A long time ago my brothers and I were into fireworks and Steve would pull this stupid stunt of lighting a M-80-type boomer from a cigarette and tossing it off the transom whilst no one was looking, you know. It raised a lot of safety issues and so in typical anal-retentive fashion I initiated an excruciating thought process about a bottle-rocket mortar-launching system that would safely deploy the fireworks away from the boat. We started out considering empty stainless-steel stanchions and ended up specifying a piece of 1-1/2" PVC with a screwed-on metal pipe cap, the whole thing pivoting on a plywood bracket for controlling azimuth, etc. Has anyone got a safe and reliable way of setting off firecrackers on the boat? I am particularly interested in hearing from people with GASOLINE power, especially outboards. Remember this is just a curious question-- mum's the word (stuff's illegal in NJ). JC 2
Fireworks on board
- Thread starter jcherubini
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Stupid, Stupid, Stupid!
I know that I am being curt with this response, but anyone firing off fireworks from a boat is risking disaster. I won't even get into the justification of using a flare gun, so don't ask.
I know that I am being curt with this response, but anyone firing off fireworks from a boat is risking disaster. I won't even get into the justification of using a flare gun, so don't ask.
Are you out of your MIND???
Or just bored and trolling for trouble? Go ahead and do it, John...just make sure you're at least 100 yards away from any other boats or docks. After you blow yourself up, we'll nominate you for the Darwin Award...you'd definitely be a contender!
Or just bored and trolling for trouble? Go ahead and do it, John...just make sure you're at least 100 yards away from any other boats or docks. After you blow yourself up, we'll nominate you for the Darwin Award...you'd definitely be a contender!
my opinion is yer ok with diesel inboards but ...
it's only a matter of time before you blow up if you do it around a gas powered boat.
it's only a matter of time before you blow up if you do it around a gas powered boat.
Suuuure he'll be ok in a diesel powered boat...
Unless one of 'em misfires and ends up slithering all over his gelcoat and THEN buries its nose in his propane tank...or misfires and comes back down on his boat, setting his canvas on fire...or something goes horribly wrong and the whole kit and kaboodle goes off at once...or.... If you want to volunteer your boat for this operation, we'll be glad to include your name in the Darwin nomination.
I THOUGHT I'd heard everything when somebody asked me how set up his holding tank to burn off the methane................
Unless one of 'em misfires and ends up slithering all over his gelcoat and THEN buries its nose in his propane tank...or misfires and comes back down on his boat, setting his canvas on fire...or something goes horribly wrong and the whole kit and kaboodle goes off at once...or.... If you want to volunteer your boat for this operation, we'll be glad to include your name in the Darwin nomination.
I THOUGHT I'd heard everything when somebody asked me how set up his holding tank to burn off the methane................
Hey John, no one realizes you are just joking, ...
around... I got a laugh out of it, so thanks. O, yea, by the way, I remember doing some pretty crazy things growning up, it's a wonder I'm here to be reading and typing to this site! David
around... I got a laugh out of it, so thanks. O, yea, by the way, I remember doing some pretty crazy things growning up, it's a wonder I'm here to be reading and typing to this site! David
And Methane is Flammable
Decided to remain anonymous on this one. Mentioned these posts to my wife and she couldn't see Peggy's humor with regard to lighting off the methane. Yes, the stuff that emanates from sewage treatment plants and holding tanks is methane and it is flammable. The City of San Jose has a huge treatment plant that generates nearly all the electricity that it uses. Not only that but when one passes gas there is methane in that too, and, it is flammable! My wife said “Nooooo. What do smokers do? They don’t blow up!” Well, if you don’t believe me dear, the next time you feel some gas coming just get a match nearby! This is better than bottle rockets! Wonder if one could run a small tube from the holding tank and throttle it back and use the gas for an anchor light???? What about on a warm night[get those gasses going]? After beans for dinner? C II: what about putting these ideas to some good, such as a way to put a bottle rocket up some 60 footer’s through-hull that passed you in a narrow channel and you find later at the guest dock at your marina?
Decided to remain anonymous on this one. Mentioned these posts to my wife and she couldn't see Peggy's humor with regard to lighting off the methane. Yes, the stuff that emanates from sewage treatment plants and holding tanks is methane and it is flammable. The City of San Jose has a huge treatment plant that generates nearly all the electricity that it uses. Not only that but when one passes gas there is methane in that too, and, it is flammable! My wife said “Nooooo. What do smokers do? They don’t blow up!” Well, if you don’t believe me dear, the next time you feel some gas coming just get a match nearby! This is better than bottle rockets! Wonder if one could run a small tube from the holding tank and throttle it back and use the gas for an anchor light???? What about on a warm night[get those gasses going]? After beans for dinner? C II: what about putting these ideas to some good, such as a way to put a bottle rocket up some 60 footer’s through-hull that passed you in a narrow channel and you find later at the guest dock at your marina?
While growning up?!
Was that intentional David? Sounds right. I have to smile when I see how protected my grandchildren are and think about my generation. I probably did those same crazy fireworks stunts. But think how effective one of JC II's rocket tubes would be when those PWCs come roaring by?
Was that intentional David? Sounds right. I have to smile when I see how protected my grandchildren are and think about my generation. I probably did those same crazy fireworks stunts. But think how effective one of JC II's rocket tubes would be when those PWCs come roaring by?
Har Har
Well now, who hasn't made a tennis ball cannon. I'm thinkin we all are getting just a little to safe-minded (anal-retentive) for our own good! I've used an old 2# cannon in the past (for laughs of course). PS- got my flame retardent suit on so blast away!
Well now, who hasn't made a tennis ball cannon. I'm thinkin we all are getting just a little to safe-minded (anal-retentive) for our own good! I've used an old 2# cannon in the past (for laughs of course). PS- got my flame retardent suit on so blast away!
As a Profesional Bomb Builder
I can say that baring the M80 these things are not that dangerous when used by lucid adults. Add youth, alcohol or both and you can get some interesting results. Yes, the gas fumes are dangerous but in an open cockpit it would be minimal certainly no more than smoking on the boat. Aside from the black scorch you would do more damage to the deck by dropping a wench handle. I would keep a couple buckets of sand available just in case. The M80 has no place on the boat unless you are fishing. Be careful out there.
I can say that baring the M80 these things are not that dangerous when used by lucid adults. Add youth, alcohol or both and you can get some interesting results. Yes, the gas fumes are dangerous but in an open cockpit it would be minimal certainly no more than smoking on the boat. Aside from the black scorch you would do more damage to the deck by dropping a wench handle. I would keep a couple buckets of sand available just in case. The M80 has no place on the boat unless you are fishing. Be careful out there.
Petrol
We get a really great reaction when we let off our bombs. Get a length of pipe and seal off one end. Then poor about 500ml of petrol down the end. Do this outside the cabin though in case you spill some. Simply hold a match to the end and hang on tight. You get a flame thrower which gets rid of those pesky people that moore to close to you. Really fires up the harbour master as well! By the way make sure you dry your hands well before lighting. Good luck and have some fun. Don't be a bore. Live life to the max!
We get a really great reaction when we let off our bombs. Get a length of pipe and seal off one end. Then poor about 500ml of petrol down the end. Do this outside the cabin though in case you spill some. Simply hold a match to the end and hang on tight. You get a flame thrower which gets rid of those pesky people that moore to close to you. Really fires up the harbour master as well! By the way make sure you dry your hands well before lighting. Good luck and have some fun. Don't be a bore. Live life to the max!
WELL....
It's amazing what can happen in two days in these boards! A. I never said we actually DID this. I did go so far as to figure out how to duct-tape a piece of PVC to a long bolt to use as a pivot for the said bottle-rocket-launching system (BRLS). There were some stupid teenaged delinquents I might have liked to get back at ashore as well. --but didn't have the guts to actually use it, especially when the BB gun was closer at hand (JUST KIDDING). B. Fireworks are readily available in most of the weast coast and somewhere someone has put 1 and 2 together (hopefully without 3, which is beer). As I said, the gasoline issue is what really bothers me. In Burlington we have two events-- the 4th-of-July show at the end of the island and the decorated-boat parade in the end of August and both seem to BEG for over-indulgence in 'festive attitude', you know. Moving into an outboard-powered boat after getting spoilt by inboards for so long has simply raised some questions for me and this is only one. C. The issue of having a relatively secure fire-resistant 'magazine' came up and probably has merit for other things too. If you keep thinner and acetone and alcohol fuel for the stove on board you can't tell me that's any more fun to deal with when it meets the stray spark or flame. Some 'haz-mat' strong-box is probably in order on any good cruising boat anyway. Provide a vent over the side to relieve pressure and heat before it's at dangerous levels. D. The thing Steve threw over the side was NOT an M-80; it was much smaller than that, and not knowing much about pyrotechnics how would I know what it's really called? However it WAS pretty major-- a plume of water erupted about a foot thick and three high, sounded like a depth charge going off. It did not (as far as we saw) kill any fish-- we never really thought it might have. This was a particularly festive occasion-- end of a race we won-- and there WERE other boats about, but the thing was cast far enough off the stern that it didn't even look like it'd come from our boat (duhhhhhh!) and the other racers cheered it-- such was the mood. (Beer drinkers watching TV on idle harbour queens probably jeered it, but who cares?) E. The suggestion about using a BRLS as an anti-PWC device is TOO delicious!!! Excuse me whilst I go work out some further design issues!! (JUST KIDDING!!!!) JC 2
It's amazing what can happen in two days in these boards! A. I never said we actually DID this. I did go so far as to figure out how to duct-tape a piece of PVC to a long bolt to use as a pivot for the said bottle-rocket-launching system (BRLS). There were some stupid teenaged delinquents I might have liked to get back at ashore as well. --but didn't have the guts to actually use it, especially when the BB gun was closer at hand (JUST KIDDING). B. Fireworks are readily available in most of the weast coast and somewhere someone has put 1 and 2 together (hopefully without 3, which is beer). As I said, the gasoline issue is what really bothers me. In Burlington we have two events-- the 4th-of-July show at the end of the island and the decorated-boat parade in the end of August and both seem to BEG for over-indulgence in 'festive attitude', you know. Moving into an outboard-powered boat after getting spoilt by inboards for so long has simply raised some questions for me and this is only one. C. The issue of having a relatively secure fire-resistant 'magazine' came up and probably has merit for other things too. If you keep thinner and acetone and alcohol fuel for the stove on board you can't tell me that's any more fun to deal with when it meets the stray spark or flame. Some 'haz-mat' strong-box is probably in order on any good cruising boat anyway. Provide a vent over the side to relieve pressure and heat before it's at dangerous levels. D. The thing Steve threw over the side was NOT an M-80; it was much smaller than that, and not knowing much about pyrotechnics how would I know what it's really called? However it WAS pretty major-- a plume of water erupted about a foot thick and three high, sounded like a depth charge going off. It did not (as far as we saw) kill any fish-- we never really thought it might have. This was a particularly festive occasion-- end of a race we won-- and there WERE other boats about, but the thing was cast far enough off the stern that it didn't even look like it'd come from our boat (duhhhhhh!) and the other racers cheered it-- such was the mood. (Beer drinkers watching TV on idle harbour queens probably jeered it, but who cares?) E. The suggestion about using a BRLS as an anti-PWC device is TOO delicious!!! Excuse me whilst I go work out some further design issues!! (JUST KIDDING!!!!) JC 2
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