Pros & Cons of removing cakes top paper/trash

[MtnViewPyro]

Being new to planning a little backyard show, I'm wondering if any of you have experienced cakes being lit prematurely by a previous cakes sparks due to removing the top layer of paper from the cake? I know if I remove this, there will be much less trash from being blown all over the place.

Try to fit another question in here. What fuse is best to use on a mortar rake that you don't want to be a finale? Have a 18 shot fan rack that I want to put before the finale, would like the spectators to see each break and fan effect. Would this be a good role for "perfect fuse"?

Thanks guys

[jh35ky123]

1. I just leave the paper on, I do pretty many cakes and I always just go out with a leaf rake the next morning. I do at least 1 roll of 16000 crackers everytime so I know im going to have a mess no matter what. lol
2. Fuse - You want just the regular visco im guessing, usually green colored. should have a burn time per in or foot labeled on it you can calculate your timing pretty close.

[PyroJoeNEPA]

All of your cakes have a pretty thick cardboard disc in each tube holding the "goodies" in place--so it is not very likely you would get a cross fire from something falling into a tube. Taking the tops off eliminates more trash & also reduces the amount of paper that could catch on fire while the cake is firing. Most "cross fires" between cakes happen when something burning [like a piece of paper from the top of the cake] gets on the exposed fuse of a nearby cake.
The green "cannon fuse" is typically 30 seconds per foot & would work well for what you want to do. This is the stuff with the heavy green nitrocellulose lacquer [shiny] on it. There is a similar chinese green fuse that is like artillery shell fuse--kind of soft--and burns around 3-4 seconds per foot. Lots of different fuse out there with different burn speeds. It should be marked on the package what the burn time is.

[Icooclast]

Being new to planning a little backyard show, I'm wondering if any of you have experienced cakes being lit prematurely by a previous cakes sparks due to removing the top layer of paper from the cake? I know if I remove this, there will be much less trash from being blown all over the place.

Try to fit another question in here. What fuse is best to use on a mortar rake that you don't want to be a finale? Have a 18 shot fan rack that I want to put before the finale, would like the spectators to see each break and fan effect. Would this be a good role for "perfect fuse"?
Thanks guys

well, it depends on ho you look at it: taking the top paper off a cake makes less to clean up later and i often see the pieces of paper fly off on fire and land on the ground: which could risk a fire starting on the ground. there's always that risk. but mostly it depends on when you want to clean up your mess. before, after or during your show. just like in a restaurant, i prefer the clean as you go method and i take the paper covering off the cakes most of the time.

[Kenny East]

I've never had a cake go off out of time due to sparks from another cake or shell... I always remove the top paper and some times the paper on the sides, if I'm chaining cakes to fire in sequence... As for the fuse question... If you're shooting a fan style rack... Fanning the shots from side to side and back down the next row... How much space is there between shots? Too much space with too slow a fuse means it will drag on for a bit... Too fast a fuse and it will end up fanned sky puke... The fuse type depends on that space between shots... I have one fan fack i use for mine-to-break shells... I fire them in sets of three using very fast fuse across the fan, then fuse those chains down the middle with slow visco fuse...

[Rocketshooter]

A fuse in the 10-15 secs per foot works well for a non finale rack. It should keep the shells coming without any long pauses.

[Rick_In_Tampa]

Just to echo what most have already told you. Cut off the tops before your show. The chances of one cake igniting another because the top is off is close to 0. It also greatly reduces the chances of setting fire to something else because you won't have burning paper flying all over the place.

As for the fuse question... I would recommend 10 sec per ft fuse.

[displayfireworks1]

This guy thought it was good idea to take the paper off of the top of 1.3 cake and messed up the entire finale. If spark and flame drop into the cake tubes it may light it. Although the audience never picked up on it in this case.
.
From 2011

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z3Ascwn4HzE

[MtnViewPyro]

Thanks everyone for your comments and thanks displayfireworks1 for your video. Currently I have fuse that's 25secs per foot and another that's 3secs per foot. With your ideas I think I'm heading in the right direction.

[Shootit]

I've seen hard rain out of a tiny cloud I didn't notice till I was wet.
Glad I had tops on then.

[Kenny East]

Yeah 1.3 cross fires if you look at it wrong... Had a chromatrope wheel fire out of order bad after it cross fired... And that's why i use the water proof quick match for stuff like that. The cheap two layer paper type isn't protected enough