Fireworks Blog

These days I watched a video of a strange fireworks device I have never seen and discovered it's name is " Double Voice Cracker ". Today I will tell you what I have learned about it. Also known as Heaven and Earth or Bing Bong , Double Voice Crackers are a chinese type of firecracker that essentially produces 2 bangs, one in the ground an another in the air. It is like a mortar and shell self contained in a single tube divided in the middle by a clay (or other hard material) plug with a timing fuse. Below is a diagram of a Double Voice Cracker from the book " The Best of AFN II ": Before igniting the fuse, the device must be placed over a hard and flat surface with the lifting charge facing the ground. When the fuse is ignited, the lifting charge explodes and kicks the tube into the air, while igniting the time fuse and finally the report charge explodes in the air. The report charge could be flash powder or any other effect. For more safety ...

Baianinha is the name of a small Brazilian firework. Essentially, it is a spinner that acts like a spinning top. You put it on the ground, light up the fuse and then the fire spray comes out from the fuse hole causing the "Baianinha" so spin around itself making an effect similar to a spinning top. Below is a Baianinha from Fogos Lider (one of the biggest fireworks factories in Brazil) Check how it works in this video:

Diwali, also known as the Festival of Lights, is one of the most vibrant and celebrated festivals in India and around the world. Symbolizing the victory of light over darkness and good over evil, Diwali brings joy, unity, and a magical glow to every corner of the country. One of the most breathtaking aspects of this celebration is the spectacular display of fireworks that light up the night sky. The History and Date of Diwali Diwali has its roots in ancient Hindu mythology and traditions, with stories varying across regions and cultures. The most popular narrative is from the Hindu epic, Ramayana , where Diwali marks the return of Lord Rama, his wife Sita, and his brother Lakshmana to Ayodhya after 14 years of exile and the defeat of the demon king Ravana. The people of Ayodhya celebrated their return by lighting rows of lamps, symbolizing the victory of good over evil. In other traditions, Diwali is associated with the goddess Lakshmi, the deity of wealth and prosperity. It is...

The fireworks industries of Japan and China represent two distinct approaches to pyrotechnics, shaped by centuries of cultural heritage, technological innovation, and market dynamics. Historical Origins China is widely recognized as the birthplace of fireworks, with a history dating back to the Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD). In contrast, Japan adopted fireworks later, primarily during the Edo period (1603-1867), developing a unique aesthetic and technological approach. Manufacturing Approaches Chinese Fireworks Industry Dominates global production, accounting for approximately 90% of world fireworks manufacturing Characterized by large-scale, low-cost production Massive industrial clusters in provinces like Hunan and Guangdong Strong export-oriented manufacturing model Focuses on volume and economic efficiency Japanese Fireworks Industry Emphasizes precision, artistic quality, and aesthetic design Smaller-scale production with high-value specialty prod...

There are many ways to light up fireworks: regular matches, lighters, blow torches and so on. Although, in modern times there is a more secure way - the Electric Match . Not only more secure but it also provides the possibility of better synchronization of firing. The Electric Match is, as the name says, an electrically triggered match. It is build of a few components: 2 wires, a bridge (a thin metal between the wires with low electrical resistance) and a pyrotechnic composition (pyrogen) coated with some kind of lacquer for protection. When an electric current of about 1 Ampere passes through the bridge, it heats up and incinerates the pyrogen. Below you can see a simple drawing of its parts and the electric schematic: Electric matches are usually connected to firing systems that also have the ability of testing the connecticity of the electric matches (testing open or short circuits), so there is an upper current and lower current that the bridge can support before heating. ...

Italy is known for being the cradle of European fireworks. There are in Italy some types of fireworks that you can't find in any other place in the World but we will talk about them in another post. Today I will tell you the traditional name for fireworks fuse in Italy: the Spoletta or Spolette . In most countries, the fireworks time fuse is the Bickford fuse (aka safety fuse or chinese fuse) or a derivative of it. But in Italy, the tradition is to use the so called Spoletta , a fuse that is made of a tube of cardboard (multiple layers of kraft paper) with a blackpowder composition pressed inside, similar to a very small rocket motor. It works exactly as the time fuse, for the same purpose, used both in shells (usually known as "ritardo") and also in the ground to give spacing between mortar firing (known as "ripasso"), for example. In old times Spolettas where made by hand hammering a certain amount of times, but today and industrialy they are made by ...

As I am very interested in Japanese fireworks, here is another post about them. Have you noticed that most of the original Japanese fireworks ball shells casings (hemispheres) are made of newspaper? The reason is simple: although it may be also a way of recycling newspaper, it has an important effect on the explosion "perfection" due to the fact that newspaper has a moderate tensile strength and it split more uniformly during the explosion than the most used strawboard (chinese shells) and plastic (spanish, portuguese shells) casings. Here is an example of a shell made of newspaper hemispheres: Now imagine the lot of work that is needed to paste every piece of newspaper in so many layers to make these casings! Usually they are pasted on top of a wooden ball and then cut at the half. That's it, there are many characteristics of Japanese fireworks that contribute to its perfection and for sure the newspaper casings are one of them. If you like this content...