22 replies to this topic

[pyroguitarman]

First of all I understand that any flash powder is dangerous, and should be treated with due respect, but I would like to know what mixtures of chemicals are more stable forms of flash powder, I'd rather not loose any part of my body ......any comments are appreciated, If this has already been brought up in the forum could you give me the link, and sorry if it is.

[Richard H]

The industry standard 70/30 mix based on potassium perchlorate is regarded as one of the 'safer' flash compositions to work with. When I say safer, I mean in comparison to mixtures containing sulphur or antimony trisulphide or other esoteric formulae.

In the UK, 70/30 or close approximations are used commercially.

[Bonny]

Richard H, on Feb 4 2008, 06:40 PM, said:

The industry standard 70/30 mix based on potassium perchlorate is regarded as one of the 'safer' flash compositions to work with. When I say safer, I mean in comparison to mixtures containing sulphur or antimony trisulphide or other esoteric formulae.

In the UK, 70/30 or close approximations are used commercially.

Just out of curiosity, are KNO3 based flash powders less sensitive than 70/30?

[overflow]

Surely they are harder to ignite, in my experience.

[MMMMMM Pyro]

With flash safety is always relative:

KNO3 flash is harder to light, but is generally KNO3 and Mg, hence Mg incompatabilities are of concern. Even with Al its normally Al with S and then you have Sulphur problems.
KClO3---- just don't go there, all the NH4 and S problems...
KClO4 flash is overall the 'safest' and is certainly the more commonly used.

Mike

[BigG]

also, you need to consider what the application you require. For many application, you can replace flash powder with whistle which is by far safer.

[Bonny]

BigG, on Feb 4 2008, 09:04 PM, said:

also, you need to consider what the application you require. For many application, you can replace flash powder with whistle which is by far safer.

I rarely use any flash, but was curious as KClO4 is hard to get but KNO3 is not. Would whistle work well in small Ti salute shells? If so would it need to be granulated first or as powder?

[MMMMMM Pyro]

Well, in a word; yes.

However while whistle is a blooming powerful material, it is not as powerful as 70/30 in my experience. Hence more would be required to get the same bang. Granulated I would have said is gonna be better than the powder...

The plus side is the Whistle wont increase in sensitivity as much as flash will upon the addition of Ti...

Hope I have helped!

Mike

[MDH]

The very best report compositions are very dangerous. If you want a super safe flash composition you could try one based on barium sulfate and dark pyro. Supposedly (although it's recreational pyrotechnics so take it with a grain of sodium chlorate) this stuff even makes a nice noise in open tubes.

[MMMMMM Pyro]

MDH, on Feb 4 2008, 10:24 PM, said:

sodium chlorate

Eek! I'd rather take it with a grain of Sodium Chloride... but each to there own:)

And yeah BaSO4 with Mg does work and is bloody loud, but is exceptionally difficult to light in my experience.

Mike

[MDH]

You can prime your fuses with a thin layer of dextrin and fine AL. I generally just "dust" them with damp CaSO4 and AL, ratio 1 CaSO4 / 3 AL. This helps to ignite most compositions I make. But I guess that is getting a little off topic unless you use aforementioned Barium Sulfate flash.

The ratios are Barium Sulfate 6, Aluminum (Dark Pyro) 3, Sulfur 1.

It's a cheap flash powder too since barium sulfate is easy to come by. Cheaper than nitrate flash in many scenarios. I use Sulfates a lot more than I used to, from flash to fountains, when I realized how cheap they were.

[Knightmare]

Anybody here using a diapering process for mixing?

[marble]

Depends on what your using it for, KClO3 based flash is fine for small - medium salutes (provided it doesn't come into contact with any sulfur / sulfides) but useless for most other purposes. Although its widely used in Maltese fireworks.

I think everyone here uses diapering to mix flash.

Edited by marble, 05 February 2008 - 10:44 AM.

[MMMMMM Pyro]

I would certainly hope that everyone here uses diaper to mix flash!

I must admit to not agreeing with you about Chlorate flash. Ever since I did the (less that 0.1g.) test of KClO3 and S... I have been sufficiently scared not to try anything with them on a larger scale.

Mike

[Bonny]

MDH, on Feb 5 2008, 02:51 AM, said:

You can prime your fuses with a thin layer of dextrin and fine AL. I generally just "dust" them with damp CaSO4 and AL, ratio 1 CaSO4 / 3 AL. This helps to ignite most compositions I make. But I guess that is getting a little off topic unless you use aforementioned Barium Sulfate flash.

The ratios are Barium Sulfate 6, Aluminum (Dark Pyro) 3, Sulfur 1.

It's a cheap flash powder too since barium sulfate is easy to come by. Cheaper than nitrate flash in many scenarios. I use Sulfates a lot more than I used to, from flash to fountains, when I realized how cheap they were.

And where might I find Barium sulfate? Isn't it used for enemas and dentistry?