rogeryermaw Posted May 26, 2015 Author Posted May 26, 2015 life throws us twists and turns at every opportunity. some of them hit quite hard and can stop us in our tracks. not being staisfied with that, i have initiated my first pyrotechnic endeavor since the year turned so sour. saturday, i cut about 4 ounces of red nitrate/mgal stars rolled a pound and a half of b.p. and will have a couple of 2.5" round shells in the air next weekend. video to follow! 1
braddsn Posted May 26, 2015 Posted May 26, 2015 And he is back on the horse! Right on Roger.. looking forward to some new vids. I always get inspired watchin em.
BurritoBandito Posted May 27, 2015 Posted May 27, 2015 I'm excited on your behalf. Fire up that W.A.S.P.!
rogeryermaw Posted May 28, 2015 Author Posted May 28, 2015 ya...well a wasp mini. ordered it right before mom passed. it got here after she died and we had people all over the place so I never got to use it. just glad it was at dad's place when the fire occurred. it's going to take a few dry runs to get the hang of setting up the tape dispenser for the proper moisture but it works great.
rogeryermaw Posted May 29, 2015 Author Posted May 29, 2015 (edited) dammit i just couldn't wait! http://youtu.be/hHS6j1fIZzg brilliant red rubber stars: strontium nitrate 53% magnalium (200-325) 19% parlon 17% red gum 11%boosted w/ .75g 70/30 man i ain't boosting shells anymore...i may have to tone down the b.p. too...the break was surprisingly huge. time fuse was just a tad too long. Edited May 29, 2015 by rogeryermaw
BurritoBandito Posted May 30, 2015 Posted May 30, 2015 Geeze, you could've at least embedded the video, man. Some people... 1
BurritoBandito Posted May 31, 2015 Posted May 31, 2015 The denser concentration of stars without the booster is much more visually appealing IMO.
braddsn Posted May 31, 2015 Posted May 31, 2015 Roger, I love that red. I have always heard that the red rubber stars are top notch.. the vid proves it. Did you paste that shell on your wasp? And what do you use to video your shells? Just curious.
rogeryermaw Posted May 31, 2015 Author Posted May 31, 2015 yessir those are wasp pasted. pretty even break for such a small shell. it takes 7-9 layers to make a good fit in the mortar using 3/4" tape. the run, with burnishing takes about 2:30 min. i'm digging this color too. being only 4 chems and parlon bound at that, it's simple, fast and gets the oohs and ahs. unfortunately, a camera is low on the priority list so i'm back to filming on a phone for now. sorry B.B. not sure if i forgot how to embed the video properly or i'm just using the wrong code. i doubt the recent forum changes are the culprit but i'm not sure what i'm doing wrong. agreed the flower is far more attractive staying tighter...not to mention in frame! my powder is sufficient to not need a booster so i doubt i'll do much more experimenting with it right away.
BurritoBandito Posted May 31, 2015 Posted May 31, 2015 All good Roger. I was just giving you grief in light of our conversation about embedding. It didn't hurt me to have to click on a link.
rogeryermaw Posted June 15, 2015 Author Posted June 15, 2015 (edited) Not sure what I missed last time but they turned out better this time. Edited August 26, 2015 by Mumbles
nater Posted June 15, 2015 Posted June 15, 2015 (edited) It appears the forum software does not parse the links for youtube and automatically embed the video unless it is formatted as http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxxxxxxx Edited June 15, 2015 by nater
rogeryermaw Posted August 24, 2015 Author Posted August 24, 2015 (edited) nitrate rubber red and green. the stars in the 3 inch were too big but they were just left over from some 4th stuff so tossed em in a shell for giggles. these were broken a little softer than usual. just black powder rice hulls and some un-coated for filler. Edited August 24, 2015 by rogeryermaw 1
braddsn Posted August 26, 2015 Posted August 26, 2015 Those colors seem super bright... love it. Very nice. Are you still pasting with a wasp?
rogeryermaw Posted August 28, 2015 Author Posted August 28, 2015 (edited) on and off i use it. i did on the 4 inch but shot it the same day. break would probably be more even if i had left it to dry overnight. those star colors are the rubber cut stars on skylighter. Edited August 28, 2015 by rogeryermaw
rogeryermaw Posted August 29, 2015 Author Posted August 29, 2015 I would like to draw on the community for assistance. I have a pretty cool idea for an exhibition shell in the 6" range that I need a composition for. I'd like to have a bright white or gold comet composition that will travel far (moderately heavy) but not leave a tail of sparks and 1/2" pumped comets about 9/16-5/8" long should burn for at least 4-5 seconds. Any ideas?
Mumbles Posted August 31, 2015 Posted August 31, 2015 There are a few formulas I've gotten from Mike Swisher that could fit your needs. They're very bright, and since they're barium based, also quite heavy. I don't recall the burn rate however. I included the translations in red. 809 aluminum is an older american dark flake, that's around 325 mesh. Eckhart 10890 is similar and quite a bit more widely available. If they burn to fast, this might be a place to experiment with different meshes and particle shapes to adjust the burn rate. LUCE FORTE (translates to strong light)Barium nitrate 24 lbs.#809 Aluminum 7 lbs.Saltpetre 3 lbs.Sulphur 2 lbs.Dextrine 2 lbs.for GIALLO ABBAGLIANTE (translates to dazzling yellow) substitute for the saltpetre in the above composition 3lbs. of cryolite.
rogeryermaw Posted September 1, 2015 Author Posted September 1, 2015 Thank you Mumbles. I'll start small batch testing this evening!
rogeryermaw Posted September 2, 2015 Author Posted September 2, 2015 (edited) i have finally sorted out my crackling stars! using the 37.5/37.5/25 bismuth/CuO formula, i started playing around with different mesh mg/al and have a mix that is impressive and works every time. i use about 72% 200-325 mgal and 28% 80-200 mesh totalled equalling 25% of the composition. my personal observation is that the 80-200 mgal from pcs "appears" spherical...perhaps atomized? and the 200-325 looks granular through a magnifying glass. the irregular surface of granular mgal would allow more surface area contact thus better chance of fully reacting. i noticed that using only the finer metal, the d.e. would smoulder only a fraction of a second before the "pop" but using the larger grains, i get a good smoulder (about 1.5-2 seconds) time and a much louder crack. wet with dextrin liquor and rolled in mill dust, these light easily and the bang is surprising for cores around 1-1.5 mm. i am binding with Hodgdon H4198 smokless rifle powder in acetone about the consistency of room temp. honey. Edited September 3, 2015 by rogeryermaw 1
rogeryermaw Posted September 3, 2015 Author Posted September 3, 2015 (edited) here is a comparison of commercial crackle balls vs one loaded with my d.e. mine are in the second one. Edited September 3, 2015 by rogeryermaw 1
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