I want to make a really long sparkler.

[AirCowPeacock]

I want to make a really long, 2.5 ft sparkler. Something that really kicks ass, but I can do at home without disturbing anyone. I'm thinking of coating the slurry on to a 3/16" x 3' dowel. Do you have any ideas on what I could use to hold the slurry while I dip it? Edited January 25, 2013 by AirCowPeacock

[FlaMtnBkr]

A piece of PVC with a cap on one end? A 1/2" piece of pipe wouldn't require much slurry to fill. If you use something wide to coat, like a dowel, you would need to make the pipe longer for the slurry to rise in as the dowel displaces the slurry. This would have the added benefit of stirring the slurry.

[psyco_1322]

There is a guy with a site somewhere that made some huge sparklers, can't remember who. He took a few of those giant plastic pixie sticks, and used the plastic tubes for the sparkler, filling them full of silver waterfall comp. Slurry dipping sparklers wastes a lot of comp, there is way more in the tube than you will use and to make multiple dips usually means adding more comp to the tube. If you had a pvc pipe you could uncap, you could use a bigger dowel to push out the remaining comp, and maybe use it for something else.

[AirCowPeacock]

I am aware I will need the pipe longer. Thanks, PVC should be great. I don't know why I didn't think of it on my own. What efficency do you think I could get if just making one? As in how much material would be wasted.

 

I'm also thinking of a formula like this. 22% KClO4, 18% -200 mesh MgAl, 15% SrCO3, 15% Parlon, 3% Red Gum, 24% mixed mesh steel/iron turning/fillings, 3% airfloat Charcoal. I'll try it out in a small batch first. It's esentially just the red star formula from the rainbow of rubber stars article on skylighter, plus some steel and charcoal.

Edited January 25, 2013 by AirCowPeacock

[AirCowPeacock]

There is a guy with a site somewhere that made some huge sparklers, can't remember who. He took a few of those giant plastic pixie sticks, and used the plastic tubes for the sparkler, filling them full of silver waterfall comp. Slurry dipping sparklers wastes a lot of comp, there is way more in the tube than you will use and to make multiple dips usually means adding more comp to the tube. If you had a pvc pipe you could uncap, you could use a bigger dowel to push out the remaining comp, and maybe use it for something else.

 

I could use a thin walled 3/8" tube, but loading the powder seems tough at that length. How would burn rate charactaristics change? I feel like it would prevent that iron from 'doing its thing.'

Edited January 25, 2013 by AirCowPeacock

[nater]

That comp burns hot and bright. Be careful not to look at it too close.

[AirCowPeacock]

Indeed. It also has a density of only about 1 g • cm^(-3), meaning my giant 30" sparkler(s) will only need about 50 g of composition each? Also, it is fairly cheap and contains no nitrates or hydroscopic chemicals, so the iron won't degrade giving the spatklers a long shelf life.

[Mumbles]

Dan Williams might be the guy you were thinking of with the super sparklers. I know he has a new website somewhere, but I can't find it.

 

http://www.brianredmond.net/dwilliams/sparkler/sparkler.html

 

My first inclination would be that any parlon bound star system would burn too fast to be all that useful for sparklers. You might want to find a lance or falling leaves composition and add metal to that. Somewhere in between the two might be a happy balance for burn time and spark spray.

[psyco_1322]

That's it, but I swear I remembered reading about him using those plastic tubes. Maybe my mind is just making up things in it's old age

 

I wouldn't use that start comp either. Look around for sparkler comps, there are quite a few out there, try some out.

[nater]

Psycho, you are not crazy. I swear I read about someone using those giant pixie sticks for tube sparklers as well.

[psyco_1322]

I think that is an updated version of the page, I think maybe he did list it, and the paper tube method and later removed the plastic tube method. I do know that waterfall comp will drip sparks a good 10ft, so beware for your feet when using that for sparklers.

[AirCowPeacock]

I'm having trouble finding a red lance compostion that utilizes SrCO3 and lacks both nitrates and chlorate.

[NightHawkInLight]

I wouldn't use PVC. At best you'll be burning a lot of plastic, at worst the flame front will propagate through cracks in the grain and you'll have a few less fingernails that need trimming. If I wanted to make a monster sparkler I would wet my comp until it was like clay then roll one long snake out of it on some wax paper. Sink a stick half way into it with some excess out the bottom to hang on to, then when dry wrap the whole thing tightly in thin paper or gummed tape to be sure the comp can't fall from the stick.

[californiapyro]

he wouldn't be using PVC for the sparkler, but as the dipping vessel, NHIL. You may try a buell red with some extra iron/charcoal. That's pretty slow IIRC and contains no nitrates or chlorates. Cheap, too, if you have a good carbonate source

[AirCowPeacock]

I bought 5 lb of strontium carbonate at around 2$ a pound when slylighter was having a sale. I've got a good carbonate source, atleast for the next few years.

[AirCowPeacock]

Hmm, what if I tweeked buell red to 30% KP, 30% SrCO3, 15% MgAl, 15% Parlon, 10% Red Gum. I don't think the color would be compromised, it could be alcohol bound, and should burn slower. Does +15% steel turnings and +20% steel filings sound good? Edited January 26, 2013 by AirCowPeacock

[AirCowPeacock]

If I wanted to make a monster sparkler I would wet my comp until it was like clay then roll one long snake out of it on some wax paper. Sink a stick half way into it with some excess out the bottom to hang on to, then when dry wrap the whole thing tightly in thin paper or gummed tape to be sure the comp can't fall from the stick.

 

That's not a bad Ideal, but, I think it would be better to flatten a rectangular patty so it will wrap once around the stick and then roll it around. I would have to make sure there's no cracks for a flame front to 'shoot down.' So I would just roll it back and forth to 'smush' it all in there.

Edited January 26, 2013 by AirCowPeacock

[AirCowPeacock]

I tried rolling it out into a patty and wraping it around a stick. It did not work because the large steel turnings broke up the patty. I then used 75 g of the composition to fill 20" of 3/8" tube made from two wraps of #30 kraft. This went great.

 

I settled on this composition, its modified buell red +35% steel.

 

Potassium perchlorate 22.2%

Magnalium -200 mesh 11.1%

Strontium carbonate 22.3%

Parlon 11.1%

Red Gum 7.4%

Steel granular -80 mesh 14.8%

pulverized Steel turnings (flake -2+20 mesh) 11.1%

 

Wet with Alcohol

 

It burns at about 4 to 6 seconds per inch. It's a good red and has plenty of branching yellow-orange sparks.

 

I will be burning the sparkler tomorrow. I'll get a video.

 

[taiwanluthiers]

Dan Williams might be the guy you were thinking of with the super sparklers. I know he has a new website somewhere, but I can't find it.

 

http://www.brianredm...r/sparkler.html

 

My first inclination would be that any parlon bound star system would burn too fast to be all that useful for sparklers. You might want to find a lance or falling leaves composition and add metal to that. Somewhere in between the two might be a happy balance for burn time and spark spray.

 

Thanks, that website brings back some memory. Read it years ago and attempted to make one, but used atomized aluminum instead of bright aluminum... ended up making a glowing mixture that didn't spark but burnt with a really bright but white flame.