Firecrackers & Rockets

[FinnAmerican]

I don't know about you; but I have to have firecrackers when I shoot. Same with Rockets. Both types of fireworks have ancient origins in Chinese culture. I guess I'm paying homage to the tradition.

Firecrackers and rockets seem to be overlooked by consumers nowadays. More emphasis on Cakes and Mortar Shells. I actually prefer them over cakes & shells.
Alot of people put down 50 milligram firecrackers. I think they're descent enough.

I'm really into these "16 Ounce" Skyrockets by Pyro Demon. The burst is amazing for a consumer rocket.

Who else here feels they must include firecrackers and rockets to their shoot?

[topshelfpyro]

Who else here feels they must include firecrackers and rockets to their shoot?

Firecrackers are fine but messy! Shooting rockets was the only time I have started a fire (knock on wood) (ball shell topped consumer) I don't shoot rockets anymore (like 30 years and counting). Yes I had to call the fire dept.....yes at the time fireworks were illegal in GA......

[RalphieJ]

At our house, rockets and crackers are always within reach. For firecrackers, strings of 100 and more are preferred. Larger rockets as well (I've got to check out those 16 oz's you mention). I sure do miss those Texas Pop rockets the first year or two that they came out. Really stout reports.

[jamisonlm3]

There are a couple of nice 16oz looking consumer rockets on the market. Whatever you do, stay away fromt he black cat ones. Those are anen't even worth spending the time to glance at them. The only thing I hate about rockets is they tend to be unpredictable. Some people may like that, but I much rather have the rocket break in the sky instead of right over my head.

[BMoore]

I keep firecrackers and rockets around to play around with but don't incorporate them into my shows. Firecrackers tend to be messy and rockets are just too erratic when you have an audience.

[Birdman]

I spent my childhood lighting firecrackers and rockets. If they are around I'll light some but they don't hold my attention anymore. I also don't like the mess they create and the unpredictability of rockets. There use to be some excitement in the unpredictability of rockets but these days it's more concern then excitement for me.

From my own experience and watching others, it seems it always starts out with lighting them one at time then after a little while your fusing them together and lighting multiples, then it's packs at a time. Next thing you know people start getting "creative" and things always seem to escalate from there. I've even seen people break out the gasoline to up the excitement factor. At some point it seems people always become targets.

[nightstalker]

I like firecrackers. The kids like to hear firecrackers go bang. But then we do like all kinds of fireworks.

[Rick_In_Tampa]

If the CPSC banned firecrackers tomorrow it wouldn't break my heart one bit. I hate them. They're messy and serve no real aesthetic purpose. The biggest problem we have at PGI every year are the guys that play with firecrackers and rockets. This year we actually relocated the firecracker A-frame to the very far end of the Class C shooting area. Before we moved it I got hit twice by flying rocks because the knuckleheads were lighting strips of crackers and just throwing them on the ground and not on the plywood sheets we laid out for that purpose. The rockets caused many fires too. So we had the fire team hopping. The cops only showed up once before they managed to get the4 fire out. But they didn't give us any grief.

[Birdman]

If the CPSC banned firecrackers tomorrow it wouldn't break my heart one bit. I hate them. They're messy and serve no real aesthetic purpose. The biggest problem we have at PGI every year are the guys that play with firecrackers and rockets. This year we actually relocated the firecracker A-frame to the very far end of the Class C shooting area. Before we moved it I got hit twice by flying rocks because the knuckleheads were lighting strips of crackers and just throwing them on the ground and not on the plywood sheets we laid out for that purpose. The rockets caused many fires too. So we had the fire team hopping. The cops only showed up once before they managed to get the4 fire out. But they didn't give us any grief.

I have to agree. I would care less if they were banned. They seem to cause the most problems and complaints. It even gets under my skin when a neighbor spends hours or sometimes even a whole weekend lighting firecrackers and/or bottle rockets. When I come home from the 4th I always have to clean up rocket sticks and spent spinners from my yard and roof top. Thankfully it seems many neighbors have begun to appreciate cakes rather than these smalls as I noticed less mess in my yard after the 4th and more cakes being fired every summer. I hate to admit this because even I scoff at my own idea, but I've already thought they should apply a per fuse tax to price people out of buying smalls and steer them towards cakes.

[wingman]

I don't think I'd want crackers and rockets banned, just for the sake of the litter they cause. It's by the hands of people with zero respect for their neighbors and neighborhood that leave messes around. If we go by that logic of banning these smalls, then we might as well ban all fireworks because the same slovenly neighbors who shoot massive amounts of cans and cakes leave trash all over the place...you know, those plastic caps on cans, all the lift spacer discs and cake wraps, labels, etc? Found a lot of that in my yard every July 4th season. Smalls spice up the variety in fireworks. Having all cakes and shells? I'd find that pretty boring after a while. But that's just my opinion. Smalls are probably going to head toward obsolescence though, anyway. Which is sad, because I grew up in the 80s with mostly that kind of variety. Shells and cakes were expensive at least for me back then, but I could find spending an entire summer and beyond lighting up smalls. Cakes and cans are fun, but there's also a place for smalls in the realm of fireworks. It just takes responsible people to clean up after themselves, just like any other pyro. Right?

[BMoore]

I don't think I'd want crackers and rockets banned, just for the sake of the litter they cause. It's by the hands of people with zero respect for their neighbors and neighborhood that leave messes around. If we go by that logic of banning these smalls, then we might as well ban all fireworks because the same slovenly neighbors who shoot massive amounts of cans and cakes leave trash all over the place...you know, those plastic caps on cans, all the lift spacer discs and cake wraps, labels, etc? Found a lot of that in my yard every July 4th season. Smalls spice up the variety in fireworks. Having all cakes and shells? I'd find that pretty boring after a while. But that's just my opinion. Smalls are probably going to head toward obsolescence though, anyway. Which is sad, because I grew up in the 80s with mostly that kind of variety. Shells and cakes were expensive at least for me back then, but I could find spending an entire summer and beyond lighting up smalls. Cakes and cans are fun, but there's also a place for smalls in the realm of fireworks. It just takes responsible people to clean up after themselves, just like any other pyro. Right?

I agree. I don't want to see anything banned. These items are cheap thrills and often the stepping stone to a greater interest and appreciation of pyrotechnics. Whenever I was as kid in the 80's all we had was safe and sane. Every once in a while a truck driver in our neighborhood would pick up some larger items to sell out of his garage. My dad would buy a gross of bottle rockets and a brick of firecrackers and us kids thought we had hit the lottery. Just think.....If I hadn't had that thrill as a kid then maybe today I'd be one of the ones complaining about fireworks instead of doing my own 1.3 displays. lol I still think these things are fun and I still buy small stuff to mess around with and have quality time with my kids who would give anything (but are too young) to help me shoot the big stuff. I'd just never incorporate firecrackers and rockets into a show.

[Birdman]

Don't take my comments wrong. I don't want to see them banned but wouldn't shed any tears if they were as there are better alternatives. I also don't care about the litter in my yard but I know others do and that's my concern. I know that a rocket stick that landed on my roof doesn't mean "they could have caught my roof on fire". I have a friend that has a neighbor who is a pyro and he's always complaining that he's going to catch his tree on fire, to which I tell him "only if the tree is dead and should be cut down"!

My father would buy me a brick of lady fingers each year but I was only given a pack at a time and no more then a pack or two a day. My brother, who was older, had a paper route and would buy bricks of firecrackers and bottle rockets, even M-80's and quarter sticks but my parents would make him take those out into the neighboring cornfields unless he was just lighting a couple packs of crackers like me. Of course on the 4th we could light all we had left and so did the neighbor that was selling them out of his basement illegally. We didn't have access to anything much bigger because the neighbor didn't sell much else. Now with 3 BOGO stores within walking distance it's not a brick of firecrackers or a gross of bottle rockets, but two. And then there are plenty more where that came from. It's also not just kids. It's adults that I assume never got that cheap thrill as a kid. I don't mean to come off as being crotchety. My main concern is the complaints these disrespectful neighbors generate. I've probably been one of them at one time or another. I guess if you lived in an urban neighborhood with 3 firework stores within walking distance you would have a better idea where I'm coming from. Like I said, it seems the pyros in town are maturing and moving on to other bigger nicer things and they also seem to be having a bit more respect as the years go on, that includes myself. Likely because the main offenders have learned their lesson.

On a side note....I always take those plastic caps off of canister shells!

[FinnAmerican]

Firecrackers and Rockets

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[Icooclast]

i like firecrackers, i call them "daylight entertainment" just a way to hear "bang" all day 'till it's dark enough to bright out the big guns

[dbamjett]

i have 2 rolls of 1K and 2 500's just in case. I like to set off a few 1K rolls a few minutes before any show. I love rockets but don't use them in any of my shows due to space constraints. they can be unpredictable and i live in a populated area. I light them off randomly when there are no crowds for my enjoyment. If I had the room then rockets would always be in the show.