Sapper Posted January 30, 2011 Posted January 30, 2011 I haven't seen anything on this so I figured that I would put in my 2 cents.As the former Master Blaster for the now disbanded 319th Eng Co of the 99 RSC US Army Reserves, I've only had 2 missfires in 15 years, and 1 was a standard M68 frag granade.Our SOP (Standard opperating Procedure) was to wait a minnimum of 30 min before anyone goes down-range (to avoid an accidental cook-off)Ialso advise 2 forms of ignition. we used 1 electric and 1 non-electric (but that was for military Quarry and cratering opperations). So if you have no KABOOM it is a good idea to wait.
Ralph Posted January 30, 2011 Posted January 30, 2011 it all depends on the faliour if a shell fails to lift because the quick match hasn't ignited you can just add a piece of visco and be ready to go again I had a salute fail to ignite once (lesson learned falling leaf fuse is unreliable especially in contact with hot glue) after an hour placed another one the same size (both 5g) and a water tamp ontop over time have had a bunch of fountains fail to ignite simply adding a primed fuse to that fixed that problem
Bonny Posted January 31, 2011 Posted January 31, 2011 Doing fireworks shows, I was taught to wait a 1/2hr before going near any mortars in case of misfires/hangfires.After that time, if there was a smouldering fuse, it (should) have gone off. I'm not saying it might not go off after 1/2 hr, but the chances are much lower.
WSM Posted February 1, 2011 Posted February 1, 2011 It is best if you don't handle a missfire. I admit my experience with public display fireworks (over twenty years), colors this opinion. When we found a missfire, the circumstances dictate the handling proceedure. The advice to wait is sound. Many times there may be a hangfire or smoldering "dead" section in a time fuse making a treacherous situation for the folks who have to deal with it. If soaking is called for, never fill the mortar to the top with water as the shell may just float to the top where a shell burst would be catastrophic to the show workers (as opposed to a lowbreak if the shell were to fire from a half-filled mortar, for example). Soaking is my least favorite way to handle the problem, sometimes making a bad situation worse. Sometimes it's the only option. Don't be lulled into a false sense of security about soaked shells. I've plucked dud shells out of the ocean or fresh water that have soaked for days that had the insides completely dry and ignitable upon inspection. You'ld think the time fuse would be the weak link but the moisture seemed to cause it to swell and seal off the contents! If the shell is large caliber and in a buried steel mortal, one approach used by old-timers was to drop a short, lit fusee on top and retire to a safe spot to wait for the shell to fire. The most dangerous thing in any pyro's possesion is impatience. Do wait for things to cool off before approaching a missfired device. Handle with extreme caution and wear all your protective equipment to afford yourself the best chance of escaping harm in case of an incident. WSM
oldguy Posted February 1, 2011 Posted February 1, 2011 Quarry shot years back, had 200 thirty ft deep 4 inch holes loaded with ANFO, 2X16 Dynamite bottom primed, holes stemmed full with drill cuttings & gravel, wired with electrics. Cardboard boxes weighted with gravel as junction boxes for wiring into series. Did area inspection, all perimeters blocked & had commo to each. Did the usual air horn & bull horn warnings. Last minute a few deer charged out of the brush running full tilt into the shot wires. All hell beaks loose as the deer trip on & tear out wires all across the shot. I just stood there in disbelief, shaking my head. Waited 30 minutes, took a couple rolls of wire & a galvanometer & pieced the mess back together, as best possible. All the while watching a dark thunder/lightening cloud rolling my way. Got it rewired, commo checked the perimeters, did a quick warning series & pushed the button on that baby. Shot appeared to pull clean. Next day warned dozer operators to watch for any holes with wires sticking out near the quarry floor level, and/or for loose primed 2X16’s in the muck pile. That was a sweaty time standing on top & rewiring that puppy, and a nervous few days afterwards. Near the quarry floor level a few holes with wire sticking out were found. I washed out the remaining ANFO with a water hose & gently pulled out the primed 2X16’s & removed the blasting caps. I earned my pay that week.
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