153 replies to this topic

[Yankie]

hmm, won't that look better? and its not 325 its 300. but it cost 32.50 to get 500 grams courier

[frogy]

$30.92 USD for 500 grams? hmm...

Any other "deals" there on aluminum?

There's no way I would fork out that much.

[FrankRizzo]

Fred,

Do you have a ball mill?

[Yankie]

Yes i do have a ball mill. which reminds me to post the video on youtube. why do you ask? if its anything to do with milling al foil then dont bother as i want a specific mesh size and dont want to run the risk of the mill exploding.

[Updup]

Well, I'm conFUSEed (Stupid pun.. I know).

Do I ball mill each chemical and then screen or shake everything together?
Or do I bal mill everything to a fine powder and further shake/screen in the Al?

[Mumbles]

Up to you. Ballmilling everything (sans Aluminum), will make the star burn faster and shorten the tail and glitter delay. I personally just screen all of my glitter compositions together. All of my chemicals except KNO3 are already fine powders, so I really should be ball milling that stuff.

[dagabu]

Up to you. Ballmilling everything (sans Aluminum), will make the star burn faster and shorten the tail and glitter delay. I personally just screen all of my glitter compositions together. All of my chemicals except KNO3 are already fine powders, so I really should be ball milling that stuff.

I blade mill my KNO3 and pass it through a 60 mesh screen and pass everything else (including Al) through a 8 mesh screen (window screen or larger) three times to mix. As Mumbles says, it will really take the beautiful effect away from D1 if you mill it.

That being said, I have made D1 cores that I milled to airfloat and added Al at the end, I wanted them to blink on and they did.

D

Edited by dagabu, 06 January 2010 - 10:22 AM.

[Updup]

So everything dosn't have to be airfloat?
My sulfur is about as fine as it gets.
My kno3 is fairly fine, you can see the particles though.
My charcoal I've blade milled, although it's not airfloat.
My dextrin is fine.
And my AL (When i get it, i was finally shiped todat after skylighter had a big overload on orders) is 325 mesh.

Should I just mix? Or prosses anything further?

Thanks for the last bit Dave, three times with a window screen, got it .

[Bonny]

So everything dosn't have to be airfloat?
My sulfur is about as fine as it gets.
My kno3 is fairly fine, you can see the particles though.
My charcoal I've blade milled, although it's not airfloat.
My dextrin is fine.
And my AL (When i get it, i was finally shiped todat after skylighter had a big overload on orders) is 325 mesh.

Should I just mix? Or prosses anything further?

Thanks for the last bit Dave, three times with a window screen, got it .

As dagabu said, blade mill and screen the KNO3 through a 60 mesh (or 100mesh if you want) before using
I would also ball mill or further blade mill the charcoal before using. I screen charcoal through 100 mesh and call that my airfloat.

Be sure to use different blade mills for fuels and oxidizers.

[Mumbles]

I've been blade milling my nitrate through a 60 mesh screen as well. I think it might be a tad bit damp, but it's been creating fallout issues with glitters. Not this formula specifically though. It seems pretty good in general.

[dagabu]

As dagabu said, blade mill and screen the KNO3 through a 60 mesh (or 100mesh if you want) before using
I would also ball mill or further blade mill the charcoal before using. I screen charcoal through 100 mesh and call that my airfloat.

Be sure to use different blade mills for fuels and oxidizers.

Sorry, I didnt mean that the way it sounded. When I make airfloat, it all has to pass 100 mesh, when I buy it, I use as is. I also screen my homemade stuff through 60, 40, 20 and 10 mesh screens. This only applies to pine for me, I use hard wood for BP, pine is for stars and tails.

NOTE: As Mumbles can attest, Ned just posted pix somewhere else (rhymes with assfire) of a "Biochar" method of making charcoal that may have brought back my faith in the craft.

D

Edited by dagabu, 06 January 2010 - 02:46 PM.

[firetech]

http://pyrobin.com/files/glitter.wmv

-325 mesh Al from UG. Great stuff.

[Updup]

http://pyrobin.com/files/glitter.wmv

-325 mesh Al from UG. Great stuff.

Bit off topic, but how is one -325 mesh Al anydiffrent form the next? Does the alloy its made from really effect anything?

[Mumbles]

Different size particles, different shape, and different size distribution. Just because something is -325 doesn't mean it isn't all the size or shape. Something that is 30 micron and something that is 5 micron are both still -325 mesh.

[dagabu]

Bit off topic, but how is one -325 mesh Al anydiffrent form the next? Does the alloy its made from really effect anything?

Yes, I have around a dozen different Aluminum's, I dont know of any but MgAl that is an alloy, I think all of the flakes and sphericals I have are pure (with a trace of other stuff) Al.
Each one will do different things such and Andjis Al. It will not blink on and off like that, some leave tails, others flash.

D

[Bonny]

Yes, I have around a dozen different Aluminum's, I dont know of any but MgAl that is an alloy,

D

I think I recall seeing some (old maybe?) formulae that called for Ferro-Al...might be wrong though.

[Mumbles]

Ferro-Al makes kind of a straw color. There is Titanium-Aluminum alloy too I do believe.

[Miech]

Indeed there is. And there is ferro-titanium which is yellowish white. The latter has been claimed to be unstable with water however, by means of spontaneous ignition, but I don't know wether that were specific circumstances or not.

[Bonny]

Indeed there is. And there is ferro-titanium which is yellowish white. The latter has been claimed to be unstable with water however, by means of spontaneous ignition, but I don't know wether that were specific circumstances or not.

I have some Fe-Ti and it is grey, not yellow or white.

[Mumbles]

I think he was talking (maybe) about the flame color. I can tell the difference between my Ti and FeTi by material color though. The FeTi is just darker with it's oxide coat.

All of the Ferro-XXX alloys are scraps from the steel industry. They use the premixed alloys to add trace metals to steel for easier alloying. The Ti-Al (if I am remembering right) is probably from the aircraft Titanium or alumimum industry analogously.