lobowarxl Posted June 15, 2015 Posted June 15, 2015 Hello im a beginner at making flash powder so Im trying to make 70/30 mix with perc 325 mesh with anit caking and 5431h eckart from here ... http://www.ebay.com/itm/3-5oz-Eckart-5413H-Aluminum-Powder-German-Blackhead-Dark-Ekhart-5413-Super-/111689472416?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item1a013619a0 Ive done 3 g max and capped it all it does is burns very slowly like for a couple of seconds like an upside down rocket idk what im doing wrong are you suppose to mix for a long time? is it suppose to be confined really good? or maybe its the wrong aluminum?
BillyBobBodean Posted June 15, 2015 Posted June 15, 2015 I also bought the same 5413h from the same seller. No matter what I've tried I can't get anything more than a slow burn at best. I know my KClO4 is good, it works fine in all other applications. I finally just pitched the rest of the aluminum and gave up after trying 6 ten gram batches. Guess we got ripped off. 1
OblivionFall Posted June 15, 2015 Posted June 15, 2015 I have the similar or the same eckart 5143. I tried it with KNO3, it makes a woosh and with Chlorate it makes a poof. No thump though. To be honest with you Indian Dark or German Dark would be your best bet. 1
lobowarxl Posted June 15, 2015 Author Posted June 15, 2015 BillyBobBodean, on 15 Jun 2015 - 4:42 PM, said: I also bought the same 5413h from the same seller. No matter what I've tried I can't get anything more than a slow burn at best. I know my KClO4 is good, it works fine in all other applications. I finally just pitched the rest of the aluminum and gave up after trying 6 ten gram batches. Guess we got ripped off. pfff thanks I have the similar or the same eckart 5143. I tried it with KNO3, it makes a woosh and with Chlorate it makes a poof. No thump though. To be honest with you Indian Dark or German Dark would be your best bet. yeah ill try that 1
Ubehage Posted June 16, 2015 Posted June 16, 2015 BillyBobBodean, on 15 Jun 2015 - 4:42 PM, said: I also bought the same 5413h from the same seller. No matter what I've tried I can't get anything more than a slow burn at best. I know my KClO4 is good, it works fine in all other applications. I finally just pitched the rest of the aluminum and gave up after trying 6 ten gram batches. Guess we got ripped off. pfff thanks yeah ill try thatMy experience, which is rather limited due to restrictions on KClO4, flash will not go *whoomp* in the open. It will burn very quickly, hence the name "flash".I tried with Al Flakes, Atomized Al, and Al German Dark.They all performed roughly the same, with little (but noticable) difference in burn-speed.
taiwanluthiers Posted June 16, 2015 Posted June 16, 2015 70/30 with german dark in 3 gram batch should go BOOM (a really loud boom at that) with minimal confinement. Perhaps the aluminum is suspect. 2
FlaMtnBkr Posted June 16, 2015 Posted June 16, 2015 You got ripped off. Get some good aluminum and start with a gram or less to see how powerful good flash is. 2
DaMounty Posted June 16, 2015 Posted June 16, 2015 That is what is scaring me from ordering online products.
GreginCA Posted June 17, 2015 Posted June 17, 2015 Three grams of quality 70/30 flash produce a nice explosion with nothing more than the confinement of an open top 3 oz. Dixie cup. After viewing the like to the product you purchased, whether or not it is 5413 H or not, you definitely got ripped off at that price. If you live in the U.S., do a Google search for "Pyrotechnic Supplies" and the world will be your peach as long as you are legally an adult. For the record: When flash powder is tested, it is placed on a very hard surface in a conical pile sloping to a peak as close to 45 degree's as possible. A fuse is then suspended from above the pile directly over the peak, extending down into the Flash Powder (which is ignited from the top of the peak). I seem to recall it being established that around 20 grams of quality 70/30 unconfined will explode. My personal experience using Eckart 5413 H Super & Swedish Perchlorate to formulate the 70/30 mix, I have accomplished an explosion unconfined with as little as 15 grams. 1
FlaMtnBkr Posted June 20, 2015 Posted June 20, 2015 There is some ultra fine 1.5 micron magnesium powder that will start to pop unconfined in sub gram amounts. Scary stuff and not something to play with. Be aware that if you will probably need to order other pyro chemicals before buying flash grade aluminum from the reputable suppliers. If they thinthink you are making flash they won't sell it to you and you need to show you're making real fireworks first. But I hope you aren't just trying to make firecrackers. They are a quick way to get a felony record and they put a black eye on the hobby that will eventually lead to hobby fireworks being illegal and none of us able to buy chemicals and 'smell the smoke'.
schroedinger Posted June 20, 2015 Posted June 20, 2015 Use that al to make a couple D1 or similar stars. If you get a nice glitter, then you can be sure that the al is not suited for flash.I mainly use Dark 00 al for flash, which is <8microns. An 0.5 g of it go boom in the open and beats the common 2g crackers. If i use -325 mesh flake, 1-2 turn of a light paper is all the confinement that is needed.
Nickmaslo Posted July 2, 2015 Posted July 2, 2015 I was under the impression Eckhart 5431H was the standard in the industry. I worked for a company called Pyrotech and I installed a high speed deluge system out in Pennsylvania for a company that makes Flash Grenades & Other non-letals for the army and police in order to PREVENT flash from taking lives while the mix and prepare the fuel and oxidizer, they used Eckhart 5431H in their flash. Also - from what I gathered on the Sandia Labs report in the downloadable content tab here, they use a similar if not exact Al. I have no experience in flash powder besides from what I have researched and read but I would think 70/30 Eckhart and oxidizer was the creme de la creme, aside from German Blackhead. I think eBay source is the variable and most likely the culprit in the performance of your flash.
FIREoBUGoEFFECTS Posted July 2, 2015 Posted July 2, 2015 The ratio mix of 7:3 is correct respectively of KCIO4 and AL, however the quality of the chemicals comes into question and that maybe relational to the source in which you acquired them. Try a professional grade version of the and the German Dark AL is a sure bet. There are also other variants of Flash Powder that are more powerful and more volatile. Always do your research.
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