Texas

[mguerra]

We have discussed a fair bit in another thread ( CDL hazmat...)about what needs to be done to shoot 1.3 product in Texas. It brings up the obvious question. Is there anyone in this forum who is a hobbyist and shoots 1.3 in Texas?!?!
If so, how are you handling the insurance requirement? It would not surprise me if there is not a single person in the state doing this.

[mguerra]

OK, my insurance agent is checking around to see if he can find an affordable way to pull this off as a special event insurance that can be bought one event at a time.
Standby...

[PyroManiacs]

Even though Im not from Texas, Im interested in the outcome.

[Pyro Nation]

The likely hood of getting one event at a time is Rare...I know in PA both insurance companies that handle it do not offer it

You are better off finding a Firework Display company that may offer a one time show coverage for a fee...but most will want to know you like you help them out so they have confidence in you and your abilities.

Also if your part of a club they do offer using insurance sometimes if again you are in good standing with them and they trust you!

[mguerra]

Yes, I am going to see if a company I know will allow me to become a shooter for them so I can shoot under their insurance. In turn I will buy product from them and perhaps pay a fee as well. Something like that. We'll see what the president of the company thinks about that, or some similar arrangement. I need four more shoots for my Texas license so I will certainly offer to help them at four of their upcoming displays, gratis, as well. There are some other things I can do to promote them here locally , to help grow their already successful business.

[pyrola]

you are an unlicensed technician who is going to ask a display company to cover you under their insurance so you can put a show in the air for the general public? just trying to figure this all out.

[mguerra]

No. I will have a Texas Display Operators License and BATF TYPE 54 soon enough. Once I have those I can use 1.3 product, with a permit. The issuance of the permit is conditioned on having insurance. The insurance is the big problem for a hobbyist. Most insurance companies are geared toward fireworks businesses, not enthusiasts. The minimum premium I have been quoted so far is $3,500.00/ year. It may be that hobbyist use in Texas will be impossible due to this requirement. I'm not willing to pay that just to use some 1.3 for my family fireworks shows 4 or 5 times a year. I am trying to find a creative way to get insurance coverage. It is frustrating to realize I can get a BATF 54 and a state license, but be stymied by the insurance requirement. A lot of the discussion of this is actually in the other thread here on the forum, the "CDL hazmat" thread. It may be confusing if you haven't read that thread concurrently with this one. I shouldn't have split the discussion across two threads. Sorry.

[mguerra]

I have become aware of a group of enthusiasts who have formed an LLC for the purpose of buying insurance for their personal shows. I am inquiring how this works and how affordable it may be.

[mguerra]

I took the Texas display operators licensing test on Saturday morning. Most of the questions were from the 1995 version of the NFPA 1123. If you are doing this in Texas, don't bother studying the 2014 edition because it has an enormous amount of information in it including shooting from barges and rooftops which is not included on the test. A hard copy of the 1995 NFPA 1123 is not available, you have to purchase a 1995 edition as a PDF download from NFPA.org
The rest of the test comes from these two portions of Texas state law:
http://www.tdi.texas.gov/fire/documents/fmstatfireworks.pdf
You only have to study and know those aspects of the law that are relevant to the display operators license. For example, there are aspects of the law relating to retail fireworks sales, flame effects, proximate audience displays and other things which of course do not apply specifically to the display operators license. The test consists of 50 questions, I knocked it out in about 10 minutes, and got a 92. The next thing that is necessary is for me to assist in the display of five permitted shows, of which I already have one. I am arranging to assist at three more permitted shows on May 3, 10th and 17th. I sent in my BATF application on April 9 and have not heard from them yet. With any luck I will have the federal and state licenses by 4 July. There is another thread here in these forums were a gentleman is offering insurance for a reasonable although not cheap price. I believe I will take him up on that. Things are moving along, standby for further updates from the Lone Star State.

[PyroManiacs]

Good to hear!

[Pyro k]

In Wisconsin I just had to get a million dollar policy to cover the town I shoot in. I was able to get it under my homeowners insurance. However, I shoot on my property. If I recall you also have a parcel of your own?

[mguerra]

Yes but I rarely shoot on my property. It's actually against the HOA rules but I do it whenever it rains! Which is almost never, around here. Our primary shoot site is a local golf course driving range. It's perfect there. It's a tiny town, no fireworks prohibitions. We shoot 1.4 there, the manager loves it.

[mguerra]

I have my ATF interview and magazine inspection next week.

[PyroManiacs]

Nice, enjoying your progress updates!

[mguerra]

Everything is on hold. The ATF asked me to inform the local fire marshall of my intention to install a type IV magazine and to obtain a reply. I am waiting for the fire marshall to answer me.

[mguerra]

The fire marshall was quite enthusiastic! I thought he would be a hard ass who would try to deny me, but nope. He's waiting for the call to come see the first show!!

[mguerra]

BTW, I went to a shooters class at Six Flags Fiesta Texas on Saturday, and they had me set up the finale. They are the only theme park besides Disney who shoots a show every night the park is open. I got one more sign off and am going back this Saturday for another. The cool thing there is they shoot from a dedicated site so they don't have to unload trucks and trailers, set up, tear down and haul all their equipment back and forth. There is a dedicated building up on the cliff to store all the Fire One equipment and computers. Makes for a lot less work in the hot Texas sun. They don't even have to clean up much except the boxes and ematches. They are less than an hour from me and I can buy product from them after all my licensure is in order, so that is super convenient. This Saturday they will demo Cobra at the class.

[PyroManiacs]

Wow man.... good deal!

[PyroJW]

I assume your helping Magic in the Sky?

[mguerra]

Yes. Magic in the Sky, Jacob Dell. He's a super guy. Smart as a whip. I hope he has product as good as your stuff, the Extreme Pyro branded stuff is crazy good.

[mguerra]

Im supposed to have my ATF interview and magazine inspection here in a few minutes...

[mguerra]

Interview and mag inspection complete. The magazine is an unmodified 48" Better Built job box from Lowe's. The paint was considered non sparking, it did not require wood lining nor a Rhino Liner nor similar. I have linked to ATF Ruling 2011-3 before. This is the ruling that specifically allows a job box as a Type IV mag. You may need to let your ATF inspector know about this ruling because they don't all know of it. The ruling alows the use of concealed shackle padlocks without the 1/4" hoods. Your padlocks must have 3/8" shackles, hardened or boron alloy, and 5 pin cylinders. Most padlocks DON'T have 5 pin cylinders. Go to the Master Lock website and search for the 25KA series of locks. These meet the specs the ATF requires. My inspector was concerned that a tiny bit of the shackle was showing and is going to let me know tomorrow if it is OK. I used the 25 KALF with 1-1/2 inch tall shackles. If you go this route, get the 25 KA which has 1 inch tall shackles and there will be no problem with any shackle exposure. The interview was very straightforward, the inspector asked me exactly what I was going to do with the license, what kind of product I would store in the mag, emphasized the record keeping requirements and a number of other things. He gave me an Orange Book. No surprises.

[PyroManiacs]

Awesome man!

[mguerra]

I was asked a few questions in a PM and will answer here. The job box is considered type IV. If it is indoors there are no distance requirements. It is limited to 50 pounds of comp. if you have multiple job boxes in the same building your total comp is still 50 pounds max. For example if you have two of them each one could hold 25 pounds of comp, or any amount that totals 50 pounds between them. All of the info you need is available online at atf.gov You cannot store bulk salutes in a type IV, but a mix of salutes and color shells is allowed. ATF considers shells to be 50% comp by weight. Cakes are considered to be 25% comp by weight. Check atf.gov for all the info, there is too much to cover in a post here.

[mguerra]

The locks were approved. As it turns out if you have a type IV magazine inside a locked room, the shackles of the padlock do not have to be hooded at all, and you only need one padlock instead of two. See Part 555.210 (b) (4) So even though a little of the shackles were exposed, it doesn't matter because the mag is in a locked building. If your mag is outdoors or in an unlocked building, you do need two locks, shackles concealed, and the locks have to meet the specs referred to earlier in this thread.
By the way, when we refer to "Part 555" that is referring to federal law: Title 27, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 555- Commerce in Explosives.
I was also asked if the mag has to be bolted down. It does not. But I did that to show a concerted effort on my part to comply with the "theft resistant" requirement.
A gun safe would be 100% compliant with the requirements for an indoor type IV magazine so long as the hinges cannot be removed when the door is closed and locked. I used the job box because it is cheaper and meets the letter of the law.

[mguerra]

The locks were approved. As it turns out if you have a type IV magazine inside a locked room, the shackles of the padlock do not have to be hooded at all, and you only need one padlock instead of two. See Part 555.210 (b) (4) So even though a little of the shackles were exposed, it doesn't matter because the mag is in a locked building. If your mag is outdoors or in an unlocked building, you do need two locks, shackles concealed, and the locks have to meet the specs referred to earlier in this thread.
By the way, when we refer to "Part 555" that is referring to federal law: Title 27, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 555- Commerce in Explosives.
I was also asked if the mag has to be bolted down. It does not. But I did that to show a concerted effort on my part to comply with the "theft resistant" requirement.
A gun safe would be 100% compliant with the requirements for an indoor type IV magazine so long as the hinges cannot be removed when the door is closed and locked. I used the job box because it is cheaper and meets the letter of the law.

[mguerra]

I finished my fifth assist at a commercial show and will send in my license application for Texas Display Operators License tomorrow. The ATF process took a little longer than I thought due to having to get the county fire marshall and my homeowners association to provide letters stating there were no legal nor covenant restrictions on my magazine. I finalized all that today so should get the ATF license soon!

[PyroJW]

I finished my fifth assist at a commercial show and will send in my license application for Texas Display Operators License tomorrow. The ATF process took a little longer than I thought due to having to get the county fire marshall and my homeowners association to provide letters stating there were no legal nor covenant restrictions on my magazine. I finalized all that today so should get the ATF license soon!

Congrats! Glad to see it is all working out for you.

[mguerra]

Blue envelope arrived yesterday. Texas Display Operator License should arrive any day. As a favor to the gentleman who allowed me to assist at 4 of his shows, I am going to shoot one of his Fourth of July municipal shows. This is purely a hobby for me, not a business, but I thought I would help him out since he helped me. And it's my home town show to boot!

[PyroManiacs]

Nice man! Congrats!

[mguerra]

So on Friday I am going to shoot the Kerrville, Texas Fourth of July fireworks show! It will be my first experience as lead shooter at a commercial show. And I only got my license for my own personal sport and fun. It's funny to think that one year ago all I knew about fireworks was shooting ball shells out of a cardboard mortar one at a time with a Bic lighter by the side of the road! I didn't know anything about mortars and racks, fusing, electrical firing systems or any of that. It was after the Fourth I wondered if you could buy fireworks online and did an internet search. That's when I discovered the world of serious consumer equipment and displays. I put on some nice big 1.4 shows and then found Dave's suggestion to get licensed for 1.3. So now exactly one year later I am a licensed Texas pyrotechnician. Crazy. Last year I watched the Temple, Texas Fourth of July show which was VERY well funded and lasted about 28 minutes. It was awesome, but it never occured to me that one year later I would be shooting my hometown show. So for anyone who wants to do it, you just have to be determined, find out the requirements and jump through all the hoops. You can have your ATF and state licenses faster than you might think. It's a bunch of regulatory hassle, but totally achievable. If you want to go to the next level, do it!!!

[hatsgoods]

congrats mgurra :)

[mguerra]

So last night I shot my city show, my first. Of course it takes hours after to tear down, load up all the gear, clean up and so on. I roll in to the driveway about 1 AM and the second my tires hit the driveway I get a page from the ER. I had to turn around and go back in to town to see a 12 yr. old girl who...GOT SHOT IN THE EYE by a mortar that tipped over in some little local park!!! Cripes. I took care of her eye, she will be OK, but oh the irony of the local eye surgeon/pyrotechnician who shoots a pro show and then has to drag back in to take care of fireworks injury. I'm really tired....