usapyro Posted July 1, 2013 Author Posted July 1, 2013 whatever happened to USApyro? Anybody know if he's alive and well? Yep, I'm fine... Just not in the hobby anymore. I might drop by once every other year or so.
giod Posted September 3, 2013 Posted September 3, 2013 i'd like to make some of these, can these be made in a star roller? whats the final most current formula and directions?\ confim its: CuO (black) and not 3cuo (blue) Thanks! Gio
Mumbles Posted September 4, 2013 Posted September 4, 2013 I don't know what you think 3cuo is, but I assure you that it doesn't exist.
giod Posted September 4, 2013 Posted September 4, 2013 I don't know what you think 3cuo is, but I assure you that it doesn't exist. Copper Oxychloride no?
patsroom Posted September 4, 2013 Posted September 4, 2013 Copper Oxychloride : [3CuO.CuCl2•3.5H2O] ?............Pat
jl88 Posted December 27, 2013 Posted December 27, 2013 I know this is an older topic. But thought. Might throw some input in for smaller dragon eggs. I tried to make various small eggs with a loud report but struggled through various trials before I got this one right. Bismuth trioxide 37.5gCuO 35gMgAl 7.5gAl fine powder 5g (I had 400 mesh) Basically the same as previously mentioned, but when I added the aluminum powder, boy did it change them completely. Very loud report.
dan999ification Posted December 27, 2013 Posted December 27, 2013 Looks like a large one to me Judging by the smoulder phase I'd say the metal mesh size could do with adjusting. I used to use this formula but found it un usable in the air. Dan.
FlaMtnBkr Posted December 27, 2013 Posted December 27, 2013 I know it's hard to tell on video but based on the loudness of the whistling, it didn't sound that loud. It also had a really long delay which will make using in a shell hard. Traveling in the air will cool it down which will make getting hot enough to pop, hard. You will need a prime that really holds the heat in, maybe like fence post prime or something with a lot of silicon. If you use a little finer mgal the delay shouldn't be as long. I have had good luck with 37.5 bismuth trioxide37.5 black copper oxide25 MgAl 200 mesh Bound with NC lacquer though I know this thread is about no NC.
jl88 Posted December 27, 2013 Posted December 27, 2013 (edited) It's about 1/4 the size of a pea, one of the scrap pieces. Ill take another movie in a more remote location. The music in the back ground was blaring and I was whistling straight into the phone, so I think the phone equalised the volume down. Also the shape and lack if prime didn't help things, it was and ice cream come shape, lit at the small end. Either way another video to come should prove my excuses lol Edited December 27, 2013 by jl88
jl88 Posted December 30, 2013 Posted December 30, 2013 (edited) Well bugger. Tested several more of the dragons eggs in a more suitable area and while several were very loud after a reasonable delay, most crackled out. Meaning they simply sparked several times until finished. The MgAl is 325 mesh. I will do some more testing and post the results. Perhaps lower the MgAl would yield less chance of them sparking... Thanks for the replies, any further tips are appreciated. Edited December 30, 2013 by jl88
Ubehage Posted October 2, 2014 Posted October 2, 2014 This maybe a stupid question, but.. Are these eggs waterproof?I think I have read somewhere, that red gum helps bind water-sensitive chemicals. Winter is coming; moisture in the air. So I won't be making any crackling untill spring. Due to my ignorance and fear of pyrophoric MgAl But it would be nice to know if the finished product is safer to handle.
FlaMtnBkr Posted October 3, 2014 Posted October 3, 2014 NC bound eggs are much more waterproof. But usually winter has drier air and not more humid? I know I talked about pyrophoric metal but why are you worried about it? Do you have to grind some up to make dragon eggs? And water won't change anything with something being pyrophoric. It has to do with oxygen and the metal oxidizing which releases heat. The major thing that needs to be done when milling metal is open the mill every so often. Just for a second to let fresh air in, put the lid on and walk away and then start milling. This will allow the metal to more slowly oxidize. When you are done milling, do the same thing a few times. Then open the lid and walk away. If it were to catch fire it's best for it to just burn itself out by itself. But it isn't always going to burn up, but it can in the right circumstances. It's best to know it can happen so you are prepared. I don't think it should be any reason not to make dragon eggs. In fact the winter air may help cool the milled metal so it doesn't get so hot that it burns. But this is only an issue of you are milling metal, not just using it. Good luck. 1
Livingston Posted October 17, 2014 Posted October 17, 2014 I've used Red Lead and had great results with NC made from %100 acetone nail polish and ping pong balls!! NC is really cold lol 1
enanthate Posted October 25, 2014 Posted October 25, 2014 (edited) Just made a batch of bismutheggs, using 5% red gum and alcohol as solvent. Should I have dissolved the red gum in the alcohol before adding to the mix? They haven't dried yet, it's only been like 10 minutes since I cut them. But they feel like they aren't bound properly. When very careful I can barely lift one up without it smouldering. How normal is this?I'm using the stuff to remove humidity from your gasoline tank, content says 2-propanol. Can anyone confirm that this is regular alcohol? Used to be sure about my alc, but these DE's made me wonder.. Could it be my RG btw? Got it from pyrogarage. Edited October 25, 2014 by enanthate
enanthate Posted October 26, 2014 Posted October 26, 2014 Alcohol is fine, they turned out unbreakable. 1
GalFisk Posted December 10, 2014 Posted December 10, 2014 Good to hear. 2-propanol is also known as isopropanol, isopropyl alcohol, or rubbing alcohol. "Normal" alcohol is ethanol. 1
maniak Posted April 25, 2015 Posted April 25, 2015 I can confirm the following comp as not requiring NC lacquer: lead tetroxide 44CuO 31MgAl 17S 4KNO3 4Red Gum 5 Dissolve in ethanol. They are not very loud but still they do crack and leave some sparks behind. I've tried them in fountains (without priming) so far and 3-5 eggs do the job. I'll still try and improve the sound effect though. 1
Bcorso85 Posted August 25, 2015 Posted August 25, 2015 Hey Guys,I know this is old, but I'm not starting a new thread for a simple question. I'm new to DE's. Just rolled the rollowing formula. Bis Tri 35Copper Ox 38Red Gum 5Pot Perc 6Mag 100-200 24+ 5 gram 180mesh Atom Alum.rolled on a 2mm cous cous pasta to about 4.5mm with undiluted denatured alcohol. I lit a few on the ground and they look great. A few stars is like 2 packs of salutes. Lots of spread on the beautiful gold grackle. With no prime they lit instantly with a blow torch and ignited each other.However they aren't very loud. Everything else is perfect. I just want some good noise. What can I change/ substitute? Or will performance change when primed and star comps rolled on top?/ should I coat them in NC or Wax?
Mumbles Posted August 25, 2015 Posted August 25, 2015 If you light one star, what happens? The eggs that give a single crack/explosion tend to be the loudest in my experience. Those that go off in multiple parts tend to be more quieter, but great in matrix stars. Also, how long between lighting and the effect is there? Dragon eggs are one of the effects where density makes a difference. I've never tried rolling them on cores, so I'm not sure what effect that would have.
Bcorso85 Posted August 25, 2015 Posted August 25, 2015 If you light one star, what happens? The eggs that give a single crack/explosion tend to be the loudest in my experience. Those that go off in multiple parts tend to be more quieter, but great in matrix stars. Also, how long between lighting and the effect is there? Dragon eggs are one of the effects where density makes a difference. I've never tried rolling them on cores, so I'm not sure what effect that would have. If I light a star, it ignites instantly with a series of crackels ( multiple parts) about 18 inches in length. Vey nice. Large effect for a tiny star core. The is no delay at all, or measurable glow phase....... the purpose of the stars is both core for color stars, and pistils for an aerial cake insert. that's why I enjoy the 4mm size. The noise level as more of an intense sizzle, or maybe a crackle fuse.Should I increase the size considering a 4mm star is only 2mm because of the actual core?Rolling a round star is important to me, and I don't know how to roll a cut star round with a primer. Well, I have no experience with it.
Rushfire Posted July 4, 2017 Posted July 4, 2017 USApyro, I want to thank you for this great formula. From my limited scouring of the web I havent seen another one like it. Had a go for the first time at dragon eggs this year and didnt want to use nitrocellulose because, well, its nitrocellulose. I whipped up a small batch using your no nc formula and they worked great for me. Some crackle, some crackle and pop, and some make a huge BANG. Likely because they aren't all the same size star cuts but Im no pro, just an enthusiast, and I love the result. I also like that they are super quick to make, literally took me under an hour to make a batch. Cheers!
usapyro Posted July 5, 2017 Author Posted July 5, 2017 USApyro, I want to thank you for this great formula. From my limited scouring of the web I havent seen another one like it. Had a go for the first time at dragon eggs this year and didnt want to use nitrocellulose because, well, its nitrocellulose. I whipped up a small batch using your no nc formula and they worked great for me. Some crackle, some crackle and pop, and some make a huge BANG. Likely because they aren't all the same size star cuts but Im no pro, just an enthusiast, and I love the result. I also like that they are super quick to make, literally took me under an hour to make a batch. Cheers! Nice, your welcome! Can't believe this thread is still alive... What do you not like about NC? I just did not like the Kneading part mostly. Dissolving the NC and storing the liquid was also a headache. I actually use fine powdered NC for binding my glitters, comets, and everything now. It goes straight into the comp, then the comp is wet with acetone... Results in dry glitter stars ready to shoot within a few hours!
insutama Posted July 5, 2017 Posted July 5, 2017 When trying to perfect DE are you making small 10 gram batches then if they dont work as wanted do you make another 10 gram batch or do you just add more kclo4 and re wet and cut again? Also would a scale with .01 accuracy be good enough for small 10 gram batches ?
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