Are u a big fireworks person?

[RazorsEdge]

I was when I was a kid. Now that my dad has passed and most of my family is miles away from me, its not as much fun as it used to be.

Enjoy the family when you get a chance. Life goes by fast.

 

[spasm3]

I don't care how old i am. When I'm 80, if i can walk, I'll be launching aerial shells!

 

[spasm3]

Originally Posted by hallstevenson
The public fireworks shows are boring to me after so many years. Even our kids are like 'eh' about them. The private ones are better but admittedly not necessarily safer ! By better, I mean being able to be so much closer. That of course applies to the "not safer" part too !!

Our niece did them at their place last night and her husband's brother-in-law showed up with this

I've never heard anything louder in my life ! You can only shoot it off once (from the same place). If you do it twice, from his experience, the police show up.

OHHH cool, um where does one purchase such a thing?

 

[Skippy722]

Originally Posted by spasm3
Originally Posted by hallstevenson
The public fireworks shows are boring to me after so many years. Even our kids are like 'eh' about them. The private ones are better but admittedly not necessarily safer ! By better, I mean being able to be so much closer. That of course applies to the "not safer" part too !!

Our niece did them at their place last night and her husband's brother-in-law showed up with this

I've never heard anything louder in my life ! You can only shoot it off once (from the same place). If you do it twice, from his experience, the police show up.

OHHH cool, um where does one purchase such a thing?

 

[y_p_w]

Originally Posted by MolaKule
I buy Mortars, those Multi-shot square and round packages, and Roman candles that shoot high and burst.

Last night myself and every neighbor within 20 blocks was shooting off fireworks from 9:00pm to Midnight. What a show!

When I was younger I was in a foreign country (let's just say they know a little something about fireworks) and I was there on the 4th of July. We didn't really speak the language and wanted to know where to get firecrackers. We had a tour guide who spoke English and we went into town asking. There was one shop that specialized in fireworks. We literally got these huge bricks of 1 to 3 thousand small lady-finger firecrackers for the equivalent of less than $1.25 a package for the largest ones. They also had aerial fireworks but we didn't want to push our luck. I distinctly remember a package that showed something landing with a parachute. But we just got firecrackers and found a place near our hotel. An old guy there seemed pretty eager to help, and he pulled them out and lit them with his cigarette. The sound of 3000 firecrackers going off in a minute was pretty fun. He was kind of happy when a bunch of foreign kids bought all these fireworks. He seemed retired, and I think all the firecrackers we bought would have been a whole day's pay for a factory worker then.

During that trip we also saw some fellow Americans who had bought some Roman candles and were firing them off into the night. I noticed they actually sold them in this little shop in the corner of our hotel grounds, but it was closed by then. I don't think they were supposed hold them in their hands while lit.

 

[y_p_w]

Originally Posted by hallstevenson
The public fireworks shows are boring to me after so many years. Even our kids are like 'eh' about them. The private ones are better but admittedly not necessarily safer ! By better, I mean being able to be so much closer. That of course applies to the "not safer" part too !!

Once we found ourselves away from home and decided to go to the fireworks show at the county fairgrounds. Mostly it was people who were too cheap to pay for it and they were lined up parked on city streets outside the fairgrounds. We were fairly late and wouldn't have been able to find a decent space. However, they only charged about $6 parking to park in the fairgrounds lot and we could see it less than 100 feet from where they were launching them. This wasn't some modern computer controlled firing sequence where everyone was safely away from the launch site, but pyrotechnicians in hardhats running around with flares lighting fuses. When they were done with the show, they lifted the flares up and started waving them.

I've seen some programmed professional fireworks launch sites. I was walking to my car at a stadium during a post-game fireworks show. They had cleared a section of their parking lot for the launch site. One county fair fireworks show was launched from a small barge in the middle of a small lake. These were some pretty good shows when I could get fairly close to the launch site.

 

[Lubener]

I prefer to watch but it's not a big deal much anymore as it was in my younger days. Safety reasons and I would rather watch someone else's money go poof in the sky.

 

[grampi]

I loved them as a kid. Now they are kind of boring. I also know too many people with dogs who don't like them...

 

[jeepman3071]

Originally Posted by spasm3
Originally Posted by jeepman3071
I love fireworks. My dad has been doing firework shows on holidays and at parties since I was a kid. He is big on safety, and also plans out the entire show so it is almost to the point of being professional. He's one of those firework nerds that watches all the videos of what they look like and plans which ones he will light off at what times.

Like I said before though, he is all about safety, and mounts the cakes to boards for stability, etc. He claims a lot of the smaller ones are actually more dangerous because of their ability to tip over, or from people holding them/standing too close while they go off. I've seen some firework "displays" at people's homes that made me cringe with how reckless they were with them.



I mount my launch tubes to 2x6 boards on saw horses. That way they are elevated, and the tubes don't fall over, and you are not standing with your head over them when lighting!!!


Yep, lighting them is also very dangerous. My dad actually lights the wicks with a propane torch instead of fumbling with matches or a lighter, and extends the wick on a couple of the ones he gets if he feels they are too short. Anyone helping him light them is trained beforehand, and if you screw it up once you're out.

 

[Hall]

Originally Posted by spasm3
OHHH cool, um where does one purchase such a thing?

He mentioned that a guy makes them for historical societies so I presume he paid to have one made for himself. The others ones are bigger than this one though. I can't imagine the noise they would make compared to this one ! When he lit it, he ran away as fast as he could with his ears covered. I don't remember seeing flames or anything, just feeling/hearing the concussion BOOM !

 

[spasm3]

Originally Posted by jeepman3071
Originally Posted by spasm3
Originally Posted by jeepman3071
I love fireworks. My dad has been doing firework shows on holidays and at parties since I was a kid. He is big on safety, and also plans out the entire show so it is almost to the point of being professional. He's one of those firework nerds that watches all the videos of what they look like and plans which ones he will light off at what times.

Like I said before though, he is all about safety, and mounts the cakes to boards for stability, etc. He claims a lot of the smaller ones are actually more dangerous because of their ability to tip over, or from people holding them/standing too close while they go off. I've seen some firework "displays" at people's homes that made me cringe with how reckless they were with them.



I mount my launch tubes to 2x6 boards on saw horses. That way they are elevated, and the tubes don't fall over, and you are not standing with your head over them when lighting!!!


Yep, lighting them is also very dangerous. My dad actually lights the wicks with a propane torch instead of fumbling with matches or a lighter, and extends the wick on a couple of the ones he gets if he feels they are too short. Anyone helping him light them is trained beforehand, and if you screw it up once you're out.


I do the same piezo ignition torch.

 

[spasm3]

Originally Posted by hallstevenson
Originally Posted by spasm3
OHHH cool, um where does one purchase such a thing?

He mentioned that a guy makes them for historical societies so I presume he paid to have one made for himself. The others ones are bigger than this one though. I can't imagine the noise they would make compared to this one ! When he lit it, he ran away as fast as he could with his ears covered. I don't remember seeing flames or anything, just feeling/hearing the concussion BOOM !


I want one!