Artificial fire-works : $b improved to the modern practice, from the minutest to the highest branchesJones, Robert
History
Artificial fire-works : $b improved to the modern practice, from the minutest to the highest branches
Jones, Robert
Fireworks -- Early works to 1800
First have two hoops made of strong iron wire, one of six feet
diameter, and one of four feet two inches; these hoops must be joined
to scroles A, A, A, &c. as shewn by fig. 54. These scroles must be
made of the same sort of wire as the hoops; on these scroles, tie with
iron binding wire as many illuminating port fires as they will hold,
at two inches distance from each other; these port fires cloath with
leaders, so that they may all take fire together; then let C be a
circular wheel of four spokes, three feet six inches diameter, and on
its fell tie as many four ounce cases head to tail, as will compleat
the circle, only allowing a sufficient distance between the cases,
that the fire may pass free, which may be done by cutting the upper
part of the end of each case a little shelving: on each spoke fix a
four ounce case about three inches from the fell of the wheel; these
cases are to burn one at a time, and the first of them to begin with
those on the fell, of which four are to burn at a time, so that the
wheel will last no longer than one fourth of the cases on the fell,
which in number should be sixteen or twenty; on the front of the wheel
form a spiral line, with strong wire, on which tie port fires, placing
them on a slant, with their mouths to face the same way as the cases
on the wheel; all these port fires must be fired with the second cases
of wheel. Let D, D, D, &c. be spokes of wood, all made to screw into a
block in the center; each of these spokes may be in length about four
feet six inches; in the top of each fix a spindle, and on each spindle
put a spirali wheel of eight spokes, such as are represented by E, E,
E, &c. The blocks of these wheels must have a hole at top for the
center cases, and the spindle must have nuts screwed on their ends,
which nuts should fit in the holes at top of the blocks, so that all
the wheels, must be put on before you fix in the center cases: as some
of these wheels by reason of their situation will not bear on the nut,
it will be necessary to have smooth shoulders made on the spindles for
the blocks to run on; the cases of these wheels are to burn double,
and the method of firing them is, by carrying a leader from each down
the spokes into the block in the center, in the same manner as those
in the dodecaedron, but the center case of each wheel, must begin with
the two last cases as usual; it is to be observed, that the large
circular wheel in front must have a tin barrel on its block, into
which a pipe must be carried, from one of the second cases on the
wheel; this pipe being met by another from the large block, in which
the eight spokes are screwed, will fire all the spirali wheels and the
illuminating port fires at the same time. The cases of the projected
wheel may be filled with a white charge, and those of the spirali
wheels, with a grey.
Of the Moon and Seven Stars.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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