Beginner chems

[genrege]

Appreciate all the responses, I'll certainly wear a dust mask and gloves going forwards.

[bbdown]

Is a dust mask sufficient? I think I've read somewhere on here that a respirator is preferred.

 

[dagabu]

Is a dust mask sufficient? I think I've read somewhere on here that a respirator is preferred.

 

 

Nope, you need a good respirator, the 3M 5100 and 6100 series half face respirators work great and the prefilters are pretty darn cheap.

 

-dag

[Mumbles]

A respirator is definitely preferred. A paper dust mask is better than nothing of course. I don't know if I'd trust one if I were to be using something relatively toxic like barium nitrate or lead tetraoxide though. You'll save money in the long run with a respirator.

[nater]

I wore a paper dust mask once when mixing with airfloat charcoal and noticed black dust on the inside of the mask. Some of the particles are smaller than the pores in the paper. A respirator would be best, especially when using anything toxic.

[taiwanluthiers]

Hi, I'd like to get in to the hobby rocketry and pyrotechnics. Can you guys give me a list of some of the most basic chemicals a beginner would need. Here's what I think I'll get so far.

 

Dextrin, Strontium Carbonate, Sulfur, Dark Flak and Bright Flake Aluminum powder, Red Iron Oxide, Potassium Benzoate, Potassium Perc, Potassium Chlorate, Potassium Nitrate.

 

Thanks.

 

 

 

General Oxidizer: Potassium nitrate

 

Fuels: charcoal, aluminum (around 300-400 mesh, German dark if you want in SMALL quantities, otherwise not really necessary), sulfur

 

Colorants: Barium nitrate, copper oxide, strontium nitrate, etc.

 

Other effects: titanium or iron powder for sparks

 

Strong(er) oxidizer: Potassium PERchlorate. No need for chlorates unless you have special needs or just have a yard full of weed that you want to totally wipe out.

 

These will get you pretty far. Don't buy more than a lb of each by the way, always experiment with smaller quantities before making them in bulk, especially with flash based composition. I don't really like salutes to be honest with you, pretty easy to buy and all it does is go bang and attract a lot of unwanted attention. Also, the type of charcoal matters! Charcoal you buy at the usual pyro supplier aren't that good because they're made from pine. You want willow charcoal which will make better blackpowder.

 

Here's a simple device: a fountain. Make a standard black powder, that means 75:15:10 potassium nitrate, charcoal, and sulfur. Mix them up in a ball mill slightly wet for safety, then add a little bit (5%) of titanium powder. Lightly press powder into plugged tube (DONT HAMMER) then insert fuse and wad to keep it in. Light it and enjoy the firework. You can experiment with chokes to make the spark go higher as the unchoked version doesn't spray very high.

 

You can actually make pretty good charcoal with old T shirts.

[alchemist]

I want to have a limited inventory of chemicals and I have seen a Veline system and binder starter sets on ebay. What do you think of the veline colors?