(Topic ID: 270887)
Winston-salem, NC
Quoted from CullenT:Looking good!
Headed to SC tomorrow
Will be my first fireworks run ever....
Thanks! Have fun shopping, and good luck with your show. There is so much out there to choose from. YouTube vids are a great resource for figuring out what you want to grab.
Quoted from woody76:Nice, All the stands around my way got setup this weekend.
Thank you! They are just starting to open up here in Iowa as well. Fortunately I live only a few hours from probably the best and certainly biggest fireworks place in the US, and they’re open year round (Fireworks Superstore, in Hannibal, Mo). I got the bulk of my stuff from there at super great prices, and grabbed the rest from a brick and mortar store here in Iowa. I think my tent buying days are over as their prices are outrageous. Anyway, have a great 4th. I hope you find some good ones to buy.
Reading the names, I was thinking you could play the game "Pinball Machine or Firework"? Ha...
Whoops, you got doubles of High Falutin'!
I'd just like to find a nice, larger windmill. Last time I saw a good one was when I was a kid. I bought one at a stand last year, but it didn't measure up, and so short! Nothing like the 3 large white canister one I remember, that kept going and going. Anyone recommend one? I got to go by the Indian reservation...
Quoted from jester523:Jealous. I live in phoenix, and there is not the best fireworks scene here....to easy to burn down.
I hear ya, man. Sorry. Fireworks were illegal here in Iowa until 2017, and even now lots and lots of Iowa cities have passed their own local ban on them after the state legalized it. Hopefully my city sticks it out and lets us have some fun.
Quoted from HighVoltage:Reading the names, I was thinking you could play the game "Pinball Machine or Firework"? Ha...
Whoops, you got doubles of High Falutin'!
I'd just like to find a nice, larger windmill. Last time I saw a good one was when I was a kid. I bought one at a stand last year, but it didn't measure up, and so short! Nothing like the 3 large white canister one I remember. Anyone recommend one? I got to go by the Indian reservation...
Yeah, I decided to get 2 High Falutin this year since we enjoyed it so much last year. It’s a great cake! That said, there are a lot of great cakes, but I got a really great price on this one in particular.
I had to bow out.I started a show in a temporary vacant lot next to me in 2007.Three years later I was standing in my garage looking at $1275 worth of fireworks to set off in a week.I stood there looking at all this firepower and was scared by how obsessed I had become with my show in my neighborhood.
Anyway I on to an epic cul de sac display that people still mention around this time of the year.I got out before I got hurt!
Quoted from HighVoltage:No windmills? They don't seem that popular anymore...
Sorry, I can’t recommend any. That’s one of the categories of fireworks that I don’t really buy. I typically stick to cakes, rockets, and artillery shells.
Quoted from romulusx:I had to bow out.I started a show in a temporary vacant lot next to me in 2007.Three years later I was standing in my garage looking at $1275 worth of fireworks to set off in a week.I stood there looking at all this firepower and was scared by how obsessed I had become with my show in my neighborhood.
Anyway I on to an epic cul de sac display that people still mention around this time of the year.I got out before I got hurt!
It’s definitely an easy thing to go overboard with. Every year my stash for the family show gets a bit bigger. But, it’s one of the rare times that our family finds the time to get together, so hopefully it continues.
Quoted from MattElder:It’s definitely an easy thing to go overboard with. Every year my stash for the family show gets a bit bigger. But, it’s one of the rare times that our family finds the time to get together, so hopefully it continues.
Have fun and be safe.I actually did ours for five years and the second year the neighbors started giving me 50’s and 20’s to help pay for next year.
Sydney
Great photo. Been banned in Australia for years now, but fireworks are some of my best memories growing up. We used to have it on the Queens Birthday long weekend in June. We never thought of it as Queens Birthday- was always “Cracker Night”. We’d spend weeks building up a huge stash and then spend the whole 3 day long weekend blowing up whatever we could find. I’m really upset my son never got to experience the same.
Are they legal across the whole country in the US, or only some states?
Quoted from cooked71:Great photo. Been banned in Australia for years now, but fireworks are some of my best memories growing up. We used to have it on the Queens Birthday long weekend in June. We never thought of it as Queens Birthday- was always “Cracker Night”. We’d spend weeks building up a huge stash and then spend the whole 3 day long weekend blowing up whatever we could find.
Are they legal across the whole country in the US, or only some states?
Thanks! Sounds Like some great memories you have there.
Sorry to hear that they’re no longer legal in Australia. In the US it varies from state to state, and even within the states some counties and cities have their own local regulations. Here in Iowa they just legalized fireworks in 2017 (every class and type even), but many cities put local bans back in place immediately. So the laws vary greatly depending on where you are.
Quoted from cooked71:Great photo. Been banned in Australia for years now, but fireworks are some of my best memories growing up. We used to have it on the Queens Birthday long weekend in June. We never thought of it as Queens Birthday- was always “Cracker Night”. We’d spend weeks building up a huge stash and then spend the whole 3 day long weekend blowing up whatever we could find. I’m really upset my son never got to experience the same.
Are they legal across the whole country in the US, or only some states?
Territory Day July 1st legal to buy on that day in the Northern Territory every year since 1978.
Quoted from MattElder:Thanks! Sounds Like some great memories you have there.
Sorry to hear that they’re no longer legal in Australia.
Still legal to buy and use in some parts of Australia as above and not banned.
Only the safe and sane are legal in California. Most cities in SoCal have banned them except mine. They look the other way when it comes to the illegal stuff because everyone lights them off. At work we used to have the China connection and access to some pretty awesome stuff at super cheap prices. We would get it directly off the ship from the crew members, but customs started cracking down on us about 10 years ago.
I used to make my own “firecrackers”, but after 9-11 that became a serious crime and not worth messing with. I usually buy a supply on July 5th at half off and save it for New Years.
Quoted from cooked71:Great photo. Been banned in Australia for years now, but fireworks are some of my best memories growing up. We used to have it on the Queens Birthday long weekend in June. We never thought of it as Queens Birthday- was always “Cracker Night”. We’d spend weeks building up a huge stash and then spend the whole 3 day long weekend blowing up whatever we could find. I’m really upset my son never got to experience the same.
Are they legal across the whole country in the US, or only some states?
We used to drive to Canberra and fill the car up . You can still get them from some Chinese shops under the counter .
I used to love " big bears " they were rockets which would set off all the car alarms in the neighborhood 
Here,Fireworks are illegal!! There are places to buy them,BUT,if the Man catches you the fine here is $2000.00!! And they cruse our neighborhood just waiting to catch you doing it
Nice. I used to work for TNT in one of their local warehouses here in VA during the summer months in college. Unfortunately we only sold the fountain stuff nothing that went in the air. My former boss actually lives around the corner and we still talk. He still has connections so I’m able to get the good stuff at a discount and don’t even have to drive far to get it. He’s getting up there in age though and not sure if I’ll be able to get more. He still drives for the local operators during the 4th but says he’s done. We still have some from last year though.
Normally the fourth is a massive party in my area of OC ca. I think I will be watching from the top of my parking structure this year. It will probably still be a great night, but I am missing parties. Those were fun. I got a picture somewhere.
Quoted from screaminr:We used to drive to Canberra and fill the car up . You can still get them from some Chinese shops under the counter .
I used to love " big bears " they were rockets which would set off all the car alarms in the neighborhood
That's right ACT had them as well up until a few years ago as did Tasmania.
Here's the stash from NT 2019 - well worth the trip for those willing to broaden their horizons cooked71
100_2080 (resized).JPG100_2081 (resized).JPGFor years I was a member oldest continous fireworks club . Permitted , insured. Mandatory safety training . Wholesale pricing . Workshops how to set up a professional " shoot " . The commercial companies would do trials of new products that came on market .
If you shoot fireworks take a safety class !!!
PS it should not be a fireworks " STASH " . Properly done should be fireworks stored in a magazine
Years ago, I had to do a small electrical service call for a guy who's house I had wired when it was built. It was on a Friday, on my way home and only took me about 15 minutes. Could have charged him $100, at the time, but I told him no charge. He thanked me then asked if I liked fire works. We go out to his garage and it is filled floor to ceiling!
Some company from WI (fireworks are illegal to sell in MN) would ship this stuff to him in bulk. He and his wife would divide it up into various packages with a little bit of everything in each one, then ship it back.
He must have given me $200 worth of shit for free! My kids were maybe 7 and 9, at the time, and loved when we went out to my brother in law farmer's property and spent the night shooting it all off.
Where I live the only fireworks that you can buy are non-explosive things like fountains and snakes. Growing up in Kansas in the 60s, we had great fireworks; Grasshoppers, roman candles, and my personal favorite, bottle rockets. Even cherry bombs and M80s were available.
I kind of feel that kids today are cheated out of some of the best parts of growing up in the name of safety. No more fireworks, treehouses (Thanks HOA), toy guns, or monkey bars.
Even with all the tech, I'm glad I grew up when I did.
So at our 4th party at my boss’s house, i am in charge of the firework show. He gets mortar shot shells. We blast them up for about 20m straight. 2 blocks from his house is the fire station. Last year i was up on the roof and folks were pulling over to watch. It was weird i was talking to strangers in the front yard, and party goers in the back. For some odd reason its never been shut down in 15years. Ill try to snap a arsenal photo next time im there
When I was younger in NY, we used to drive over to PA and buy tons of fireworks. There was some weird rule where fireworks were illegal in PA but you could buy them if you were out of state. We bought tons wholesale, drove them back to NY. Sold them at insane markup, and had crazy fireworks shows for free. Definitely not the safest endeavor, but we were too young and stupid to realize.
Quoted from screaminr:We used to drive to Canberra and fill the car up . You can still get them from some Chinese shops under the counter .
I used to love " big bears " they were rockets which would set off all the car alarms in the neighborhood
I think Canberra was the last to ban them, apart from NT as I’ve since found out. Grew up in Canberra and from the 90’s they kept making them harder to get and not as powerful. Though if you could be bothered applying for a single use display license you could get access to the real ones. We did it a couple of times and the ones you could buy were actual display fireworks - like thick cardboard tubes with no labels. You had no idea what they did until you lit them. Like huge 6m fountains and real display shooters and whistlers etc.
Eventually it seemed like pet owners lobbying completely shut it down, though it was obviously for a bunch of different reasons. I never knew of anyone getting seriously injured except one of my dads best friends had his hand complete blown off - but that was from a home made tube cracker - otherwise known as a “bomb”.
As a kid growing up in Florida, I had a 'fireworks' fund where I'd save up
money for our annual trip to visit family in NYC and Mass. Was only really
interested in South Carolina where the fireworks vendors were. There
was a place called 'South of the Border" that had bill boards on the freeway
and once you got there, the vendors were close. Good times.
Here in Nor Cal we came close to loosing our house to wild fires. Twice.
So no fireworks here. Tossed the small stash I had in the pool as one
of the fires approached.
Steve
I love fireworks and there are three MASSIVE fireworks warehouses nearby. Over the years I have seen a lot of crazy stuff happen and ruin what should be fun days, so here are some basic rules that I follow:
My number one rule is no more rockets ever. I have seen too much crazy crap happen. Once I lit off a huge oversized bottle rocket with an explosive that could be heard for a mile away using a PVC launcher that I built to ensure accuracy. That thing lifted off and got about 20 feet off the ground, made a 90 degree turn and headed down the block 100+ yards and detonated on the ground in the middle of a bunch of young kids. No one was hurt, but my neighbor hates me to this day. I have seen a lot of other stuff like this over the years - especially when people don't have proper launchers. My neighbor exploded a rocket on my roof and a couple feet in the other direction would have ignited the pine needles in my gutters.
My number two rule and the solution to number one is to always use mortars for aerial displays instead of rockets
Rule number three is to modify the mortar launchers by attaching them firmly to a 2x2 foot piece of 1/2 inch plywood so they physically cannot tip over. The mortars they sell these days are ridiculous and awesome at the same time. Last thing you want is one of them exploding anywhere but 100+ feet over head. My friend's next door neighbor burned down his new detached garage last July 4th because the mortar tube fell over in the grass after the fuse was lit. He apparently also went to the ER with some burns from trying to put out the fire.
Rule number four is that mortar tubes wear out and are rated for the ammo it comes with. Use the tube only with the ammo that it actually comes with and discard the tube when the ammo is gone. The tube might last years but on the other hand, I have seen them explode and the projectile stayed dangerously low and off target
Rule number five is safety glasses, fire extinguisher, hose, keep people back at a safe distance and other common sense stuff.
Rule number six is little or no alcohol for the person lighting the fuses.
Rule number seven is to remember that these things are built in China by 3rd graders. Never, ever trust them to work as expected, expect them to shoot fireballs at anyone nearby and always be really careful with duds. Flood duds with water from a hose if possible or wait for a really stupid long time before getting near.
Finally I will say "just say no" to letting your kids be anything other than distant observers and make sure they see you treating the fireworks with ultimate care.
This is all I have left
Smoke bomb which must be at least 20 years old . Never found the right time to use it .
It's pretty chunky and I didn't want the firebrigrade to come to my house . This thread has inspired me and I will let it off soon and post some pics .
IMG20200615232936 (resized).jpgIMG20200615233043 (resized).jpgWhen I was 12, fireworks and pinball were my favorite things to waste money on. 52 years later nothing has changed.
Quoted from John_I:I love fireworks and there are three MASSIVE fireworks warehouses nearby. Over the years I have seen a lot of crazy stuff happen and ruin what should be fun days, so here are some basic rules that I follow:
My number one rule is no more rockets ever. I have seen too much crazy crap happen. Once I lit off a huge oversized bottle rocket with an explosive that could be heard for a mile away using a PVC launcher that I built to ensure accuracy. That thing lifted off and got about 20 feet off the ground, made a 90 degree turn and headed down the block 100+ yards and detonated on the ground in the middle of a bunch of young kids. No one was hurt, but my neighbor hates me to this day. I have seen a lot of other stuff like this over the years - especially when people don't have proper launchers. My neighbor exploded a rocket on my roof and a couple feet in the other direction would have ignited the pine needles in my gutters.
My number two rule and the solution to number one is to always use mortars for aerial displays instead of rockets
Rule number three is to modify the mortar launchers by attaching them firmly to a 2x2 foot piece of 1/2 inch plywood so they physically cannot tip over. The mortars they sell these days are ridiculous and awesome at the same time. Last thing you want is one of them exploding anywhere but 100+ feet over head. My friend's next door neighbor burned down his new detached garage last July 4th because the mortar tube fell over in the grass after the fuse was lit. He apparently also went to the ER with some burns from trying to put out the fire.
Rule number four is that mortar tubes wear out and are rated for the ammo it comes with. Use the tube only with the ammo that it actually comes with and discard the tube when the ammo is gone. The tube might last years but on the other hand, I have seen them explode and the projectile stayed dangerously low and off target
Rule number five is safety glasses, fire extinguisher, hose, keep people back at a safe distance and other common sense stuff.
Rule number six is little or no alcohol for the person lighting the fuses.
Rule number seven is to remember that these things are built in China by 3rd graders. Never, ever trust them to work as expected, expect them to shoot fireballs at anyone nearby and always be really careful with duds. Flood duds with water from a hose if possible or wait for a really stupid long time before getting near.
Finally I will say "just say no" to letting your kids be anything other than distant observers and make sure they see you treating the fireworks with ultimate care.
All great advice. I take fireworks very seriously as well, and have taught my kids to respect them and keep their distance.
I do many of the same things you do to keep things as safe as possible. We use a large open area of one family member that lives out in the country, so that helps a lot. I also build short temporary plywood walls around the firing area to stop things from coming directly at anyone should something not go up as intended.
Sadly, many people don't handle them properly and it ends up causing injury and property damage and ruining things for everyone. They definitely are not toys.
Be safe and have fun everyone!
Quoted from MattElder:All great advice. I take fireworks very seriously as well, and have taught my kids to respect them and keep their distance.
I do many of the same things you do to keep things as safe as possible. We use a large open area of one family member that lives out in the country, so that helps a lot. I also build short temporary plywood walls around the firing area to stop things from coming directly at anyone should something not go up as intended.
Sadly, many people don't handle them properly and it ends up causing injury and property damage and ruining things for everyone. They definitely are not toys.
Be safe and have fun everyone!
Almost forgot one of the best safety features that I use....I use a remote firing system. Those things are amazing. It also allows me to sit with everyone else and enjoy the show while just pushing buttons.
Anyone else have bottle rocket wars?
I always cheated, back home in Alabama, I knew a spot I could buy year round. I would stock up on the whistlers that were not sold in Texas.
I'd load up my bottle rocket gun and kick some ass, yes still have both my eyes and all 20 phalanges, can't hear for shit though.
I also rode my bike w/o a helmet and rode in the back of the car on the package shelf. Oh simpler times!
Quoted from athens95:Looks like someone in China borrowed some pinball artwork for this one.
[quoted image]
Yep. I've noticed that one and 1or 2 or others over the years that did the same. I think one out there has AFM art on it.
I have a soft limit of about $100 a year. That worked fine 30 years ago, but doesn't get you much now. Prices are ridiculous around here. A dozen smoke balls are $2 and usually 2 or 3 in a dozen are duds. I mostly just get some small stuff my kid likes and the neighbors put on the real shows.
A guy at a meth house a couple streets over blew off his hand 2 years ago. That's not too uncommon in Missouri.
Quoted from loneacer:A guy at a meth house a couple streets over blew off his hand 2 years ago. That's not too uncommon in Missouri.
From fireworks or from his chosen vocation or did they both coincide?
Quoted from Atari_Daze:From fireworks or from his chosen vocation or did they both coincide?
This particular case was a firework.
Quoted from loneacer:That's not too uncommon in Missouri.
True. A friend of mine blew his thumb off a few years back. Drunk and stupid. Made his own cannon launcher and welded a spark plug socket in the end. Two different types of metal and the weld blew apart. Lost his thumb and somehow survived the socket going into his chest, which miraculously missed the major organs. The plastic bag he held over the hole in his chest en route to the hospital very well may of been the difference in him living. Hey everyone, have a great holiday and stay safe.
fair few aussies here posting. as they have mentioned fireworks have been banned here for decades.
was fortunate to be in seattle with my wife and kids in 2005. at the time my children were 14 and 10.
we got invited to a local families house for the 4th of july, big party.
was so happy my children got to experience what i did growing up.
Quoted from Atari_Daze:Anyone else have bottle rocket wars?
Bottle rocket, Roman candles, smoke bombs, pretty much anything wars. Those were the good day’s or should I say dumb days. Lol.
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