Original subtitles

I know it looks like we have

fun on this show, but we spend

weeks and sometimes months

planning how to do our myths

safely.

So, please, don't try this at

home.

Narrator: On this episode of

"mythbusters"...

Chest bump! Boom!

Narrator: Adam and Jamie

launch a prolonged assault...

That was awesome!

Narrator: On a devilishly

difficult weaponry myth...

That is amazing!

That's what I'm talking

about.

Narrator: Finding out if

13th-century Syrians...

She's hungry for some boat!

Aren't you, girl?

Narrator: Created the

world's first rocket-powered

torpedo.

I don't know.

Maybe that was a little too

powerful.

What do you think?

Narrator: Meanwhile, kari,

Grant, and Tory are feeling the

pressure.

It's really strange having a

job doing things that your

parents told you never to do.

[ Explosion ]

[ Screams ]

Narrator: As they pop the

cork on a vino myth...

[ Beatboxing ]

Narrator: Can a Blaze in a

wine-bottle truck...

Whoo!

Narrator: Really turn into

a cork-firing machine gun?

This is why we can never have

anything nice.

Narrator: Who are the

mythbusters?

Adam savage...

Here we go.

That's 100% wacky right there.

Narrator: And

Jamie hyneman.

Relax. This won't hurt a bit.

Narrator: Between them, more

than 30 years of special-effects

experience.

Joining them, Tory belleci...

This is real science.

Narrator: Kari Byron...

[ Gun cocks ]

Let's do it.

Narrator: And

Grant imahara.

He's alive! [ Laughs ]

Narrator: They don't just

tell the myths.

They put them to the test.

Dude, we have got an

historical weaponry myth that is

actually older than you.

[ Crickets chirping ]

Okay, check it out.

It turns out that the torpedo

might have been invented in

Syria in the 13th century.

Really?

Well, okay, so, today we

think of a torpedo, it's

something that launches from

underwater and reaches its

target underwater.

This, in fact, was a

rocket-powered device that

skimmed across the top of the

water, delivering an incendiary

to its target.

Did it work?

We have no actual record of

them actually using it.

We have modern speculation as to

its shape and its function.

Our job is to figure out just

how viable a weapon of war it

might have been.

Narrator: While modern

speculation abounds, the

historical record is a little

sketchy.

Supposedly, this torpedo would

travel over the water and

explode on impact.

But did it actually work?

The mythbusters are going to

find out.

So, i have scoured every

historical reference i can, and

while there's not a ton of

information, i think i know

where we should start.

Go on.

All the accounts generally

agree on the overall shape of

this torpedo, that it is

pear-shaped with a narrow end

and a fat end, and it had two

fins extending from the rear,

and that it's powered by a

black-powder rocket of about 20

pounds of black powder.

The question is, what does the

underside look like, how it met

the water?

Nobody has a speculation about

that.

That's kind of up to us.

Well, why don't we go down in

the shop and each take a stab at

it and see what we get?

Exactly what i was thinking.

If you're thinking of

torpedos, you're probably

thinking about world war ii

versions that move along just

under the surface of the water,

where this one was specified to

skip along top of the water like

a small motorboat.

So if you're thinking about

motorboats, on the one hand, you

could pick a deep "v" sort of a

hull, which has the advantage of

tracking straight and being able

to handle choppy water.

But on the other hand, it

actually requires a lot of power

to do that.

You could pick a flat-bottomed

sort of a hull, which moves

along very quickly on the

surface of the water, but if it

goes too fast, it can get air

under it and actually flip and

lose control, which would be a

bad thing.

Narrator: Right.

There are two possible hull

choices... the deep "v" or the

flat bottom.

So to test which style works

best, the guys begin by

designing two torpedo prototypes

out of pliable copper.

Jamie is forging a

flatter-bottomed torpedo...

While Adam is hammering out the

deep "v."

Two different hulls and two

different prototypes are soon

ready to take to the water in a

head-to-head accuracy launch.

We'll see what happens.

Well, that thing's looking

pretty snappy.

I'm pretty psyched about it.

Can't wait to try it.

How's yours?

Well, it's not quite as

pretty as yours is, but it ought

to work.

Let's get them out and try

them.

Yeah.

All right.

Narrator: And for that, the

mythbusters have found the ideal

location.

A lovely day to fire

torpedos.

Let's get to it.

I'm standing in one of our

favorite mythbusters locations

on the island of treasure island

in the middle of

San Francisco bay at a

fire-training facility.

Now, we've filmed exploding stun

gun and dumpster diving out

here, but we have never used

this pool behind me.

We're gonna use it today for

testing some ancient torpedos.

Narrator: And they'll be

aiming those torpedoes at a

target 100 feet away.

But to get them there, first

they'll need some thrust.

Our rocket power today will

be supplied by this, which

provides 5.0 pounds of thrust

for 2.8 seconds.

Will that translate to my

torpedo making it from one end

of our hundred-foot pool to the

target?

Honestly, i don't think so.

But that's okay, 'cause this is

a relative test.

We're just trying to figure out

the best hull shape at this

point.

Narrator: And first to launch

is Adam's deep- "v" design.

[ Laughing ]

It's just sinking in to me what

we're doing.

[ Laughs ]

It's crazy.

In 3, 2, 1.

There it goes.

[ Torpedo clanks ]

Look at that.

[ Laughing ]

That was lovely.

That was pretty neat.

Narrator: Aside from curving

a path straight into the wall,

Adam's torpedo did make it 30

feet across the pool.

Well, i think my torpedo did

pretty well.

I think it still was showing a

lot of resistance in the water,

didn't quite get up on a plane,

so i think i can actually take

out a bunch of the weight in

these fins and i might get an

improved performance.

Narrator: The torpedo was

plowing through the water rather

than hydroplaning, meaning it's

slow and crooked, but will an

attitude adjustment make the

difference?

All right. There we go.

[ Torpedo clanks ]

It loves that spot in this pool.

Narrator: Sadly, taking the

extra weight out didn't help

Adam's lethargic torpedo.

Seems to be holding up pretty

well.

Any suggestions?

You could strap two rockets

onto that rocket mount, 'cause i

think you're just not getting up

on top of the water.

It may be that you just don't

have enough power.

I'll give it a shot.

Narrator: The idea is that

more thrust will not only give

more power, but also get the

torpedo up on top of the water,

allowing it to skim fast and

true to its target.

Adam, torpedo test, two

rockets, in 3, 2, 1.

And we are lit.

[ Laughing ]

That was awesome!

[ Laughing ]

Narrator: Two rockets did

push the torpedo over 60 feet,

but it seems the "v" -shaped hull

is still plowing through the

water, slowing it down and

pulling it off-course.

That hull shape doesn't seem

like it's working very well.

The fact that it's spraying

so much water around says that

it's wasting a lot of energy.

Yeah.

Narrator: With the deep- "v"

design shelved, it's

sink-or-swim time for Jamie's

flat-bottomed hull.

All right. Here we go.

3, 2, 1.

[ Laughs ]

Ooh.

[ Both laugh ]

Narrator: And sink is not the

option Jamie was looking for.

The only problem i saw in

this one was that it submarined.

So i figure all i have to do is

bend these tail fins with a

slight downward pull to them,

and that ought to hold the front

end up.

Narrator: Okay.

Now to see if this minute

modification makes all the

difference.

Yeah!

Where did it go?

It's just sitting right there

about the halfway mark, a little

bit more.

[ Laughs ]

Narrator: Amazingly, the

torpedo skimmed the water,

hydroplaning 70 feet straight

along the pool, proving that a

flat bottom is faster and more

effective.

The slight adjustment to the

rear fins seemed to do the

trick, and I've got to say the

flat bottom and long, narrow

design allowed it to track

pretty well over a great

distance, right on top of the

water.

I think we're looking pretty

good.

Narrator: Looking pretty

good.

But just to be sure, it's double

or nothing.

This one's for the gold.

There you go.

Come on, baby.

[ Laughing ]

[ Coughs ]

Narrator: Despite veering

slightly off-course, it's clear

that the flat bottom is straight

up the best design, and that's

good news for the myth.

I think we have our design.

It goes pretty quick.

Done it.

It's head and shoulders above

the pear-shaped design.

I think that's what we should go

with.

Okay. Let's get out of here.

Narrator: After the break...

This could be my favorite way

to open up a bottle of wine.

Narrator: Kari, Tory, and

Grant pop the cork on exploding

wine.

[ Explosion ]

[ Screams ]

Narrator: So, our next myth

combines two things that don't

normally go together...

Projectiles and wine.

Oh, you're talking about the

exploding-wine-truck myth.

Correct.

Supposedly, a semi filled with

wine crashed on the freeway and

caught fire.

Oh, yeah, and the fire gets

so hot that it causes the wine

bottles to violently fire out

their corks.

How violently?

Like, were they lethal?

Well, we don't know, because

no one was ever hit.

But here's the mythical part...

Supposedly, the corks flew a

hundred feet, and when the

bottles went off, they sounded

just like machine-gun fire.

Narrator: There's no doubt

this blazing, bottled inferno

actually happened, but were the

reports of its demise greatly

exaggerated?

Did it really launch corks over

a hundred feet with a

machine gun-like rattle?

Okay.

The way i see it is we've got

two directions we can go here.

Either we just set a wine truck

on fire and see what happens, or

we can go to the shop and do

some bottle testing.

Yeah. I mean, personally, I'm

a little hesitant to set a whole

truck full of wine on fire

unless we know what's gonna

happen.

So why don't we start out with

learning more about wine and the

bottles and the corks and then

move on to our small scale.

Ooh. Research.

[ Pop! Pop! Pop! ]

Since this myth is about

corks firing out of wine bottles

like machine guns, we thought

what better place to go than

domaine carneros winery to see

what kind of circumstances might

have caused this to happen.

Was it the bottles, was it the

liquids inside the bottles, or

was it the heat applied to the

bottles?

Narrator: And to find the

answers, kari's encountered an

expert.

You've been making wine for

30 years.

What do you think of the idea

that if a wine truck caught on

fire that wine corks could start

shooting out of it like a

machine gun?

I believe it is conceivable.

I know that when wine bottles

get too warm that sometimes the

cork will push out a little,

tiny bit.

I think that still wine bottles

under extreme pressure of

intense fire could shoot corks

or could explode.

Narrator: And pressure is the

name of this game.

As heat is applied, the wine

starts to evaporate, which

increases the pressure in the

bottle until...

[ Explosion ]

But what else could affect the

power of the projectile?

Is there a possibility that

the shape of the bottle might

have any sort of effect on the

pressure?

I don't think so.

The shapes of the bottles are

determined by tradition and

custom.

But i think under extreme

temperature, all bets could be

off.

Narrator: So bottle shape

might be a factor.

And on the champagne assembly

line, Grant's found something

that definitely is carbonation.

Sorry. It's my first day.

Sorry, everybody.

Narrator: With an internal

pressure of 80 psi, adding heat

to a champagne bottle may make

it more likely to shoot for the

moon.

So, this machine is the

corker.

Now, from this moment on, this

bottle becomes a pressure

vessel, potentially housing the

kind of force that could cause a

wine bottle to turn into a

machine gun.

And that is what this myth is

all about.

Narrator: Okay.

And back at the shop, kari

begins by sizing up her

opponent.

Now, wine makers actually use

different-shaped bottles for

different wine.

You can tell that you have a

Riesling because it has slender

shoulders.

A burgundy is a little bit

fatter at the bottom.

You have shoulders on a

Bordeaux.

So it's possible that the size

of the bottle, the type of wine,

or even the shape of the bottle

might make a more explosive

cork.

Narrator: And to find out,

the team is going to fire up a

wine flambé...

I'm making my zen garden.

Narrator: To see if any

bottle can shoot its cork the

mythical 100 feet.

And here's how.

So, for our bottle Olympics,

we're gonna have a flame-off.

We're gonna put each different

type of wine in this holder

right here, turn up the flame,

and compare the results.

Narrator: And first up is a

room-temperature Bordeaux.

Here we go.

Narrator: With the team

safely behind the blast shields,

now the waiting begins.

You know, this could be my

favorite way to open up a bottle

of wine.

Narrator: Remember, the corks

in the myth supposedly flew 100

feet.

Right now i call we are at 50

seconds.

Narrator: But how far will

the Bordeaux blow?

[ Cork pops ]

Oh!

Oh. That was it?

[ Laughs ]

I was there expecting glass

to go gzzz or a cork to go pop,

but it went pip.

[ Cork pops ]

Narrator: "Pip" is right.

After two minutes, with the

temperature at 160 degrees

fahrenheit, the cork erupted at

a feeble three miles per hour

and barely made it to the sand.

After hearing the story, we

got prepared with blast shields

and eye protection and ear

protection, and we got two feet

of distance.

[ Laughs ]

Narrator: But being

glass-half-full optimists, the

guys reset with a twist.

So, this bottle looks the

same as the other one, and it

is, but there's one big

difference.

It's been chilling for a while,

since we don't know whether the

wine was being refrigerated when

it was being transported.

I'm gonna throw this in and try

it again.

Narrator: But will the chill

give a greater thrill?

I think i see it swelling.

Oh, yeah.

Yeah, it's starting to push out.

[ Cork pops ]

[ Laughs ] Yay.

Whoo!

Nice.

Narrator: Although still way

short of the Smith...

Three feet, four inches.

Narrator: The cold

Bordeaux did fly 50% further

than its warm counterpart.

Now, there are a few reasons

why a cold bottle might actually

be better for this myth than a

warm one.

To start out with, the cold

bottle and a warm bottle both

have the same pressure.

But the more drastic change in

temperature that a cold bottle

experiences might mean a more

drastic change in pressure.

Narrator: So from here on in,

they're sticking with cold

bottles on high heat.

Next up, burgundy, chilled.

Narrator: But neither the

burgundies...

[ Cork pops ]

Hey, 5'10".

Narrator: Nor the

sauvignon blancs...

[ Cork pops ]

All: Aw!

It got caught.

Narrator: Nor even the

fortified ports.

[ Glass shatters ]

[ Cork pops ]

That was pathetic.

That is adorable.

Narrator: Come anywhere

near the mythical 100 feet.

Looks like size doesn't

matter.

Narrator: And that just

leaves the final wine...

long, slender bottle, high

heat.

Narrator: The Riesling.

30 seconds on the clock.

Narrator: All is quiet until

the temperature hits...

200 degrees.

Narrator: When suddenly...

Here we go.

[ Loud pop ]

Oh!

Whoa!

Oh, my gosh.

It went off the end of the

scale.

That is incredible.

Narrator: Incredible is

right.

Maybe because of its pointed

shape, the Riesling shoots its

cork over 30 feet at 32 miles

an hour.

Still not far enough for the

myth, but all is not lost.

Later, a semi sizzles for

science.

All: Whoo-hoo!

Narrator: But next, it's the

world's first ancient torpedo

launch.

Fire.

Narrator: Supposedly, the

ancient Syrians created the

world's first rocket-powered

torpedo.

But did it work?

In the small-scale launch,

Jamie's flat-bottomed prototype

won on speed and accuracy.

So now what?

I can't think of anything to

do now but go full-scale.

Yep.

So, about that 20-pound,

black-powder rocket, you think

we need to build one?

Nah.

Those things are scary.

I think we should use a modern

rocket equivalent.

All right.

Well, then, i guess what's ahead

is to build a few full-size

torpedos and find a body of

water to test them on.

Sounds good.

Narrator: And that means the

guys are ramping up the scale

for a full-blown torpedo attack.

The steel structure is my

mold.

I'm gonna weld the sheet metal

to it, and that'll hold it

stable while i beat on it with a

cannonball welded onto the end

of a jackhammer.

[ Laughs ]

I have no idea if it's gonna

work or not.

I don't either, but it is

cool.

[ Jackhammer pounding ]

[ Laughs ]

[ Jackhammer pounding ]

Now, that may seem kind of

elaborate...

But it's not really unlike what

would happen in ye olden days

with Syrians and muscular slaves

and so on, a nicely rounded

rock.

The difference is that they

would have taken days, and I'm

gonna do it in a couple of

hours.

That looks great!

[ Laughs ]

Narrator: That may be the

plan, but the cannonball has

other ideas.

Both: Aw!

Narrator: With Jamie's

jackhammer beaten, it's clear

they'll have to find another way

to hammer out this myth.

[ Cork pops ]

That was it?

Narrator: So far, the

mythbusters have popped the cork

on still wine.

But now it's time to unleash the

big guns.

It's time to bring out the

bubbly.

Narrator: Already at a

pressure of 80 psi even without

any heat...

All right, so, this is the

control test for the champagne.

[ Cork pops ]

Whoa!

[ Cork pops ]

Narrator: The champagne's

cork can fly 25 feet.

That's no heating, no

agitation, just straight up.

Narrator: So, will an inferno

beat that benchmark?

Really strange having a job

where you spend all day just

doing things that your parents

told you never to do.

Cork looks like it's pushing

out.

Here it goes.

Oh, my god.

It's happening.

It's about to pop.

It's happening.

[ Cork pops ]

[ Screams ]

Whoa!

Yeah!

I did not even see where it

went.

Narrator: Talk about a

champagne moment.

After five minutes of flame, the

cork flies from the bottle at an

astonishing 60 miles an hour...

[ Cork pops ]

but gets lodged in the

ceiling.

Finally, we are getting some

results, and this is looking

very good for the myth.

With the champagne bottles, our

corks are actually going so far,

we are not able to measure them

on our scale.

They keep hitting the roof.

Narrator: Having hit the

champagne ceiling, they head

outside, where there's no limit

to how far they can pop their

corks.

Lighting it up.

Narrator: But will they get

the 100 feet they're after?

I see some dripping?

I see dripping.

Narrator: Well, not with test

one...

[ Cork pops ]

[ Screams ]

All right!

What is that?

About 40 feet.

40 feet.

Narrator: And not with

test two.

[ Screams ]

Six minutes.

The bottle exploded.

[ Laughs ]

Narrator: Test three with

some extra agitation does

better.

Whoa!

Where'd it go?

Out there.

50 feet.

Narrator: But still not good

enough.

So what does this mean for the

myth?

What all the results have in

common is that none of them is

even close to the mythical 100

feet that we need.

[ Horn honks ]

But this is "mythbusters."

We're not just gonna stop here.

All: Whoo-hoo!

Narrator: Turning torpedos

full-scale, the mythbusters

struck a problem.

Both: Aw!

Narrator: But it's okay,

'cause...

[ Cable snaps ]

Jamie hyneman has been on the

case.

Dude, that is amazing.

[ Laughs ]

I've heard about this

technique called hydroforming

where you use water pressure to

form sheet-metal shells, and i

decided to give it a try.

All you do is you take a couple

of pieces of sheet metal and you

weld them together, and then you

pump high-pressure water in

between them, and it inflates

like a balloon, at least in

theory.

[ Explosion ]

Whoa!

[ Laughs ]

Whoops.

You want to see how i pulled it

off?

Okay.

Narrator: Yep.

With his extracurricular

determination, Jamie has come up

with an ingenious plan "b."

Take our piece of sheet metal

and clamp it between two massive

plates of steel.

[ Drill whirrs ]

Cut out an almond-shaped hole in

the top plate and attached our

pressure-washer pump to a small

hole in the bottom plate.

Now, here's the fun part.

All we do is start the pump, and

the water pressure pushes the

sheet metal out the

almond-shaped hole, inflating it

just like a balloon.

Ha! It's perfect.

It's a long way from medieval

blacksmithing, but i can make a

torpedo shell in about a half an

hour.

[ Laughs ]

It's like magic.

Beats beating on it with a

hammer.

Narrator: Each set of shells

is given a rocket casing and

some foam flotation to ensure

they don't sink to the bottom of

the lake while testing.

And finally, a set of

laser-precision control fins to

keep them in line.

That was a lot of work.

Man, they look fantastic.

I think our torpedo army is

ready for deployment.

Time for a road trip?

It is.

Narrator: And ione quarry,

where the mythbusters have slid,

flipped, and blasted myths

before...

Oh, yeah.

Narrator: Is the perfect

location for deployment.

Can we get started?

Yeah. Why not?

Let it drift.

Narrator: First up, to create

a familiar target.

Do you want to save your home

city?!

[ All cheering ]

Narrator: At 800 feet from

shore, the boat is positioned

well out of reach of an ancient

Archer, but will it be within

reach of their torpedo?

Well, there we go.

It was nice and pretty.

Now it's really ugly.

You may remember earlier that we

do best with a flat-bottomed

hull on our torpedo, and this is

actually kind of rounded, but i

figure it's okay because of the

way that I've placed the rocket

motor back here.

And this forms kind of a

straight or flat line, which is

what I'm looking for, because

when this gets up and running,

this is all that's gonna be

actually contacting the water,

and that's what's important.

That's what's gonna allow it to

move real quick and real

efficiently.

Narrator: Quick and

efficiently, because to test its

success as an ancient weapon,

they're zeroing in on two

crucial criteria, its accuracy

and its ability to deliver its

deadly payload.

And to test those, they'll need

some rocket power.

In the sparse details we've

been able to uncover about this

story, the torpedo is said to be

powered by a rocket composed of

20 pounds of black powder.

What does that equal in a

modern-day, repeatable

equivalent?

Well, it turns out to be this

puppy.

This is an "m" motor.

It puts out 270 pounds of thrust

for approximately 14 seconds,

and it will be our ye olde

rocket engine.

Narrator: With the ye olde

rocket equivalent on board, test

one is about accuracy, getting

their torpedo to hit its mark.

All right. That's hot.

Let's do it.

Let's see what it does.

Narrator: And even though

there are not yet incendiaries

on board, the guys take cover

behind the blast shields.

All right, man.

Count it down.

Okay. Here we go with the

full-power rocket in 3, 2, 1.

Go.

Ooh.

[ Laughs ]

Well...

I don't know.

Maybe that was a little too

powerful.

What do you think?

It was fun though.

Let's do it again.

[ Laughs ]

Everything started out okay,

and then everything seemed to go

haywire.

It spiraled up into the sky and

did this massive belly flop,

absolutely crushing the top of

it.

Wow.

That is a lot of damage.

[ Laughs ]

This is like a car accident's

worth of damage.

It bent the entire central shaft

of this thing on an arc.

It's fantastic.

Narrator: Fantastic, but

nowhere near accurate.

So for test two, they'll reduce

the speed and cut its thrust.

This nozzle's been drilled

out to 5/8 of an inch, which

should lower its pressure rating

to between 150 and 180 pounds of

thrust, which should be the

butter zone that'll get our

torpedo all the way to the boat

while staying in the water.

Narrator: Now, this is rocket

science, but that's still the

equivalent of the mythical 20

pounds of black powder, just

with a longer burn time.

Question is, will reducing its

speed help their torpedo stay

water-bound and stay on target?

This is the goldilocks

torpedo.

In 3, 2, 1.

Fire.

Narrator: Despite its

promising start, frustratingly,

the torpedo still took flight.

[ Both laugh ]

Still a little too much

power, but really nice.

I think that's fun by itself.

Why do we need to hit the boat?

Damn!

That one just wouldn't quit.

It was like a porpoise.

[ Laughing ] Yeah.

Kept going up and then down

underwater and up.

Narrator: And although the

torpedo's aerobatics are

certainly entertaining,

annoyingly, for our mythbusters,

it's a long way off the direct

hit of the myth.

It's not working too well.

We're gonna have to figure

something else out.

Yeah. Well, let's get on it.

Okay.

Please, do not try what we do

on this show at home.

We're what you call experts.

It's safer that way.

Narrator: It's no myth that

this semi became a blazing vino

inferno, but did its cargo

really explode as per the

reports?

[ Pop! Pop! Pop! ]

Okay. So, there's two parts

to this myth, the distance the

corks flew and the

machine-gun-firing effect.

Well, as far as the distance

goes, it's looking a little

dodgy.

I mean, even our best performer,

the champagne, chilled and

agitated, only went 50 feet...

Half the required distance.

All right.

Well, that just leaves the

machine-gun fire effect.

I think it's time we take this

myth full-scale.

I totally agree.

Let's fill a semi truck full of

wine with our winning still,

which was the Riesling, and a

ton of champagne and see if we

can get machine-gun fire.

To the bomb range!

Narrator: Yep.

There's only one destination for

this bottle barbecue...

[ Horn honks ]

and it's b.Y.O. Semitrailer.

It's actually in pretty good

condition.

Let's burn it.

Narrator: And with the truck

in position, prepped, and the

firewood stacked...

Nice job, mythbusters.

Whoo-hoo!

Narrator: Now to stock it

with some bottom-of-the-line

wine.

So, we have our truck.

Now we're gonna fill it with

almost a thousand bottles of

champagne, which is our obvious,

clear winner from our bottle

experiments.

We got 60 miles an hour and 50

feet from those corks.

Just for good measure, we're

gonna throw in a few bottles of

our still winner, as well, which

is the long, skinny bottle.

All right. Here we go.

We're lighting up.

Okay. 3, 2, 1.

All: Whoo-hoo!

Let's go.

That's beautiful.

Heard a pop.

It's not like a machine gun.

You would imagine

rat-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat!

It's more...

not yet.

Hold your horses.

Experiment's not over yet.

Narrator: Kari's right,

because in their earlier tests,

it sometimes took eight minutes

for the champagne to fire.

8 1/2 minutes.

Oh, man.

[ Cork pops ]

Narrator: And as the

saying goes, good things come to

those who wait.

[ Corks popping ]

Whoa!

[ Laughter ]

There's the machine gun.

Hey!

Oh, my goodness.

[ Popping continues ]

It's like firecrackers.

Yeah.

Really expensive

firecrackers.

[ Popping continues ]

Whoa!

Wow.

Whoa!

[ Laughter ]

This is better than the

fourth of July.

Narrator: In fact, once the

gunfire sounds start...

[ Corks popping ]

there's no stopping them...

Wow.

You see shrapnel flying out

here.

Yeah.

Narrator: As hundreds and

hundreds of bottles either pop

their corks or explode in the

fire.

I can't believe how well this

is working.

After we set the trailer on

fire, those bottles started

popping just like a machine gun.

It sounds like fourth of July.

I got to tell you one thing.

If i were a fireman and i heard

what sounded like automatic

machine-gun fire coming out of

that thing, i wouldn't be

approaching it.

Narrator: Absolutely, because

with corks flying 50 feet and

glass shrapnel even further,

this is a wine tasting to steer

clear of.

But with the semi reduced to

ashes, is the myth in any better

shape?

Look, look.

There's one right there.

Wow!

What distance is that?

That's easily 50 feet.

You know what?

It sounded like a machine gun.

Yeah, but the myth said a

hundred feet.

That's not even near it.

So I'm thinking this is busted

overall.

Yeah. I say busted.

All right. Busted.

But what if we harnessed the

power inside these bottles?

Like what?

I don't know.

Make it directional.

Make some kind of a gun.

A machine gun?

Maybe.

Are we gonna mythbuster this

up?

Yeah!

Narrator: Next...

Whoa!

That doesn't go at all like i

expected.

Narrator: Is it a bird?

Is it a plane?

No. That's an ancient torpedo,

and it's not supposed to be

airborne.

So, our rockets turned out to

be quite powerful, and when they

cause our torpedo to take off

into the sky, that actually has

a term in rocketry.

It's called skywriting.

We don't want to be skywriting,

so we are going to add actually

a tether, a guide wire under the

water that will hopefully guide

our torpedo right to the boat.

Narrator: The skywriting is

on the wall.

Accurately hitting the solo boat

is proving more difficult than

the more likely target of a

13th-century invading armada.

[ Groans ]

Narrator: So for test three,

accuracy is out of the picture

and they're jumping ship to test

the payload delivery.

All right, ladies and germs,

we're ready to head across the

lake.

Oh, crap.

Uh-oh.

All right!

Let's go.

Narrator: With the taut

tether ready to keep it in

line...

That's a lot of tension.

[ Sighs ] That's pretty good.

Narrator: Torpedo number

three is loaded with the rocket

equivalent of 20 pounds of black

powder and its deadly payload.

These are my incendiary

devices.

They're actually filled with

gasoline and a couple of other

things.

Make it a secret recipe.

That right there, 10 1/2 pounds

of death and destruction to be

delivered as soon as possible to

our enemies.

Narrator: Death and

destruction, as long as it

explodes on impact.

For this to be a successful

test, we've got to be able to

launch our torpedo from shore,

have it skim across the surface

of the water, and crash into our

target boat, splashing

incendiary liquid all over it

and creating a big fireball.

That's what we've got to do.

Narrator: Yep, accuracy is

beside the point.

This test is about whether the

torpedo delivers its destructive

payload.

Tethered goldilocks.

Let's hope this one works.

In 3, 2, 1.

Fire.

Oh, shoot.

We were doing better without

it tethered.

[ Groans ] I'm sad.

Rockets don't like to be

tethered.

[ Laughing ] No.

Nor torpedoes.

They just want to be free.

Free-range torpedos.

[ Laughs ]

Narrator: In contrast to

yesterday's test, the tether

definitely kept the torpedo

water-bound, although a little

too much so.

But that's a problem they think

they can fix.

In the interest of trying

everything we can think of, we

have moved the boat from its

original position of 800 feet

from shore to 200 feet from

shore, and we've moved the

guide wire from underwater to

above water.

I really hope this works.

Narrator: Remember, the

historical record isn't clear as

to whether this was a long or

short-range weapon, so they're

closing in to concentrate on

payload delivery.

Here we go.

Narrator: It's now or never

for their torpedo of doom.

Okay.

Incendiary torpedo in 3, 2, 1.

Fire.

Come on, come on!

No, no!

No!

Wow.

That didn't go at all like i

expected.

Narrator: So close, but so

far.

Oh!

Maybe we should just go home.

No!

We have to hurt this boat.

[ Laughs ]

Darn it!

Narrator: Everything was

going to plan, but the tether

snapped, turning the torpedo

into a surface-to-air missile...

No!

Narrator: And getting the

mythbusters all bent out of

shape.

I'm a sad monkey right now.

[ Monkey chattering ]

That's our enemy.

Look how close he is to shore.

We've got rockets.

We've got incendiary.

But somehow, we can't stop him.

It's bugging the hell out of me.

Narrator: Yep.

It seems the torpedo is less

death and destruction and more

like a weapon of mass

frustration.

No!

Narrator: And with only one

remaining torpedo, they've only

got one more shot at the myth.

Captain kirk never said this

to Scotty, but i think we've got

too much power.

[ Laughs ]

Tether is not working for us.

I think we've got to remove it.

Yeah, i think so.

I didn't know you watched

"Star Trek."

Sure.

We set a full-sized trailer

filled with sparkling wine and

still wine on fire...

All: Whoo-hoo!

And we got a machine

gun-type effect...

[ Corks popping ]

Whoa!

There's the machine gun.

[ Laughing ] Hey!

[ Corks popping ]

but we didn't get the

mythical 100 feet.

So this one is busted.

But we're not gonna stop there.

This is "mythbusters."

So the next step for us is to go

with the spirit of the myth and

replicate the results, and that

means making our own wine-bottle

machine gun.

[ Pop! Pop! Pop! ]

Narrator: And back at the

shop, that's exactly what the

mythbusters are gunning for.

So, after all of our testing,

we've decided to try to

replicate the result and get

that machine-gun effect that the

myth talks about by harnessing

the power of the wine bottle.

We basically just cut up a

bunch of pipes, put it on some

bearings, made it look like a

gatling gun, and we're gonna use

propane as a heat source.

This is it, the ultimate

mythbuster wine machine gun.

We're using chilled champagne

bottles shaken and set over an

open flame.

Now it's time to fire this

thing.

Narrator: It's certainly a

red-hot piece of hardware...

Pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop!

Narrator: That only needs

a target.

And that's where Grant comes in.

There'll be potentially

shattering glass, boiling

liquid.

So i have this.

It's a fire suit.

Hopefully it's gonna keep me

safe.

Let's do this.

Narrator: With Grant quite

literally staring down the

barrel...

Whoo-hoo-hoo!

Here come the pain.

Narrator: It's go time.

I forgot to protect my nether

regions.

Narrator: As machine guns go,

it's a low-key start as the team

has to wait 10 minutes for the

wine to reach optimum pressure.

But then...

[ Cork pops ]

Yeah!

Got him in the leg!

[ Cork pops ]

Oh!

[ Laughs ]

Right in the ding-ding.

[ Cork pops ]

[ Laughs ]

I don't know about dangerous,

but it's hilarious.

[ Laughs ]

[ Cork pops ]

[ Laughing ] Oh!

Nailed him.

Ow.

They're actually hitting with

some force.

[ Corks popping ]

Oh! [ Laughing ] Wow!

Right in the gut.

Narrator: It's a sparkling

"mythbusters" moment.

[ Cork pops ]

Oh, yeah!

Narrator: But with

reloading too dangerous, the

conclusion is inevitable.

[ Cork pops ]

We got the wine bottles to

act like a machine gun, and we

got the corks to go in the

direction we wanted.

I feel a little bad for Grant.

[ Cork pops ]

Aah!

Oh!

Oh, yeah!

But i think he would agree it

was worth it... At least for

science.

[ Cork pops ]

Narrator: The mythbusters are

at the end of their tether.

No!

Narrator: Frustratingly,

their ancient torpedoes have

missed the boat on accuracy and

payload delivery.

But they've had a Eureka moment.

Perhaps it's all down to too

much rocket power.

Well, sometimes less is more,

and i think this is one of those

times.

We're gonna lose the tether, and

we're gonna go with a rocket

motor that puts out about half

the thrust of the ones that

we've been using heretofore.

Hopefully, that'll allow our

torpedo to stay as a boat and

not a rocket and go crazy.

Narrator: If having the

thrust doesn't get a direct hit,

then this myth is totally and

utterly sunk.

With the boat fully prepped and

the torpedo armed to the teeth,

it takes its slow walk to the

shore.

Don't drop it.

I will not.

Narrator: But will it have

the bite of the myth?

This part, when the

explosions are live, it's not

the fun part of this job.

No.

Narrator: The tension mounts

as their final torpedo is

readied for launch.

It's live.

Good.

Narrator: Then the guys

retreat behind the shields, and

it's sink-or-swim time.

In 3, 2, 1.

Fire.

This is starting to get me

upset.

There it goes!

Come on, baby! Come on!

Hit it!

Ah!

Chest bump! Boom!

[ Laughing ]

Narrator: Yep, that certainly

was chest bump-worthy.

Yeah!

Narrator: Not only did the

torpedo stay on the surface of

the water...

But it delivered its deadly

payload.

That sent fire up over the

bow of the boat.

That was awesome.

[ Laughing ]

Holy crapola.

Oh. There's a fire.

Luckily, I've got a 13th-century

fire extinguisher.

I have saved your boat.

[ Laughs ]

Yeah. That was a perfect hit.

And, you know, you could have

used explosives.

You could have incendiaries,

anything you want if it hit the

hull like that.

I'd be telling my other boats

to turn around if one of those

hit me.

That's what I'd be saying.

"Turn around.

Get the hell out of here.

These people are crazy!"

That last launch was what we've

been looking for all week.

The engine caught fire, started

to push the torpedo.

It skipped beautifully on the

surface, maybe veering about a

foot or two to the right, and

slammed into the side of the

boat, embedding itself,

releasing its incendiary and

catching all on fire at the same

moment and setting the boat on

fire... pretty much every last

thing in one launch.

I still can't believe it.

I'm pinching myself.

Well, how do you want to call

this one?

Was the Syrian's mythical

surface, rocket-powered,

incendiary delivering torpedo

been an effective weapon of war?

Indeed it was based on this

test.

We have to call it plausible,

don't we?

Absolutely.

Barring a time machine, it's

plausible.

Let's get out of here.

Captions by vitac... www.Vitac.Com

want to know why we did what

we did and didn't do what we

didn't do?

Check out the after show.

Log on to discovery. Com/

mythbustersaftershow.