Star Gun

[nordicwolf]

So how do you use one of these? And how best to make one?

 

I make fountains with stars sized about 1/4" or smaller (primed). I generally use 1/2", 3/4" and 1" ID tubes with a BP base as the fuel, but I wonder if there is a way to make a small star gun to launch and try new stars without pressing a fountain.

 

Or is this a dumb idea, and are star guns mainly for bigger stars people use in shells, etc.

 

I would like to test small stars in the air (not just lighting on the ground) but without pressing a fountain.

 

Thanks!

Edited July 26, 2022 by nordicwolf

[ThrownBiscuit]

What I do is make up a small batch of small stars( 4-5, 1/2" stars, 7-8, 1/4" stars) and load them into my 1- 1/16" bore cannon with 1/4 oz. of BP as propellant. Use a little bit of junk mail for wadding over the stars and some visco in the touch-hole.

 

My cannon is made of what was a broken piece of 2" diameter shaft that I made up into a poor copy of a medieval hand gonne (I will include a picture after I remember where I may have put my camera). For use as a star gun, I plant the holding shaft into a 5 gallon bucket of dirt in an upright position.

 

If you make a star gun out of shaft material, make sure you normalize it and do not heat treat it. You want the steel to have some elasticity and not so much brittleness. You also want the barrel walls to be quite thick, because the more material there is the more forgiving of errors.

 

If your welding skills are decent you could make a star gun out of some thick-walled DOM steel tubing and weld a good solid plug in the end of it. Drill a small hole just above the plug. Then perhaps weld it onto a piece of plate as a base.

Edited July 26, 2022 by ThrownBiscuit

[ThrownBiscuit]

Here it is with an antique 3 barrel hand gonne for comparison.

[Richtee]

I just roll tubes. Good for a few shots. Quick and easy. well overnite dry but...

[cmjlab]

For what it's worth (and I know some people may disagree) but.....

For a single star & 1g or less B.P.: I've used left over cake tubes, parallel rolled rocket tubes, pvc tube, and steel gas tubing (black seamed pipe from HD or Lowes)... Usually, .5g to .75g is plenty to fire a star to 100+ feet.

 

**I would NEVER use pvc or metal to test a insert, crossette, multiple stars, large comet or anything that requires more than a single gram of B.P.** it's a shrapnel hazard, and poor idea.

 

The safest way would be to purchase / roll parallel wound tubes. They could be coated in wood hardener or lacquer to prolong their use.

 

Charles

[nordicwolf]

I have some 1/2"x5" and 3/4"x7.5 NEPT tubes. Sounds like I can use those as a star gun multiple times.

 

I was going to make a joke about coating them with NC lacquer to harden them and prolong their use, but that would be in poor taste. However, I could look into the wood hardener or something.

 

I am looking for something I can re-use. NEPT tubes might be the answer for me (my welding skills are non-existent)

 

Thanks for the ideas.

[cmjlab]

I don't have a welder, nor can I weld either. I made a star gun by drilling holes in a block of wood to correspond to different size tubes / pipe, and glued them in. Prior to glueing the tube in, I just rammed a clay plug in the bottom and poured epoxy on top to keep it water tight and flame resistant.

[cmjlab]

I don't have a welder, nor can I weld either. I made a star gun by drilling holes in a block of wood to correspond to different size tubes / pipe, and glued them in. Prior to glueing the tube in, I just rammed a clay plug in the bottom and poured epoxy on top to keep it water tight and flame resistant.

[Arthur]

Surely a star gun is like a stand for twist drills, one hole for every size. If you have a specific need then you should be able to make a test stand of any size or range of sizes.

[Richtee]

Look into sodium silicate liquid.

I have some 1/2"x5" and 3/4"x7.5 NEPT tubes. Sounds like I can use those as a star gun multiple times.

 

I was going to make a joke about coating them with NC lacquer to harden them and prolong their use, but that would be in poor taste. However, I could look into the wood hardener or something.

 

 

Edited July 27, 2022 by Richtee

[Richtee]

BOOM. A star gun. It’s not QUITE rocket science

[Arthur]

Every retail star gun I've seen is a cylinder of metal with assorted sized holes drilled into it. As a DIY you could chose any size

[Mumbles]

I've always used what others have described. A cardboard or HDPE tube with a plug and a hole drilled in the side. They don't last forever, but you can get quite a few uses out of them. I've never tried, but I've heard using a brass or steel grommet in the fuse hole can extend the life by protecting the hole from enlarging as fast from the fuse burning through it.

 

When testing small stars, I basically make a mini star mine instead of a one star deal. You still find out if they light and how long they burn. I will also second the suggestion to use some sort of wadding over the stars. I got much more consistent results that way.

[Scotty123]

Second the wadding; thinking it slows the star launch a bit, allowing pressure to build and fire to surround the star longer, to provide better ignition. Edited August 24, 2022 by Scotty123