with holes of rotation, for the purpose of turning a coloured fire.
Drive them in a mould, as directed before. A good size is, 5/8 internal,
7/8 external, 6 or 7 inches long. Let the tenon enter the case 3/8 of an
inch: charge the composition firm till within 1/2 an inch of the top,
which leave vacant. Remove it, and fill the 3/8 occupied by the tenon,
with plaster of paris. Have a centre-piece, turned like fig. 55, with a
tenon, 5/8 diameter at each end, 1/2 an inch long. Glue a case on each
tenon. Let the centre-piece be 6 inches long, exclusive of the tenons;
so, if the saxon cases are 7 inches long, each, the entire length, as
fig. 56, will be 20 inches. Make a hole at a, and another at c, with a
shielded bradawl, 3/16 of an inch diameter. Put a bit of naked match in
the hole a, carry it round x and y, along to c and on to z. It must be
pushed into c with a blunt wire. Cover it with two thicknesses of pasted
paper, like the tourbillion. Leave the match exposed at x, y, and at z,
and brush it over with meal paste. If the central piece of wood were now
put on a horizontal spindle, and fire communicated to the match z, the
holes a and c would cause it to rotate, and produce a white circle of
fire. This, however, would be hardly worth making; but, by fixing at b,
a little case of coloured fire, a splendid effect is produced. This case
of colour is usually tied to a nail, driven in at b; but a little tenon
of wood may be glued there instead, and the case of colour must be then
charged, with a vacancy at the bottom, to fit on the tenon. The case of
colour must be timed to burn as long as the saxon; rather more than an
inch will be sufficient.
Saxons are sometimes made by charging a roman candle case with an inch
of clay in the middle, and boring a hole through the clay, to receive a
spindle. Only one half of the case burns at a time; a leader, placed at
the bottom, near the central clay, conveys the fire to the other end;
and continues the rotation. For distinction, they are called Chinese
fliers.
_FIVE-POINTED STARS._
These are cases about 2-1/2 inches long, and 1 inch diameter. Make a
bottom to the case with 1/4 inch thickness of plaster of paris, so that
it looks like a large pill box. Charge it solid, and at 3/8 of an inch
from the extremity, that is, 1/8 of an inch beyond the plaster bottom,
round the circumference make five holes, as for saxons; run a bit of
match round, connecting the holes. These, when fired, stand out at right
angles, the plaster towards the spectator, so that the fire resembles a
gas star, with 5 points, as in fig. 130.
_SQUIBS._
Take a sheet of 60-lb. imperial brown, and a sheet of 12-lb. white demy.
The imperial, as said before, is 29 by 22-1/2. Cut it into 24 equal
parts (2, 4, 3), that is, first into two equal parts, down the natural
fold of the paper; then each into four equal parts, at right angles to
the first fold; and each of these into three equal parts, at right
angles to the second fold. Each piece will then be 5-5/8 by 4-5/8. The
demy is 22-1/2 by 17-1/2. Cut the sheet into sixteen equal parts (2, 4,
2), each piece will be 5-5/8 by 4-3/8. A piece of brown and a piece of
white will make a case 5-5/8 inches long. For a former, procure a piece
of brass wire, or stair-rod, about a foot long, and 1/4 inch diameter.
Lay eight pieces of the demy evenly on each other; draw the thumbnail of
the right hand from the farther edge of the paper straight over the
middle towards you, a few times. If properly performed, this will draw
piece behind piece; proceed till about 1/8 of an inch of each is left
exposed, in the same manner as a pack of cards would arrange
themselves, if set upright, and allowed to fall forwards; something
after the manner of the laths of a venetian blind, or slates upon a
roof, imbricated. If you cannot acquire the knack of doing this, you
must so lay them, one by one. Paste the edges of all the eight pieces
thus lying. Place one of the pieces of brown paper before you; lay the
former, or stair-rod, across it, nearly in the middle; bend the paper
over it, and press it in with the fingers of both hands; roll for an
inch, or so; lay it on the middle of a white piece; bend the white over;
infold the brown in it, and roll forward, till it catches the pasted
part, and sticks. After a number have been prepared, and are dry, choke
them, as directed for rockets. The wire of the choker, fig. 24, should
be about 1/16 of an inch thick. Now take a piece of square steel, or
iron wire, 12 inches long, the thickness of the wire being about 3/5 the
diameter of the stair-rod, that is, 1/4 x 3/5 = 3/20 of an inch; if it
be found difficult to procure square wire, file a round piece. Bore a
hole down a bradawl or chisel handle, 2 inches in depth, and 1/4
diameter; fix the square wire in it, with melted lead, like fig. 4; the
lead is for the purpose of giving weight to the blows in charging. Black
the wire all over with ink, and allow it to dry. The next requisite is a
tin funnel, without a neck, of the size and shape of fig. 65. Any tinman
will readily make one to order; but if the learner procure a
soldering-tool, he can construct one himself. For this purpose, dissolve
a piece of zinc in a little hydrochloric or muriatic acid, till the acid
is saturated: heat the tool, and dip the tip end, momently, into it; the
acid combines with the oxide of copper formed by heating, and the zinc
adheres to the clear surface of copper produced; it will now easily take
up the solder: the joint to be soldered must be clean, and also touched
with a feather dipped into the acid. It is best to make a funnel with a
piece of writing-paper, first, for a pattern; when this is got correct,
the tin can be cut according to it. By describing a circle with a 3-inch
radius, and cutting out a sector of 100°, the correct size is obtained
at once; 1/8 of an inch breadth, outside the radius, is to be allowed to
lap over. The bore of the squib is 5/20 of an inch; the size of the
ramming wire 3/20; the hole at the bottom of the funnel may be half way
between, 4/20 or 1/5 of an inch diameter. Push the wire rammer through
the funnel, till it protrudes 2 inches beyond the bottom; observe the
part of the wire which is now level with the top of the funnel; withdraw
it, and file a bright mark round the part: it will be about 4-1/2 inches
from the end. The wire, having been inked, shows the bright mark more
plainly.
Make a deal box, 3 inches square, and 4 inches deep, and nail a bottom
to it. Also have a little nipple, fig. 73, with a wire, as drawn; it can
be secured to a flat board.
To charge the cases. Set the choked end of one on the nipple, insert the
funnel in the other end, put the wire rammer down through the funnel,
and let it fall to the bottom of the case: put in some fuse, and jolt
the rammer up and down, till the case gets so far filled, that the
bright, filed notch, before described, is on a level with the top of the
funnel. It is necessary to sit at a table to charge the cases; the eye
is, then, on a proper level to see the mark. As the cases are thus
charged, set them in the square box, choked end downwards, till a number
are filled. Now take out a handful, invert them over a sheet of paper,
and give them a few taps with the rammer; this will shake out a great
deal of loose composition, that has got puffed up, in the case. Return
them to the deal box.
The next operation is to bounce, or bang them. For this purpose take a
long slip of paper, 7 inches broad. Stretch it lengthwise before you.
Lay a number of the cases upon it, so that all the choke ends lie flush
with the left edge of the paper; then roll them up in the paper; turn
and set them upright on the choke ends; the paper will now stand up more
than an inch above the cases, as a tumbler, three parts full of water,
stands up with an empty space above the water. Rest them on a sheet of
paper, and pour in a quantity of F grain powder; this will fill every
case; loosen the paper wrapper, and allow the superfluous grain powder
to fall on the paper. Set the cases, choke downwards, in the square box.
As they are all full, it is necessary to get a little out of each. For
this purpose, lay the square box, containing them, horizontally on a
sheet of paper, on one of its sides; turn it gently over, and lay it on
the next side; a little of the gunpowder will spill out; turn it gently
over again, and lay it on the next side; and so proceed, till every case
has about 3/8 of an inch empty. The ends of the cases are now to be
closed. Take a case, in the left hand, as in fig. 63, and wind a piece
of string, or whipcord, three or four times round it, holding the end of
the string, a, firmly with the thumb; then, with the right hand, bring
the end, b, back over all the folds, as in fig. 64; pull the end, B,
tight, and the case will be closed.
Melt some common bottle sealing-wax in a pipkin; carry it to a distance
from the fire, and dip the ends of the squibs into it. Next, prime them,
by pressing the choked ends into very slightly damped meal powder, as
directed for wheel cases. Take a piece of touch-paper, 15 inches by 10.
Divide it into 48 pieces (2, 2, 3, 4); each piece will be 2-1/2 by
1-1/4. Roll a piece round the primed end, twist to a point, and fasten
it with a bit of carpet thread, hitched three times round it.
_SERPENTS._
These are simply squibs, made short, in order to burn out quickly, as
they are intended to be thrown from mines, and would otherwise lie too
long on the ground. They are best made entirely of brown paper, pasted
all over, exactly like wheel cases, and choked in the same manner. Cut
the paper 6 inches by 2-1/2, and roll them on the squib former, so that
they shall be 2-1/2 inches long. Ram them with the funnel and wire, but
continue the ramming till the guide-mark stands a little higher than the
level of the funnel; until, in fact, the cases get half full. Bounce,
close, and dip them in melted wax, like squibs. The best way to prime
them is to paint them with the sash-tool, slightly, then plunge them
into dry meal, so that they may be, as nearly as possible, like
quickmatch. If they were pressed into wet meal powder, of the
consistency of mortar, and then rubbed smooth on a Dutch tile, or
slate, or plate, they would dry hard and glazed. In this case, if they
were fired from a mine, in all probability three-fourths of them would
miss. In brushing them with the sash-tool, with meal paste, turn the
brush well round, to leave little in; so that, after being pressed into
the dry meal, they may not be choked up, but the cup shape still be
left. They are not to be touch-papered, being intended only for mines,
rockets, or shells.
_PINWHEELS._
Procure some 16-lb. double-crown white paper.
A sheet is 30 × 20 inches.
Cut off a strip 30 × 3
-------
Leaves a piece 30 × 17
The small strip may be used for odd purposes. Divide the 30 by 17 into
10 strips, each 3 by 17, for penny pinwheels. If the paper were cut the
other way of the sheet, it would not wind smoothly, but crumple up. The
fibres, from some cause or other, appear to arrange themselves in one
direction, like the grain in wood. For halfpenny wheels, divide the
sheet into two pieces, each 10 by 30; then cut each of these into 12,
each 10 by 2-1/2. For a former, have a straight piece of iron, or steel,
wire, 1/8 of an inch thick, and 24 inches long. One end of this must
have a basil, or sloping enlargement upon it, which is thus made. Take a
piece of double-crown 4 inches square; lay it straight before you, and
cut it diagonally, from the right top corner to the left bottom corner;
remove the left half; paste the right; lay the wire upon it, so that the
rectangular corner is 5 inches from the right end of the wire; roll it
up, and press it smooth; the sloping edge will now form a spiral,
commencing at 9 inches from the right end of the wire, and being
enlarged at 5 inches from the end. Paste a thin strip of paper over the
whole, to protect the spiral edges. It will now be something of the
shape of fig. 27, only turned the reverse way. The 5 inches at the end
are for a handle. To roll the pinwheel pipes, lay the strips of paper
evenly upon each other, and work them back with the thumbnail, as
before. Paste the edges; lay half-a-quire of double-crown, or of
blotting-paper, flat upon the table, to roll on. Place one of the strips
of pasted paper upon it; lay the wire upon it, the basil end being
towards the right hand; the wire is to be laid, not quite parallel with
the near edge of the paper, but slightly sloping, about an inch and a
quarter distant from it on the left, and not quite an inch on the right,
or basil end. So much of the basil must lie on the paper as will make
the mouth of the pipe large enough for the nozzle of the funnel to enter
half-an-inch. The basil, of course, gathers up the paper more quickly
than the wire, and brings the edge straight, on the completion of the
pipe. Now to roll, bend the paper over the left end of the wire, press
it in with the fingers, and begin immediately to move it forward; at the
same time draw the fingers of the right hand rapidly along, pressing in
the paper, and rolling forward, keeping the right, or basil, end of the
wire tight, and slightly pulled towards you: the paper round the
left end of the wire will have thus become rolled half round the
circumference of the wire, before the basil end has begun. There is
very great difficulty, at first, in rolling so long a pipe as 17 inches;
it is advisable to begin with the halfpenny pipes, which are much
shorter; the same wire-former will serve for both. If you cannot
succeed, get a person to help you; sixteen fingers can manage the matter
easily; but it is best to master the difficulty yourself. Have a funnel
as nearly the size and shape of fig. 66 as possible. It is best with a
lid soldered on the top, with a circular hole in the middle, about the
size of a shilling, to prevent the composition from getting spilt. A
slightly tapering neck is also to be soldered on at the bottom. Take
especial care that the mouth of the funnel dips into the neck, and not
have the neck sticking up in the funnel. The joint inside must be
perfectly smooth. A charging wire will now be required; this should be a
square steel wire, as large as the neck of the funnel will admit, to
move easily up and down; let it also have a piece of lead at the end, to
give it weight. Take a piece of brass tube, about 3/8 of an inch
diameter, and an inch long. Hold the wire in it, with a piece of
flannel, or woollen cloth, and pour in melted lead. To charge the
cases, first bend a quarter of an inch of the small end of the pipe,
over the edge of a knife, into a hook, to prevent the composition
running out; insert the nozzle of the funnel in the enlarged end; hold
the part of the pipe now round it, with the thumb and forefinger of the
left hand, slip the wire, through the funnel, down to the bottom of the
pipe, which must rest, for a moment, on the table; pour in the
composition, jolt the wire up and down; lift the pipe from the table,
keep jolting the wire, at the same time turning it round, and let the
pipe swing slightly to and fro, till filled. A guide-mark must be filed
round the wire, as for squibs, at such a distance as that, when it is
level with the top of the funnel, the bottom may protrude about 3/8 of
an inch. When a number of pipes are charged, close the large, or
basilled, end, which is the one to be lit, by means of a piece of
whipcord, or thin twine, wound round it, as directed in figs. 63 and 64.
Soak a towel in water; wring it as dry as possible; spread it out flat;
lay the pipes in a row, side by side, upon it, like rushes in a chair
bottom; roll them up in it, and leave them for 10 or 15 minutes. Then
wind them upon the usual circular blocks, and fasten the end with
sealing-wax. Be careful that the wax is not in a flame at the moment of
touching the case; if necessary, blow it out. Accidents will arise, both
from the wax and from the candle, if care is not used. Measure, with a
tape, round the wheel, now wound; suppose 4 inches; cut a piece of blue
double-crown, 4 inches broad, and any length: cut this into strips about
3/16 of an inch broad, and 4 inches long; paste a slate all over; lay
these strips, 7 or 8 of them, side by side, flat upon it; paste their
upper surface; lay one across each pinwheel, and bend it over to make
the ends meet in the centre on the other side. If you wish the pinwheel
to be of double or triple size, after you have charged one pipe, paste
the small end of a second pipe, outside, and stick it in the other. Let
it dry; then charge the additional pipe. Observe, the pipes must not lie
too long in the towel; if the nitre gets dissolved, it soaks into the
paper, which becomes, virtually, touchpaper, and one pipe ignites the
other. The wire formers must not be allowed to get rusty; therefore,
before laying them aside smear them with tallow, or olive oil. The wire
is much facilitated, too, in delivering, if, just before using it, it is
slightly oiled, and then wiped, apparently, perfectly dry. After the
wheels are finished, they should be spread out to dry, as soon as
possible. It is not usual to prime them; and, as sold, they are very
difficult and troublesome to light; for private use, they may have a
short piece of match inserted in the mouth, and a small bit of
touch-paper wound round it. French nails are now made, of wire, very
thin; those, about an inch long, are much better than pins, for firing
the wheel upon, as they have larger heads, and prevent its falling off.
Pinwheel blocks may be obtained of Merrick, Shuttle Maker, 155, Bethnal
Green Road; the same person sells triangular and vertical wheels;
caprice, furilona and pigeon frames; rocket sticks; mine bottoms; saxon
centres, &c.; also, plait mills, made to order.
_CRACKERS._
A good tough paper for these is 24 mill, 19-lb. double-small hand.
A sheet is 30 × 20 inches.
Cut off a strip 30 × 4
-------
Leaves a piece 30 × 16
The strip 30 by 4 may be used for squibs, or any odd purpose. For penny
crackers cut the 30 by 16 into 8 strips, each 3-3/4 by 16. For halfpenny
crackers divide the sheet into 2 pieces, each 10 by 30. Cut each of
these into 10, each 10 by 3. For a former have a straight piece of iron,
or steel, wire, 3/20 of an inch diameter, and 24 inches long. This will
not require a basil. Have, also, another wire, of half the thickness,
for an opening wire. Lay the strips on blotting-paper, as before; and
place the wire parallel with the edge of the strip, as there is now no
basil. When a number of pipes are rolled and dry, hold one flat on a
table; and, with the handle of a knife, or tooth-brush, rub the pipe
flat along, all except the first half-inch, held in the left hand, to
form a little cup. Now push the opening wire through it, to partially
open it. Bend the bottom, over a knife, into a little hook, as before
directed, for pinwheels. Take up a quantity; wind a strip of paper round
them, as in banging squibs, and pour in a quantity of FFF, or canister
powder. Unless the powder is very fine it will not run down. Pipes may
be filled with F grain powder, one at a time, by putting a funnel into
the cup part, and tapping the pipe with a wire. You can hear the powder
run down, and easily judge when the pipe is full. The powder is now to
be crushed into meal, by rolling the pipes through a plait mill, fig.
71. This is furnished with a wooden screw, at top; the screw presses
upon a cross-bit, which bears upon two movable collars: these rest on
the axis of the top cylinder, by which means the pressure can be
adjusted as desired. The cylinders of plait mills are of beech, or
boxwood; the latter are, of course, the best; but for making great
numbers of crackers, it is necessary to have the frames of iron, and the
cylinders of steel. If a mill cannot be procured, the pipes may be
rolled with a brass tube, or rolling-pin, or passed through an American
mangle; but a very good, and far less expensive plan, is to lay them on
an anvil, or flat-iron turned upside down, and beat them with a
smooth-faced hammer; this is a tedious process, but it makes good
crackers. The cup end, having served its purpose, is to be flattened,
and bent into a hook. Now lay the pipes in a damp towel, like the
pinwheels. Take two pieces of deal, each about 6 inches long and 1-1/2
inch broad: let the one for the halfpenny crackers be 3/4 of an inch
thick; the other, for the penny, 1 inch thick. Saw and chisel a piece
out of each, about 4 inches long and 1/2 an inch broad, as drawn, fig.
67, so that it looks like the first and third fingers of the hand held
straight up, with the second finger, between them, shut. Next procure 20
pieces of wire, each 2 inches long, and about 1/16 of an inch thick.
Support the cracker-frame in a vice: lay the cracker across the opening;
place a wire upon it, as at a, fig. 68; bend the pipe over it; lay on it
another wire, on the other side, as b; bend back, and lay on it the wire
c; and so on, alternately, till the cracker is bent up. Lift it out of
the frame, and let the wires drop. The distance between the wires, in
the halfpenny crackers, will be 3/4 of an inch; in the penny, 1 inch; if
made according to the directions given. The outside of the frame should
be very slightly tapered, or it will be difficult to lift the cracker up
out of it. The penny size will probably take 14 wires; the halfpenny 10
wires. Cut the end flush, to expose the crushed powder; wind round it a
piece of touch-paper, about 1-3/4 inch long, 1-1/4 broad; it need not be
pasted; fold up the cracker; pass a piece of flax or thread twice round
it; twist the thread in and out, backwards and forwards, among the
folds; and the cracker is complete. If the paper does not appear
sufficiently thick to make a good report, cut the strips broader, and
fewer to the sheet; but always cut them up the short way of the paper,
or they will not bend properly. The paper for pinwheels and crackers is
30 inches by 20; the longest pipe that can be cut is 20 inches: as an
experiment, try a pinwheel and cracker the other way of the paper. If
the cracker is intended to be put into a jack-in-the-box, shell, or
rocket head, push a bradawl up the mouth, insert a bit of quickmatch,
to project a quarter of an inch, and secure it with a little wetted
meal, pressed in with a knife. The way of bending it is shown at fig.
69. It is not necessary that a cracker should contain very much powder;
the loudness of the bang depends more upon the thickness of the paper
than upon the quantity of the powder. So with maroons; more string and
less powder, are better than more powder and less string. A very good
paper for crackers is 30-lb. royal cartridge; cut the strips 3 inches
broad; 16-lb. double-crown may also be used, the strips 5 inches broad.
Crackers for mines may be made with brown paper.
To make a cracker with 30 or 40 bangs, it is necessary to join 3 or 4
pipes together, before putting in the grain powder: the mode of making a
joining will be understood by attending to the following directions. Cut
a piece of paper 3 inches square, and lay it straight before you. At one
inch from the right top corner, make a mark; at one inch from the left
bottom corner, make a mark; draw an oblique straight line from one to
the other, and cut along it with a pair of scissors. Without disturbing
the relative position of the two pieces, draw the right piece a few
inches towards the right; paste the farther edges, as usual; lay the
wire close along the near edge of the right piece, and roll it up; it
will have an external spiral; roll up the left piece in the same manner;
it will have an internal spiral; when both are dry, paste the external
spiral, and screw it, as it were, into the other piece. If managed
carefully, and brought up till the edge of the paper forms a straight
line, the joining will be as firm as if the paper had not been cut,
presenting only a spiral edge, going once round the pipe.
LEADER PIPES.