71 replies to this topic

[Demented Ferret]

Bah, I managed to get the Mg ribbon to the thermite but it didn't work, I suspect my aluminium powder isn't authentic...When I get hold of some better stuff, would adding it to my current compound still be mildy successful - as it'd be a waste to throw out.

Edited by Demented Ferret, 07 May 2004 - 09:42 AM.

[thewildething]

What I do if I have a crap batch is make a new batch (make sure the aluminium and iron oxide are really fine, like flour) then spread this on the crap batch and light it, the good batch should light the crap! I once had a crap 'well hard to light' coarse load of thermite, about a pound of it, so I lit it with a new fine batch and the hole is still in the lawn pretty much a year on , It went through the steel pot it was in, 2mm mild steel, dripped onto a apparently heat proof cooking tray, went through that like a knife through butter and set fire to the lawn, . Now I always let it drip into DRY sand, no water near at all.

do not mix the better stuff with the batch that is suspect, try and light it with good thermite, if this thermite doesnt light it nothing will, chuck it if this doesnt work.

Marcus.

Edited by thewildething, 07 May 2004 - 03:00 PM.

[Demented Ferret]

Nice one - seems like a good idea. I'll do that with purchased chemicals.

Thanks.

[Demented Ferret]

Fast forward 2 months.......


SUCCESS!

The answer was black powder! I was expermenting with various batches of black-powder I had made and I came across my old thermite. Out of the blue I mixed the thermite & BP in a ratio of 1:3 (BP:Thermite) and the stuff worked beautifully!

Yep, so no messy chemicals or magnesium, just needed some black-match to start it - that makes things a hell of a lot easier.

..For those who wanted to know that is.

Edited by Demented Ferret, 09 June 2004 - 07:42 PM.

[thewildething]

Nice one!
Glad you got it to go, were you looking at it when it went?? I tend to look around the garden when its firing, lights it up like daylight. Its just that the spot in my eyes is insane, can last fo 15mins or so, I would not risk my eyes anymore because of all that UV thats emmitted. I would suggest that no one looks at it without protection (welding galsses?), I have actually filmed it on a digital camera and watched it that way, its easier on the eyes.

I remember the first time I got it going, wasnt spectacular but it was thermite, thats all that mattered, glad your black powder lit it well. Did it go off like a fountain with big arching sparks or fizzle away in the container??

Cheers

Marcus.

[Demented Ferret]

It showered with sparks for a good 8 seconds or so, and I've got to agree - the lighting is very, very intense - I had the experment etched into my eyes for a good hour or so!

I'm quite glad it was a nice looking thermite reaction, because that means I can put use to the rest of the batch I've got left (any ideas?).

[Creepin_pyro]

While we all ignore most "don't look at it - it will damage your eyes" warnings (Mg ribbon, the sun, etc) I really don't think we should be looking at thermite (Fe/Al, anyway). It WILL do PERMANENT eye damage. I've only done the reaction once, and I looked around at the garden. Much nicer than looking at a hugely intense ball of light, then having it etched on your retina.

Edit: if you knew what you were doing, why on earth would you put your precious eyes through such a stupid amount of UV on purpose? I just wanted to point out that thermite WILL do PERMANENT damage to the retina, as this has NOT been clarified in recent posts. I said we ignore "most" warnings - I don't think this one should be ignored. Just my humble opinion.

Edited by Creepin_pyro, 10 June 2004 - 11:05 AM.

[Demented Ferret]

Uhhh....The two posts above yours said the same thing, regardless, I know what I'm doing - and I know I won't be looking at it again, as you said - we ignore the warnings for the first time, suffer the consequences - then correct ourselfves.

Edited by Demented Ferret, 10 June 2004 - 10:56 AM.

[thewildething]

Hey,
Its really up to you what you want to do with the rest, if its roughly the same amount (or a bit more) then you can fire it off with no worries, if its like 10 times the amount then I wouldnt do it all until you are completely satisfied that the surrounding area and any spectators are safe. Think that if it does get going, and its a lot, you will not be able to go near it for a few minutes if anything goes wrong, its not good when the lawn nearby catches fire and you cannot put it out because you cant go close for fear of blindness or being peppered in sparks.
All I can say is do whatever you want with it, but be safe.


Marcus.

[Demented Ferret]

Nah, it's more like twice the amount - thanks for the info though - I've heard that adding a little Thermite to BP makes a good blackmatch? Is that reliable information or should I try it anyway?

[Creepin_pyro]

Blackmatch with some thermite/BP should work fine. Dont use a large amount of thermite - perhaps 90/10. The iron oxide will increase the burning temp, and the Alu will give you sparks (depending on the kind of Alu) - which are not really a good thing for match, as they can cause the flame to jump down the fuse, making the timing un-reliable. Having said that, my latest blackmatch has a little flake aluminium in, and suffers no skipping problems.

[Demented Ferret]

Really, if I make sure the sparks can't jump to any compounds I think the aesthetic advantages will be pretty good, - I'll try the 90:10 later on today, thanks.

Edited by Demented Ferret, 10 June 2004 - 02:10 PM.