Wiley Posted August 25, 2012 Posted August 25, 2012 I would like to practice rolling stars with an inert formula containing relatively inexpensive materials. Such a formula would need to have similar physical properties to a real star composition. I was thinking of making a charcoal formula similar to C6, but replacing the KNO3 with some sort of cheap non-oxidizer. I also wish to bind my stars with red gum/alcohol. Here is my still incomplete proposed formula: Inert "oxidizer" 55%Airfloat charcoal 30%Sulfur 5%Red gum 10% Any suggestions for what to use for inert "KNO3?" Perhaps finely ground sodium chloride? Furthermore, would this formula roll anything like a real charcoal star? Any creative input would be appreciated. Thanks!
sparky Posted August 25, 2012 Posted August 25, 2012 I would like to practice rolling stars with an inert formula containing relatively inexpensive materials. Such a formula would need to have similar physical properties to a real star composition. I was thinking of making a charcoal formula similar to C6, but replacing the KNO3 with some sort of cheap non-oxidizer. I also wish to bind my stars with red gum/alcohol. Here is my still incomplete proposed formula: Inert "oxidizer" 55%Airfloat charcoal 30%Sulfur 5%Red gum 10% Any suggestions for what to use for inert "KNO3?" Perhaps finely ground sodium chloride? Furthermore, would this formula roll anything like a real charcoal star? Any creative input would be appreciated. Thanks!Just go for it,You could start with a core or nothing at all.If you choose not to use a core it will be more difficult.Start with putting some powder in the roller and mist it with the alcohol that will start to form little balls if you use too much solvent it will turn in to one big star if that happens I would granulate it and use that for the cores.Rolling stars is not that difficult I use the no core powder method for my micro stars and it wotks really well
dagabu Posted August 25, 2012 Posted August 25, 2012 I would like to practice rolling stars with an inert formula containing relatively inexpensive materials. Such a formula would need to have similar physical properties to a real star composition. I was thinking of making a charcoal formula similar to C6, but replacing the KNO3 with some sort of cheap non-oxidizer. I also wish to bind my stars with red gum/alcohol. Here is my still incomplete proposed formula: Inert "oxidizer" 55%Airfloat charcoal 30%Sulfur 5%Red gum 10% Any suggestions for what to use for inert "KNO3?" Perhaps finely ground sodium chloride? Furthermore, would this formula roll anything like a real charcoal star? Any creative input would be appreciated. Thanks! Yes, Sodium Chloride works very well in the place of Potassium Nitrate, the solubility is very close and the crystals are similar in density. I suggest that you ball mill all of the ingredients together first before making stars. This comp is very close to the one I used years ago to make inert stars for a dummy shell. Good luck. -dag
Arthur Posted August 25, 2012 Posted August 25, 2012 I watched some inert stars being rolled simply from plaster. It worked perfectly. They were used for demos of shell building.
pyrojig Posted August 25, 2012 Posted August 25, 2012 C- stars are so dang cheap to practice with , why would you want to us inert material ? It seems like a waste of time. Even if you botch the batch , they are very forgiving. They may not look pretty, but they will still work. Round Shells and Round Stars" By David Blesser is a great book for rolling technique .
eb11 Posted September 3, 2012 Posted September 3, 2012 (edited) hey guys i rolled some c6 stars today i usually pump them but it seems alot quicker to roll the stars so i made a bach today and i put them in the sun to dry they sat in the sun all day if i sqeeze them in my hand they still break pretty easilly and if i lite them they dont lite very well. my question is are they still wet inside or are they no good. i used 75%water and 25%iso alcohol. i also used the c6 star formula from the skylighter website. when i usally press them i can lite them right away so i am thinking they need to dry alot longer but i need help from the experts Edited September 3, 2012 by eb11
Arthur Posted September 4, 2012 Posted September 4, 2012 You can press stare at 1 - 5% moisture, but other methods tend to need 10 - 20% moisture. Dry them a LOT more. -A week in a warm dry place is a start.
taiwanluthiers Posted September 7, 2012 Posted September 7, 2012 (edited) Your star was driven in. Do not force dry them, dry it in the shade. The star will eventually dry completely but it will take a week or so. Edited September 7, 2012 by taiwanluthiers
NightHawkInLight Posted September 7, 2012 Posted September 7, 2012 I'm sure you probably know most of everything in this video, but it's an excellent demonstration I was able to film a few years back that always comes to mind when someone brings up rolling.
Mumbles Posted September 7, 2012 Posted September 7, 2012 Your star was driven in. Do not force dry them, dry it in the shade. The star will eventually dry completely but it will take a week or so. You have actually made stars before, right? That's spoken like someone with negligible experience with making stars, and someone who has clearly never experienced driven in stars.
taiwanluthiers Posted September 7, 2012 Posted September 7, 2012 (edited) I made some stars and I just had some driven in star because I rolled it in mill dust which makes a good moisture barrier (it seems), so the stars wouldn't dry fully for several days. It did get drier but it took a while. Those stars could be easily crushed and didn't take fire very well at all until it became drier. Edited September 7, 2012 by taiwanluthiers
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