Tnt

[mondos2001]

I've been a pyro for a long time. I live in south Florida but I travel to Mexico almost yearly, usually during the winter holidays. I would buy the hand made, home made stuff the vendors usually had for sale. This used to include sparklers, mini fountains that resemble tear drops and sometimes spin or explode, and home made fire crackers, usually over powdered with short fuses.

Lately, as in the last 2 years but much more 2023/2024, I have noticed cakes, but resembling 200 gram and 500 gram cakes, motors of varying quality, ground blooms, and rockets. The motors and rockets have always been available but from larger vendors, that usually sallfireworks for religious purposes or ceremonies, what I would consider 1.3g type stuff. But this was the first time I had seen other stuff similar to the US. What caught my eye most of all was, alot of it was TNT branded items, but they were mainly produced in mexico, not china. Now, importing of explosive devices and fire arms is extremely illegal in mexico. So that makes me belive that mexico as a whole is producing fireworks for in house use, but might potentially be getting ready to produce for export as well.

Do you guys think this could happen? That mexico could become a large producer of fireworks? Another thing that comes to mind are how alot of companies are switching from China in favor of mexico. I know China is the OG in fireworks production but, if mexico can make them cheaper, at the same quality or better then China, could mexico become our (US) number 1 supplier?

[Arclight]

It wouldn't surprise me. Mexico makes a lot of pyrotechnic items for mining and blasting. And some of our beloved initiators may even be produced there. So it would make sense for a more "professional" fireworks industry to pop up, maybe partnered with a U.S. brand and designed to meet the local regulations.

[displayfireworks1]

One of my sources in the China fireworks manufacturing business told me Mexico is too corrupt to make fireworks. Too many people need paid off to run the operation. If I remember correctly I believe the military controls all the chemicals.
I remember years back one of the distributors was importing larger display shells and even salutes. You are just not going to see the complex type shells coming out of Mexico like you do China. It is all just a basic chrysanthemum. I remember they had 5 inch Mexico salutes , they were terrible. Its was a play against China to source the larger display shells.

[mondos2001]

I see your points, and I agree with them. However, this last year I was genuinely impressed with their shells, and they were definitely much nicer and fuller then before. There's also the new president that just got elected, and this may change, seeing as they want her dead. Additionally, there has been alot of Chinese companies in mexico, for maybe the last 10 years. Some have failed, but some are still going, and thriving. As it stands, yes, mexico is too corrupt for the firework market, but that may change soon. But who know \/('-')\/

[vegassalute]

It's a shame. There appears to be lots of economic uncertainty around cost effectiveness of importation for those like me that don't have 100+ can annual inbound volume. I think us pyros need to put some thought into this subject; we need to find another emerging economy. Of course my statement is grossly oversimplified, but would be well worth exploration. We can agree that the China of 2024 resembles nothing of the China of one, two, and three decades ago, as relates to USA trade. And look no further than the average pyro's wallet at the end of the year for proof. Something may have to give so the supply chain can be properly and sustainably recalibrated. My humble $.02. Having said all this, a two week visit to Hunan is still very much top of my bucket list.

[Justice Pyro]

I saw a news video with illegal fireworks on Display in San Diego many appearing to resemble what I think of as Mexican fireworks (but not all, like the pack of flying ground blooms) but one has the writing TNT on it. It looks like a homemade firecracker you'd see here, like a "half stick". https://youtu.be/365rt9SZhy4?feature=shared&t=54 I also saw TNT on facebook on some mexican fireworks.

Was the TNT you saw like the US stuff or what would be illegal here?