New match machine

[ronmoper76]

This is my first time not making it by hand,wanted to share my results . I used a match machine from woodys and it seemed to work good other than my slurry kept drying out,

and i had to rehydrate it in the middle. Has anyone tried soaking the string in potassium nitrate before making the match? I saw it suggested elsewhere,how or does it work?

Edited May 27, 2021 by ronmoper76

[pyrokid]

I have never bothered with soaking the string with KNO3 solution prior to working it into black match. My match works well for my purposes in the absence of this step. I think the theory is that the extra nitrate will help to burn up the string, but I have never had any problems with my process. I would be curious to see a cross sectional image of the match made on the machine from Woody's, because I have doubts about the effectiveness of simple mechanical systems to work the slurry to the core of the string.

 

Stay tuned for some retarded comments from your pal and mine, Sharkwhispers, to set you on the right course.

[Arthur]

My Chinese quickmatch always leaves a twist of fine thread behind. There is no need to finally cause the thread to vanish, the aim should be to have a steady burning black match that makes fast burning quickmatch when enclosed.

[BetICouldMake1]

If you want to use a pull through type machine like Caleb's you need to use multiple strands of thin thread rather than a single strand of thicker thread. Crochet thread works well. I have a knock off version of Caleb's that I built and get good results. It doesn't seem to penetrate quite as well as kneading the hank of string in the slurry does, but the match still burns well. FWIW, I think using multiple thin strands makes better match than a single fat strand since you get a good bit of slurry held between the strings rather than just coating the single strand. I don't think there's much advantage to using the machine unless you are trying to make very large batches or are making flat match. At least for me it's faster to just throw a hank of string in a bowl and unwind it by hand. The other downside to the machine is that it needs to be fairly full of slurry to work, so you either end up with a good bit of waste or a random amount of slurry that you need to repurpose.

 

I also always have some string embers after my match burns. Don't think it matters as long as the match itself burns fast and hot it doesn't need to fully consume the string.

[ronmoper76]

I think i got banned from posting pictures. I made about 500ft but it wont let me post a picture of it....

I did post a stupid video the other night,I suspect im being told silently to watch what the heck i post,lol

It will only take videos now and no jpg"s,anyhow this is what i got drying,fire away i'm not bothered

by different opinions,no 2 people have the exact same outlook on things,it's how i learn.

Edited May 27, 2021 by ronmoper76

[ronmoper76]

If you want to use a pull through type machine like Caleb's you need to use multiple strands of thin thread rather than a single strand of thicker thread. Crochet thread works well. I have a knock off version of Caleb's that I built and get good results. It doesn't seem to penetrate quite as well as kneading the hank of string in the slurry does, but the match still burns well. FWIW, I think using multiple thin strands makes better match than a single fat strand since you get a good bit of slurry held between the strings rather than just coating the single strand. I don't think there's much advantage to using the machine unless you are trying to make very large batches or are making flat match. At least for me it's faster to just throw a hank of string in a bowl and unwind it by hand. The other downside to the machine is that it needs to be fairly full of slurry to work, so you either end up with a good bit of waste or a random amount of slurry that you need to repurpose.

 

I also always have some string embers after my match burns. Don't think it matters as long as the match itself burns fast and hot it doesn't need to fully consume the string.

I like it i have to say.. The amount i made and in the short time it took was pretty cool. I picked a tree 50 feet away from my porch and pulled 10 overhead lines,half with 6 strands half with 4 in a half hour. I took a spatula and cleaned all the leftover slurry right back into a tupperware bowl and i was done. By the time i use all that match who knows what the slurry will still look like,but a whisk and some water will whip it right back into shape i imagine.I tried the flat match hole and the round one,they both left zero uncovered string and i have two sizes to play with.. I'm not sure about which one i like better,i tried both piped and on their own. They burn vigorously and would light anything from what i can see. It has a extra ingredient (metal) that seems to make it burn a lot hotter than what i have made before,but i won't mention in case its a safety issue somehow.

[SharkWhisperer]

I like it i have to say.. The amount i made and in the short time it took was pretty cool. I picked a tree 50 feet away from my porch and pulled 10 overhead lines,half with 6 strands half with 4 in a half hour. I took a spatula and cleaned all the leftover slurry right back into a tupperware bowl and i was done. By the time i use all that match who knows what the slurry will still look like,but a whisk and some water will whip it right back into shape i imagine.I tried the flat match hole and the round one,they both left zero uncovered string and i have two sizes to play with.. I'm not sure about which one i like better,i tried both piped and on their own. They burn vigorously and would light anything from what i can see. It has a extra ingredient (metal) that seems to make it burn a lot hotter than what i have made before,but i won't mention in case its a safety issue somehow.

Cool, sounds like you have a bit of match stockpiled now. Cut a strand when it's dry and if there's any white/grey fibers visible in the middle, that to me would indicate unacceptable BP penetration. Others might disagree. I still make match manually and massage the crap out of my slurried string. Takes longer but I've never had a mediocre batch of BM. I want that string to vaporize after ignition and not leave behind burning embers or threads.

[justvisiting]

I found that mercerized crochet thread leaves a lot of embers when used to make multi-strand match with Caleb's match puller.

[ronmoper76]

I found that mercerized crochet thread leaves a lot of embers when used to make multi-strand match with Caleb's match puller.

I'm not quite sure what i got,but it looks just like the ones ned uses on youtube. It's a huge roll that cost like 20$ at ace hardware. I believe its 6 or 8 ply cotton string...Now for the million dollar question? What could be tried on the enormous amount of 4" to 12" sticks of match i have leftover after piping, to waterproof it. Visco get expensive at 5$ a roll and i have a ton of match scraps. Sometimes a nice piece of water resistant fuse is handy.. Has nitrocellulose ever been tried? Maybe a non water soluble binded dip of sorts to coat the pieces? I have a good bit of supplies but before i began experimenting i wanted to ask. I'm thinking something like shellac,I suspect nitrocellulose is going to just make it burn to fast

Edited May 28, 2021 by ronmoper76

[SharkWhisperer]

I'm not quite sure what i got,but it looks just like the ones ned uses on youtube. It's a huge roll that cost like 20$ at ace hardware. I believe its 6 or 8 ply cotton string...Now for the million dollar question? What could be tried on the enormous amount of 4" to 12" sticks of match i have leftover after piping, to waterproof it. Visco get expensive at 5$ a roll and i have a ton of match scraps. Sometimes a nice piece of water resistant fuse is handy.. Has nitrocellulose ever been tried? Maybe a non water soluble binded dip of sorts to coat the pieces? I have a good bit of supplies but before i began experimenting i wanted to ask. I'm thinking something like shellac,I suspect nitrocellulose is going to just make it burn to fast

Somebody on here already reported coating BM with NC...was it justvisiting??? Don't remember. Recall the results weren't spectacular. BP might burn faster than NC in that format (it's a thin sheet, without the surface area of instantly-burning guncotton. If you pour a line of decent BP next to a line of decent smokeless powder and fire them up, the BP will eclipse the smokeless burn rate.

 

Anyways, you've got short BM sections and you've got NC lacquer, right? It takes about 5 minutes to dip and dry, so give it a go on a short section and report on the burn. Better yet, coat one strand and fire it up on video right next to an uncoated strand, so we can see the diff. NC will provide some degree of waterproofing, but uncertain if it'll burn underwater like decent visco. Maybe--NC is pretty oxygen balanced, and maybe even has a slight surplus. Hey, drop some burning NC-coated BM into water and video that, too!!!

[justvisiting]

It wasn't me that mentioned coating BM with NC.

 

I have waterproof quickmatch. The match inside is very water resistant. It's coated onto very fine threads and bound with PVB. It's rubbery and bendable. The loose match burns from one end to the other perfectly even under water. I don't know how long it can stand being immersed and still burn properly.

[Arthur]

There are two basic varieties of QM, single strand and multi strand. The usual Chinese match is flat and thin and has about five strands -if you search youtube you can find videos of it being made. The usual Spanish match is one fat, round string with a coating of powder, functionally it's the same as Chinese match except that Spanish match can be slowed/delayed by tying a knot (or ten) of string round the outside, this is one of the ways that Masclettas are timed.

 

QM manufacture

 

Visco

 

Many more videos exist

[ronmoper76]

There are two basic varieties of QM, single strand and multi strand. The usual Chinese match is flat and thin and has about five strands -if you search youtube you can find videos of it being made. The usual Spanish match is one fat, round string with a coating of powder, functionally it's the same as Chinese match except that Spanish match can be slowed/delayed by tying a knot (or ten) of string round the outside, this is one of the ways that Masclettas are timed.

 

QM manufacture

 

Visco

 

Many more videos exist

Im headed to ocean city,MD tomorrow for a week,(family vacation) so no pictures yet,however my preliminary test show that nitrocellulose not only slows the match down considerably,it waterproofs it as well.I have deliberately tried to put several pieces out by holding them under water without success. However i also took simple plastic wrap and rolled it around match a bunch of times along with shrinking it with a heat source and came up with similar results. Never tried anything else yet. The videos above are awesome Arthur,see you all when i return,Happy Pyro everyone!

[SharkWhisperer]

Somebody on here already reported coating BM with NC...was it justvisiting??? Don't remember. Recall the results weren't spectacular. BP might burn faster than NC in that format (it's a thin sheet, without the surface area of instantly-burning guncotton. If you pour a line of decent BP next to a line of decent smokeless powder and fire them up, the BP will eclipse the smokeless burn rate.

 

Anyways, you've got short BM sections and you've got NC lacquer, right? It takes about 5 minutes to dip and dry, so give it a go on a short section and report on the burn. Better yet, coat one strand and fire it up on video right next to an uncoated strand, so we can see the diff. NC will provide some degree of waterproofing, but uncertain if it'll burn underwater like decent visco. Maybe--NC is pretty oxygen balanced, and maybe even has a slight surplus. Hey, drop some burning NC-coated BM into water and video that, too!!!

Alrighty, so Ron got busy (or his blackmatch is still drying 4 days later, kak kak), so I did a quck evaluation of how BM burns with an NC coating. This is a 2.5" piece of three x 6-strand cotton BM that was braided together before rubbing in a BP/water/dextrin slurry. Don't recall the charcoal because this was scraps sitting around several years. One end was double-dipped in double-base NC lacquer (beige color), with 10 min drying between layers. Formed a pretty thick shell, probably brittle but didn't evaluate that. The NC shell probably waterproofed the BM (yet to be checked for sure) but, though NC (and NG) are very flammable, in this hard shell format it acted as an insulator that slowed the BM burn rate. Kind of like a casing on a nozzleless rocket--you can see the BM blasts sparks in all directions but when it hits the NC, the sparks are primarily ejected towards the NC shell's opening (and propelled the burning remnant when it's mass was reduced below the generated thrust at the end...). Lotta smoldering remnants, but this was: 1) thick triple-stranded BM, and 2) suboptimal BM because I could see a tiny gray (at least not big and white) core before I dipped it. The slow-mo video is 1/4 normal speed and really highlights the BP flamefront. Now if Ron's still too busy, I guess I'll have to go do some more water resistance testing, and see if this mod will allow BM to burn underwater!

Edited May 30, 2021 by SharkWhisperer

[ronmoper76]

I'm getting chased around the house being cursed at because I'm not packing for the beach and playing with my damn fireworks.

This is quite interesting,keep going

[Delloman]

I have the machine from woodys and also get my string there I use the 4 strand between 6 and the full 11 the machine can hold I built a wooden frame that rotates on a Central bar the match is wrapped around the frame and I get 8 foot sections of match. I have never experienced the slurry Drying out during making I can make about 200-300 feet in an hour one thing I have experienced is the leftover slurry will start growing stiff in a few days I just skim it off and keep using 😅