mike_au Posted June 4, 2010 Posted June 4, 2010 Well I did something stupid last night :/ I was ricing 700g of BP, I had measured out 15% w/w of water/alcohol and it was almost wet enough. I have a small spray bottle full of water/alcohol for rolling stars, I also have a small spray bottle of vinegar for testing for Mg. Guess which one I grabbed and used to dampen the BP a bit more? I only put a couple of squirts in before I smelt it, is it likely to cause any problems? Wikipedia says acetic acid has compatibility issues with nitric and perchloric acid, is this likely to extend to their salts?
50AE Posted June 4, 2010 Posted June 4, 2010 I doubt there will be any problem. Potassium acetate is far more soluble than the nitrate.
Arthur Posted June 4, 2010 Posted June 4, 2010 I used to offer the pictures of blood and flesh and bone from Andy K's pyro formulary site, but that seems to have gone with geocities. Does anyone have any public domain pics of suitable blood and gore for use in situations like this.
RUUUUUN Posted June 6, 2010 Posted June 6, 2010 Hello from Afghanistan.... How y'all doin' 'roun' heah?
Ventsi Posted June 6, 2010 Posted June 6, 2010 Long time no see...Good see you're still kicking, what the hell are you doing in AF?
TheEskimo Posted June 10, 2010 Posted June 10, 2010 Well, I found out that the girl that I thought was put off by me asking her to prom was actually lusting after me for months. I was too much of a brain-dead hippopotomous to recognize the signs, even though she was being blatantly obvious. I suppose that it was a combination of me thinking she would be out of my league, and I wasn't sure about asking her. It turns out that she got sick of waiting for me to make a move, and gave up. I really put her in the proverbial friendzone.Whoops. Now I just wonder if she would go for me if I asked her out. I have to wait for her to get over her current boyfriend, which I think is a consolation one.
OneEyeCharlie Posted July 1, 2010 Posted July 1, 2010 I've officially lost count how many times I've been thankful for latex/nitrile surgical gloves.
dagabu Posted July 1, 2010 Posted July 1, 2010 I've officially lost count how many times I've been thankful for latex/nitrile surgical gloves. Aluminum flake huh?
OneEyeCharlie Posted July 1, 2010 Posted July 1, 2010 Today it was charcoal. Sorted & pre-ground a bunch before milling. Also rammed a half dozen stingers and a few 4 oz end burners. Now, if only I could hire someone to pick these black boogers for me. On a different tangent, my new media is working like a champ. Filled a bunch of old .45 ACP brass with lead
asilentbob Posted July 1, 2010 Posted July 1, 2010 Hello everyone. Good to see quite a few new and active members from when I was around last. I have 2 firework shows to help set up and fire this weekend with some guys I have never worked with before, but I'm expecting pretty good things. One is off a bay pier and I'm not sure where the other is. Large one is supposed to be around 60k or at least that is what I had heard. Either way it will be nice getting my hands dirty again and getting a great show out of it. Supposed to be around Ingleside, TX. Hurricane Alex was not very exciting for us here in corpus christi, tx. A bunch of rain and wind, but nothing like I was expecting. Everyone thought it would make land fall farther north. Wont be going to PGI this year. Probably will go next year though. Lots of stuff going on. Getting my ass up and in shape excercising/running/sprinting/HIIT (supplementing with multivit, creatine, protein). Figuring out how I'm going to power a 50W LED (est 4000 lumens) and what I'm going to use it for (projector, car/shop flood/spot light, indoor lighting, etc). Playing guitar more often. Reviewing OChem. Trying to figure out how I can do all the projects I want to without getting stuck, losing motivation, having life get in the way, etc. Thinking of the future... and where I am in it. I'm changing. Sure wish I started a lot sooner.
Cookieman Posted July 1, 2010 Posted July 1, 2010 Has anyone bought " fireworks and Pyro projects" from Skylighter yet? 800 pages of fireworks making, with video's and over 120 projects. $97.00
dagabu Posted July 2, 2010 Posted July 2, 2010 Has anyone bought " fireworks and Pyro projects" from Skylighter yet? 800 pages of fireworks making, with video's and over 120 projects. $97.00 Oh HELL NO!! There is nothing in there that we dont have access to online.
Peret Posted July 2, 2010 Posted July 2, 2010 Has anyone bought " fireworks and Pyro projects" from Skylighter yet? 800 pages of fireworks making, with video's and over 120 projects. $97.00I suspect it's just the collected Skylighter newsletters, that you can read free online for the moment. They were trying to sell their collected (free) videos a few weeks ago. Makes me wonder if they're having problems with cash flow - it sure would be a pity if such an important supplier went belly up. They're making an all-out effort to create new pyros from the inactive members of their mailing list, and there's a new Turbo Pyro coming out.
dagabu Posted July 2, 2010 Posted July 2, 2010 Peret, No, Harry is not cash strapped, they are doing well but want to reach a broader audience with the projects that were given away for years and years for free. Harry pays about $.50 a pound for KNO3 and sells it for nearly 10x that amount. If you can sell a book that has hundreds of projects in it, you have built in future ordering of overpriced chemicals. My first pyro purchases were from Harry and Firefox, I have moved on to other suppliers now but don't think that either are bad places to start.
Twotails Posted July 2, 2010 Posted July 2, 2010 Yeah, same here, Started with them(and i still shop with them if they have a sale that i like) but now have moved to places that offer KNO3 for under a $1-2/lb, Perch for about $4/lb, and Chlorate for close to $3/lb. I guess you just gotta look around for the good prices, Check restrictions, add on shipping, and soforth. Good news, I got one heck of a large shell im putting together for the 4th, gotta throw one last layer of prime on the stars, finish the go-gettters, fuse the shell, build the mortar, and pray to god it works right. I also got a TT to Blinding white comet, and maby a few other things
dagabu Posted July 2, 2010 Posted July 2, 2010 Yeah, same here, Started with them(and i still shop with them if they have a sale that i like) but now have moved to places that offer KNO3 for under a $1-2/lb, Perch for about $4/lb, and Chlorate for close to $3/lb. I guess you just gotta look around for the good prices, Check restrictions, add on shipping, and soforth. Good news, I got one heck of a large shell im putting together for the 4th, gotta throw one last layer of prime on the stars, finish the go-gettters, fuse the shell, build the mortar, and pray to god it works right. I also got a TT to Blinding white comet, and maby a few other things Post video please because you know the rules: No video, it didn't happen
Peret Posted July 3, 2010 Posted July 3, 2010 I started with Skylighter too, and I would probably never have looked at other suppliers if they didn't refuse to ship barium nitrate. (Ok, maybe I would have bought my tubes and shells elsewhere - my family needs to eat too.) I think of all the retailers I know of, they are by far the most supportive with the blogs and appnotes, so I don't care if they make out like bandits. I just don't want to see them disappear.
Richtee Posted July 3, 2010 Posted July 3, 2010 Sigh.... Hia folks. Well, on the plus side- cooked a pig for a bash yesterday and it got lots of "ohhhs and ahhhs" heh... Enjoy the 4th. Arrrgghhh.....
ULTRABUF Posted July 3, 2010 Posted July 3, 2010 Hey there APC, just popping by to wish everyone a happy 4th of July weekend, stay safe!
scarbelly Posted July 4, 2010 Posted July 4, 2010 So today i decided with my friend it would be a good idea to make up a bunch of rockets for the fourth, and it was a good idea! We made 20 of them each with a flash header (perhaps not the best idea but sorry). Anyways we (that buddy and another) decided to use up 3 of them tonight to check 'em out. Walking to the beach the 5-0 rolls up, just one in his car, and asks us if we're going to the beach. We tell him honestly that yes we were going to the beach and that yes the things we have in the tube are fireworks. He gets out to check them out, discovers that they are homemade and asks if I have any more at home. I tell him that yes i have some more. He lets my friends go and takes me home in the back of his car (those seats are wonderfully comfortable! XD). I have to wake up my parents, get everything that i use to make fireworks (actually just chemicals and compositions) and any completed devices and fork them over. At this point there are four police officers at my house. The original guy calls up his boss or whatever and asks them if he can take them himself or if he needs the bomb patrol. He called in the bomb patrol (actually only one guy as well). They took all of my chems except for 10-15 lbs of KNO3, 10 pounds alder charcoal, and 1/2 pound of sulfur. Probably about 100 bucks worth of stuff if not more. At 1:30 AM they left my house. They are allowing the district attorney to determine what my punishment is, I'll let you guys know what i find out. Needless to say i'm done with fireworks for a while... a long while... The police officer who initially took me was incredibly friendly, and I tried to be polite and friendly as well. The bomb patrol guy was too, but he was more intimidating because he almost knew what he was talking about, except that he thinks everything is 100 times worse than it actually is (safety wise not legal-wise). They repeatedly kept telling me how freaking lucky I am that I am still 17, because if this had happened 7 months from now, I'd be on my way to jail. Sorry for the long-winded and confusing story, I just thought I'd better share with all you guys. Anyways, I wish you all better luck than I've had (not to say it was that bad, honestly i'm pretty cool with it. It could have been a lot worse). Stay safe, and happy fourth!
Pretty green flame Posted July 4, 2010 Posted July 4, 2010 That's a shame dude. I hope they go easy on you. To be honest, I'm always scared of transporting things to the shoot site. Especially on NYE when a very large aluminium case full of shells and other things has to be carried to the shoot site. I doubt I could explain dozens of shells to the cops
Richtee Posted July 4, 2010 Posted July 4, 2010 Needless to say i'm done with fireworks for a while... a long while...Been there, done that. Have pictures. At least you din't get 2 full haz-mat teams going thru the house, and an ATF agent poking around. Anyway, legal counsel might not be a bad idea, 17 or not. Just can't do what we love any more.
flying fish Posted July 4, 2010 Posted July 4, 2010 I had a 2" salute flower-pot, somehow didn't rupture the tube (cardboard). It was buried all the way into the sand...but still! Makes me wonder if it actually exploded in the gun, or maybe like an inch out of it. Oh, and my friend was supposed to videotape my 4" red shell, but he got...uh...distracted. It performed beautifully and y'all will have to take my word for it .
Cookieman Posted July 4, 2010 Posted July 4, 2010 So today i decided with my friend it would be a good idea to make up a bunch of rockets for the fourth, and it was a good idea! We made 20 of them each with a flash header (perhaps not the best idea but sorry). Anyways we (that buddy and another) decided to use up 3 of them tonight to check 'em out. Walking to the beach the 5-0 rolls up, just one in his car, and asks us if we're going to the beach. We tell him honestly that yes we were going to the beach and that yes the things we have in the tube are fireworks. He gets out to check them out, discovers that they are homemade and asks if I have any more at home. I tell him that yes i have some more. He lets my friends go and takes me home in the back of his car (those seats are wonderfully comfortable! XD). I have to wake up my parents, get everything that i use to make fireworks (actually just chemicals and compositions) and any completed devices and fork them over. At this point there are four police officers at my house. The original guy calls up his boss or whatever and asks them if he can take them himself or if he needs the bomb patrol. He called in the bomb patrol (actually only one guy as well). They took all of my chems except for 10-15 lbs of KNO3, 10 pounds alder charcoal, and 1/2 pound of sulfur. Probably about 100 bucks worth of stuff if not more. At 1:30 AM they left my house. They are allowing the district attorney to determine what my punishment is, I'll let you guys know what i find out. Needless to say i'm done with fireworks for a while... a long while... The police officer who initially took me was incredibly friendly, and I tried to be polite and friendly as well. The bomb patrol guy was too, but he was more intimidating because he almost knew what he was talking about, except that he thinks everything is 100 times worse than it actually is (safety wise not legal-wise). They repeatedly kept telling me how freaking lucky I am that I am still 17, because if this had happened 7 months from now, I'd be on my way to jail. Sorry for the long-winded and confusing story, I just thought I'd better share with all you guys. Anyways, I wish you all better luck than I've had (not to say it was that bad, honestly i'm pretty cool with it. It could have been a lot worse). Stay safe, and happy fourth! Scarbelly, Thats BS, we are slowly being robbed of our civil liberties by bureaucratic assholes. I wish you the best of luck and I hope you fight this to the end!
Recommended Posts