allegedly violating these rules, specifically for the plane being overweight.
  - The FAA instructor investigating him turned out to be a fan of his channel and leniently asked for proof of the plane's weight.
  - Peter provided photographic evidence of the plane on a scale, resolving the issue.

Fears and Safety Measures in Dangerous Work [5:48]

Panelists discuss the machines and hazards that genuinely scare them and how they approach safety.
- Machines They Fear [5:50]:
  - Alec Steele [5:54]: The metal lathe, due to the severe and gruesome consequences of accidents, described as resembling "the beginning of making spaghetti bolognese."
  - ElectroBOOM & Styropyro [6:18]: High-voltage equipment like large transformers, as a single mistake can be instantly fatal.
  - Peter Sripol [6:28]: Gravity and propellers, given his work with aircraft.
- Keeping the Audience Safe [6:32]:
  - Tamara Robertson [6:40]: Explains that Mythbusters never reveals the "secret sauce" for dangerous experiments to prevent replication.
  - ElectroBOOM [6:52]: Since his simple projects are easily repeatable, he intentionally gets hurt in his videos, hoping viewers will learn from his mistakes and understand the dangers before attempting them. He often plans his "shocks" and acts them out.
  - Peter Sripol [7:22]: Does not share blueprints for his ultralight aircraft ("death traps") because he barely trusts them himself. He considers an open-source design project for a new airplane with audience input, carefully managing safety calculations.
  - Styropyro [7:50]: While sharing schematics, he explicitly warns viewers about the lethal danger ("you touch it, you die"). He believes electricity is predictable, unlike mechanical failures.
  - Alec Steele [8:17]: Is less concerned about people replicating large-scale projects due to the high equipment cost. He emphasizes encouraging basic safety practices (like wearing a mask when grinding) by demonstrating them himself.

Future Dangerous Projects [8:56]

The creators offer a glimpse into their next ambitious and potentially perilous builds.
- ElectroBOOM [9:00]: Aims to build a rideable quadcopter, despite manufacturers refusing to sell him motors explicitly "not made for flying people" [9:14].
- Styropyro [9:40]: Wants to work with even more car batteries (hundreds of them) and dreams of experimenting with lightning by shooting a trailing wire rocket into a thunderstorm to induce a strike.
- Alec Steele [10:10]: Is contemplating constructing an enormous car-cutting guillotine with a 2-inch plate blade.
- Peter Sripol [10:21]: Plans to build and fly a cardboard airplane that he can sit in, potentially for an exhibition flight over water, acknowledging the inherent risks with the humorous comment that "the laws of aviation are written in blood, but now they can be written on cardboard" [10:43].

Closest Calls with Death [14:53]

Panelists recount the instances where they came closest to lethal harm.
- Peter Sripol [15:07]: Took off in his fourth ultralight plane having forgotten to put the nuts on the wing bolts. He realized the mistake during a short hop down the runway and immediately stopped. This near-miss highlights his reason for not being a commercial pilot, as he can get "task saturated."
- ElectroBOOM [15:48]: Was nearly killed by a self-made Jacob's ladder powered by a microwave oven transformer (2000 volts). His poor mechanical design made it top-heavy, and it fell on him. In slow motion, he grabbed it with both hands to prevent it hitting his chest, enduring a severe shock as high voltage passed through him. He was saved only because the loose wires disconnected during the muscular contraction, with footage showing his skin "blowing off."
- Styropyro [17:16]: Surprisingly, hasn't had many near-death experiences with his dangerous YouTube projects. As a child, while building a mortar with PVC pipe for homemade fireworks, the mortar jammed, causing the PVC pipe to explode in a "pipe bomb mode," with a piece flying past his head at high speed.
- Alec Steele [18:03]: As a child, fell through the roof of his workshop, catching himself just in time, narrowly avoiding impalement on a bucket of scrap metal with sharp bars sticking out below.
- Tamara Robertson [18:45]: Drowned on national television during Mythbusters: The Search, emphasizing the critical importance of using safety equipment like life vests correctly.

Legality of Dangerous Purchases and Professional Equipment [12:35] [13:51]

The discussion touches on items that can be legally acquired despite their potential danger and the transition to professional tools.
- Dangerous Purchases [12:43]:
  - Alec Steele [12:43]: As a child, was able to legally purchase oxy-propane torches and large quantities of propane and oxygen for blacksmithing.
  - Styropyro [13:02]: Recalls acquiring 800 pounds of sodium metal as a 12-year-old.
  - ElectroBOOM [13:09]: Notes the availability of unregulated and dangerous electronic products (like exposed-wire tea warmers and "suicide shower" heads) on online marketplaces like Amazon and Alibaba, some of which have since been removed.
- Transition to Professional Equipment [13:51]:
  - Most panelists indicate they still primarily use homemade equipment.
  - Alec Steele [14:12]: Invests in the best machines he can afford as soon as possible to improve his work.
  - ElectroBOOM [14:25]: Used to borrow equipment from his day job; now, due to his YouTube success, he receives free tools from manufacturers, though he still considers them "not professional."
  - The discussion also covers the self-imposed pressure of YouTube deadlines versus the desire to perfect content, with Peter Sripol noting he will push deadlines for really good videos.

Overwhelming Projects and Learning [27:47]

Panelists discuss projects that tested their limits and forced significant learning.
- Peter Sripol [28:15]: His "Crusty Lobster" boat, for which he paid $43,000, is now $50,000 over budget and still not finished or in the water. He plans to use this "dollar store research vessel" for ocean research.
- ElectroBOOM [28:45]: The "firefly lantern" (an electronic recreation of glowing fireflies in a jar) was his most challenging project, taking three months to complete in the background of other videos.
- Styropyro [29:30]: The "Soviet fire death machine," a century-old circuit he describes as "witchcraft" due to its complex and unpredictable nature.
- Alec Steele [29:40]: The ongoing restoration of a 1915 steam power hammer, which he began with very little knowledge of steam or restoration, requiring a step-by-step approach of cleaning and polishing.