Need Guidance

[Just Paulie]

I’ve received my Articles of Pyrotechnics Certificate a couple years ago and I’ve yet to actually order 1.4 PRO fireworks. I have decent experience with backyard shows usually spending 4-7k a year on 1.4G Consumer fireworks for about the last 5 years or so; I’ve never had an accident or near miss. I program and fire my shows with an Ignite. I’ve been looking at PRO cakes and compounds are they so much different that one would deem them unsafe from a backyard show? If admissible for a backyard show what extra precautions should one take?

[BMoore]

1.3/1.4/1.4 pro backyard show is on 25+ acres several hundred feet from the nearest structure and audience. NFPA 1123 calls for 70’ per inch of your largest shell as a safe radius and I wouldn’t go under that. Always be thinking about what happens if a cake comes apart and starts shooting vertically. That’s good advice for consumer as well.

When I started getting into 1.3, and the same applies to 1.4 pro, is there is not a lot of correlation between product size and performance. With consumer you tend to get a good feel for performance based on size, weight and price. That all goes out the window with pro. A pro slice or W cake can easily have a couple hundred foot spread. Never shoot a product you’ve never seen in person or at least in video.

[Just Paulie]

I definitely don’t have near that amount of space, I am thinking of welding together 3/16” steel containment box 4’ tall around my 4x4 launch pad. I have reviewed and watched video of all proposed AP products. No overhead obstructions.

[KDirk]

This is why I've been slow to add 1.4pro to my displays. Honestly, I originally did Dave's certification course mostly to have access to airbursts (not to be called "salutes") to add more audible pizazz to the finale. But given my present shoot site (which is adequate for safely firing consumer pyro) is a bit constrained for a lot of AP products, I've not yet gone in on any of the advanced effects like fan slices, or anything else that requires considerably more clearance.

I keep looking for a better (larger) shoot site (among family, friends and associates) that would be interested in hosting a show, but thus far haven't found one more suitable than is presently available to me, and still within reasonable distance of my home base. I take safety very seriously, and so would suggest foregoing AP products if doing an actual back yard show, instead of trying to physically shield the product to prevent potential mishaps. It's just not worth the risk.

[topshelfpyro]

1.3--- no limits
1.4 consumer 60g limit on cans and 500gram on cakes(spacers are mandatory on 500g cakes)
1.4 pro--increases single cake limits to 1000g no spacers required. Ariel reports (salutes)are legal limited to 6g. Also includes slices/sweeps, single shot comets/mines. no true 1.4pro cakes will have fuse only ematch ports or a quick match tail. The rest is basically the same as consumer but pro is generally built better.

A steel box should not be necessary but with anything even consumer a cake flipping is a concern

[topshelfpyro]

OH. And 50/62mm single shot shells in pro. They will make a can look like garbage but you will pay 2-5x the cost of a can depending on your pricing.

My shoot site is 100' wide the. It gets into the trees. No concern for a live tree to burst into flames but the ground is a concern for still burning stars.

[BMoore]

A containment box is helpful in the event of cake tipping, but the real reason for the 70’ per inch standard is really for dud shells (i.e. round trippers) where shell goes up normally but doesn’t break. You don’t want live shells or inserts landing in your crowd. If you are going to shoot like a pro then take safety seriously like a pro. If you were hiring a display company to shoot at your location, what product would they limit it to? Also, remember that for your audience, bigger is not always better. For a closer crowd, small bore cakes and ground effects can be much better visually than straining their necks. Having said that, not all pro cakes are big and powerful. Sometimes it’s more about speed and effect. This is where knowing your product is key.

[topshelfpyro]

Yep thats true on the bore size. I shoot a ton of 20 and 30mm singles when doing a pyromusical. I also limit slices to 13's except for mine only slices.
I've been very disappointed by the new dominator 62s. They barely get higher than a can. The breaks are still great so I use them.
The leftovers from 2018 are fantastic.

[Just Paulie]

Thank You folks I appreciate your input. The AP cakes that I am considering buying are comparable; at least on video and description to consumer cakes as well as what I know and have fired successfully in past years ( such as OMG’s “84’s Loud and Proud”) . I currently don’t plan to venture into the other discussed items as I have no/limited knowledge of these style fireworks. I will definitely err on the side of caution.