Favorite fireworks

[FinnAmerican1979]

What's your favorite firework?
*Mine is the Ground Bloom Flower w/report

[Icooclast]

i like saturn missiles, 16,000 firecracker rolls (esp. black cat brand) to be honest, i like a lot of fireworks. so it'd be unfair to name just 1 or even a few.

[Chubbles]

To be honest, after using 500gm multishot cakes and canister shells, there's no going back to small stuff.

[Icooclast]

To be honest, after using 500gm multishot cakes and canister shells, there's no going back to small stuff.

i agree, but you do need some booms in the day. and it would be a waste to light the good stuff in the day. heresy, even. lol

so: smb's and crackers will always have a place in my heart

[Jay_]

If I had to choose one it would be an ultra rapid fire color cake with big loud breaks.

[fatcat]

I believe that Chubbles has hit it on the head. After 500 gram multi's and cannister shells , the only way to go is get the 54 and go 1.3

[nightstalker]

Favorite fireworks is a tough one. I haven't found any that I don't like it's just that some are better than others. True that after 500 grams it's hard to go back to smaller ones but they all have their time and place.

[Birdman]

I seem to find a new favorite firework every year. Roman candles and parachutes where my favorites as a child. At one time I was buying 200g fountains with lots of crackle to entertain me. Then I went through a saturn missiles phase before I moved on to 200g cakes and then 500g cakes. If I had to pick a single favorite it would probably be High Falutin' (500g) for the reasons I cite below.

I purchased all my product from Phantom for years. Phantom can be pricey, especially if you don't take advantage of the B1G2 sales. But I think they have a good selection of multi-effect cakes, which is great if you're are just hand lighting a couple of cakes. They also have a good website to help the novice.

Now that I e-fire I'm starting to appreciate cakes with fewer effects because they are easier to design a show with and they tend to be much cheaper, especially when you start purchasing more product from places that offer better volume discounts. Fan cakes with comets will also be a prominent feature in my 4th show this year now that I've learned how to fire each row individually. After this year I plan on diving into the 1.4p AP market.

Below are links to some that stick out in my mind:

500g Cakes:
Wizard Of Ahhhs (https://youtu.be/cySgcvDmJv4) - Great opening cake, really grabs your attention from the start
High Falutin' (https://youtu.be/-T7GDnGOadw) - Lots of affects and long duration
Gorilla Warfare (https://youtu.be/XsgYYxuiRD0) - A nice finale cake

200g Cakes:
Philadelphia Freedom (https://youtu.be/7Fwjov5Mk1M) - Nicely paced with multiple effects
Wicked Pissah (https://youtu.be/eeQTgw37Xbk) - Fast pace with multiple effects
Deja Vu (https://youtu.be/uXIBSx9_VD4) - This little cake always seems to be a crowd favorite (videos don't do it justice)

Fountains:
Firecracker Fountain (https://youtu.be/HWGTvfN0jXw) - Lots of crackle
Phantom Night Owl (https://youtu.be/17LQEbriNQ4) - A unique novelty fountain
King of Bling (https://youtu.be/VZlv5B1I0bU) This one just keeps on going

Novelty Item
Chicken Blowing Balloon (https://youtu.be/puxpVSl876o) This one always makes me chuckle

[jamisonlm3]

It's hard to say exactly what I like. I have different stuff that I like. I have some really nice crackling balls that I like. Same with some roman candles and rockets. Also fountains, cakes and shells. I just plain like fireworks.

[Chiefsfan00]

I like 500 gram cakes, 200 gram cakes, and canister shells.

[morrison2951]

Brothers 500g bangers for the win!

High Falutin
Blond Joke
Saturday Night Special
Hit The Road, Jack is my personal all time favorite!

[Rick_In_Tampa]

Last year at PGI we sat through some of the best shows I have ever seen. The one show that will stay with me forever was on the coldest night we were there. There was a steady wind coming northwest to southeast. Pushing the fallout right over us and the paid crowd. This particular show was heavy with the gold falling willows. These things were coming down everywhere, including right on top of us. I was in absolute heaven. Loved every minute of it. Probably not right in the head for saying that, but it is what it is. I felt soooo "one with the art" if you will. Hard to describe it any other way. (No... I don't drink!)

Other than that night.... I'm a HUGE fan of the Japanese shells. Their effects, their colors, the symmetry, the brilliance, it's just amazing. I'm a huge fan of the "rainbow" or color changing effects. No one does it like the Japanese.

[ttam23]

Nishiki Kamuro 9 shot 500 gram cakes , I am also very fond of stinger Missiles

[Robbro097]

They're so many awesome effects out there seems like my fav changes yearly lol its simple but i really like lots of colored flying fish at once go getters ghost effects the ghost sweeps in dom pro look amazing

[topshelfpyro]

Nishiki Kamuro...by far my favorite effect....spirit of 76 currently has the best ones by far in consumer. (Well, windas mother of all bombs is pretty great)

[NWA_Fireworks]

Last year at PGI we sat through some of the best shows I have ever seen. The one show that will stay with me forever was on the coldest night we were there. There was a steady wind coming northwest to southeast. Pushing the fallout right over us and the paid crowd. This particular show was heavy with the gold falling willows. These things were coming down everywhere, including right on top of us. I was in absolute heaven. Loved every minute of it. Probably not right in the head for saying that, but it is what it is. I felt soooo "one with the art" if you will. Hard to describe it any other way. (No... I don't drink!)

Other than that night.... I'm a HUGE fan of the Japanese shells. Their effects, their colors, the symmetry, the brilliance, it's just amazing. I'm a huge fan of the "rainbow" or color changing effects. No one does it like the Japanese.

Rick - I believe this is the moment at PGI you were referring to:

Up Close and Personal with a Nishiki Willow Shell
https://youtu.be/yKPmXPk0_70

[Rick_In_Tampa]

It was a similar effect for sure. Just a whole lot more!

[LittlejsFireworks]

My personal favorite is any good quality canister shell with a big colorful break. I love wiring up a rack and listening to the thud coming out of the tubes. Pure bliss

[morrison2951]

Whacky Tobacky Brothers NOAB is tough to beat when it comes to that thud.

[Pgdark19]

A lot of the fun for me is watching my kids, nieces and nephews run around lighting a ton of the smaller fireworks off. It's also a blast lighting that new item you've never seen before and being impressed.

My favorite smaller item at this time is the "Utter Chaos" by pyro predator. I lit one made by black cat and was disappointed there was no report at the end.

Also, the "speed balls" by world class make me laugh when they zing up....


I found a "double trouble" salute thingy this year...holy crap!!!

[Salutecake]

Hey fatcat, yep 1.3 is the way to go, but the consumer stuff is very nice these days and fits places with not a lot of space.

[AxeElf]

i really like lots of colored flying fish at once

I like the fish effect too. I'm going to try to pull off a piece this year set to the Beatles' "Octopus' Garden" that will feature 52 200g cakes of primarily fish effects over the course of the full song, plus 2 Jellyfish Aquarium NOABs going off over them. I also like the spinners that explode (tourbillions?) like in the middle stages of Mobile Menace (which is one of my favorite 200g cakes).

[Robbro097]

I hope you get that on video id really like to see that.

[Mississippipyro]

For me it's consumer 1.4 fireworks, and yea I'm going to say it, I love fountains lol. IMO it takes more artistic talent to pull off a great 1.4 show over a 1.3 show. (Get ready to flame me lol) about anyone can buy some 1.3 and make people amazed.

[Salutecake]

Hey Mississippipyro, I love the 1.3 stuff, cause they go higher, fill the sky, are much louder, and because the shells are bigger you can get neat effects. But you need room to shoot that stuff off. 1.4 stuff can almost fit in any persons backyard, and with the selection of cakes and shells these days, they not only provide a great show, but I think it's easier to do a 1.4 show with such a large selection, especially when you compare 1.3 cakes to 1.4 cakes. I think the consumer people are putting the display people to shame with the cake selections.

[Mississippipyro]

Hey Mississippipyro, I love the 1.3 stuff, cause they go higher, fill the sky, are much louder, and because the shells are bigger you can get neat effects. But you need room to shoot that stuff off. 1.4 stuff can almost fit in any persons backyard, and with the selection of cakes and shells these days, they not only provide a great show, but I think it's easier to do a 1.4 show with such a large selection, especially when you compare 1.3 cakes to 1.4 cakes. I think the consumer people are putting the display people to shame with the cake selections.
Don't get me wrong I love the 1.3 stuff, but for me it isn't practical I do that at club shoots. Idk about doing a 30min 60 case 1.4 1.4Pro show in my back yard lol.

[minute_man777]

Out of all the fireworks I have seen, my favorite are the rockets Tom Rebenklau makes. His effects and creativity are absolutely amazing.

[MidwestPyrotechnics]

My all time favorite firework that I ever shot in a show was called God Bless America by Clown. It was labeled as 1.4G but it was over 200 shots and almost all breaks not just comets. It also had some salutes in it as well. The next year I went to the store I bought it from and big surprise a bunch of clown products were pulled due to being overloaded. My favorite “legal” 1.4 products are zipper cakes. Pyro Archer, golden peacock, amazing ballet and things like that. I also like to take 5 of the 200 gram Hornets Attack cakes and fuse them all together. Also love playing with 1.4P slices. I’m in the process of getting my type 54 now so hopefully I be able to get into the really good stuff soon!

[Rick_In_Tampa]

Don't get me wrong I love the 1.3 stuff, but for me it isn't practical I do that at club shoots. Idk about doing a 30min 60 case 1.4 1.4Pro show in my back yard lol.

My pyro buddy has a home on a lake out in Chain of Lakes, Florida. (Imagine that?!) He has 110 cases going up this year. He has 2 pontoon boats that he uses as platforms and a Cobra system. He tows the boats out onto the lake and anchors them. (Right in the flight path of a small airport runway by the way!) His show is about 20 min long. So if you have a lake for a back yard, 60 cases really isn't a problem. lol.

[Mississippipyro]

My pyro buddy has a home on a lake out in Chain of Lakes, Florida. (Imagine that?!) He has 110 cases going up this year. He has 2 pontoon boats that he uses as platforms and a Cobra system. He tows the boats out onto the lake and anchors them. (Right in the flight path of a small airport runway by the way!) His show is about 20 min long. So if you have a lake for a back yard, 60 cases really isn't a problem. lol.
My development has a large lake/pond in front so I do it on one side and everyone sits on the other watching. I also have approval from the HOA :cool: this year a GoFundMe campaign helped with part of the cost. I have toyed with the idea of purchasing some property for pyro use.

[Rick_In_Tampa]

My development has a large lake/pond in front so I do it on one side and everyone sits on the other watching. I also have approval from the HOA :cool: this year a GoFundMe campaign helped with part of the cost. I have toyed with the idea of purchasing some property for pyro use.

If I asked for approval from my HOA I'd get shut down! A GoFundMe page would be amazing, but it's never going to happen for me. Immediately after my show last year a neighbor got on our HOA FB page and left a remark saying she thought the HOA should sponsor my show. She even called out the board members and asked them for their opinion. Crickets....

[Zap85]

I guess I've been lucky in that aspect, I run our show on the neighborhood's main lake levee and the HOA has pitched in on the fireworks the last 2 years. That said, the cove I live in funds the bulk of the fireworks shot and I buy all the tubes and build the racks.

[jsifue2]

I enjoy rapid fire cakes and good ol 60g canisters. It's fun fusing cans in racks and just letting them rip.

[FinnAmerican]

I remember buying Strobe parachute rockets. They were pretty sweet... Wish I could find those again. It would Strobe as it parachutes to the ground.