Lindsay
Greene's Pyrotechnics Website
Most of the construction is finished. However, some things are not as of yet started or completed. Sorry if this inconveniences you in any way.
Pyrotechnics is a fun and
rewarding hobby. (I, personally, had tried several hobbies such
as model building and model railroading before stumbling upon
pyrotechnics as a teenager.) Unfortunately, along with the positive
implications of making one's own pyrotechnics, there also comes
a possibility of injuring one's self or others. These injuries,
however, are usually limited in severity to 1st and 2nd degree
burns once and a while, but when the safety precautions are not observed, these injuries tend to become more frequent
and much more severe.
A
Word on the Cookbooks: Things like the Jolly Roger Cookbook,
The Big Book of Mischief, etc., are not only stupid resources,
but are resources that contain dangerous procedures for producing
dangerous things. From what I have read, some articles recommend
mixing potassium chlorate, sulphur (!!), and charcoal to produce
what the author calls, "Chlorate black powder". This
is dangerous due to certain chemical
incompatabilities of chlorates with certain substances, in this
case sulphur. I also remember one other article which recommends
mixing sodium chlorate with red phosphorus (!!!). This would produce
a much more sensitive version of Armstrong's
Mix than is used commercially, but the article actually says that
it is less sensitive and safer than the commercial stuff! As you
can see, the cookbooks are filled with dangerous garbage and should
not be trusted. To get a better idea of the way these "recipes" are written and how many errors they contain, check out one of my various "recipe-debunking"s.
Fireworks
Fountains are excellent
projects for beginners.
Salutes are fun devices which are
quite simple and easy to create.
The chemistry behind pyro is very interesting. Learn the basics.
Fireworks
are only as good as the fuse that ignites them. Learn how to
make black
match and quick match, e-matches, and Visco.
Making Aerial Shells: a pictorial step-by-step
guide to making your own aerial shells. Also included is a guide to making aerial naphthalene salutes.
The Cherry Bomb Video: an excellent demonstration of the power these devices possess. This was sent to me by one of my e-mail acquaintances. This is a Quicktime video, which has been compressed with WinZip.
The Homemade Salute Video: another excellent video sent to me by one of my email acquaintances. This is a Quicktime video, which has been compressed with WinZip.
Movie Pyrotechnics & Special Effects
Naphthalene charges are fun projects, which produce a wonderful effect, but do not take that much experience to make.
Bullet-hit squibs are used in movie and stage pyrotechnics to produce the effect of a bullet impact on surfaces and the actors themselves. They can easily be made, having only a few minor differences from normal salutes.
A full-fledged movie effects scene is an excellent project for one to put together, provided one has experience with the nessesary effects (nap bombs, bullet hit squibs, etc.). Learn how to set up one that'll amaze any onlookers.
Links:
Here are some
links to other pyrotechnics-related webpages. If you find that any of the links are broken, or if you'd like your page added as a link, please email me, and I'll get right on it.
Tom Perigrin has an excellent
web page.
Andy Krywonizka also has a great
web page, noted for the PFP database.
Tom Dimock has an excellent
links page.
Wouter
Visser has an excellent pyro page in two languages: english and dutch.
Dan Williams has a fabulous page about making pyrotechnic toolings and all other sorts of great stuff.
Eric Spinella has a good page
about high explosives and pyrotechnics.
Andrew Woodard, a bright young pyro, also has a great pyro page.
The Desert Blast Formulas & Techniques Page contains step-by-step pictorial instructions for creating your own fireworks. Like the other pages linked to from here, it is recommended reading.
Pyrotechnics UK is a page designed by two pyros, Edd Stewart and Dave Brainwood.
American Fireworks News is an excellent publisher/supplier of pyro literature, also publishing a monthly fireworks newsletter.
Skylighter Inc. is an excellent supplier of pyrotechnic chemicals and supplies.
Jack Diamond, aka "Megalomania," has a simply mindblowingly comprehensive page about the synthesis of just about any high explosive you could dream of, plus a bunch of other great "unpopular information."
Florian Reckelkamm, aka "The Dark Templar," has a pyro page which is under construction at the moment, but will hopefully be finished soon.
Contact Me:
If
you have any comments, or questions about anything related to
pyrotechnics, the fuse book, or this page, you can reach me several ways. I am a regular poster on the newsgroups rec.pyrotechnics and alt.engr.explosives, so contacting me there would be easy (I read the groups about 10 times per day). Or you could E-mail me. Whatever works for you.
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