Re: Best reference for a newbie?

In article <11vc93rmln6j8a7@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, Mark Bowers says...

Doug Houseman wrote:
Gentlepersons,

I have been lurking for several months, and reading the postings. Thank
you for many tips and hints.

I want to start down the road to making pyro. I plan to spend the next
year or so, reading and trying to understand what I will be doing.

I have looked at the FAQ and looked at the discussions about various
books, I am wondering, if you were to recommend one that would be a good
starting point, which would it be?

Thank you in advance

Doug

Introductory Practical Pyrotechnics by Tom Peregrin is a good beginner's
book. Two notes - this book focuses on the precipitation (CIA) method
of making black powder, and in the section on Lance compositions, there
is a formula I think should be pulled from a beginners book, as it uses
Mg/Al with Ammonium Perchlorate with no cautions concering the reaction
that takes place if the Mg/Al is untreated. (McLain Violet Lance)


IPP contains other errors as well as the problems noted. The author was not an
experienced fireworks man, and his effort can best be described in Thomas
Kentish's words - "the greater portion of it is absurd and impracticable, and
shows that it was written by a person who undertook to teach what he had not
learnt." Kentish wrote that sentence in description of Capt. Robert Jones's
"Artificial Fireworks," and it is less just as applied to that book than it
would be with respect to "Peregrin's."

For a beginner, Lancaster's first edition (1972) is a great book - short and to
the point, and concentrated on practical subjects. While subsequent editions
have been much enlarged (both in page count and in price), and the additional
material is interesting, it is not so helpful to the beginner. Look for a good
used copy of the first edition.

Don't forget Weingart and Davis. There is much useful information in them, even
though they are old. In general, older books are most helpful on matters of
technique or manipulation (Kentish is a great example of this), while more
recent books have better and safer formulæ. Very creditable display fireworks
could be made using nothing but Lancaster's compositions.

.

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