I enjoyed how he said "always have a sober adult in charge", because that's an important distinction. There's probably an adult in charge, but are they really capable of being in charge at that moment?
@@Uhaneole Sorry, but if you are not sober, you can't be trusted, and if you do not know what you are doing, you will be dangerous anyway, the only one that might theoretically be possible would be to trust a mature 15 year old with the fireworks, but that would be illegal.
To help with the last question about SC being obsessed with fireworks, it’s because fireworks are illegal in NC so all of us go down to SC to get our fireworks. That’s why there’s so many firework stores near the SC line.
I remember the "Big Bay Bust" (I think they call the normal one the "Big Bay Boom") I was in the hospital so I couldn't go.. but I saw videos, and it was spectacular lol While I would have been a little bummed (if I'd went) that it was over so quickly, I'd have been thrilled to see it. 5 different fireworks barges, all with the timers set in seconds instead of milliseconds, went off all at the same time for about 15 seconds instead of 5-10 minutes.. I couldn't imagine how ashamed I'd be if I'd set that up.
I trained as a Pyrotechnician back in the mid 90's (by the man who did the effects for the 1995 Judge Dredd movie with Stallone), I worked at some amazing places putting on not just a 'firework display' but combined fireworks, fire and people, 60 human fire eaters, dancers and flame throwers, human and mechanical, all with more explosions than allowed. Best Ever was right under Sussex Police headquarters in the UK, they tried so hard to stop it BUT the local fire service gave us the thumbs up and enjoyed the show (as did the police on site).
you should see Illinois anti firework commercials under the banned Pyrotechnic Use Act signed in 1942, people have been trying to change it but if you pass through Illinois you can people firing off fireworks anyways
@@crefmag yes it was and yes they are used to fireworks but they didn't like it right under their noses, live bands, people enjoying themselves and we were not just using 'fireworks' but our own made explosions, wouldn't be allowed these days. We used to live in one of Harveys old Brewery cottages off the Cliff High st and my parents had a shop there too so were right in the middle of it all.
@@paddington1670 what does that even mean? You have to be in control of another person to have an idea of what they might be like? If you see a a garbage man pick up garbage, does that blow you away because you aren't in control of them? Must be a wild existence...
The bit about "false finales" makes perfect sense; it's like that rising/falling action graph that they show you in middle school English classes. You want to have multiple peaks over the course of the 'story', with valleys in between to give the audience time to process what just happened. It's just that in a fireworks display, the 'story' you're telling is told via explosions.
My Dad's school friend broke into an outdoor Police locker in New Zealand back in the 60s, which contained confiscated fireworks and then subsequently blew his fingers off with one of them.
@@WyattWinters Good advice. Tho, I do like holding bottle rockets sometimes, it rarely burns you... much. My dad told stories of the bottle rocket wars he had when he was a kid, which sounds terrifying.
Not as crazy as San Diego... had a 60 shot cake malfunction near me and they all went off at once. That was a surprise! We prepped well though. Lots of open space around us, eye protection, fire extinguishers, a plan. Fireworks are fun but need to be treated with respect for the danger they could cause.
As s kid 20 some yes ago we had a cake get knocked over after being lit and began firing off in all directions. Had to jump ontop the hood of a car as one shot right under me.
There is a flaw in logic here, because there is no such thing as too many fireworks or “skypuke”. Fireworks should be finale all the way, all the time.
@@timz9862Nah, there is such thing as too many. Sky puke can be kind of utilized as "filler" in a show but not in a finale and definitely not in sequences. If you put effort into choreographing a display then you want it to go as close to your vision as possible. Other people might not know the difference but you will... And they will miss out on the thing you had planned that was even better.
@@lucydog3376 But you’re assuming that everyone wants fireworks to be like a ballet, when many of us just want to watch a bunch of pretty explosions continuously.
I did a stint as a volunteer pyrotechnician and I have to say it was the most fun job I've had. At the time we were hand firing, so right up close to the action; The **Fssthp** of quickmatches passing fire followed by the immense THUD you could feel in your chest as lifting charges ignited, the smoke, and smell of burned black powder, a very visceral experience. The only downside was loading up all the mortar racks and searching downrange for rocket sticks and shell casings once it was all over. It's something that any lover of pyro should do at least once in their life.
ecstatic that that one show in San Diego was brought up!!! my best friend at the time lived so close to where they were set off, she said their windows were visibly bowing, they thought they were going to shatter. it was SO LOUD. glad that an event so personally iconic for me is still being talked about on the internet
For the last question- because of the different laws in different states, I have found that very often the first few miles past the border tend to have a LOT of fireworks stores, more than anywhere else in the state would. New York has more allowed fireworks now than in the past, and we can buy them here now as well, but I remember a time when we could not buy most fireworks in state, but *could* set off most fireworks in state. So everyone would drive to Pennsylvania where, a mile in or so just off the interstate you could find 2 or 3 stores to buy fireworks and then drive back up into New York.
Thank you for the educational update on pyrotechnic technology. I worked a couple of shows in the 1980's, lighting the fuses with a road flare. The scariest moments were reloading the tubes, since we didn't know if there was still any burning paper in there. We used the swing and drop method, with the rule of, "Don't put anything over the tube that you aren't willing to lose." Great video!
Awesome! I did ONE hand fired show in LA and was last before outlawed. Guys told of RELOADING a hand-fired show and how scary it was. Swing and drop...hope it goes to bottom... Lol!
I'm sure you've noticed the dull "thud" sounds when some mortars explode, as well as a flare-burning sound akin to when bottle rockets go off. That's about as quiet as they can get. Everything else would be added either on purpose (such as the Salute or Report he mentioned), or as a byproduct of a visual effect.
So the modeling software used was FWsim(really cool program) and to best explain cakes/shells is that if you know the physics of how weaponry(guns, cannons, mortor guns, and artillery pieces) a shell has the same physics. The fuse you light is the trigger(more literally if using a firing system) and the lift charge is what fires the shell(bullet) out of the gun(the tube shells are launched out of) firing systems do the same as you using a punk/lighter to shoot the show while allowing the techs to be at a safe distance especially with many shows that utilize 8, 10, and 12 inch shells
6:34 I don't remember this myself, but when I was really young, we went to a fireworks show but there was a thunderstorm approaching so they decided to launch them all at once instead of rescheduling it, I'm told it was one of the best fireworks shows my dad has ever seen, sad that I don't remember it
For the last question about South Carolina, as a resident of a neighboring state, I believe the restrictions on fireworks and the taxes are lower in South Carolina than in neighboring states. So, I see more stores right when entering the border. ALSO, gas taxes used to be much less than in surrounding states, so there were lots of gas stations that also sold fireworks.
They're probably written and chosen to be funny. That said, there's a real stigma about seeming too smart among a certain demographic and fitting in is always life's highest priority.
Now obviously they have internet, so don’t feel too bad for them if you think the question was dumb, but it could be an ESL person not knowing how to translate to compression or compressed gas so the closest they could get was blown air. If I was using my limited Spanish skills to ask this question in Spanish, I think I it may be very similar to how this person asked the question.
Of all the fireworks I've lit in my life the only one that ever hurt me was a sparkler. I was lighting it for someone and not thinking about the direction of ignition so it burned a hole in my thumb in less than a second. Lesson learned the hard way.
The biggest danger with mortars is people getting body parts over the muzzle. Having a mortar shell impact your noggin is a very good way to learn how to push daisies upwards. It happens pretty much every year, sadly. As you might guess, alcohol is usually involved.
One of my favorite flights was Raleigh to Salt Lake City on 4/4/23. We were flying in just as everyone's fireworks were going off way down below us. It was gorgeous. 🎆
I didn't either, but I'm not at all surprised Disney is doing it... and the pneumatic launchers. With the amount of firework displays they put on in a year, anything that makes the productions cheaper, safer, and more reliable is going to pay massive dividends.
The San Diego malfunction was caused by a design flaw in the electronic firing setup where the computer that was commanded to test and check all the shells for electrical continuity at once sent the full firing voltage to the e-matches instead of a lower voltage that's normally used for continuity checks that won't sent them off, just be enough to see a complete circuit. With the full voltage, when the computer tested all the shells at once, it fired all the shells at once. I'm an LA based pyro tech, and this was the story I ended up hearing through the grapevine.
Interesting. I had heard that it was a mistake in the scripting rather than a malfunction in continuity check. The short of what I heard is that a script with a "fire all" cue (that's usually issued at end of the show) was "merged" rather than "appended" to the actual show's script. Thus, the "fire all" cue was sent at 0:00:000 of the show. Northeast based Pyro here (NLPC, PA PyroArtists, CJ's, PGI member)
@@Wayneright could be! Whether it was a mistake in the test all or end of show fire all command, could've been a scripting issue either way. I'm not particularly familiar with fully computerized systems, ones I worked with were usually a computerized firing controller with manual switches for power control, if they were computerized at all. At the time I was working with stylus pegboards or fully manual shows
@@LracElosetab I've been doing pyromusicals for about fifteen years now. A mistake in the "test all" (i.e. continuity check) would be an unlikely culprit, as each module in the field usually only supports 32 cues. For the error you're describing to have caused the San Diego event every single module would have to be faulty.
@@colinmclaughlin9605 Ah okay, interesting. I'm much more used to 50 cue racks with non computerized systems. That was just the story I heard though the grapevine but that does make sense.
I remember a big smoke bomb that just detonated instead of smoking. It really got my attention because there were people present who were holding the very same smoke bomb in their hands while it burned. 😬
@@babecat2000 apparently whoever did it inside a garage in whatever country he said lol he’s obviously the idiotic moron who can’t handle a little gunpowder and magnesium lol 😂
I don’t know who came up with the modern “fade” effect he described, but it’s one of my favorite things to see during firework displays. Something so magical about it! Thank you, inventor. And thank you, Japan, for the golden drippy drippy fireworks. I love them.
Great job Patrick!! Me being a pyro all my life I knew alot of the answers but you definitely taught me a couple new things! Interesting video either way!!
This was extremely informative. I just had a conversation with my brother on this last 4th and we were talking about the different colors and how the shapes are made. Now I know for next year!
So far the best nashiki shell I've found consumer wise is the raccoon brand one, we had them this last fourth and they were the hit of the night, BIG willows that just hung, people were able to take great pics cause the hang time, it was a rainy day so I wasn't worried about launching them
There's nothing like hand lighting. I get the logistics and impracticality when doing a big show, but the rush of a bunch of dudes all scrambkjng and lighting em 1 at a time... ugh its cool
When I discovered that Pennsylvania had legalized the sale and use of aerial fireworks, I was ECSTATIC. I had a picnic where we basically spent three hours straight popping balloons in a homemade shooting gallery with roman candle fire. Fireworks are such a treat when you get to experience them up close.
"lots of things that can go wrong during a fireworks show"... Kinda goes without saying. Glad to see you've all your fingers. Bet you have a few co-workers that can't say the same. Super cool, thanks for sharing
The other part of the answer to the question about South Carolina involves North Carolina. NC’s fireworks laws are much more restrictive than SC’s, and NC’s biggest city, Charlotte, is right on the border. Lots of people will take a quick nip across the border the week before July 4th and grab some technically illegal but impossible to meaningfully enforce fireworks.
@6:00 The slower burning charge gives you "more fire"? Or is it just so you can accelerate the firework at the correct rate so you don't overpressurize and blow up the tube?
Exactly. Too fast of a powder in a lift charge will cause the mortar to fail (due to over pressure) and not lift the shell to the correct height or break the shell inside the mortar. Lift charges are calculated based on the mass of the shell. Higher mass == slower (and more) BP to build more pressure over time.
Yes to both. In the same way, firearms cartridges are loaded with specific types and quantities of powder to provide the desired projectile velocity without overpressurizing the chamber and harming the user.
My favorite firework is the mortar shell that lets off that huge BOOM but doesn't product such a huge display. I'm not sure WHY it's my favorite, but that huge BOOM always makes my heart skip a beat and makes me smile.
Those are called "salutes". Many pyrotechnicians love them as well. Those that especially love them are referred to as "thump junkies" by us other pyros :)
Back in the day, when I was kind of slowly working toward a pyrotechnics license, there were no wireless remotes. It was just the board and a LOT of wire. The show was fired manually using a hand held contact touching the conductors on the board. Now, computer controlled wireless systems are the thing. Pretty amazing.
Bet a lot of small shows are still pinboards. You have control! Digital systems have limits. It doesn't communicate a lift happened. An operator is hearing each lift going off or NOT!
Additionally, digital systems can fail catastrophically and your cool show is dead. They use delicate com wiring, finicky! A pinboards is crude and 100% reliable! So many paths for digi sys to die. Lastly, any guy with a soldering iron can fix a pinboard! Try replacing a processor in the field! Lol! Long live pinboards!
Talk about glaring errors, sulphur dioxide is NOT the rotten egg smell, that would be hydrogen sulfide, and M-80's have ZERO relation to dynamite, M-80's explode(technically it's deflagration) and dynamite DETONATES, they are totally different animals.
There are some exotic flash powders with ammonium perchlorate that can actually detonate, but yes, this guys doesn't sound like he knows a lot of what he's talking about.
The answer regarding coloring the fire went wrong by starting with black powder. The only common (and then only among amateurs, not the pros) color compositions based on black powder contain zinc. Strontium carbonate would give so little color to black powder, it would not be used; strontium carbonate does give a nice red with potassium chlorate or perchlorate, usually an additional chlorine donor, and a fuel other than the charcoal that fuels black powder. Charcoal makes too strong an orangish light for colors to show thru its flame. There are nitrate-oxidized color compositions, but with fuels that don't have that defect that black powder has.
You don't have to drive too far out of NJ to find roadside fireworks stands around this time of year... And sometimes cops looking for NJ driver's licenses at those stands.
I just had my first professional show with a cake exploding and having to duck and cover. Shows never go right but they definitely are fun. I can’t wait for next year :D
@@francisdec1615 The net is littered with info on how to make stars and other color comps. I think he should of at least done 5 minutes of research on the subject before saying utterly wrong things.
That person who commented about fireworks smelling so bad is nuts. I love the smell of fireworks! I suppose that person would probably try and tell me gasoline doesn't smell good either 🙄
:33 "when it reaches maximum altitude" though not because of any sensor/logic, just that the fuses have been timed so that it should explode after the amount of time it should take to get there.
NOTAM is now known as “Notice to Air Missions,” which, as a male pilot, doesn’t bother me at all because I’m not a crybaby child and I think it’s great that women are having their fair share of aviation too.
Specific chemical emissions are one thing... but altitude is irrelevant. CFCs are banned at ground level, not just at high altitudes! So then, the question of effect on the ozone layer depends on the specific chemical more than simply what altitude it is released at.
We attended one of those one-minute fireworks shows, at an AF base, when I was a kid. The entire set of mortars went off at once just after the start of the show. It was fantastic! (Not particularly artistic, though, and too short for my liking.)
I really want to sync a giant fireworks show to metal music. So every double-bass kick sets off one of those really low but loud fireworks, there are streamers and fountains and waterfalls for the guitars and all the flashy shells are synced to the drums cymbals, snare and toms. That would be so epic but it would need the pneumatic setup to set them off precisely to the notes because you're talking sometimes 280 beats a minute that have to land _perfectly._ Its been a long-running dream of mine to see this.
Listening to people who love their job is so inspiring.
Some call it "competence pron".
@@sophiamarchildon3998 this!!!
@@sophiamarchildon3998 Being competent and loving your job are two distinct things.
And he explained it with details with no ego or arrogance
I enjoyed how he said "always have a sober adult in charge", because that's an important distinction. There's probably an adult in charge, but are they really capable of being in charge at that moment?
It just adds a little excitement to the show lol.
And he missed out on knowledgeable. It is not enough to be sober and adult, you need to know what you are doing.
As long as you have 2 out of the 3 should be fine. Sober, Adult, Knowledgeable are the three qualities btw.
@@Uhaneole Sorry, but if you are not sober, you can't be trusted, and if you do not know what you are doing, you will be dangerous anyway, the only one that might theoretically be possible would be to trust a mature 15 year old with the fireworks, but that would be illegal.
Yeah found that out last night. Oops
To help with the last question about SC being obsessed with fireworks, it’s because fireworks are illegal in NC so all of us go down to SC to get our fireworks. That’s why there’s so many firework stores near the SC line.
Do they still have the hundreds of "South of the border..." signs on southbound 95?
@@x--. yes, yes they do😂
Same thing with Maryland and PA.
Same in Illinois. We just go over the border to Missouri or Indiana.
@@benn454 As a resident of western Indiana, can confirm, there are more fireworks stores than Starbucks in the Terre Haute area.
The hesitation when he says "Dont set off a 200ft firework in your apartment.... Parking lot" Haha. There is a story to be told
Google bootleg firework on RUclips for the answer
shut up
I thought he was going to say "... balcony."
I remember the "Big Bay Bust" (I think they call the normal one the "Big Bay Boom")
I was in the hospital so I couldn't go.. but I saw videos, and it was spectacular lol
While I would have been a little bummed (if I'd went) that it was over so quickly, I'd have been thrilled to see it.
5 different fireworks barges, all with the timers set in seconds instead of milliseconds, went off all at the same time for about 15 seconds instead of 5-10 minutes..
I couldn't imagine how ashamed I'd be if I'd set that up.
... could be a short fuse story 😂
That tattoo was a FLEX
yeah it was pretty cool.
Where is there a clear view of the tattoo
Nothing gets by you…
Quite literally
@@paddington1670lo no
I trained as a Pyrotechnician back in the mid 90's (by the man who did the effects for the 1995 Judge Dredd movie with Stallone), I worked at some amazing places putting on not just a 'firework display' but combined fireworks, fire and people, 60 human fire eaters, dancers and flame throwers, human and mechanical, all with more explosions than allowed.
Best Ever was right under Sussex Police headquarters in the UK, they tried so hard to stop it BUT the local fire service gave us the thumbs up and enjoyed the show (as did the police on site).
you should see Illinois anti firework commercials under the banned Pyrotechnic Use Act signed in 1942, people have been trying to change it but if you pass through Illinois you can people firing off fireworks anyways
@@knightwolf3511 It's only really an issue in the cities. The sheriff's departments in the rural counties don't really care.
Assuming it was in Lewes, they're pretty used to fireworks!
@@crefmag yes it was and yes they are used to fireworks but they didn't like it right under their noses, live bands, people enjoying themselves and we were not just using 'fireworks' but our own made explosions, wouldn't be allowed these days.
We used to live in one of Harveys old Brewery cottages off the Cliff High st and my parents had a shop there too so were right in the middle of it all.
Was not prepared for the tattoo 💀
im not really prepared for anything anyone does or says, that's because I do not control other people. shrug
Yeah that’s a crazy flex for sure 😭💀
@@paddington1670 what does that even mean? You have to be in control of another person to have an idea of what they might be like? If you see a a garbage man pick up garbage, does that blow you away because you aren't in control of them? Must be a wild existence...
Maybe he was surprised by his dedication? I dunno though, the skull can mean so many things.
It was great, wasn't it? It's his creativeness and dedication to a theme that impressed me.
The bit about "false finales" makes perfect sense; it's like that rising/falling action graph that they show you in middle school English classes. You want to have multiple peaks over the course of the 'story', with valleys in between to give the audience time to process what just happened. It's just that in a fireworks display, the 'story' you're telling is told via explosions.
Exactly!!👍
My Dad's school friend broke into an outdoor Police locker in New Zealand back in the 60s, which contained confiscated fireworks and then subsequently blew his fingers off with one of them.
"Show me your hook-hands." -Dave Atell
Play stupid games win stupid prizes. Never light a firework in your hand
Karma wanted some fingers.😅
@@Neenerella333🎉
@@WyattWinters Good advice. Tho, I do like holding bottle rockets sometimes, it rarely burns you... much. My dad told stories of the bottle rocket wars he had when he was a kid, which sounds terrifying.
"if you fire at us, we'll fire back" looooool
There's a story there somewhere...
Not as crazy as San Diego... had a 60 shot cake malfunction near me and they all went off at once. That was a surprise! We prepped well though. Lots of open space around us, eye protection, fire extinguishers, a plan. Fireworks are fun but need to be treated with respect for the danger they could cause.
Cowabunga it is
How did that happen? Cakes fire in sequence, fast for sure! But how did they go simultaneously?
The most dangerous fireworks depend on how the person uses it. It's kinda like guns. Its not the guns that are dangerous but the person using them.
As s kid 20 some yes ago we had a cake get knocked over after being lit and began firing off in all directions. Had to jump ontop the hood of a car as one shot right under me.
@@dousiastailfeather9454 I have no clue, definitely unexpected.
3:53 “sky puke” what a term
There is a flaw in logic here, because there is no such thing as too many fireworks or “skypuke”. Fireworks should be finale all the way, all the time.
@@timz9862 depends entirely on your audience and the pyro.
@@timz9862Nah, there is such thing as too many. Sky puke can be kind of utilized as "filler" in a show but not in a finale and definitely not in sequences. If you put effort into choreographing a display then you want it to go as close to your vision as possible. Other people might not know the difference but you will... And they will miss out on the thing you had planned that was even better.
@@lucydog3376 But you’re assuming that everyone wants fireworks to be like a ballet, when many of us just want to watch a bunch of pretty explosions continuously.
Yup when there are too many fireworks too fast the smoke obscures the effect.
I did a stint as a volunteer pyrotechnician and I have to say it was the most fun job I've had. At the time we were hand firing, so right up close to the action; The **Fssthp** of quickmatches passing fire followed by the immense THUD you could feel in your chest as lifting charges ignited, the smoke, and smell of burned black powder, a very visceral experience. The only downside was loading up all the mortar racks and searching downrange for rocket sticks and shell casings once it was all over. It's something that any lover of pyro should do at least once in their life.
applause
ecstatic that that one show in San Diego was brought up!!! my best friend at the time lived so close to where they were set off, she said their windows were visibly bowing, they thought they were going to shatter. it was SO LOUD. glad that an event so personally iconic for me is still being talked about on the internet
11:36 you just know "gold drippy drippy" was the second name they had for it
Especially with how funny Japanese translations can be.
For the last question- because of the different laws in different states, I have found that very often the first few miles past the border tend to have a LOT of fireworks stores, more than anywhere else in the state would. New York has more allowed fireworks now than in the past, and we can buy them here now as well, but I remember a time when we could not buy most fireworks in state, but *could* set off most fireworks in state. So everyone would drive to Pennsylvania where, a mile in or so just off the interstate you could find 2 or 3 stores to buy fireworks and then drive back up into New York.
Thank you for the educational update on pyrotechnic technology. I worked a couple of shows in the 1980's, lighting the fuses with a road flare. The scariest moments were reloading the tubes, since we didn't know if there was still any burning paper in there. We used the swing and drop method, with the rule of, "Don't put anything over the tube that you aren't willing to lose."
Great video!
Awesome! I did ONE hand fired show in LA and was last before outlawed. Guys told of RELOADING a hand-fired show and how scary it was. Swing and drop...hope it goes to bottom... Lol!
Even with electronic firing systems that rule still applies as a general safety precaution while setting up.
6:21 SO you're adding the Loudness ??? exactly how muted could the fireworks be ?
I'm sure you've noticed the dull "thud" sounds when some mortars explode, as well as a flare-burning sound akin to when bottle rockets go off. That's about as quiet as they can get. Everything else would be added either on purpose (such as the Salute or Report he mentioned), or as a byproduct of a visual effect.
Some effects like Horse Tails are pretty quiet. Just a light pop and the burning bits just fall out of the shell that’s launched into the sky
I mean there are people who just like the sound for some reason. Thats why sound bombs or whatever they are called exists, all they do is make a boom
@@MSusername69 “Salutes” are what they are called. Just flash powered that goes boom
@@WyattWintersoh, do not hold in hand! Duh!
Was at a show where fireworks fired into crowd. Fairly terrifying.
Lol happened this year in utah
At Burning Man, early years saw a LOT of product flying into audience! Makes great video!
Do fireworks have a small fan underneath 😂okay
Talk about a ridiculous question 😂😂😂
🧠🤏
Girandolas technically do
Ignorance isn't the same as stupidity (though ignorant people can be stupid also, of course).
@@technojoe
No, they really do not.
So the modeling software used was FWsim(really cool program) and to best explain cakes/shells is that if you know the physics of how weaponry(guns, cannons, mortor guns, and artillery pieces) a shell has the same physics. The fuse you light is the trigger(more literally if using a firing system) and the lift charge is what fires the shell(bullet) out of the gun(the tube shells are launched out of) firing systems do the same as you using a punk/lighter to shoot the show while allowing the techs to be at a safe distance especially with many shows that utilize 8, 10, and 12 inch shells
I stand corrected... finale 3D
6:34 I don't remember this myself, but when I was really young, we went to a fireworks show but there was a thunderstorm approaching so they decided to launch them all at once instead of rescheduling it, I'm told it was one of the best fireworks shows my dad has ever seen, sad that I don't remember it
God, I love the smell of fireworks.
Same
Same
Same
It smells like....victory
Yaaaaas 😩🤌🏻
For the last question about South Carolina, as a resident of a neighboring state, I believe the restrictions on fireworks and the taxes are lower in South Carolina than in neighboring states. So, I see more stores right when entering the border. ALSO, gas taxes used to be much less than in surrounding states, so there were lots of gas stations that also sold fireworks.
I am continually amazed by Wired’s ability to find the stupidest questions imaginable for these videos.
Legit who looks at a literal explosive and says "yeah idk how this is propelled, the most logical answer is A Fan" 🥴
Well they do it for comments like these to increase engagement
They're probably written and chosen to be funny. That said, there's a real stigma about seeming too smart among a certain demographic and fitting in is always life's highest priority.
All of you need to chill, these questions were mostly fine. Except for the first one. That was fuckin' stupid.
lol yeah "do it have a fan"
Wait. Somebody seriously asked if fireworks have a fan on the bottom that shoots them up? 😂💀
They say the only stupid question is the one you're too proud to ask but that one does make me wanna know the age of the submitter
Now obviously they have internet, so don’t feel too bad for them if you think the question was dumb, but it could be an ESL person not knowing how to translate to compression or compressed gas so the closest they could get was blown air. If I was using my limited Spanish skills to ask this question in Spanish, I think I it may be very similar to how this person asked the question.
That's the hook
Lmfao I think dinsey atleast in Cali they used compressed air to launch them hire
The average person is kinda stupid, but there's a percentage of the population that's even more stupid.
11:53 he was about to say gold shower but stopped himself 😂
Of all the fireworks I've lit in my life the only one that ever hurt me was a sparkler. I was lighting it for someone and not thinking about the direction of ignition so it burned a hole in my thumb in less than a second. Lesson learned the hard way.
Spinning fireworks are my fav, love seeing a whirling ball of light whipping into the sky, then kaboom! A classic star burst.
The biggest danger with mortars is people getting body parts over the muzzle. Having a mortar shell impact your noggin is a very good way to learn how to push daisies upwards. It happens pretty much every year, sadly. As you might guess, alcohol is usually involved.
"I wonder, is this mortar loaded"
It was .
One of my favorite flights was Raleigh to Salt Lake City on 4/4/23. We were flying in just as everyone's fireworks were going off way down below us. It was gorgeous. 🎆
I'm guessing you mean 7/4/23.
@@tkreitlerOops. Fat fingers. 🫣
This was actually very interesting and informative. Appreciate how knowledgeable this guy is down to the chemistry of the fireworks.
I learned something today. Thank You.
I did not knw about embedding a microchip in the firework to time exactly when it will go off. Fascinating.
I didn't either, but I'm not at all surprised Disney is doing it... and the pneumatic launchers. With the amount of firework displays they put on in a year, anything that makes the productions cheaper, safer, and more reliable is going to pay massive dividends.
The San Diego malfunction was caused by a design flaw in the electronic firing setup where the computer that was commanded to test and check all the shells for electrical continuity at once sent the full firing voltage to the e-matches instead of a lower voltage that's normally used for continuity checks that won't sent them off, just be enough to see a complete circuit. With the full voltage, when the computer tested all the shells at once, it fired all the shells at once. I'm an LA based pyro tech, and this was the story I ended up hearing through the grapevine.
Interesting. I had heard that it was a mistake in the scripting rather than a malfunction in continuity check. The short of what I heard is that a script with a "fire all" cue (that's usually issued at end of the show) was "merged" rather than "appended" to the actual show's script. Thus, the "fire all" cue was sent at 0:00:000 of the show. Northeast based Pyro here (NLPC, PA PyroArtists, CJ's, PGI member)
@@Wayneright could be! Whether it was a mistake in the test all or end of show fire all command, could've been a scripting issue either way. I'm not particularly familiar with fully computerized systems, ones I worked with were usually a computerized firing controller with manual switches for power control, if they were computerized at all. At the time I was working with stylus pegboards or fully manual shows
@@LracElosetab I've been doing pyromusicals for about fifteen years now. A mistake in the "test all" (i.e. continuity check) would be an unlikely culprit, as each module in the field usually only supports 32 cues. For the error you're describing to have caused the San Diego event every single module would have to be faulty.
@@colinmclaughlin9605 Ah okay, interesting. I'm much more used to 50 cue racks with non computerized systems. That was just the story I heard though the grapevine but that does make sense.
Being born on the 4th, I have been obsessed with fireworks my whole life.
That’s cool!
My dads Bday is 4th of July so he has a blast drinking and watching
Happi bdayyyy
Happy birthday!
@@JustnormalOofficial Thanks!
I remember a big smoke bomb that just detonated instead of smoking. It really got my attention because there were people present who were holding the very same smoke bomb in their hands while it burned. 😬
Lol I had one blow up in my hand once or twice learned my lesson 😆😆 but also had them blow up on the ground too
Piccolo Pete's explode too!
Really nice guy that loves what he does. Great guest.
I see yall using the “GET THE WATER” video at 10:11 😂😂😂
It's going down! 😂
those mfing bootleg fireworks!
Yesterday there was an incident in my country where 1.000 kg of firework exploded in someone’s garage. Funny this video was uploaded the day after
Prob why ur country shouldn’t have fireworks
@@NateDawg5050 Not everyone is an idiot with fireworks.
Excuse me, that's a bomb at that weight
@@babecat2000 apparently whoever did it inside a garage in whatever country he said lol he’s obviously the idiotic moron who can’t handle a little gunpowder and magnesium lol 😂
@@gerber8915 grow up and grow a pair lol 😂
I don’t know who came up with the modern “fade” effect he described, but it’s one of my favorite things to see during firework displays. Something so magical about it! Thank you, inventor.
And thank you, Japan, for the golden drippy drippy fireworks. I love them.
Pyrotechnik ist doch kein Verbrechen! 🙌🙌
The Finale demonstration surprised me. Roller Coaster Tycoon 3 had a great mock version of that program (simplified obviously). I can’t believe it.
The fan question off the bat was wild. Some producer decided that was a good question.
Great job Patrick!! Me being a pyro all my life I knew alot of the answers but you definitely taught me a couple new things! Interesting video either way!!
This was a great one! Can we have him on again but with more focus on stage-stuff?
thats moreso what i think of when I think of pyrotechnicians
I absolutely love the way fireworks smell myself. Great informative video.
Interesting! I have questions about air quality FOR SURE and I also am curious how the new drone shows are impacting the fireworks industry.
5:04 Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) has changed its naming to Notice to Air Mission (same acronym, NOTAM). Just FYI.
His knowledge is lit
😂
This was extremely informative. I just had a conversation with my brother on this last 4th and we were talking about the different colors and how the shapes are made. Now I know for next year!
This episode is a blast, not gonna lie
So far the best nashiki shell I've found consumer wise is the raccoon brand one, we had them this last fourth and they were the hit of the night, BIG willows that just hung, people were able to take great pics cause the hang time, it was a rainy day so I wasn't worried about launching them
There's nothing like hand lighting. I get the logistics and impracticality when doing a big show, but the rush of a bunch of dudes all scrambkjng and lighting em 1 at a time... ugh its cool
I got ONE under my belt!
When I discovered that Pennsylvania had legalized the sale and use of aerial fireworks, I was ECSTATIC. I had a picnic where we basically spent three hours straight popping balloons in a homemade shooting gallery with roman candle fire. Fireworks are such a treat when you get to experience them up close.
7:52 the microchip shortage is making a lot of sense now...
When you wish upon a radio-activated detonator....
@@x--. Or radioACTIVE (strontium and barium coloring agents, lol)
They're launching and blowing them up in the sky!!!!!
Pyrotechnician is the coolest sounding job name I've ever heard.
"small fan underneath them" 💀
blud was high
"lots of things that can go wrong during a fireworks show"... Kinda goes without saying. Glad to see you've all your fingers. Bet you have a few co-workers that can't say the same. Super cool, thanks for sharing
“Does it have a fan underneath”
Some people have the IQ of a raspberry.
Wait, aren't those new fireworks called "drones"?
And they have "fans"!
The other part of the answer to the question about South Carolina involves North Carolina. NC’s fireworks laws are much more restrictive than SC’s, and NC’s biggest city, Charlotte, is right on the border. Lots of people will take a quick nip across the border the week before July 4th and grab some technically illegal but impossible to meaningfully enforce fireworks.
Pyrotechnik ist doch kein Verbrechen🇩🇪🎉🎆
14:44 Part of the fun of fireworks is seeing whether the fire works 😂
This is the most interesting video. I really never thought about fireworks in detail before. Happy (almost) 4th all!!
@6:00 The slower burning charge gives you "more fire"? Or is it just so you can accelerate the firework at the correct rate so you don't overpressurize and blow up the tube?
Exactly. Too fast of a powder in a lift charge will cause the mortar to fail (due to over pressure) and not lift the shell to the correct height or break the shell inside the mortar. Lift charges are calculated based on the mass of the shell. Higher mass == slower (and more) BP to build more pressure over time.
Yes to both.
In the same way, firearms cartridges are loaded with specific types and quantities of powder to provide the desired projectile velocity without overpressurizing the chamber and harming the user.
Thanks. You explained a lot!
My favorite firework is the mortar shell that lets off that huge BOOM but doesn't product such a huge display. I'm not sure WHY it's my favorite, but that huge BOOM always makes my heart skip a beat and makes me smile.
Those are called "salutes". Many pyrotechnicians love them as well. Those that especially love them are referred to as "thump junkies" by us other pyros :)
Pyrotechnik ist doch kein Verbrechen🗣️
Back in the day, when I was kind of slowly working toward a pyrotechnics license, there were no wireless remotes. It was just the board and a LOT of wire. The show was fired manually using a hand held contact touching the conductors on the board. Now, computer controlled wireless systems are the thing. Pretty amazing.
Bet a lot of small shows are still pinboards. You have control! Digital systems have limits. It doesn't communicate a lift happened. An operator is hearing each lift going off or NOT!
Additionally, digital systems can fail catastrophically and your cool show is dead. They use delicate com wiring, finicky!
A pinboards is crude and 100% reliable! So many paths for digi sys to die.
Lastly, any guy with a soldering iron can fix a pinboard! Try replacing a processor in the field! Lol! Long live pinboards!
Unless you're making your fireworks with air conditioning refrigerant chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), they aren't impacting the ozone layer.
I wasn't aware of the innovations Disney were using ,that's really awesome. I'm sure it'll trickle down to all displays in the future.
Talk about glaring errors, sulphur dioxide is NOT the rotten egg smell, that would be hydrogen sulfide, and M-80's have ZERO relation to dynamite, M-80's explode(technically it's deflagration) and dynamite DETONATES, they are totally different animals.
There are some exotic flash powders with ammonium perchlorate that can actually detonate, but yes, this guys doesn't sound like he knows a lot of what he's talking about.
@@francisdec1615 Sulphur and potassium Chlorate are rumored to detonate also. 👌
@@francisdec1615that stuff is not used in consumer fireworks
I agree
Tell that to the bloody stumps where your fingers used to be.
The answer regarding coloring the fire went wrong by starting with black powder. The only common (and then only among amateurs, not the pros) color compositions based on black powder contain zinc. Strontium carbonate would give so little color to black powder, it would not be used; strontium carbonate does give a nice red with potassium chlorate or perchlorate, usually an additional chlorine donor, and a fuel other than the charcoal that fuels black powder. Charcoal makes too strong an orangish light for colors to show thru its flame. There are nitrate-oxidized color compositions, but with fuels that don't have that defect that black powder has.
@11:50 "that lasting gold... impression in the air." i wonder what word he was avoiding lol
You don't have to drive too far out of NJ to find roadside fireworks stands around this time of year...
And sometimes cops looking for NJ driver's licenses at those stands.
fun and informative. thanks for sharing
I just had my first professional show with a cake exploding and having to duck and cover. Shows never go right but they definitely are fun. I can’t wait for next year :D
1:03 That firework model looks yummy.
Wow. The tech behind the show that could be is used. Crazy
2:00 The tatoo everyone talking about
Thank me later
The guys hands tell a great stroy about the love he has for and the dangers that come with his craft
Black powder is not used in color compositions nor is it used in so called M-80, reports or salutes.
Exactly. I noted that as well. Has he really made coloured stars and salutes himself?
@@francisdec1615 The net is littered with info on how to make stars and other color comps. I think he should of at least done 5 minutes of research on the subject before saying utterly wrong things.
Oh I'm sure he has not@@francisdec1615
Good job on the video Patrick. 👍
That person who commented about fireworks smelling so bad is nuts. I love the smell of fireworks! I suppose that person would probably try and tell me gasoline doesn't smell good either 🙄
:33 "when it reaches maximum altitude" though not because of any sensor/logic, just that the fuses have been timed so that it should explode after the amount of time it should take to get there.
Just in time for July 4th
Woah, almost like it was planned
KFOG KaBoom over the SFBay was my favorite for setting professional show to music, beautiful
"he who has smelt the smoke is never free again"
That was amazing and I wasn’t expecting the answers. Thanks for sharing!
NOTAM is now known as “Notice to Air Missions,” which, as a male pilot, doesn’t bother me at all because I’m not a crybaby child and I think it’s great that women are having their fair share of aviation too.
It also applies to automatic systems like delivery drones that are run entirely by computer.
I had to pause for this comment. THAT TATTOO IS AWESOME!😂
That software is crazy cool! I always wondered how they designed the shows and what thought processes goes into it.
The most dangerous firework is the one being shot by inexperienced idiots in the middle of houses.
Or by Meriadoc Brandybuck and Peregrin Took
@@timz9862 They learned their lesson though.
Or in a warehouse with poor fire safety equipment near people's houses
Blue Strobe is one of the latest innovations in Pyro as well. It uses some pretty exotic chems so it's still not seen very often.
Fireworks actually don't affect the ozone layer as the ozone layer is 15 km high. They do emit ozone, co2, co, which are ghgs but not cfcs.
Specific chemical emissions are one thing... but altitude is irrelevant.
CFCs are banned at ground level, not just at high altitudes! So then, the question of effect on the ozone layer depends on the specific chemical more than simply what altitude it is released at.
We attended one of those one-minute fireworks shows, at an AF base, when I was a kid. The entire set of mortars went off at once just after the start of the show. It was fantastic! (Not particularly artistic, though, and too short for my liking.)
So you're telling me that if I just make a 119 m radius shell, then I can go to space?
I really want to sync a giant fireworks show to metal music. So every double-bass kick sets off one of those really low but loud fireworks, there are streamers and fountains and waterfalls for the guitars and all the flashy shells are synced to the drums cymbals, snare and toms. That would be so epic but it would need the pneumatic setup to set them off precisely to the notes because you're talking sometimes 280 beats a minute that have to land _perfectly._ Its been a long-running dream of mine to see this.
Son what do you want to become?
Mum, I want to become a Pyrotechnician
Son, I asked your job not your class in Dark Souls
\[T]/
8:29 do you have an example video for that please?
Why are people stupid about correctly using fireworks? Setting them off in small neighborhoods etc.. Not good for SoCal Wildfire season.
because the average joe blow is an idiot. this is why fireworks need to be relegated to professionals only. they’re literally explosives
@@inmanis2924 Quit trying to ruin people's fun not everyone is an idiot.
Half of the country was stupid enough to vote for Trump. You don't need any other explanation.