64 replies to this topic

[LadyKate]

That's a good idea, I've never thought of that before, might give it a go some time soon.

Perigrin says it stops hangs from powder that has flaked off and results in almost no string residue. My experience has been the same. It takes but a moment to do it.

[Andrew]

I had the no string residue thought in mind when I added more oxidiser to the bp mix, it works quite well, no string left! However it does not burn as fast. Having the extra oxidiser where it's needed rather than in the bp sounds really good. I can see it doubling the time it takes to make blackmatch though.



On the prefection note, did anyone watch extras on BBC2 last night (that is the 11th of August 2005 for anyone who reads this next year, or even tomorrow). It reminded me of this thread.

[LadyKate]

I can see it doubling the time it takes to make blackmatch though.

It is certainly an extra step but it doesn't double things and there are a couple of bonuses for pre-soaking in KNO3 - see below.

For the following, be safe - don't do this indoors or when others are around. The equipment and general safety rules are a subset of those specified for making BP using the CIA method. A spilled boiling solution of KNO3 could ruin your whole day so please be careful.

Boil some water like you are going to make 500 grams of CIA BP. Saturate it with KNO3 (same as for CIA). Soak three or four balls of string in it and set them out to dry (or dehydrate in your cabinet/whatever). Keep soaking string until you run out of liquid. You now have enough string to do a zillion feet of blackmatch and you probably did it in less than 10 minutes. In addition, you won't have to do this step for the next few years of matchmaking.

The string will be stiff and have KNO3 crystals on it so store the string like you would any flammable (keep it in its balled state, though). Don't worry about bending it or twisting it - you will re-wet it when it comes to blackmatch making time. I have a simple tub that I make blackmatch with and the KNO3 string still threads through it and works fine.

Bonus spin-offs from this (besides making more reliable burning blackmatch) are that your blackmatch slurry lasts longer and the KNO3 doesn't leech out of it into the string - thus the last string to come through the slurry will be similar in properties to the first pieces that went through it.

Edited by LadyKate, 12 August 2005 - 12:11 PM.

[Rhodri]

Good tip!

If we look into 'the old books' on the subject it is almost certainly mentioned that boiling the cotton for blackmatch in KNO3 solution is a prequsite for good match.

[JamesH]

Make your black match from several thin cotton threads insted of a single thick string. Then pass it through a sizing die. The black match made this way is far superior in my experience - it's more resistant to bending, the burn rate is more consistent, the match diameter is more consistent and it burns cleanly without leaving behind smoldering string, which could present a fire hazard in dry conditions.

[Pyro-pal]

Here's a Black Match method that works good for me:

For Shell Cross Match and Passfires:
Use 7 strands single filament cotton (tea bag string) or 4 strands of cotton crochet string
(size 10) for cross match. Pull through glass eye dropper with a .100” opening.
Also, try a single strand of fuzzy 4-ply soft cotton yarn.

For Shell Leader Match:
Use 6 strands of cotton crochet string (size 10) pulled through modified oval frosting nozzle or
2 strands of fuzzy 4-ply soft cotton yarn. The yarn or string should be lightly dampened with alcohol to give the strands additional weight and reduce surface tention for easy immersion into the match paste.

Formulas:
For cross match BP with willow charcoal is preferred. The binders are 2% Gum Arabic and
2% dextrin to equal a total of 4%. The BP paste is wetted with 50% water by weight.
The Gum Arabic/Dextrin must be mixed with cold water then heated to obtain a solution.
For leader match a straight 4% Dextrin is added together during the ball milling process.
Option: Try milling the cross match BP with Gum Arabic/Dex binder and then heating it together with the water in the double boiler.

Batch Method Procedure:
Heat the match paste in double boiler and ladle a scoop of hot slurry into a stockpot or large coffee can. The match paste binders are stirred with the right amount (50%) of cold water.
This is heated until the binders dissolve, then the water/binder solution is mixed with the BP.
The binders also prevent the potassium nitrate leaching out while the match while drying.

Dampen the cotton with a little alcohol then unreel several yards into the stockpot or coffee can while alternately ladling in more hot match paste. The best stockpot shape should be tall and narrow as opposed to flat and wide. Pat down the cotton after each addition to make sure it’s completely saturated with the paste. Keep repeating until all the cotton is unreeled then pull it through an orifice while winding it back onto the frame.

How Much To Make:
Determine size of match frame and number of windings on the frame with spacing of say 1/2” to 5/8”. A frame +++ by +++ will accept a total of +++ turns with 5/8” spacing. This will total +++ separate pieces. The weight of BP needed to coat a single 3-foot piece of cross match is 8 grams. Ten grams is needed for a 3-foot piece of leader match. This amount BP is calculated so that some excess slurry is available during the application process. This is necessary to ensure all the cotton gets coated.

Match Frames:
Douglas Fur molding 1.500 by .750 varnished with “L” brackets to reinforce corners. A .625 wood dowel works for a bearing axle. Overall frame size 2 feet wide by 3 feet long. Having one frame for cross match and the other for leader match is a good idea.

Problems:
Don’t twist the strands of cotton in the pot of match paste; just lightly pat it down. One of the worst problems that can occur with the batch method is having the coated strands tangle while pulling them through the orifice (sizing die) or when winding it on the frame.
Make sure all areas of the match frame that are exposed to the match paste are covered with wax paper. Mercerized cotton crochet string works ok at best, the tightness of the weave doesn’t allow the slurry to soak in as well as soft untreated cotton.

Edited by Pyro-pal, 27 December 2005 - 04:06 AM.

[Phoenix]

I've had good success with three ply garden jute - it's nice and fuzzy so plent of BP gets stuck to/in it, even though it does only have three strands. It's also really cheap. The twine is about 2mm thick, and the finished match is about 3 - 4.5mm thick (I just size it by running it through my hand). My most recent batch was just made with "green" BP paste, and that has no trouble burning through sawdust, chokes, pressed clay plugs, wrapped in tape etc. It also burns pretty quick when piped, too.

Note that I always make black match as a batch, rather than continuously (i.e. prepare a bucket of BP paste, put a big bundle of string in it, mash it for a good while, and then run it onto the frame).

[phildunford]

I use cotton wick which you can get on reels from candle-making suppliers - not too expensive.

Previously I've used one thick one, but I've just made a batch using thee thin wicks - will see how this turns out.

Wick is absorbent and flexible, and being cotton burns better than some composition materials.

[Electron]

Ok question. When I make my blackmatch and quickmatch I use GOEX 4F BP because my home made bp is just not quite right. its great for e-matches and breaking shells but for any type of wick its garbage.

now my question is: Just recently I made up a bunch of blackmatch getting things ready to have on hand for the holidays and was testing a short 8 inch peice. as soon as it lit (with very little effort) it was gone. How can I slow this down without getting spitting and spuddering?

I have successfully slowed down blackmatch (albeit H3 BM) by painting on 2 or 3 layers of homemade nitrocellulose laquer (i.e ping pong balls dissolved in acetone). The difference the NC laquer made was to reduce sparks, and perhaps increase the size of the flame. It also burned with a white colour rather than an orange colour.

[Plays with Fire]

Hey, my blackmatch was made following the directions on United Nuclear's website http://www.unitednuc.../quickmatch.htm and I am having the problem that the cotton string doesn't burn; the fuse works, but afterwords, there is a black, yet intact string. Upon closer examination, the individual fibers are still white on the inside. How can I fix this?

I saw other threads about blackmatch but they seem fairly old, and none seem to answer that question.

I did see, however, that one person (ladykate if im not mistaken) said before making the match, to soak an entire ball of the string in a saturated solution of potassium nitrate, then let it dry. Would this fix my problem? And if it would, it was mentioned that it would be "rewetted" when time to make blackmatch, does this mean just with water, or another saturated solution of KNO3? How long should I wait when soaking it the first time before I take it out?

Thank you for your assitance

[Frozentech]

Hey, my blackmatch was made following the directions on United Nuclear's website http://www.unitednuc.../quickmatch.htm and I am having the problem that the cotton string doesn't burn; the fuse works, but afterwords, there is a black, yet intact string. Upon closer examination, the individual fibers are still white on the inside. How can I fix this?

I saw other threads about blackmatch but they seem fairly old, and none seem to answer that question.

I did see, however, that one person (ladykate if im not mistaken) said before making the match, to soak an entire ball of the string in a saturated solution of potassium nitrate, then let it dry. Would this fix my problem? And if it would, it was mentioned that it would be "rewetted" when time to make blackmatch, does this mean just with water, or another saturated solution of KNO3? How long should I wait when soaking it the first time before I take it out?

Thank you for your assitance

Are you certain that your string is 100% cotton ? Some cotton string has a polyester inner fiber, this is called "mercerized cotton".

It does help to soak the twine in saturated KNO3 solution prior to making blackmatch, though not absolutely necessary. This helps in a couple of ways. It helps reduce the chance of the match going out as it passes through narrow openings. It also stops the black powder slurry from becoming progressively weaker as you make match, due to the soluble KNO3 being wicked up into the twine, leaving behind charcoal and sulfur. I don't even dry the string after soaking it in KNO3, I just wring it out a bit.

Make sure that your string is well saturated in the BP slurry, stirred around a bit so the BP penetrates between the fibers. I do it in a small tupperware plastic container, then draw it through about a 3mm hole in the lid to scrape off the excess and size it. Also, make sure it's thoroughly dry before burning it.

Good luck, and stay green !

[alany]

Actually "Mercerzied Cotton" is still basically cellulose, it has just been run through a strong sodium hydroxide solution to modify the fibres. The fibres swell and become more shiny, they can take on dye better and are somewhat stronger and shink less on washing.

I use Mercerzied cotton for my blackmatch. Despite what everyone says about it, it works just fine and is much easier to find.

I once purchased a large roll marked "100% unmercerzied cotton" from the local Spotlight because it was in the bargin-bin. It turned out to be some kind of cotton/poly blend! It's horrible for blackmatch, but it works great for tieing stuff up and in a pinch it can be used to spike things.

[Plays with Fire]

Thanks, I'm not sure the exact composition of this string, so I'll get a bunch of types to compare their performance. If I soak the whole string ball at once, I assume that the amount left I don't use that time will be very stiff, making it difficult to later use it for blackmatch (stir it around in BP slurry, and straiten to hang dry). How do I overcome this?

Also, has anyone compared the results side-by-side of stirring short (about 1 meter) lengths of string in the BP slurry, to runing it through a machine, by which I mean a plastic container with a hole at each end to run the string through the slurry? If so I'd be very interested in hearing the results.

[Plays with Fire]

Also, if I coat my black match in nitrocellulose laquer, should the laquer be applied in a thin coat (still see black under it, opaque) or a thick coat (no black showing)? I want it to be able to burn if I light it and place it entirely underwater.

[RegimentalPyro]

Hmm - Burning underwater is tricky.

Blackmatch is brittle and at the break points water will invariably get in [even if coated with NC-lacquer] and you will get a hangfire.

Some people have reported limited success by using NC-lacquer as the binder instead of dextrin, and also coating with NC This leads to a more flexible match. There are however difficulties with making blackmatch in this manner, and I still believe it won't be reliable underwater.

PIC however is ultrareliable underwater, and can be obtained quite cheaply these days. If you have a situation that demands underwater fuse [Please tell - I'm curious!] then I'd use PIC.