Aerial Salutes a.k.a Diego Bombs

All of you know the typical aerial shell with stars and pretty colors, but there are also those ones that just make an earth shattering boom and no colors or effects. This is called an aerial salute, or as i like to call them: Diego bombs.

This is made just like a normal sperical aerial shell, except just put flashpowder in there. Now you cant just throw it in like shell bursting powder and stars, you have to create a device which holds the flashpowder and put it inside the aerial shell. What i typically use is a corner of a sandwhich bag with flashpowder in it, then wrapped in about a 1/8" layer of tape all around. Have the fuse in this and just have that as the time fuse, use a normal shell as the carier of this device. I have found a good ratio of how much flashpowder to use depending on the size of the shell yet, but heres what i do have:
Take the final diameter of the shells (what size tube its supposed to fit in) and multiply it by 20, so for a 2 inch shell, you use 40grams of flash, for a 4 inch, use 80 grams, for a 16 inch, use 320 grams of flash (don't ever make a 16 inch aerial salute)
The only reason for the ratio is because the lift charge can only lift so much, and you don't want 40 grams of contained flash to land on the launchers of the display (it has happened to me, but not ontop of the launchers, lukily, everyohne was more than 300ft away).

I will provide pictures of diego bomb construction tommorow.

I have a question, does anyone know the formula they use for the tail of the shell when it shoots up? I mean the ones with the bright white flaming tail?

Im not sure but i think there called titanium tails.Mix about 5%-10% titanium into youre blackpowder

OK i was looking on wouters site and i got this

Firefly # 2
Source: rec.pyrotechnics archive. Posted by Dan Bucciano.
Comments: Can also be used as rocket propellant: Mix the chemicals, dampen, and granulate through a 20 mesh screen and dry. Use +3% by weight as a tail effect. Once you have passed the top core of the rocket by 1/2 inch, you may ram 100% firefly formula the rest of the way. You will end up with a beautiful long trailing tail of firefly.
Preparation:

Potassium Nitrate.................................47
Air Float Charcoal................................33
Antimony tri-sulfide..............................5.8
Aluminum (400 mesh,12 micron, spherical)..........4.2
Sulfur............................................ 4.7
Dextrin........................................... 5.2


Now i know its a brand new propellant but it should be perfect you could use youre german dark aluiminuim i would say!

This couldve gone in the thread for mortars and all that...Anyways, the only aerial salutes I've used is the ones you can buy, and they aren't always that great...I'd love to try them sometime but eh I don't feel like learning all about rocketry and etc.

Is that like an airbomb by the way?To be honest im not completly sure what these diago bombs are!Is there stars in them?
This is sorta like an airbomb:
http://images.google.ie/images?q=tbn...es/035fire.jpg

The tails that are produced on shells are 'mosty' used as timing fuses. They are purely a comet, or a huge star!
You can use any formual but i find that BP made with BBQ charcoal will produce a nice orangy tail. Basically a tiger tail comp!

I ahve nevery herd the term 'Diego bombs' but aerial salutes are very easy and fun to make!

I just get some little mortar tubes that some of my rolled tubes will fit into fairly snuggly. Cut a suitable length of tube and cap one end with a paper cap and glue.
Put a little Flash powder in and put a paper cap on the end with a piece of viso through. Finally glue over cap.

All I do is place a small amount of lift powder in the botom of the mortor tube and add a bit of visco into the bottom of the motor, drop in the salute and then its all ready!