Ground Salutes

[Mumbles]

I think you under estimate how much louder the stuff you want to make will be than commercial firecrackers and fireworks. If you get caught with homemade stuff, you're going to be getting a lot more than $200 in tickets, or at least your parents may be.

[Mario1]

I know how loud they are. They always have M80s and half sticks every year for the 4th. Idk where my friends uncle gets them but they are always loud as hell. And the cops gave him a ticket for using one, then the cop drove away and they light one as he drove past. He came back and gave them another ticket. Then left. They really dont care its just their job. Edited June 11, 2010 by Mario1

[dagabu]

When we do ground bombs at PGI or club shoots, they are always off the ground by a few feet. No stones or debris at all. I do agree that aerial salutes are cooler though.

[Ralph]

When we do ground bombs at PGI or club shoots, they are always off the ground by a few feet. No stones or debris at all. I do agree that aerial salutes are cooler though.

 

I know that thats what they do and safety I would assume is the reason why but Do you see a 15 year old who is doing a hit and run to set up a frame tie some cord to it attach his salute light the salute retreat than pack up the frame work and run off with it as the police come ?

[dagabu]

Seems more like you are just picking a fight at this point.

 

I just made an observation of the way its done so as to not throw up rocks. I dont make bombz or crackers, all my salutes are binary mixed and flown at club events.

[Ralph]

lol sorry not at all (didnt mean to come across that way) just saying I highly doubt he will be doing that

[dagabu]

Cool!

 

No doubt he will.

[Mario1]

Alright guys Ive made my decision. Im not going to make ground salutes. Ive thought about it and shells sound alot more fun, even though I still like salutes. Im going to at least start with shell making before salutes. Thanks for all the help though.

[derekroolz]

Alright guys Ive made my decision. Im not going to make ground salutes. Ive thought about it and shells sound alot more fun, even though I still like salutes. Im going to at least start with shell making before salutes. Thanks for all the help though.

 

 

Nah, man you should attempt ground salutes. They are alot of fun when you start doing them. Also the MOST IMPORTANT thing in making these things loud is not how much powder you use, but the amount of expansion the gasses create inside the container, and the pressure created inside the container. I can use 1g of homemade BP and make reports loud enough to make my friend call from half-a-mile asking me "WTF WAS THAT!!!! " Anyways Just remember saftey first. Also I recommend starting out with KNO3 based FP before moving onto Chlorates; Cheaper, safer, and you are less likely to get black-listed.

[Mumbles]

You may want to read through his posts before taking any advice from him.

[pyrochris732]

I know these arent ground salutes but im really curious to see how my 1/4 inch walls are going to affect the sound of the aerial salutes i have planned. I hope i can mimmick the ones you hear at pro shows. These things are 2 inch internal diameter, 4.5 inches long!

 

 

[Pretty green flame]

Also I recommend starting out with KNO3 based FP before moving onto Chlorates; Cheaper, safer, and you are less likely to get black-listed.

 

Wait....What? Chlorates? You serious? Mixing chlorate flash is just asking for trouble. I break a sweat when mixing slow perch flash, mixing chlorate flash would probably give me a heart attack.

[dagabu]

I can use 1g of homemade BP and make reports loud enough to make my friend call from half-a-mile asking me "WTF WAS THAT!!!! " Anyways Just remember saftey first. Also I recommend starting out with KNO3 based FP before moving onto Chlorates; Cheaper, safer, and you are less likely to get black-listed.

 

Without knee-jerking too much:glare: Compression and wall thickness does in fact make a noticeable difference in timbre of the report significantly. Actual "BOOM" may be the same as in actual dB but the sound is just... different. Most say better.

 

I use 1 gram of pot perc flash with dark aluminum for my timed reports and they can be heard from 1/2 mile away but they are 300' in the air and there are 37 of them stuffed into a 3" shell.

 

1g of hot BP properly confined late at night should cause the neighbors to wonder if Mable next door got tired of Bob and put him down ground, it is unlikely that it would be more then a hand clap at 1/4 mile.

 

Duck hunters shoot on the river 300 yards from my bedroom window and even when they are dropping ducks in my back yard, they don't sound like much more then someone dropping a book flat on a table across the yard.

[derekroolz]

Wait....What? Chlorates? You serious? Mixing chlorate flash is just asking for trouble. I break a sweat when mixing slow perch flash, mixing chlorate flash would probably give me a heart attack.

 

 

Sorry about that haha I meant to say perc. I was just thinking about chlorates at the time.

[derekroolz]

Without knee-jerking too much:glare: Compression and wall thickness does in fact make a noticeable difference in timbre of the report significantly. Actual "BOOM" may be the same as in actual dB but the sound is just... different. Most say better.

 

I use 1 gram of pot perc flash with dark aluminum for my timed reports and they can be heard from 1/2 mile away but they are 300' in the air and there are 37 of them stuffed into a 3" shell.

 

1g of hot BP properly confined late at night should cause the neighbors to wonder if Mable next door got tired of Bob and put him down ground, it is unlikely that it would be more then a hand clap at 1/4 mile.

 

Duck hunters shoot on the river 300 yards from my bedroom window and even when they are dropping ducks in my back yard, they don't sound like much more then someone dropping a book flat on a table across the yard.

 

 

Hahaha it was meant to get him to respect salutes and start out small!!!

 

Sorry for the double post

Edited June 26, 2010 by derekroolz

[Ralph]

what you said sounded like "I get a large bulge in my pants every time I make flash" as Dagabu said they are a lot more fun in the air anyway

[Gunzway]

No, he not should 'attempt' ground salutes, whatever the hell that is meant to mean (perhaps a subliminal message that you won’t get very far?).

 

I think it’s in everyone’s best interests that you don't go around telling people to make them and they're 'a lot of fun' as the consequences both physical and legal can be quite catastrophic and the last thing we need is another taint on the hobby.

[derekroolz]

No, he not should 'attempt' ground salutes, whatever the hell that is meant to mean (perhaps a subliminal message that you won't get very far?).

 

I think it's in everyone's best interests that you don't go around telling people to make them and they're 'a lot of fun' as the consequences both physical and legal can be quite catastrophic and the last thing we need is another taint on the hobby.

 

 

That’s why you take it easy at first, for example not putting 20 grams of FP into your first salute. Also, attempt by definition is "To try to perform, make, or achieve." Essentially what us pyros do every time we make anything. Yes FP is very dangerous but that is why I recommended he start with a KNO3 based FP because again it is; Safer, cheaper, and he also probably has KNO3 available.

 

 

[Mumbles]

Derek, do you ever stop to think you're not qualified to be giving such advice? Someone new to the hobby has no business making salutes. They are the single thing that brings us the most unwanted attention. Making flash for a shell booster is one thing, but salutes are a completely different animal. I suggest you think about what you're saying before doing so.

[Gunzway]

Regardless of your definition, there's a subtle but prominent connotation of failure linked to the word. Not the best word to use in the given context. Enough of this, it’s established that ground salutes require no artistic abilities and frankly little to no skill to construct. Not only are they seriously dangerous, they attract attention and people will not distinguish whatsoever between one and a device terrorists use.

 

If you understand the risks associated with them and make them regardless, that’s your choice. We don’t need people telling others to make them and to encourage them. Providing the information on making them safely is one thing, but telling a novice to try them after he’s convinced he won’t is quite… asinine. Let us be encouraging to members to make beautiful shells, high flying rockets rather than a container filled with flash powder and a fuse poking from the side.

[dagabu]

Regardless of your definition, there's a subtle but prominent connotation of failure linked to the word. Not the best word to use in the given context. Enough of this, it's established that ground salutes require no artistic abilities and frankly little to no skill to construct. Not only are they seriously dangerous, they attract attention and people will not distinguish whatsoever between one and a device terrorists use.

 

If you understand the risks associated with them and make them regardless, that's your choice. We don't need people telling others to make them and to encourage them. Providing the information on making them safely is one thing, but telling a novice to try them after he's convinced he won't is quite… asinine. Let us be encouraging to members to make beautiful shells, high flying rockets rather than a container filled with flash powder and a fuse poking from the side.

 

BRAVO gunz! Couldn't have said it any better myself.

[Cookieman]

Regardless of your definition, there's a subtle but prominent connotation of failure linked to the word. Not the best word to use in the given context. Enough of this, it's established that ground salutes require no artistic abilities and frankly little to no skill to construct. Not only are they seriously dangerous, they attract attention and people will not distinguish whatsoever between one and a device terrorists use.

 

If you understand the risks associated with them and make them regardless, that's your choice. We don't need people telling others to make them and to encourage them. Providing the information on making them safely is one thing, but telling a novice to try them after he's convinced he won't is quite… asinine. Let us be encouraging to members to make beautiful shells, high flying rockets rather than a container filled with flash powder and a fuse poking from the side.

 

 

AMEN Gunzway!!!

[Swede]

I'm a believer in harm reduction. So long as there are pyrotechnicians, there will be ground salutes. Given that, if anyone makes any sort of a ground salute, you MUST use very high quality fuse with known characteristics. That means no cheap crap fuse; it must have a consistent burn rate. Then, you use a longer length than you think you might need. I'd say a minimum of 4 inches for the smallest device. Increase to 5, then more, if the device grows in size. I'd personally be more comfortable starting with 6 inches.

 

Next, you hang the device from a tree branch or frame, on a light string, at least 4 feet off the ground.

 

If it misfires, life becomes miserable, so do a quality build.

 

Still, the most important advice of all is simply don't do it, but every single one of us is probably guilty of it at some point. Then we move on, realizing that fingers, hands, and eyesight are precious and we were damned lucky.

[ghost808]

70 :30 is like the most generic composition. The humidity really doesn't make i big difference with pot Perchlorate. I can tell because im from hawaii and well its all humidity here.

[OblivionFall]

Don't ever light a salute in your hand or any type of firework that could do potential damage. IF something does go wrong, you're more likely to walk away with a burn and ringing ears, rather than missing fingers...or worse.

I wish more people I knew a couple of years ago knew this. People used to take air bangers (bear scarers) and pokes holes in one end and stick a fuse in. If that isn't dangerous enough, they wouldn't fill it in with glue afterwards and often the hole was bigger than the fuse going into it. This meant that Flash Powder was leaking out, almost always all over the fuse. I'm talking green fuses now gray coated with powder. Thankfully they still exploded after 1-2 seconds or else most of the people I knew wouldn't have hands. I tried to give them a couple of 3g M80s I made that compare to them for the same price that have about the same power with 5 sec+ fuses so they wouldn't blow their hands off. They still insisted to go with the bear banger M80s. Natural selection taking its path...