braddsn Posted April 12, 2015 Share Posted April 12, 2015 (edited) I so wish my camera did better with colors. These came out well in person. Both of these are 3" shells, boosted with 3g 70/30. Jopetes colors, first one is green, second one is orange + 2% Ti. Stars are primed with .5mm monocapa with 1mm bp final layer. 4 layers pasted. The rising comets are Jopetes White Pearl formula. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsnOpQcXNE8https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Q6OX31zyDE Edited April 12, 2015 by braddsn 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pyrojig Posted April 12, 2015 Share Posted April 12, 2015 Nicely done , and good job for the clean editing( short sweet and to the point) .3'' shells are nice for star testing . . indeed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
braddsn Posted April 12, 2015 Author Share Posted April 12, 2015 Thanks pyrojig! The green peony needs improvement. I rolled a new batch of green primed slightly different, we will see if ignition improves. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VikingPyrotechnics Posted April 12, 2015 Share Posted April 12, 2015 Perfect break on the Orange shell ! Very nice =) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
db5086 Posted April 12, 2015 Share Posted April 12, 2015 You nailed that orange shell. What are the details on your comets Brad. I need to pump some and yours seem right on the money duration wise. Just perfect on your 3"'s. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JOPETES Posted April 12, 2015 Share Posted April 12, 2015 Hi Braddsn. I'll give my opinion by parts:-- The ascension and the white pearl IGNITION comet is correct.- The breaking force or opening of the aerial shell is good.- Symmetry of the opening can be improved. I see in the video that green stars have lit the differents times, I have the feeling that the stars are not completely dry or have some moisture. I need to see some photos of their cut star in half to see the size of the layers of priming and size of the cores you use in the stars. How big are the cores you use? ............... What diameter has a green and orange star without priming layers ?.- You use husk rice impregnated black powder (made in ball mill for a few hours)?- I need to see pictures of aerial shells with star tucked in without closing the helmets, I want to see how you run or build their aerial shells.--- All these observations are to help improve their aerial shells. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wiley Posted April 12, 2015 Share Posted April 12, 2015 Nice work Brad! I hope to get some of my own in the air tonight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
braddsn Posted April 13, 2015 Author Share Posted April 13, 2015 DB, my comets are Jopetes formula called "white pearl". If you need the formula I will post it when I am by my computer. They are 1/2" pumped. They are beautiful in person. You can also cut them. They need to be primed a specific way to work properly. I used 50/50 .5mm layer of monocapa/white pearl comp, followed by a 1mm final layer of bp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
braddsn Posted April 13, 2015 Author Share Posted April 13, 2015 Jopetes.. the green stars were not rolled well. I have rolled a new batch and they are drying now. I will post pictures of shell building tonight. Thank you for helping me improve my shells Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pyrojig Posted April 13, 2015 Share Posted April 13, 2015 JOPETES:You seem very intuitive ( sharp) in your questions . It seems that your experience is very good with shell building . I have through the years learned to pay very close attention to these details you bring up . These are the difference of a spectacular shell v.s. a ok shell. Consistency is key : for timing , and repeatable results. Many factors go into building master pieces of art. It is a balancing act , of controlling burn speeds , explosive nature , and color formation . What a wonderful hobby to say the least !!( so much room for growth , in the never ending quest ). Its good to see members working together to improve each others work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
braddsn Posted April 13, 2015 Author Share Posted April 13, 2015 Pyrojig, Jopetes is indeed a master in this field. I have made big improvements due to his guidance. His document with formulas, and priming methods is top notch. And you said it.. it is a balancing act, and consistency is key. I am enjoying this hobby more than any other because of the challenge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
braddsn Posted April 13, 2015 Author Share Posted April 13, 2015 JOPETES: here are a couple pictures of some shells I loaded tonight. My cores are 3mm peppercorns. So the final star for a 3" shell ends up being average 8mm. I size my stars in 1mm increments. So for example, red stars, I have 7mm, 8mm, 9mm, 10mm, 11mm, all separated. All stars in each shell will be the same size. For example: I may have 2 red peony shells, both 3 inch. 1 of them may contain 7mm stars, while the next may contain 8mm. So the shell with the 8mm stars will have bigger break. A note on the green shell in the video: Those stars did not work very well in the roller, because I ran out of time that day, so I hurried. I have another batch drying that are much better. I do not have a picture of a star cut in half, but on color stars, I use exactly .5mm monocapa (with dark aluminum), and 1mm bp on the outside. My burst charge is 7:1 bp:rice hulls. The bp is milled for 3 hours (very fast). I then add 3% (by weight) nitrate slow flash and coat all of the burst. Finally, I use 2 or 3 grams of 70/30 flash to boost the break where I want it. http://www.amateurpyro.com/forums/gallery/image/3171-3-shell-assembly/ http://www.amateurpyro.com/forums/gallery/image/3169-3-shell-assembly/ http://www.amateurpyro.com/forums/gallery/image/3170-3-shell-assembly/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JOPETES Posted April 13, 2015 Share Posted April 13, 2015 (edited) Braddsn. The stars are well placed in helmets. For good symmetry I recommend you put the burden of opening on tissue paper forming a bag as helmets and when you close hemispheres you have to tap for all the content for compacting and close with tape and then apply layers of paper . You have to move the aerial shell and not have to make any noise somo stars if it were a sonagero, this means that all content is compacted and this will ensure good symmetry in the opening. Good symmetry also depends on the paper layers. I personally did not use flash 70/30, I use APERTURA of pdf which is a little softer (KClO4 35- 35- KNO3 Al.black 30). Watch this video attached of one of the most important factories fireworks Spain, in the final part is observed as an aerial shell is mounted. As for me pepper seeds seem a little large, this reduces the amount of powder color and the star burns faster. I used turnip seed which are about 1mm in diameter and requires a bit more skill to shoot the stars alone at first because they can stick to each other, but then the stars are shot perfectly. with semilas 1mm to 7mm star contains more amount of powder color and lasts longer combustion. ᴴᴰ Making of a shell and a roman candle. (Pirofantasia, Carlos Caballer).mp4 Edited April 13, 2015 by JOPETES Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wiley Posted April 13, 2015 Share Posted April 13, 2015 Brad, when you use up your flash coated hills, I'd be curious to see what using plain BP on hulls and maybe an extra gram of hot flash than you're using now would do. I have to agree with Jopetes on the tissue paper. It may not make a difference, but it seems like it could be a simple way to improve consistency. I mean, I make so many ball shells that I definitely know what I'm talking about Jopetes does though! I know Ned Gorski is another guy who uses it and gets great results. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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