Pyrotechnics | Reloading Archives

23 Feb 2017

Fireworks Safety

I love fireworks, as a matter of fact, I enjoy making smaller fireworks (following all the applicable laws and safety procedures).

However, as a child I saw my father almost loose a hand to some ill advised gunpowder usage – it stuck with me and while I am rather fast and loose with some safety protocols, I do try to ensure that my firework fun follows the Fireworks Safety rules I will share below:

Know and obey the law. (Consumer fireworks are illegal in one out of five states.)
Read the label! There will be warnings and instructions; follow them!
If you buy your fireworks more than a few hours before you plan to use them, make sure they’re stored in cool, dry conditions.
Wear eye protection. There is some danger even if everything goes perfectly!
Light fireworks only on a smooth, flat surface well away from any structure. Make sure, also, that there is nothing flammable (like dry leaves) nearby.
Do not let children light, or even handle, fireworks.
Never throw fireworks of any kind at any living thing.
If you get a dud, never try to re-light it. In fact, play it safe – drown the dud in water. Fuses thought to be out have somehow re-ignited.
Keep a supply of water on hand; better a bucket than a hose.
Don’t experiment. Tinkering, disassembling, or covering fireworks with something like a tin can is begging for trouble. Let the professionals build them, and blow them up the way the professionals intended!

19 May 2016

Cement Mixer Brass Tumbler

I got into reloading for cost savings, but I stay involved to ensure that I can still shoot in ammo shortages – it’s not necessarily enjoyable to me as a hobby, so I try to keep my reloading as cheap and efficient as I can.

Cleaning an polishing brass is one area that takes a large amount of time, yet lends itself to experimentation.

I find that I can get walnut media in bulk, cheaply at harbor freight – it is used in abrasive blasters. I cleans really good, even if it does not polish as well as corncob media.

I have several small vibratory cleaners, and they work well, but when I am cleaning range brass, or 5 gallon buckets of once fired brass from classes – I spend way too much time sorting media from brass and loading and unloading the machine.

I recently bought an inexpensive harbor freight mixer for some cement projects and while doing internet research stumbled on the idea of using a cement mixer as a tumbler…

After thinking about it, I realized that it was a great idea.

Some forums like arfcom have full threads about this, and after lurking on several I find that many recommend installing the mixer without the internal paddles, and that many spray the inside of the barrel with a rubber coating to decrease the sound.

Many also fit a lid made out of plywood or even a pizza pan so that they reduce lead dust.

I am going to leave mine in the original configuration, because I will use it as a cement mixer more often that I will as a tumbler.

I do find it does a good job, and since I can do a bucket at a time, it saves a lot of work.

The only thing I recommend is to sort brass before you tumble, as 9mm can get stuck in 40 cases and that is big pita…

31 Mar 2016

How to Make a Stump Remover Smoke Bomb

It is pretty easy to make a homemade smoke bomb using potassium nitrate and sugar. The thing is, that this mix can be used to make black powder, smoke, or rocket fuel so be careful and mind your mix.

Potassium nitrate can be ordered through online firework supply houses, and pure chemicals are always best, but I find that if you check the label, some stump remover is 99% potassium nitrate.

Once you have the nitrate, the next thing is to get some common sane sugar.

The potassium nitrate is the oxidizer and the sugar provides the fuel.

The proper smoke mix using these two chemicals is 60 grams of the oxidizer and 40 grams of the fuel.

Mix in a non stick pot that you will NEVER use for food again. Mix with a wooden spoon and keep it on low heat. You do not want this to catch fire on your stove. (You are warned).

Mix constantly and do not walk away. When it melts and turns to a light brown peanut butter consistency and look then take it off the heat and pack into your form.

This is hot so be careful – cardboard toilet tissue rolls are easiest, but I used something smaller with the idea to embed in a soda can mortar round later.

I also took some and just rolled them into balls and stuck in a fuse.

3 Dec 2015

How to Use Potassium Permanganate Fire Starter

Using Potassium Permanganate Fire Starter is a common topic for prepper and survival website. It is commonly found in lists of things you should always keep in your first aid kits.

Potassium Permanganate or KMnO₄ is a strong oxidizer and when mixed with certain materials it will spontaneously ignite. It will also kill bacteria and organisms in water.

Most commonly it is mixed with glycerine to burn. I mostly use it to light my thermite.

I don’t think it is as effective as a prepper tool because the reaction is dependent on the ambient temperature. If it is too cold it won’t work. This video was in my cool basement and you saw the delayed reaction.

I also think that space taken up by a one time chemical would be better suited to a lighter, a pack of matches, flint and steel, a feocioum rod, or a fire piston. Any of these take up less space and give more fires per size.

However, if you just think this is cool and you want to carry it for the mall ninja effect, I say go for it. I am not hating on you, just carry a backup tool just in case.

5 Nov 2015

How to Extract Nitrocellulose from Ping Pong Balls

Ping pong balls are made of nitrocellulose, I am sure that many would like to create non-nitro based balls, but industry has never been able to create ping ping balls with the same bounce as the nitrocellulose based balls.

Now, while extracting nitrocellulose from ping pong balls is easy, the nitrocellulose is adulterated with camphor. This turns the explosive potential of the balls down while making them more plastic.

Now, while I like to extract the nitrocellulose to make nitrocellulose lacquer for making e-matches (electric initiators) for my rockets, woodworkers have long used nitrocellulose lacquer for fine furniture and musical instruments.

How to Make Nitrocellulose Lacquer:

Ping pong balls, acetone, scissors, a wooden stir stick, and a glass jar with a tight fitting lid.
Simply cut up 4 or 5 balls, and cover them with twice as much acetone as you need to cover the balls.
Let sit overnight.

Additionally, I like to add in some double based (smokeless) gunpowder that I save from my mistakes while reloading. It gives me a hotter flame for igniting my model rockets. Additionally, it allows me to waste less powder when reloading.

So now you know how to extract nitrocellulose from Ping Pong Balls. Its easier than editing actually, I just realized that for some time this said nitroglycerine. I guess that was a Freudian slip, because it would be really neat to have a easy way to get nitroglycerin, but it would probably be illegal, and I would not want to break the law.

Category Archives: Pyrotechnics | Reloading