captainG Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 (edited) Hi just joined the site after about 2 days straight of getting lost in threads...man my wife hates this phone lol.so I checked out a lot of the beginner stuff took the advice and downloaded the turbo pdf so I wanted to work through that as I want to learn the right way. So evidently they had a whole turbo starter kit at one time but I couldn't find it anymore I have ordered a few diff chems but was courious if anyone knows of like a basic all in one entry level tool kit for rockets,fountains and such figured I'd ask before I bought individually I am particularly interested in making a rocket just something about that woosh sound would be so much better if it came from my hands. Also I was reviewing a bunch of charcoal threads and will probably end up making my own eventually as I have acces to plenty of willow but is the wm cowboy charcoal acceptable for a cheapo beginner stuff to get my feet wet? Thanks in advance, cap Edited January 7, 2015 by captainG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jessoman Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 Get some decent 1/2" rocket tools and tubes. One of the toolmakers on here will probably pipe up and offer something. What springs to mind is calebs 1/2" set... It has a good mix of spindles/rammers etc. https://squareup.com/market/WoodysCreationshe's a nice guys too. You also have the main toolmakers, firesmith and wolter pyro tools. Both very good. Dagabu also is a good toolmaker, but not sure if he's spinning metal right now :-) As for the charcoal, it should be right. Sounds like you want to hunt down a ball mill now, if you think your into it for the long run... get a good one save the money and time. Probably the best advice I could think of. If you want to keep away from milling. You can use a rocket blender for milling individual chems and a screen to mix things all up. Other then that you just need a mallet (or you got a press, if you do... get a pressure gauge). and tubes.Simple rockets are easy.I made my first ones with sugar and kno3, blade milled separately. Threw them in a paper tube, kitty litter for nozzle, stainless rod for spindle mounted in wood. Super simple, but got me into it, perhaps this may be for you to get the feet wet.Also, the best tool is the forums! Keep reading 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
captainG Posted January 7, 2015 Author Share Posted January 7, 2015 (edited) Ok so another question so I bought my kno3 about 6 years ago when I had planned on getting into the hobby however life kinda got in the way. needless to say it was stored in less than perfect conditions so after seeing something about it being hygroscopic I am a little nervous I did a search on here for shelf life or storage or going bad but Turned up nothing so is it bad? Any way to test? Save it? What is shelf life snd proper storage techniques. Thanks, cap Edited January 7, 2015 by captainG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dagabu Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 Cap, You can take KNO3 and leave it out in the open, get it wet and dirty etc then mix it with boiling water, throw it outside (really cold up here today) and the KNO3 will crash out into crystals. There is little you can do to make it go bad, really. If it is white and not dirty, just break it up into smalleish chunks, dry it out good and then throw it into a blade grinder to grind it up really fine. Caleb's and my tooling are now being sold in the same online store HERE. We also do custom tooling as well, just email me with any questions, coldfire11@msn.com 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dagabu Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 Hi just joined the site after about 2 days straight of getting lost in threads...man my wife hates this phone lol.so I checked out a lot of the beginner stuff took the advice and downloaded the turbo pdf so I wanted to work through that as I want to learn the right way. So evidently they had a whole turbo starter kit at one time but I couldn't find it anymore I have ordered a few diff chems but was courious if anyone knows of like a basic all in one entry level tool kit for rockets,fountains and such figured I'd ask before I bought individually I am particularly interested in making a rocket just something about that woosh sound would be so much better if it came from my hands. Also I was reviewing a bunch of charcoal threads and will probably end up making my own eventually as I have acces to plenty of willow but is the wm cowboy charcoal acceptable for a cheapo beginner stuff to get my feet wet? Thanks in advance, cap A beginners toolkit? I started with a hammer, a dowel, a nail and a paper tube 30 some years ago. I suggest you choose a single item to make or choose one from the "book" and go from their. You can get chems and tools plus paper goods elsewhere for a decent price, there may even be a person or two here that will help you out to get started too. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
captainG Posted January 7, 2015 Author Share Posted January 7, 2015 Thanks dag it seems from reviews that wood was not real reliable so I just figured id get the better stuff first maybe try to see if anyone has upgraded or something. what do you think of the cowboy charcoal idea dag? Maybe smash it up with a 4x4 into millable sized chunks I also saw the airfloat oak link to the oak guys in GA. For like a buck a pound...thoughts thanks, cap Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dagabu Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 Cap, Shoot me an email, I am sure I can find a few items for you to get a start with. As far as Cowboy goes, it makes great sparks, I like it for a couple comet comps I have used but it's poop for powerful BP, pine of just about any kind is much better. coldfire11@msn.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mumbles Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 I've found that if you cherry pick the lumps in cowboy, you can make serviceable lift powder. Look for the lightweight really soft pieces. They're usually more natural looking branches in my experience as opposed to pieces which are clearly old boards, paneling, or furniture pieces. It's not the best, but better than briquettes or commercial airfloat charcoal. The best bet would be to make your own, or purchase some ready made BP charcoal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
captainG Posted January 10, 2015 Author Share Posted January 10, 2015 (edited) Thanks dag probably shoot you email this week....well went and got a paint can and some ceadar chips from wally and made some batches in my burn barrel yesterday a gallon ziplock bag full to be exact. very rewarding to make my own but 5 $ a pound charcoal takes on a whole new meaning of the word bargain. ...lol Edited January 10, 2015 by captainG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dagabu Posted January 10, 2015 Share Posted January 10, 2015 Cap, Once you are here for a while, you will see some good sales and once you go to PGI convention, you will find airfloat (just middle of the road stuff) for a buck a pound all ready for BP. Hang in there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric70 Posted January 10, 2015 Share Posted January 10, 2015 I've found that if you cherry pick the lumps in cowboy, you can make serviceable lift powder. Look for the lightweight really soft pieces. They're usually more natural looking branches in my experience as opposed to pieces which are clearly old boards, paneling, or furniture pieces. It's not the best, but better than briquettes or commercial airfloat charcoal. The best bet would be to make your own, or purchase some ready made BP charcoal. I do the same thing, the soft lightweight pieces work really well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
captainG Posted January 11, 2015 Author Share Posted January 11, 2015 (edited) I was looking at the pyro pro for fuse, looks like they have pretty good prices. anyone have experience with them? Also chinese or Japanese time fuse? Opinions? Edited January 11, 2015 by captainG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Th3thin9 Posted February 3, 2015 Share Posted February 3, 2015 Ok so another question so I bought my kno3 about 6 years ago when I had planned on getting into the hobby however life kinda got in the way. needless to say it was stored in less than perfect conditions so after seeing something about it being hygroscopic I am a little nervous I did a search on here for shelf life or storage or going bad but Turned up nothing so is it bad? Any way to test? Save it? What is shelf life snd proper storage techniques. Thanks, capI had that problem, I made some KNO3 from ammonium nitrate and salt substitute potassium chloride, and left it in a plastic bag which i tied together to seal it, the KNO3 absorbed way too much humidity from the environment and just rendered useless in about 2 months, I live in the tropics, thats all I will say about me. What I did is "bake" the potassium nitrate like a cake, and each 5 minutes I stirred it on the pyrex so it didnt get ruined, and then I sealed in a small plastic jar, and placed a small "silica gel" pack in it, and it still works like a charm until this day. I hope you find this useful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TYRONEEZEKIEL Posted February 3, 2015 Share Posted February 3, 2015 Hey Captain, shoot me a PM and I would be very happy to get in touch with you to help you get started in whatever direction you would like to go in the pyro hobby. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
captainG Posted February 16, 2015 Author Share Posted February 16, 2015 Sent you a pm ...I was holding off on buying some stuff because I thought I had a deal working on several diff items but I guess my idea of a deal and his were 2 different things Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeee Posted February 16, 2015 Share Posted February 16, 2015 CaptainG, You can build a lot of your own tools when first starting out. Basic rocket tooling can be fabricated from basic parts. Read articles and watch some videos and you can figure out ways to make basic tools cheaply. Decide what you want to try building first and focus on the tools you need for those items. You will need a ball mill and some screens to make your own black powder and compositions. Skylighter runs a sale on a basic screen set several times a year, a Harbor Freight ball mill will work for a basic mill when starting out. You can build your own case formers with common items that are the right diameter. Here is one I just finished making this week-end. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeee Posted February 16, 2015 Share Posted February 16, 2015 Here is a wood former for making hemi shells. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
captainG Posted February 17, 2015 Author Share Posted February 17, 2015 (edited) Thanks for the tips mikeee, but at this point I would just rather just buy the hemis made to ease the learning curve and time issues. if I buy some good tools then I will always have them I already have a ball mill I was holding out because I was supposed to buy the lead and a bunch of other stuff from someone but they pretty much flaked out so I am now back in the market just not in a big hurry you know. Edited February 17, 2015 by captainG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calebkessinger Posted February 17, 2015 Share Posted February 17, 2015 (edited) Captain G,I would be glad to help out any way I can. I build a lot more items than what is shown on my site and will make kit's of various tools so you can make more than one thing with a tool set. Some of us understand not being able to buy one of everything, heck even one of one thing!!! I don't have but a couple sets of rocket tools that I use, everything else I sell as soon as it's shined up !!! Edited February 17, 2015 by calebkessinger Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dagabu Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 As always, I like to help too, what tools are you looking for again? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeee Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 CaptainG, You should contact Caleb, he should be able fix you up with some lead milling media.If you post a list of items you are looking for, many of the members might be able to hook you up with a deal or two.Everyone in this hobby usually ends up with excess inventory and excess tools over time.Caleb & Dagabu have been busy making metal tooling the last couple of years.I have been making wood Insert and case formers for anyone wanting to build cylinder shells the last couple of years.If you have a hard time finding materials, you can ask here and you should find advice on sources you are looking for. Stay Safe Mikeee Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
captainG Posted February 18, 2015 Author Share Posted February 18, 2015 Yes y'alls tools are beeeeeautiful I'm still kinda trying to decide what to get Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
captainG Posted February 18, 2015 Author Share Posted February 18, 2015 (edited) Guess I really need some lead for the mill first Edited February 18, 2015 by captainG 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeee Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 CaptainG, There used to be a guy everyone called leadballs that made lead milling media for several years.He has since passed away and Caleb has stepped up to the plate to make lead milling media for pyro's.You could also use lead bullets but round balls are your best performing shape for a milling media.If you have a Harbor Freight ball mill, the motor will only turn (1) jar with a full load of lead media and chemicals.So all you really need is enough lead balls to fill the (1) jar 1/2 full of lead media.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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