Pyrophury Posted January 15, 2013 Share Posted January 15, 2013 (edited) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ogPw5c4HOxo Edited January 15, 2013 by Pyrophury Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dagabu Posted January 15, 2013 Share Posted January 15, 2013 (edited) Video is no longer there... BTW- We have lit many 6" display shells from the leader if the chicken wick fails or falls off with the cover (happens all the time). I take it all back, what a freaking idiot! Edited January 15, 2013 by dagabu Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pyrophury Posted January 15, 2013 Author Share Posted January 15, 2013 (edited) Video is no longer there... BTW- We have lit many 6" display shells from the leader if the chicken wick fails or falls off with the cover (happens all the time). Fixed - Not my video title, but if you light shells like this all the time well... I'd still say it's an accurate description. Edited January 15, 2013 by Pyrophury Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mortartube Posted January 15, 2013 Share Posted January 15, 2013 I don't think they realised why it's called quickmatch until it lit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taiwanluthiers Posted January 15, 2013 Share Posted January 15, 2013 Even if someone tries to hand light the leader isn't the correct procedure is to use port fires and fire it at arms length? How difficult is it to tape a length of visco to it? If they couldn't get visco at least blackmatch would work (like peel about 6" from the quickmatch and light that) where did they get that 6" shell, were they in Poland or something? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pyroshell Posted January 15, 2013 Share Posted January 15, 2013 Lucky no one got killed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yvariro Posted January 15, 2013 Share Posted January 15, 2013 (edited) Oh my god... In france someone get killed by a 2" shell at NYE the problem was due to the quick match too,the ball shell hit him in the head...so why they have a 6" shell while they don't know how it work ? it is because of these idiots that the pyro is so overregulated Edited January 15, 2013 by yvariro Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AirCowPeacock Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 Indeed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NightHawkInLight Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 My heart was pounding in my chest when I saw him strike the lighter while his buddy was holding the shell. They were so incredibly lucky that lighter didn't work till it was in the gun. There's why they don't allow QM on consumer shells. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dagabu Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 Me too, I stopped it for a while too since I really thought this was going to be a "snuff film". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dan999ification Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 thats exactly the reason shells were banned in the uk for consumers, chinese instructions and i wouldnt say idiots but if you play with pyro and dont understand it or failed to research......well Anything over 3 inch cannot be handfired legally here ( not that this was legal ) imho your still dead when it goes wrong. Im with dag, thought it was going fatal, find it hard to watch vids like this although stupid mistakes still have nightmares, premenissions and question my judgement at times, unpleasent but probably for the best. Dan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 I think the guy used 8 of his nine lives on that one, i doubt he`d get that lucky a second time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flying fish Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 (edited) The shock of having a (~4 ounce?) lift charge go off on them without any PPE likely would have prevented them from escaping the "kill zone". On the other hand, I don't see too many increadibly morbid things on youtube, so I wasn't expecting a death or serious injury. It is against their user policy but I'm not sure how strictly it is enforced. It could also be that people have the common sense and decency not to post videos of fatal accidents...don't we wish... Edited January 16, 2013 by flying fish Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nater Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 Those of us that routinely handfire displays are often very close to shells as they lift. I generally use a torch or fusee and fire the shell at an arm's length. With smaller shells, I usually stay near the rack to keep pace. When firing larger shells, I usually have a rack of smaller ones I am responsible for too. I might fire 3 3"s, a 5", 3 3"s and so on. Of course this is with proper PPE, proper racks, proper form while shooting, knowledge of the product and risks, and acceptance of the risks. Big difference from those lucky clowns. TaiwanLuthers - I HATE visco on the end of display shells. Too often it only takes fire from the tip, some is visco coated in a BP slurry, which will take fire from the sides, but still burn from the tip. When you're shooting a show and shells start taking 5 and 6 seconds to lift when you're expecting 2-3, you start to get really nervous that a shell is going to blow in the rack. You are required to have a few seconds worth of exposed BM so the lift in not instant. It is still fairly common practice to "short fuse" the leader and light it closer to the piping. At least then, as the shooter, you have a good idea when the shell will lift. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobosan Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 (edited) "proper form while shooting"? Any special PPE in use during your handfire shoots? Edited January 17, 2013 by Bobosan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nater Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 (edited) Yes, there is a proper form when handfiring. Treat the mortar like a loaded gun, don't put anything over it that you are not willing to loose. Aside from that you should consider what could happen to you if the shell blows in the mortar. You should stay low and keep your back to the mortar. I like to see people approach the rack with the ignition source in the opposite side of your body from the rack. If you're using a fusee, be mindful where the slag is dripping. Remove the safety cap with the hand that is closes to the rack, drop it, grab the torch with the hand closest to the leader and light. Keep your back to the rack, drop a shoulder and face down while WALKING away. I shoot a little differently during shows with tight pacing, but it isn't the way mentioned in 1123 or the PGI shooter schools, so I won't recommend it publicly. As for PPE, I wear different things for different types of shows. You have to have head, eye, and ear protection, long sleeves, long pants, and closed soled shoes. For club shoots, I usually wear work boots, blue jeans, a welding jacket, and a hard hat with built in ear muffs. I wear eye glasses, which give a comfortable enough level of protection for me. For commercial displays where a lot more product is in the air at once, I wear work boots, a nomex racing suit, nomex hood, and a helmet with speakers for the music (we handfire to music) and a speaker for the lead / lead safety. It also has bright LED strips built in as a headlamp. I no longer wear a face shield. I had a muzzle break and my face got plastered with stars. One managed to sneak in under the face shield, fortunately I had the nomex hood on. The burns were minor, the worst was a star sized 2nd degree burn from the heat transfer through the nomex. The nomex itself did not burn through, but lit stars burn very hot. I feel had the shield not been down, the star would have bounced off instead of getting stuck until it burned out. It was a pretty freak accident and a chain of unlikely events strung together, but it hurt pretty bad. Edited January 17, 2013 by nater Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WonderBoy Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 Nate,Is the nomex suit provided by the company you work for? When handfiring shows I've always just worn clothing similar to your club shoot attire; all cotton, long sleeves, work boots, hard hat, eye and ear protection, nothing too special. WB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nater Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 Yeah, most of us wear something similar. I have worn full turnout gear lime we wear for structural firefighting and it was too much. I was overheating too easily. I think the racing suits are a good balance between a little extra burn protection and wearability while shooting the show. They do not offer much impact protection if a rack were to blow, but I have also had two relatives sent to the ER when shrapnel from explosions went through their gear while firefighting. During a show I am most concerned with protection from sparks, burning fallout, or the occasssional low break. Other hazards certainly exist, but those are the main things that happen on most shows. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobosan Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 Nater, Looks like a screen on the face shield pic? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nater Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 Yep, I took it off after getting burned. Nothing penetrated the screen, so it worked. The problem is the gap at the bottom. A screen or shield that sits closer to the face would be better so anything would have less of a chance to get under it. It was still an unlikely accident. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NightHawkInLight Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 Yep, I took it off after getting burned. Nothing penetrated the screen, so it worked. The problem is the gap at the bottom. A screen or shield that sits closer to the face would be better so anything would have less of a chance to get under it. It was still an unlikely accident.I assume you still wear at least safety glasses? It took me a long time to kick my cheap self out of buying $2 glasses that were uncomfortable and poorly fitting before finally spending $15 (gasp!) on some that have a nice seal around the outside to prevent stuff from bouncing underneath them like you experienced with the mask. They're almost like a set of lab goggles with anti fog vents and such. Well worth having, around both fireworks, and my bench grinder. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mumbles Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 In the lab and for general pyro shoot stuff I typically wear 3M Z87 Virtua glasses. They actually fit fairly snugly to my face. http://www.uline.com/BL_8957/Ice-Wraparounds When I'm shooting I prefer something with a little more coverage. These are also particularly comfortable. The lens are sensitive to bug spray, so put them in a pocket when applying it. They however do not fit quite as snugly to my face. It's still not something I'm overly concerned about. http://www.uline.com/Product/Detail/S-7896/Safety-Glasses-Goggles/Genesis-Safety-Glasses Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nater Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 (edited) I assume you still wear at least safety glasses? Rx eyeglasses with plastic lenses that are supposed to be impact resistant. I have some safety glasses that fit comfortably over them, I have also tried goggles. I have a problem with them fogging up that I need to figure out. The best part about the screen, was it kept the burning bits of leader away. Most of our shells come in with waterproof QM which doesn't burn away as cleanly as the uncoated piping. Edited January 17, 2013 by nater Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobosan Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 I would imagine the screen shield is a lot cooler, especially on a muggy July 4th evening. I tried using my full face riot shield and it gets very hot in there. Usually end up using safety glasses courtesy of work. http://209.200.67.14...n_platform_id=6 The AOS is similar to Mumbles but has a nice belt loop pouch with interchangeable dark and yellow lenses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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