pop and jitter

[Scanner 0]

When a force presses a pile of rigid bodies against a surface with zero mass, how do you eliminate the 'jitter' that eventually sends those bodies blasting off suddenly in one frame?

I've been tweaking bounce, mass, force, friction, drag, etc., but the 'explosion' (quite funny at first) ALWAYS disturbs my pile of geometry before the keyframed sledgehammer hits them... or after they have come to rest on the floor.

Is the three-node network (rbd create; force; drag) just too simple or is version 6's SLIDE POP the only solution? Please tell me there's a magic setting somewhere in 5.5...

whoops. this should have gone under effects but there seems no way to move it without an admin.

[rebo 0]

I know it doesnt really help but cant you turn the force off until the sledge hammer collides with the peices?

I dont know how to do this with riged bodys but with particles i would use a popevent in the activation field of the force. And the events name is when the sledgehammer has a collision with any of the peices.