Excuses for why you do this.

[Xtreme Pyro]

My dad used to do pyro when he was a kid him and his friend made a bp rocket and set fire to an orange tree with it lol... my parents dont really care just as long as im safe and i have my dad do it with me my mom is a little worried about me doing pyro but she knows as long as i have my dad with me everything should work out well ( I Hope ), my dad works at a machine shop and makes all the pyro tools for me, my parents also know that it's a good thing for me to get into hobbies such as pyro, because many of my friends are outside all day doing drugs and getting arrested for drinking and other stuff.

[50AE]

In the beggining I asked my mom for making pyrotechnics but she foribided me, telling me it's very dangerous. But beacause I liked pyrotechnics very much, one day I bought some materials and I made flash powder (my first pyro composition). I enjoyed it, and later I started to buy more and more chemicals and equipment, to do more compositions. My mom knew it, and she let me do my hobby, beacause of the reason I use caution, I read and learn before experiment and I'm not stupid. She let me have my own lab, and let me ask her questions about chemistry, and talking about. I also talked to my dad, but he discouraged me for pyrotechnics, telling me it's dangerous and has not any goals in life, but he lets me asking him chemistry questions too.

Now, all my familly knows I'm an amateur pyrotechnic and it agrees, only if I don't harm or annoy anyone with it. For example if I use the kitchen, I must clean it when I've finished. There must be no sign of toxic materials in home, excluding my desk in my chamber.

[ActiveA]

I don't have an excuse. I do it because i love this hobby and even though its illegal in my country it's kept me out of much worse things.

 

My parents support me, if i need chemicals they'll often pay for a 1/3 because they do the same with my little brother. My dad recently went out and got me 35kg of KN03 fertilliser for me to purify.

 

 

Yeah. I love this hobby.

[lja]

My parents have always hated this hobby and still ask me "What the hell is wrong with you?".

 

The funny part is I'm in my 40's and have an engineering degree.

 

Parents.....

[WarezWally]

1. Its fun

2. Its dangerous

3. I learn useful things

[ITCHI]

My parents have always hated this hobby and still ask me "What the hell is wrong with you?".

 

The funny part is I'm in my 40's and have an engineering degree.

 

Parents.....

Now that is funny.

[psyco_1322]

Ya just tell them its ether smoke bombs or smoking crack and other drugs. They'll understand after smelling the smoke from some sulfur rich comp. * Gag Gag....Told ya not to breath that! * After that they'll buy the drugs for you. lol

[Boomer]

Even if I'm more in Ija's position, my parents ( in their mid-70ies) were glad I poured all HE-related stuff down the loo after a police visit. Now when they notice I ordered some chems again they go like: "Ah ... OK I see, not those bombs again, it's only some natural oils, and some heliotropine, boy is into perfumes it seems. And those two, NaBH4 and LAH, are those oxidizers?" Me: "Er no, more the opposite" Dad: "Good boy, finally he obeys the law"

 

Muhahahahaha

[crazyboy25]

it's only some natural oils, and some heliotropine, boy is into perfumes it seems.

yeah what smells do you have so far? essence of cyclotrimethylenetrinitramine and lavander or triacetonetriperoxide cologne?

[WarezWally]

Hmm pouring chems down the toilet, not the smartest way to get rid of things

[Mumbles]

Oh, I'd say he has other aspirations that don't tend to explode quite as loud.

[oskarchem]

Yeah, well my parent's tell me "Why don't you do other normal things, like I don't know, collecting stamps"??Good thing is that they didnt' see when my mortar fell over yesturady...

[gabewills]

my dad does it with me

 

its a sort of bonding thing

[iclazion]

Mmmm... By the age of four I was attracted or mesmerized by a simple thing like looking at a lit match/candle or lighter, that same year I woke up one evening and found a empty 5L turpentine bottle and some matches, and ran around the house to see if I can get the bottle to light... First burning match = nothing, second burning match = nothing "finally and as Murphy predicts, the third burning match set the vapor inside the bottle off and explodes a ball of flame into my face. I ended up in the doctors office with gel coated cloth covering my face. Its been 20 years since then and my parents now know I will always be cautious when it comes to making fireworks.

 

I was introduced and fixated by a friend at the age of 14 who made black powder and there is where I learned to make the basic green/meal powder.

 

In my experience if your parents knew what you are making at the time, and they know that you have the knowledge and a few mentors with reputable reputation that will guide you on your way, then they will be a bit relaxed. But they will always be paranoid

[Draco_Americanus]

My parents would not approve because of my past with high explosives, when i was about 17 we found an abandoned lubercant factorie with a fully stocked lab. well most of that lab was moved to a friends garage and the race to HE was on we made TNT, Nitrocelluse, attemped NG. my frends parents had no problems with even after the house had to be evacuated when an oops happend with nitric acid. The largest thing I build was an ammoinum nitrate and nitromethane device that was allmost 3 pounds, it was fired my an electric detonator controlled by a digital count down timer i built.

The EPA and BATF eventuly found out what we where doing and took everything and charged us with making high explosives, it was not till about 12 years later that i decided to get back into the playing with fire hobby and fueld that hobby with chems from skylighter. My dad sorta knows what i do now and my step parents have no clue, I live on my own so they have no say in what my hobbies are now. I like the theroy for HE but I made it a point to not restock the chems for it and the closest i have now is nitrocelluse that i use for NC laqure and our lovely friend flash powder.

If i had kids I would only support the fireworks side of the hobby, todays polical envornment and paranoia makes HE a very touchy area and i would not want my kids having there future truncated.

[Yankie]

My mum was strongly against it and my dad wasnt too keen on me getting KNO3 but he finally gave in and after showing my mum some rockets and starmines she is all for it. but it was a long hard struggle until then.

[Swede]

I think that is the key, meaning start with small, colorful, or "educational" efforts, like rockets, little stars, and mines. Be sure before you demo a rocket to your folks that you have the design and construction down COLD and there is a nil chance of a CATO which we know can be very loud indeed. Parents DO NOT like booms; it demonstrates just how much energy there is in that package. But a little WHOOSH... much better!

 

Respect the house, meaning don't trash the kitchen or wreck woodwork with solvents.

 

I would also say something like this - "There are very dangerous compositions, such as composition 'F', and chemicals that can be very toxic, like some of the Barium compounds. While I have the knowledge to create or use them, I choose not to, as the risk is too great. I will stick to simpler, safer, less toxic materials and processes." Then, do just that. If you lie to them about fireworks, all bets are off.

 

A statement like that is like my teenager telling me: "Dad, I know about illegal drugs, am exposed to them all the time, and have chosen not to be involved or use them." It demonstrates maturity, judgement, and wisdom, which unfortunately is lacking in many teens. And I was one of the stupid ones, so I do know and understand.

[DIYMark]

My dad DROVE me 40km out of town and we brought 25Kg of KNO3 and the next day he brought sulfur. And over the next few weeks I got a coffee mill, containers, scales , etc. Sp now I'm fully out fitted (I also made a ball mill) - thanks to dad . But I did outfit the shed with a lathe, mill, MIG Welder and tooling.

 

Yea I'm pretty lucky. At least my dad understands - he used to play with this stuff when he was younger. As for my mum she thinks I make "Bombs" (So annoying when people call it that).

 

As for how I started - where else; but matches! When I got hold of a sparkler for the first time I was hooked!

 

*******************************************************

MOD EDIT: Too much information here. You're quite lucky you didn't

end up in jail, an emergency room, or the morgue. But I'm glad you

saw the errors of your ways, and now enlist the help of your Father.

*******************************************************

 

After that is was sitting and reading about pyro on the net and at least 3 times a week I would see "I live in the USA and cant find KNO3? Can some one help" Man that get annoying, and its even more funny how people from countries that don't readily sell KNO3 (Australians/Canadians) answer the guys question!

 

All of this took about 5 years - from me first getting into pyro then getting a bag of KNO3 (a month ago). In between it was on and off.

Edited June 8, 2008 by DIYMark

[WarezWally]

.....KNO3 is readily sold in 25kg (50lb) and 50kg (100lb) bags, most people either don't know or are to scared to buy it.

 

I'm sure my old man would approve of my actions, he wasn't exactly a saint when it comes to fireworks

[Swede]

.....KNO3 is readily sold in 25kg (50lb) and 50kg (100lb) bags, most people either don't know or are to scared to buy it.

 

I'm sure my old man would approve of my actions, he wasn't exactly a saint when it comes to fireworks

I know those big bags are out there, but I haven't found any, yet. And I've the luxury of time, a vehicle, and two big nearby cities to search. The best find so far were little 5 pound sacks for $6 in an organic section of a feed store. I bought all they had, and they said "no, we have no larger sacks." That irked me because obviously a store employee turned a 50lb sack into those smaller 5lb ziplocks.

 

I'll just keep looking. It's pretty funny how quickly I can get off a highway when I see a farm or feed store, yet not one of them has panned out.