Japanese fireworks

Japanese Firework Mixture Finely pulverized nitrato of potossa, 70 ports washed (lowers of sulphur, 30 parts powdered lycopodium, 12 parts best and very light lampblack, 8 parts. From 14 to 2 groins of this powder arc sufficient for uso packed in strips of snitablo paper. 

Colored Fires for Stars.2067 Japanese Firework Mixtures.2127 Red Bengal Lights.2072... 

Tessier introduced the use of cryolite (AlNaaF ) for the yellow coloring of stars, lances, and Bengal lights. In his second edition he includes a chapter on the small pyrotechnic pieces which are knonm as Japanese fireworks, giving formulas for them, and another on the picrates, which he studied extensively. The picrates of sodium, potassium, and ammonium crystallize in the anhydrous condition. Those of barium, strontium, calcium, magnesium, zinc, iron, and copper are hygroscopic and contain considerable water of crystallization which makes them unfit for use in pyrotechnic compositions. Lead picrate, with 1 H3O, detonates... 

Senko-Hanabi is an old firework in Japan. In 1927 Dr.Nakaya first presented the results of his physical study on this itemCNakaya and Sekiguchi Riken Report,6,p.IO83(1927)). In 1957 the author made an effort to clarify the mechanism of sparks from the chemical point of view[T. Shimizu Studies in fireworks on the Japanese Senko-Hanabi, Journal of the Industrial Explosive Society,Japan,1, p.359(1957 )) A.Maeda and his pupils at Shinjuku High School in Tokyo made experiments on the problem in detail(Shinjuku-Koko(High School), Studies on the old Japanese firework Senko-Hanabi(1962)). Here is a summary of the important results in precis. 

Pasting is peculiar to Japanese firework manufacture. Stars are allowed to grow into a spherical shape by sprinkling the powder of a composition on to core grains. This process is popularly applied for the manufacture of colour changing stars used for the Warimono shells Chrysanthemum. In Japan maximum effort is made in the production of stars of this kind. 

Senko-Hanabi is a Japanese fireworks effect in which very deiicate branching sparks are produced. 

Firework Mixture, Japanese.2127 Matches, Congreve.2146 Roman Candles, Stars for. ... 2058, 206s... 

Fireworks. 2048, 4c. Matches, Japanese. 2 28 Rose-Colored Fire.2093... 

It is thought that fireworks began with the history of potassium nitrate. It has. been used for compositions which produce fire dust or sparks as well as a white smoke which has been called "Wabi (Japanese fire). It could not produce coloured flames, but before the appearance of potassium chlorate, fireworkers made various efforts to create colour with it as far as possible. 

The strawboard spheres are made of yellow strawboard and sold as hemi-spheres they are made on pressing machines(R.Lancaster Fireworks, Principles ahd Practice, p.1 3(1972)). Japanese made strawboard spheres are not very uniform, e.g., the hemi-sphere varies in thickness especially in the middle and at the edge. Two hemi-spheres must be prepared by grinding them so that they are united to make a perfect sphere. These... 

As the cultivation of cotton in Japan is declining there is a shortage of cotton seeds on the market, but of.course a large amount of cotton is produced in the USA, India and China. At present, in place of the.cotton seeds many of the fireworkers use rice chaff for small or medium shells and Japanese cypress seeds for large shells. 

This is a special name in Japanese and difficult to translate into English or other languages. It is thought that it came from the word, Kyoku-Gei, in which Kyoku means stunt and Gei means art. Kyoku then is nearly translated as A stunt display", or "A firework piece for a stunt display". The word, Kyoku, is used in both the singular and the plural. 

The shape-of firework parts. This should be designed so that it has good stability when it is put on a worktable. From this point of view unfortunately the round shape of Japanese shells is not good. The ignition composition which generally contains chlorate ought to be shaped into cubic cut stars. Otherwise they easily roll down on the floor and are invisible. This is quite dangerous, because they are too small to be discovered. 

Takeo Shimizu Hanab/(Fireworks), page 135 (1957), Hitotsubashi Shobo, Tokyo (in Japanese). 

My first work on "Hana-bi", which means fireworks in Japanese, was published in 1957 but it went out of print several years later mainly because of the publishing company. I began the second work ten years ago to meet the demand of many people and have at last completed the script. 

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