pyrosailor99 Posted July 2, 2011 Share Posted July 2, 2011 Hi!to my surprise i've found in my city SHELLAC! when i see it i was about crying. i bought and they are in FLAKES form. now i have some questions: - could it work grinding it in a coffee grinder?- how fine this powder should be? - how i should mix this in comps for stars. special alchool/other is needed? thank you very much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baran420 Posted July 2, 2011 Share Posted July 2, 2011 Hello, Why would you cry at the sight of beetle poo? The following excerpt is from the Skylighter website "SHELLAC: Shellac is the refined form of lac, which is the secretion of the lac insect. It is usually marketed in flakes and comes primarily from Burma, India and Thailand. It is most useful in pyrotechnics as an orange-brown powder. It has become expensive and not as readily available or used as frequently today in pyrotechnics. It burns clean without the production of excess carbons that can muddy flames."More here http://www.pyrosociety.org.uk/forum/topic/909-shellac/ There is not exactly a drought of information on shellac on Google AB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pyrosailor99 Posted July 2, 2011 Author Share Posted July 2, 2011 Hello, Why would you cry at the sight of beetle poo? Ah ah ah! because in my city (country) i NEVER NEVER NEVER found a useful pure chem for pyro.for me, find a chem like this in my city without ordering it over internet is a great thing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WSM Posted July 2, 2011 Share Posted July 2, 2011 Hi!to my surprise i've found in my city SHELLAC! when i see it i was about crying. i bought and they are in FLAKES form. now i have some questions: - could it work grinding it in a coffee grinder?- how fine this powder should be? - how i should mix this in comps for stars. special alchool/other is needed? thank you very much. Congratulations! I've ground it in a coffee grinder and it worked reasonably well, but I had to sift out the course chunks after (it's better when the particle sizes are uniform). The powder should be -100 mesh and finer. Denatured ethanol works well as a solvent. I've wondered if dissolving shellac in alcohol and then dumping the solution in water and sieving the shellac powder out in a buchner funnel with filter paper and vacuum wouldn't yield the finest shellac powder? I may have to try it one day. I'm curious, where are you? I don't see shellac flakes here on the left coast of the US anymore . Enjoy your find . WSM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mumbles Posted July 2, 2011 Share Posted July 2, 2011 I often see the recommendation to put the shellac in a freezer before grinding it. It apparently makes it a bit more brittle and easier to powder. There is an old method (Chertier maybe?) where the shellac is mixed with salt and ball milled. The salt keeps it from fusing back together. After the stuff is powdered, the salt is washed away with water. I'd typically try to use something potassium based, not sodium based for color reasons. I'd think dissolving it in alcohol and crashing it out with water (with stirring) should yield a good fine powder. You never know until you try of course. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WSM Posted July 3, 2011 Share Posted July 3, 2011 I often see the recommendation to put the shellac in a freezer before grinding it. It apparently makes it a bit more brittle and easier to powder. There is an old method (Chertier maybe?) where the shellac is mixed with salt and ball milled. The salt keeps it from fusing back together. After the stuff is powdered, the salt is washed away with water. I'd typically try to use something potassium based, not sodium based for color reasons. I'd think dissolving it in alcohol and crashing it out with water (with stirring) should yield a good fine powder. You never know until you try of course. Yes, though I heard it was milled with potassium nitrate rather than sodium chloride (no compatibility problems then). Thanks for helping me remember, Mumbles. WSM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonny Posted July 4, 2011 Share Posted July 4, 2011 The freezer method works quite well. I have never tried to screen to 100 mesh though. The last few times I used shellac I dissolved it in alcohol and then added to the comp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts