Sparkle Matches VIDEO

[jayearl]

I want to either find a large supply of these or find a manufacturer who can make these for me.

Anyone remember these??? I can't find them anywhere. This video I made shows my last

packet of the Sparkle Matches. I'm hoping someone has some suggestions.

Thank you! You can also email me at: magicmail@mac.com

 

http://youtu.be/Dq7woQ1XByk

[pyrokid]

You might have a hard time finding someone to manufacture those for you, but I don't think they're too different from normal matches. They appear to simply have some metal powder on the tip. My first impression was that the metal was mixed with the normal match composition, but since so much is visible on the outside of the match head, I think it would be possible to coat part of some existing math heads with a mixture of metal powder and adhesive. You could use magnalium or aluminum as your sparking agent, taking care that the adhesive you choose doesn't interfere with the workings of the match.

[wyzard10]

You might try checking into magic supply places. I think ive seen them as a novelty item there.

[jayearl]

Yes, novelty house used to carry these. . . . many decades ago. But not now.

[rogeryermaw]

Looks easy enough to make. powder some match heads and divide the powder into thirds. Mix 2/3 with 10-12% 100-200 mesh magnalium or titanium and dissolve in the minimum amount of water. Coat sticks with the mix then dry. Finally use the last third without metal in the same way. The final un mixed coat should allow easier lighting without interference from the metal.

[dave321]

looks like a normal book match with a small amount of composition pasted below it.

 

something with small flake titanium would probably do it,

a slow blackpowder type mix with titanium ?

 

cant imagine anyone would want to manufacture them due to small maket, probably why they stopped making

them in the first place.

[FloridaCracker]

I bet 75% paraffin wax, 15% mineral oil, 5% atomized aluminum melted over a heat source without an open flame and a book of matches dipped in about a 1/4" past the match head would get close. I would also sling the match book towards the dirt to get rid of excess to try and prevent the matches from gluing together. If they do then I would try using a q-tip to quickly paint the matches front and back just below the heads.

 

You could try without the oil but I would imagine the wax will be more prone to flake off without it. Might also need to adjust the amount of aluminum to get the amount of sparks you desire. You will likely need to stir often to keep the aluminum mixed and suspended evenly.

 

Haven't done this but it should accomplish the effect. If you look at book matches it looks like they already have something like wax on the cardboard just below the match head that you can see melt and looks wet just after lighting.

[Matchless]

Hi Jayearl,

I played around with your question about how to make sparkle matches. First I tried a sparkler comp with hide glue and then elmer’s glue. They may have performed poorly because they are not dry enough yet, but it seems like the composition is a little sluggish or perhaps needs more heat to get going. I decided to try something a little easier and, as it turns out, quicker. I just used some gerb composition with nitrocellulose laquer and prepared a quick slurry. For the comp I used:

 

Ned Gorski’s Silver Titanium Gerb

 

Potassium nitrate 51

Sulfur 10

Charcoal (Airfloat) 09

Titanium spherical 30

 

http://www.skylighter.com/fireworks/how-to-make/Fireworks-Fountains-Gerbs.asp

 

I poured in a little extra titanium (sponge -80 mesh) for more sparks.

 

I used enough NC lacquer to make mastic runny enough that I could paint it onto the backs of matches from a disassembled matchbook. The acetone in the lacquer evaporates pretty fast, so I had to add more NC lacquer a few times as I worked. With a wood splint I stirred the mastic and painted it onto the backs of the matchheads. When they were dry (which did not take long) I reassembled the matchbook and stapled it back together. I made a video of the test for you to see if you like the effect.

The presentation of this as a normal matchbook might fool someone at first, but the contrast between the red head and the black mastic is pretty obvious even when carefully painted on the back of the match. If I can find some more time, I will play around with a mixture that won’t stand out as much from the original red match bulb. I’ll take out the charcoal and see if I can find a suitable replacement. So far, this is my imitation of your vintage matches. If you are going for good sparkle, I think the fun way to go would be to come up with a safety match dip that is both sensitive to the red P striker and has the titanium for sparks, then dip your own matches. However, if you want ease of manufacture, doctoring existing matchbooks is simple and will be much improved with a more red sparkle composition. The easiest solution I see at the moment would be to find matchbooks with black colored match tips and just paint on those. I tried it with some strike-anywhere matches too for the fun of it but the doctored tip is even more obvious.

From your video it looks like only the front row of matches was treated, but I found I could do all of the matches and still get the booklet back together.

 

[jayearl]

Thank you for the thorough reply. It seems that the DIY is the way to go as I doubt if there's a company that would want to take this on considering the very small, possible market. Recently, I heard that someone simply took a magnesium/titanium mix and used nail polish. Just dip the wet brush in the mix and apply to the match. He said it worked fine. This seems the simpliest yet. I will let you know.