best green composition ?

[dave321]

I've tried a barium chlorate 90, shellac 10 composition and that's pretty good. I've also added a bit (5%) parlon which did not make a big difference. I am still looking for a much deeper green composition any suggestions , not necessarily bright but deep. and why does my return key not give me a new line to type on ???????

[sparky]

I am thinking it shouldnt get much greener fhan that,are your chems pure

[dynomike1]

Probably need a new keyboard.

I have always liked Emerald green but never made any. Did you try Barium nitrate? They say thats about as good as it gets, but might not be any darker.

[mabuse00]

I think there wont be anything better.

If feel your barium chlorate isn't the purest stuff you can try to recrystalise it.

Or try a different type of shellac.

 

added a bit (5%) parlon which did not make a big difference

The decomposition of barium chlorate already yields all barium as chloride, I don't think this will improve it.

 

 

How did you test it?

I once tested compositions in paper tubes and found the colour to be spoiled by the yellowish paper flame...

[dave321]

the chems are top notch, (reputable supplier)

 

dont get me wrong its definately green, but years ago i saw, in daylight, an intense green burn, made by a commercial pyro 40yrs in the bussiness, but he didnt reveal the composition, he was so impressed by it he had to show me.

 

yes burnt in a thin paper tube

[a_bab]

The old compos used by the italian families are typically made with Ba chlorate, which is used even nowadays.

However, a modern Ba chlorate formula would need some potassium chlorate aswell, so that the ignability is improved, without (much) loss of color.

 

What you should do: make your compo into a pellet (5% alcohol would do it), and once dry ignite it from a distace, maybe 20 meters of more. This way you'll see that you can't have it deeper that that.

 

The green also tends to trick the eye, just like blue: what looks like a crappy color from close could be a great star from far.

[Seymour]

How finely powdered was the chlorate?

[dave321]

it was milled

[boule]

Dave, it sounds like a very simple organic star that you have there. I hazzard guess that it is still might benefit from a little bit binder or confinement of the comp. As already mentioned, many of the stars need to be pressed, cut or rolled and then fired from a star gun in order to judge their true appearance. If you are too close and the burning star is surrounded by the flame and smoke envelope, it is quite possible that you are not observing the effect properly. Another little trick is, that your eyes decieve you when watching something bright from too close up ending up with washed out colors due to overexcitation of your cone cells.

So, press or cut a star out of your comp and get it into the air!

 

In short, this is what a modern organic star looks like - and yeah, it's supposed to be quite bright but I did not try it yet.

KCLO3 22

Barium Chlorate 43

Barium Nitrate 9

Red Gum 22

Dextrin 4

It has some KClO3 in order to increase ignitability and red gum as the fuel. It does work without a Cl-donor same as your star comp, though.

 

Now, if you really want to piss off people by eliminating their night vision, use 1/2in independence green stars.

That stuff is the brightest formula that I know of and leaves a nasty blind spot in your vision after the star is gone. Watch out, it burns quite slowly, though.

Ba(No3)2 46

MgAl (325) 18

Parlon 16

RedGum 10

bind with dextrin or parlon/acetone, use 2-step prime

[FlaMtnBkr]

Always observe out of a shell or star gun. It might look like crap on the ground but great up in the night sky. Also, some metal to brighten it up might get you closer to what you are looking for.

 

The best green I have seen was made with boron. Unfortunately it is really expensive. But it is an amazing pure bright green.

Edited August 16, 2013 by FlaMtnBkr

[ChrisT1985]

I agree with testing stars in the air, with a bit of windspeed. I have some very good blues for shells which use NH4ClO4 to oxidise and copper oxide as colourant, they perform so poorly colour wise when static. When they are broken hard from a shell however, they are so deep they have a purple hue to them. They were shown along side barium chlorate and red gum stars 9/1, last year on the 5th. The only shells which got a wooowww from everyone in unison, was the AP blue.

[bigbuck]

I was going to try the above formulas but they do not add up to 100 are they In percentage?

[dagabu]

A repeat for sure but many comps are measured in "parts" not percentages. 70:30:10:2 is all in parts and is infinitely upscaleable.

[bigbuck]

thanks,wasent sure if it may have been a missprint

[dagabu]

Kyle K made this one and I really like it.

 

Barium Nitrate 50

Parlon 18

Magnalium, granular, -325 mesh 12

Potassium Perchlorate 8

Sulfur 5

Charcoal Airfloat 5

Dextrin 5

Red Gum 2 (I use phenolic resin and hexamine)