The cast of the television series MythBusters perform experiments to verify or debunk urban legends, old wives' tales, and the like. This is a list of the various myths tested on the show as well as the results of the experiments (the myth is Busted, Plausible, or Confirmed).
On February 28, 2012, Discovery Channel announced that the 2012 season would commence airing on March 25, 2012. The season aired in a Sunday time slot, instead of its previous Wednesday time slot.
Cannonball accident
On December 6, 2011, while taping for the "Cannonball Chemistry" story, a home-made cannon test sent a cannonball through a residential neighborhood in Dublin, California. No one was injured, but the cannonball did considerable property damage, crashing through the walls of a family's house and landing in a car.
Episode overview
Episode 179 – "Duct Tape Island" Original air date: March 25, 2012 The Build Team does not appear in this episode.
Duct Tape Island Survival Marooned on a tropical island (Oahu, Hawaii) with only a pallet of duct tape, Adam and Jamie had to use it to perform the tasks needed for survival. Their goals were to...
Myth Status Notes ...build a distress signal. Confirmed They built a giant SOS on the beach, weighted down with rocks at the corners and visible from altitudes up to . Jamie noted that the tape's gray color made it a less-than-ideal material for attracting attention. ...make clothing. Confirmed While building the signal, the heat and exertion began to take their toll on Adam, so he made a sun hat. Both men later made sandals from branches and tape to protect their feet as they moved around the island. ...find fresh water. Confirmed Adam found a pond, but Jamie warned against drinking the water because it was stagnant. After a night of sleeping on emergency mats made by sticking tape strands directly to the ground, they searched separately the next day. Jamie built a solar still on the beach, using the plastic overwrap from the original pallet in addition to tape, but collected only a few ounces of water after several hours. Adam followed areas of lush vegetation and eventually found a freshwater spring; he then made a container to carry several liters of water back to Jamie. ...find food. Confirmed Jamie made spears from tree limbs and tape and successfully caught fish with them, while Adam hunted wild chickens in the forest. He tried to use a snare without success, then put together a tape net and camouflaged it, planning to reel it off the ground when a chicken ran over it. The first chicken slipped out of the net, but Adam was able to catch and hold the next one. Adam later noted that he and Jamie did not cook the chicken, but instead ate food provided by the crew in its place. ...build a fire. Confirmed Adam built a bamboo bow drill, using tape as the string. After several attempts and broken strings, he successfully got a fire going. ...build a shelter. Confirmed Adam strung up tape hammocks in a clearing and added overhead canopies and floor mats. He also put together chairs, a table, and a chess set using pieces of wood. ...stay focused. Confirmed Jamie took some time to experiment with building a surfboard from tape pontoons and teaching himself to use it. Although his own inexperience and a series of leaks ultimately caused the project to fail, he noted that it did succeed in keeping his mind sharp and occupied. The chess set in the shelter also helped both men in this respect. ...escape the island. Confirmed Adam and Jamie set out to build a seaworthy craft that could hold them and several days' worth of supplies. They designed a canoe with an outrigger for stability, using a bamboo frame and a tape hull, and put together an impromptu worktable to keep dirt out of the tape as they worked. After six hours of construction, they launched the canoe and steered it into the oncoming breakers with little trouble. Seven hours later, Adam sighted land and they put ashore—on the island they had just left.
Episode 180 – "Fire vs. Ice" Original air date: April 1, 2012
Fire vs. Ice Myth statement Status Notes A carbon dioxide fire extinguisher can be used to repel an attack from a flamethrower. This myth was inspired by a viral video. Busted As Jamie built a small-scale flamethrower, Adam tested a standard CO2 extinguisher and found that it could discharge to a distance of , close to the shown in the video. The two faced off, with Adam walking toward Jamie and deploying his extinguisher. He was able to put out the flames, but had to get within only a few feet to do so.
For a larger test, Jamie built a military-style flamethrower, while Adam made a new extinguisher that used pressurized water to drive the CO2 out and improve the range. At a bomb range, Jamie's rig achieved a distance of , and Adam stood behind a glass shield away (matching the video) to try and hold it off. A standard extinguisher proved ineffective; Adam's high-pressure rig did hold the flames back, but to a distance far below the full . Since they were unable to replicate the video results, they declared the myth busted.
Almost none of the flamethrower construction details were shown on camera as possession of such a device is illegal where the show is filmed. Jamie noted that he and Adam were able to test this myth only under the supervision of several government agencies, referring to it as an "ordeal".
Dust Devil Myth statement Status Notes By driving in circles on a dusty road, a group of cars can kick up enough dust to blind a surveillance drone flying overhead. Based on a scene in the film Body of Lies. Busted The Build Team set up a circular practice course to simulate poor visibility in a dust storm and outfitted the cars with various guidance and safety systems. Their first attempts to drive the course ended in failure, but they discovered that the paper they had used to cover the windshields was too opaque. After replacing it with burlap for the correct visibility, Tory, Kari, and two staff members were able to drive the course safely, with Grant coordinating their movements.
On a desert plain, they set up a new circle and placed Kari at its center to act as the film's kidnapping victim. Tory and three staffers drove around her to kick up dust clouds, after which one pulled up for her to get in and all four drove away in different directions. Grant tried to pick the right car, watching from a helicopter and using a similar camera setup as an actual drone. He succeeded in the first test due to the lack of dust clouds at the center of the circle; however, when the cars drove straight past Kari in a second test, he was unable to pick the one that took her. A repeat of this test, using a thermal imaging camera such as those used on drones, allowed him to find her easily.
Returning to the shop, the team looked into ways to foil the camera system and discovered that a CO2 fire extinguisher could blind it effectively, due to the low temperature of the discharge. One last straight-run test in the desert, with the cars spraying CO2 into the sky, kept Grant from being able to locate Kari. The team judged the myth busted, since the technique in the film did not work, but they noted that the underlying idea could be used successfully under different circumstances.
Episode 181 – "Square Wheels" Original air date: April 8, 2012
Square Wheels Myth Status Notes A vehicle fitted with square wheels can provide a smooth ride if driven fast enough. Plausible Adam and Jamie designed a set of square wheels to support the weight of a pickup truck, then cut the treads off a set of tires and fitted them on. They set up a test course, using a heavy-duty pickup equipped with vibration sensors, and drove a control run (using round wheels) at speeds up to . When the square wheels were mounted, the ride was very rough at first but began to smooth out as the speed was increased. However, one wheel fell off after only a few seconds when its bolts snapped.
For small-scale testing of other wheel orientations, Adam and Jamie returned to the shop and built a cart to run on a treadmill. They found that if two wheels, diagonally opposite each other, were turned 45 degrees out of phase with the other two, the cart achieved a balance of smoothness and stability. A full-scale test at almost caused the tire treads and brake pads to come off the wheels. Despite the mechanical failures, they classified the myth as plausible, based on the sensor readouts and their own sensations. Square wheels can give an advantage in hill-climbing when compared to round ones. Busted Adam and Jamie set up a dirt track consisting of a straight stretch leading to a steep uphill run. They believed that the square wheels might reduce pressure on the soft dirt and/or allow the car to dig in and get better traction. However, the truck climbed the same distance up the hill with either round or square wheels, leading them to judge this myth as busted.
Date Night Car Inspired by a scene in the film Date Night, in which a taxicab and sports sedan stuck together by their front bumpers perform a series of maneuvers in city streets. The Build Team obtained two cars similar to those used in the scene, tore off their front bumpers, and built a hitch to hold them together nose-to-nose. Driving at , with Tory in the cab and Grant and Kari in the sedan, they tested the cars' ability to...
Myth Status Notes ...drive in a straight line. Confirmed For the first test, Grant and Kari successfully pushed Tory backwards, but could not steer very well. They obtained a similar result in reverse, with the cab pushing the sedan. ...go around a 90-degree turn. Busted Grant and Kari began by pushing Tory, but were unable to turn. When they introduced changes to replicate the movie scene more closely—wet pavement, bald rear tires on the cab—they obtained the same result. However, one last test with Tory pushing caused the cars to overshoot the turn and veer off in the opposite direction. Grant hypothesized that this result was due to the fact that the cab had rear-wheel drive, while the sedan had all-wheel drive; the cab's rear wheels slid out when it lost traction in the attempted turn. ...complete a 180-degree spin. Confirmed After receiving some tips in defensive driving, Tory pushed Grant and Kari at toward a patch of wet pavement. When they turned their steering wheels in opposite directions, the cars went through a 180-degree spin, suffering some damage to their wheels and tires. Grant explained that the film maneuver was accomplished with extensive car modifications and a stunt driver.
Episode 182 – "Swinging Pirates" Original air date: April 15, 2012
Pirate Swing Adam and Jamie attempted to re-create a scene in the film Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest. They set out to determine whether a group of six people in a suspended spherical cage could...
Myth statement Status Notes ...swing over to one side of a ravine, using only their own body weight. Busted They built a cage from steel tubing and tested it for safety and ability to swing, then took it to a firefighter training facility with a building that could be used as a cliff. With the cage hanging on an cable held up by a construction crane, they were unable to get it to swing on their own. Four circus trapeze performers were brought in to replicate the size of the group in the film scene, but the six still could not reach the building. One final attempt with the cable shortened to failed as well, so Adam and Jamie declared this portion of the myth busted. ...grab and hold on to vines on the ravine's vertical face. Plausible A section of rope rigging was hung from the building to represent the vines in the movie scene. When the crew hauled the cage back and let it swing over, the six prisoners were able to grab hold and keep their grip. ...climb to the top of the ravine. Plausible They climbed to the top of the rigging and pulled down a Jolly Roger flag hung there.