bmarley5780 Posted March 18, 2008 Posted March 18, 2008 For use as a break booster; Do I need to go thru the whole process of granulating it? -Joe
Dead_Cell Posted March 18, 2008 Posted March 18, 2008 AFAIK, I don't think so if you are using w/ BP on rice hulls for the main break. I've never used whistle by itself for break, but I dont think you'd want just loose powder for a standalone break powder. But, DO NOT take my word for it. I honestly dont have alot of experiance with whistle as any sort of break.
TheSidewinder Posted March 18, 2008 Posted March 18, 2008 I'm pretty sure one or two fellow members in the WPAG break their small shells with whistle mix exclusively. I *know* some of them use it as a booster, mixed in with the break charge. IIRC, they use a "break-bag" made from half of a coin-roll tube, or just the corner of a baggie, tied over the end of the spolette/timefuse to keep the mix together. And I'm 99% sure they don't granulate it. As they use it, I can't see why they would need to.
mormanman Posted March 18, 2008 Posted March 18, 2008 You don't need to granulate whistle mix. I once tried to make whistle stars to see what they would do. They just burned.
TheSidewinder Posted March 18, 2008 Posted March 18, 2008 That statement needs a little qualification, I think? AFAIK, members who make rockets granulate it to make pressing easier. They may not HAVE to, but they do. I could be all wet on that, though. A pity that JW, SLD, and/or Woody, aren't here with us. Their combined knowledge of whistle rockets is considerable. Oh, wait!!! ..... Duh! Corporal Mac!! Front and Center!!! And maybe I should work on getting those other characters here. M
Dead_Cell Posted March 18, 2008 Posted March 18, 2008 I stand corrected . I just got my hands on a bunch of 1.75 plastic hemis. I take it that loose whistle will work well with these, right? Should I bother with using bp rice hulls as filler,or just pack that sucker with stars and a whistle bag?
crazyboy25 Posted March 18, 2008 Posted March 18, 2008 No need to granulate it for my 4" I would just mix up whistle mix 70 pec 30 benz mix really well and add a tablespoon for each hemi AS A BOOSTER.
Gottagotomoz Posted March 18, 2008 Posted March 18, 2008 Personally, I find that it's only necessary to granulate when high performance is optimal ex; Whistle Rockets. You'd be fine using 70/30 (maybe +1% Fe2O3) It's plenty powerful enough for a booster in small(er) shells, but I don't know how keen I would be on using it as a break alone.
ST1DinOH Posted March 18, 2008 Posted March 18, 2008 can anyone weigh in on using the whistle mix from a moon traveler to assist the break? as a self professed 1.4 scrounger i hope i'm not alone when comparing whisteling moon travelers to tribbles. the damn things seem to multiply whenever i shut my closet door. anyway all i had to do was roll them on the edge of my workbench, to loosen it up a bit, then roll it between my fingers over the shell till the red clay started coming out. i used one for each side on my 1.75's and 2 for each side for my 3's. anyone see any problems with doing this? is this a disaster waiting to happen? i hope not cause i'd love to find a way to dispose of these piles and piles of moon travelers i have laying around.
Mumbles Posted March 19, 2008 Posted March 19, 2008 I would be weary to break up commercial whistle items. Whistle is obviously pretty energetic stuff. I must admit there are far less intelligent ways to obtain said whistle mix, such as with pliers or a hammer. As has already been said, the granulation helps to keep dust down during pressing. One thing that had been left out is that it makes it easier to work with. Vaseline is added as a desensitizer and to make it a bit sticky so that it compacts better. It would be mighty inconvenient to work with if it was just in big clumps. There are some situations where granulation is better, such as in breaking crossettes. Granulated product helps to measure the break charge more reliably and precisely. It also prevents compaction. Some people granulate their whistle with NC to make it more powerful. If doing this make sure it's small grain, say -20 mesh. There are several accounts of this on passfire, and perhaps rec.pyro.
bmarley5780 Posted March 19, 2008 Author Posted March 19, 2008 I plan to try this on my 3" ball shells... I do get a great break on them with just corned BP but want to see what 3g's would do to it.
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