3" ball shell construction?

[bob]

I'm sorry Bob. I don't think I have ever seen a ball shell spiked with string and only a few nice looking ball shells spiked with packaging tape. I use kraft water activated tape with no reinforcing even on plastic shells for good breaks.

 

Whats the hot glue used for, the time fuse?

 

-dag

 

well I just have one more layer to past one this one let it dry and it will be ready if 12 is ok with out spiking I can't wait to see how it performes with out tape I'm as gity as a littly kid in the candy store

I use the hot glue to glue my fuse (spoolette) in

bob

[dagabu]

well I just have one more layer to past one this one let it dry and it will be ready if 12 is ok with out spiking I can't wait to see how it performes with out tape I'm as gity as a littly kid in the candy store

I use the hot glue to glue my fuse (spoolette) in

bob

 

Thank you Bob. I hope your shell breaks true and that it will make you whoop and laugh!

 

-dag

[dan999ification]

 

explanation time, i have never used cotton seed but did a quick google for pics before posting that, what i saw was probably a young seed the size of an ant or tomato seed, after looking more thoroughly it seems they are more like the size of crispies.

appologies for the bs, no perc can do strange things to a man.

 

 

 

dan.

Edited June 20, 2012 by dan999ification

[dan999ification]

I"m talking about packaging tape some other people told me to use it to spike round shells instead of string

any way I shot of that shell last night and it flower potted were is a picture of it

I don't know what I didn't do right cause it was a loose fit and I have not had a flower pot since I've used hot glue

bob

 

if it is the hot glue seal that went you could try a short section of tube around the time fuse that is filled with glue, some of the plastic shells have this feature and it worked for me at first, now i make sure that the hole the fuse goes in is smaller than the fuse for a tight fit, push the fuse through, glue the inside, twist and pull the fuse out, glue the inside [again] and out side then after pasting apply some more to the outside.

 

if it was not the glue the shell could have crushed [not tight or full enough] or the fuse was damaged leaving the mortar, the debris will tell you what happened

 

 

 

dan.

[Potassiumchlorate]

No perc? You need perc to stay perky.

[bob]

I thought I had my shells figured out cause I had three in a row work perfectly

I made four shells same batch of stars, burst, I pasted them all the same day, same fuses. same every thing execpt the lift

I shot two of them and they broke perfect! nice even brakes, then I shot of a nother one with diffrent lift (still grass seed but diffrent batch) I know that it was not as good as the lift I had used on the other shells so I just put the same amount in a plastic bagie (thought that the extra confineninment would make up for the lift not being as good) but it broke really bad here is a picture of it, it looks like it was still going up when it broke but not by much.

some details

13 layers of pasting (wheat past), spoolet for timing, 1/4 inch TT stars meal prime, bm for the ps and crossmatching, burst was bp coated grass seed 5 to 1 ratio, no spiking, three inch ball shell,

any ideas on why it broke like this when the others didn't?

[bob]

any ideas?

I heard that algenco uses granulated burst for smaller shells ie 4 inch and below, I have had no luck using granulated but I think I was using 17 mesh or some thing, well it was quite fine so I was thinking what about using four mesh stuff? or would that be too large of a grain?

Edited October 9, 2012 by bob

[Algenco]

My granulated is 4-8 mesh

[bob]

thanks algenco I'll try it out soon

bob

[Mumbles]

You can really only tell so much from a picture. A video is much more valuable.

 

With 13 layers of pasting, it sounds like your BP isn't all that good if you can't get decent breaks out of it, at least this particular batch. It at least doesn't sound particularly consistent. You might want to take a look at your methods if you're getting this kind of variability. Some sort of tester may also be valuable.

[dan999ification]

4 to 8 mesh wow, this answers my question, should i worry about the burst media clumping together when applying bp, it is the size os crispies 4 mesh at the most, my thinking and testing tell me that the fire will move through it quicker but it will take slightly longer to be consumed needing more pasting.

Im trying balsa bp 4 to 1 to improve the breaks on my crys shells but cant get around the clumping issue hand rolling it on.

 

Dan.

[Algenco]

Dan,

 

Are you having clumping issues when coating rice hulls?

 

If so, the hulls are too wet

 

My unboosted break works because I use highly reactive charcoal (Paulownia), Balsa ,Willow and a few other varieties should work

[bob]

You can really only tell so much from a picture. A video is much more valuable.

 

With 13 layers of pasting, it sounds like your BP isn't all that good if you can't get decent breaks out of it, at least this particular batch. It at least doesn't sound particularly consistent. You might want to take a look at your methods if you're getting this kind of variability. Some sort of tester may also be valuable.

I'll see what I can do about the video

I had done tests with that same batch of black powder and it did really good so I don't know what it could be

bob

Edited October 9, 2012 by bob

[dan999ification]

its balsa charcoal and is very fast, the fastest ive seen, its actually grass seed which normally gets 1/1 willow that is all that will stick after soaking and draining, left to dry sprayed with hot water and some will stick to a point, ive seen videos of using star rollers to coat but i hand roll which is difficult to keep things moving while applying water and powder, the clumps burn very fast, faster than un clumped willow on seed.

Am i right in thinking that the small seed slows the flame front as it is dense and the bigger ( clumps ) will let it move faster, they are porous and can be broken up but some powder will fall off, guess i should be more patient with this like rolling stars.

 

Dan.

[bob]

my star roller uses a drill to turn a three gallon bucket and I like it way better then in a container and shaking it gives it a better coating and you can coat as much on as you want

I think I might buy some balsa and see if that helps my shells

bob

[dan999ification]

it will help in burst strength but may not symetry, the shells are breaking unevenly i think due to flaws in construction, what are you using for hemis, and are you happy with your pasting being even, thicker spots can make this happen, as can damaged hemis, thanks for the rolling advice, i am rolling it on ( hand rolling )shaking only gets me 50/50coverage.

My rpm is too low for coating seed, rolling like stars ( handrolling ) only gets me granulated bp and uncoated seed.

 

Dan

[bob]

my pasting is not the best but it doesnt look all that bad (I think) I will post a picture of one of my pasted shells

I make my hemis from newspaper the same way david blesser says to in is book Round Stars and Shells (I use four layers)

Thanks for your help guys

bob

[Algenco]

my pasting is not the best but it doesnt look all that bad (I think) I will post a picture of one of my pasted shells

I make my hemis from newspaper the same way david blesser says to in is book Round Stars and Shells (I use four layers)

Thanks for your help guys

bob

 

you need to burnish the shell, roll it until the surface is smooth or close, this tightens up your pasting increasing confinement

 

pasted paper/ wheat paste

 

http://i468.photobucket.com/albums/rr47/Algenco/SANY0313.jpg

Edited October 11, 2012 by Algenco

[bob]

Thanks Algenco I'll try this out on my next shell

that looks really smooth

Thanks so much

bob

[Algenco]

Thanks Algenco I'll try this out on my next shell

that looks really smooth

Thanks so much

bob

 

Bob, with gummed tape it won't be that smooth, but burnishing will help alot.

The wrinkles aren't doing anything for confinement

[bob]

I'm not using gummed tape I'm using wheat past

I just have to do some tests with my new lift and then I can get started on a no there shell

bob

[bob]

I made another shell with some help from algenco

I tested my lift and got a 6.25 second flight (around flight) with 5.5 grams (I did a few other testes so I was pretty sure that it was a 6.25 second flight) but with this shell (5.5 grams) it only went up a VERY short way (0.47 around flight) were is a picture of it at it's apex

cause it was on the ground whet it broke it is hard to tell if it would have broking evenly

Edited October 19, 2012 by bob

[Peret]

it only went up a VERY short way (0.47 around flight)

 

Don't you hate it when that happens. This was my most spectacular 3 inch low break.

 

 

 

 

The smoke to the right of the burst in the first picture is the launch plume from the mortar, which is almost directly underneath the shell.

Edited October 19, 2012 by Peret

[Algenco]

We've all had our "oops" shells, make it more rewarding when things finally work right.

 

10g is a good starting point for lift with a 3" shell

 

with really hot BP you can use less

 

7.5 sec flight time is good for 3"

Edited October 19, 2012 by Algenco

[dynomike1]

I dont know about Grams, but i use 1oz. 2Fg. with no problems. When i get my ball mill that might change.