29 replies to this topic

[Stuart]

Well, I know how Matt makes his spollette's and have heard that they are time consuming to make from various sources. I, like always, being interested in mass production, have come up with an easy and simple way to produce them. The method makes use of a cigarette rolling machine. These can be found all around the place like markets. I don't want to rewrite the guide as I have already made it for my site so I will just upload it to my picture hosting site. Look in the temporary directory for it.

Stuart

Edited by Stuart, 03 March 2004 - 10:17 PM.

[Richard H]

I see a massive problem with this method. Spolettes are always rammed or pressed to charge the powder firmly into the case. This is to prevent the spolette failing under the high pressures generated inside the mortar when the shell is being lifted. I just do not see how your method could ever make a reliable or even functional spolette.

Also, ramming or pressing the powder gives a much more accurate means of determining the required delay consistently each time.

[adamw]

Correct. They dont stand a chance in shells, they will simply blow through with the lift gasses. Also, using them for conventional lighting would be risky, with a chance of a blow through.

[Pyromaster2003]

Those spoulette's could maybe be addapted to be a quick and easy bottle rocket, and just add a little flash powder at the end of one and top off with tissue and hot glue for a small bottle rocket with a report...

[Stuart]

I haven't tried them in a shell yet but they may work as the rolling does put them under pressure.

Even if they don't work, the method can be adapted to make the tube by using a thin stick. When done, pulling it out produces the same effect just without any BP in. This would be a quick way to produce the tubes at the very least as I see rolling them thin a fiddly job.

Stuart

PS (pyromaster sneaked a post in)
Thats quite a good idea. They can fly around and I usually find that one end is left open a little with no BP so some clay could go there and a hole drilled.

PPS
How is Spollette really spelt? Everyone so far in this thread spells them different.

Edited by Stuart, 02 March 2004 - 09:11 PM.

[Phoenix]

For some reason I can't see you site (yes, the pictures one). I Just get "The page cannot be displayed..." I am guessing a cigarette rolling machine rolls a thin paper tube around a core of, in your case, BP? Whether or not these will work for spolettes I don't know, but if that is the case then the process migh make some nice little tubed sparklers or lances. Presumably the machine only rolls short tubes though?

[alany]

I doubt it will work for a spoulette, but it might roll chinese fuse, or perhaps timefuse around a core.

How does one use a conical roller anyway?

[RegimentalPyro]

Just a thought, but wouldn't putting a "U" bend in the spolette prevent blowthrough?. Sort of like the badly rendered ascii-art below...

---------+
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[Richard H]

The problem of passfire is so easy to solve that it would not warrant a U bend in my opinion. All you need is a thick walled parrallel wound tube which is then pressed or rammed with meal in a drilled block to stop case deformation.

[alany]

No, that would turn it into a grasshopper.

Spoulettes need to be rammed or pressed hard unless you are making them moist which isn't recommended but I've gotten away with a few times.

[RegimentalPyro]

Yeah - I see what you are saying.

No sense in reinventing the wheel...

[Stuart]

Phoenix, the site should be working, it may just have been down when you tried it before. If it still doesn't work, e-mail me and I can send it to you.

Alan, Basically you have both rollers open and this is where you put your paper. You now add a little BP and close them. As you turn a roller, the paper gets pulled in and wrapped around your BP until it all goes in.

Both rollers have a piece of slack material around them so there is space under the rollers for the tube.

I will experiment with them and see how well they work for spollette's and as bottle rockets

Stuart

[alany]

I can see them (or something similar) as an expedient way of rolling chinese fuse or making crackers. If the consolidation is good enough I can't see why it wouldn't be OK for fish. Next time I am at the mall I'll check out the smoking store and see what they have.

[Stuart]

If you could make crackers out of them it would be good. Although they are very small it might be difficult to do but would produce a good bang I think.

What is chinese fuse?

Stuart

[alany]

Chinese cracker fuse, the gampi tissue and BP fuse traditionally used in celebration rolls:

http://www.vk2zay.net/fuse.html

The old "tom thumb" is pretty small, yet still makes a respectable crack. I like using soda straws to make crackers anyway, it is very quick, just a squirt of hot-melt to close one end, tip in a little BP or flash, lay in some fuse and seal around it with more hot-melt glue. Once cool they make a very loud crack for their size, especially if you use good strong straws, like those from Macdonalds or Subway.

http://nexus.cable.n...90/p0003220.jpg

You can make something similar with paper and tie the ends closed with clove hitches instead of using hot melt. That makes a pretty easy maroon with no end plugs to crack someone in the head with. It is also the way I make my mines.

I also like palomas for expedient construction (probably faster than straws and louder too), but they take effort to make gas-tight (at the corners) for insert use while a straw cracker is already gas tight by design and is a better shape in for most insert uses.

http://www.vk2zay.ne...ment.php?id=127

Note: fusing ground salutes with blackmatch is *not* recommended.