Terminology of Fireworks: P-W

Our terminology vocabulary learning is still in the progress, just check below!

P

Palm Tree - An aerial effect that produces a gold or silver stem as the shell rises into the sky (known as a rising tail), followed by a brocade or willow effect that creates palm fronds. It resembles a gold or silver palm tree in the sky.

Parachute - A paper projectile that is expelled from a mortar tube either as a single-shot item, or as a multi-shot effect in a cake.

Peony - An aerial effect that looks like a spherical ball of colored lights in the sky. A very common aerial effect on most fireworks displays.

Perchlorates - A common oxidizer used in fireworks manufacture. With a few exceptions, perchlorates are preferred over chlorates because their compounds are generally less sensitive to shock.

Pistil - A ball of stars in the center of another ball of stars. Another way to describe this effect is a small peony inside a larger peony.

Planes - A term for a device that spins very fast and lifts high into the sky, only to explode or burst into a special aerial effect. These are also called helicopters, sky flyers or UFOs.

Primary Explosives - Also known as initiators or initiating explosives, these items are stable under normal conditions, but will detonate if ignited and can be extremely sensitive to mechanical shock. These are typically used to initiate high explosives. Primary fireworks are used in fireworks.

Proximate Fireworks - The formal name for indoor fireworks. Indoor fireworks are used for concerts and public events, and their use in public shows is heavily regulated in most States.

Punk - A punk is a bamboo stick with a brown coating that burns slowly. These look identical to incense sticks, but do not have a distinctive aromatic effect like incense does. Punks are generally used to light consumer fireworks. Another way to light fireworks is with an instant-on propane torch or a road flare. Because fuses are known to spit fire occasionally, lighting fireworks with matches is strongly discouraged.

Pyrotechnics - Ant item that burns in order to perform its function. Fireworks are classified as pyrotechnics.

Q

Quarter Stick - The original quarter sticks were similar to M80's, but were larger in size and contained 10 grams or more of flash powder. Quarter sticks were silver in color, four inches long, one inch in diameter, with a four inch green waterproof fuse sticking out the side. These items were so powerful that they could dismember and kill people who misused them. Quarter sticks were banned by the CPSC in 1966, and made illegal by the BATF (now ATFE) in the 1970's. Legal quarter sticks today contain 50 milligrams of flash powder, which is about 1/200th of the original quarter stick. Illegal quarter sticks can contain compositions that are extremely sensitive to shock and can injure of kill without warning. The ATFE imprisons people that are caught with illegal quarter sticks.

Quick Match - Quick match is a type of fuse that is used to light commercial fireworks. It consists of black match that is wrapped loosely in a paper pipe, approximately 3/8 on an inch in diameter. While black match burns at a rate of one inch per second in the open air, quick match burns at a rate of approximately sixty feet per second (very fast). See the definition of black match (above) for more information.

R

Reloadable Aerial - A reloadable aerial is an aerial mortar that includes one or more mortar tubes and several reloadable aerial shells. The shells are placed inside the mortar tube, a long quick-burning fuse is lit, and the item is fired into the sky. These items are consumer versions of the mortar-based fireworks used in commercial fireworks displays.

Repeater - Sometimes referred to as "cakes" or "multi-shot aerials", a repeater is a cluster of aerial tubes with a single fuse. The name "cake" was attributed to these because the cluster of tubes looks similar to a cake in size and shape. Once the fuse is lit, each of the tubes is fired in sequence. Cakes can have a variety of intricate aerial effects, including spinners, fish, flower bouquets, comets, crossettes, reports, and other aerial effects. Cakes are the most popular consumer fireworks items outside of sparklers and firecrackers.

Report - A report is another name for a bang. Items with reports explode with a bang. This term is most often used with rockets and cakes.

Ring Shell - A shell that produces a ring as its aerial pattern. See also Saturn shell.

Rising Tail - A rising tail is a gold or silver tail effect that is created when a shell is shot into the sky, similar to the trunk of a tree. Commonly used with palm tree shells.

Rocket - A rocket is a tube-like pyrotechnic device made out of a paper tube that propels itself into the air in order to fly. There are many different kinds of rockets, including sky rockets, bottle rockets, and missiles. Please refer to these items for more information on rockets.

Roman Candle  - A paper tube filled with composition that shoots flaming balls out one end of the tube. Most roman candles have five or more balls. Roman candles should never be held in your hand. Instead, they should be planted securely in the ground and pointed away from people and flammable objects. A good way to shoot roman candles is to get a five gallon pail and fill it with kitty litter. The roman candles can be easily inserted into the bucket of kitty litter and fired safely.

S

Safe and Sane - This is a term for fireworks that do not have aerial effects or explode. Items that are classified as Safe and Sane include sparklers, snaps, smoke balls, fountains, snakes, and (in some cases) wheels. Items that are not classified as Safe and Sane include firecrackers, rockets, and cakes. Some States restrict legal fireworks to Safe and Sane items only.

Salute - A salute is an item that explodes. This term is most frequently used in regard to aerial items, although some people refer to firecrackers as "ground salutes". When a salute explodes, it is referred to as a "report".

Saturn Shell - A shell that produces a ring around an inside ball of stars. The Saturn shell is a combination of a peony with a ring around it.

Serpent - Another name for a tourbillion. A serpent is a type of star that spins in the sky and gives off large quantities of gold, silver, or white light. These are generally constructed as a small paper tube with holes on each end that allow it to spin.

Set Piece - A ground item consisting of many colored lances that is used to draw a picture. Common examples of set pieces include American Flags, the Liberty Bell, the Statue of Liberty, God Bless America, and many other types of signs. Set pieces are expensive and time consuming to build. It is not unusual for a single set piece to cost several thousand dollars.

Shell - A shell is an aerial item that is fired into the sky. It generally consists of a fuse, a lift bag, and a paper ball filled with stars and burst media. The fuse lights the lift bag on the bottom of the shell propelling it into the sky. At the same time, an internal time fuse is triggered and at the right time the paper shell bursts with all of its stars lit. The type of stars contained inside the shell determines the effect the shell produces in the sky.

Silver Salute - A silver salute is an M80 firecracker with a silver colored paper tube. The words "do not hold in hand" are generally written on the tube. See the item titled M80 for more information on these devices.

Single Shot Aerial - A single shot aerial is a mortar tube with a shell already installed in it. These items generally have a fuse sticking out the side of the mortar at the base of the tube. While these are single-shot, one time use items only, these items can produce some spectacular effects.

Sky Flyer - A term for a device that spins very fast and lifts high into the sky, only to explode or burst into a special aerial effect. These are also called planes, helicopters, or UFOs.

Sky Rocket - A sky rocket is a pyrotechnic device made out of a paper tube that propels itself into the air in order to fly. Sky rockets generally have a stick to add stability to the flight of the rocket. Firework rockets that do not have sticks are referred to as missiles.

Smoke Item - Any item that produces a smoke effects, including smoke balls and aerial items that produce smoke instead of light or noise. Smoke items are generally used during the daytime.

Snakes - Snakes are hard pellets that are lit and produce a long carbon snake. The items are popular with kids; however the pellets can be poisonous and should not be accessible to young children.

Snaps - Snaps are paper balls that are filled with a cap composition that goes BANG when they are thrown at something. Snaps are generally safe for most kids to use.

Sparkler- A stick with a coating of pyrotechnic composition that creates sparks when lit. While sparklers are generally considered safe, they are responsible for over eighty percent of the injuries due to fireworks each year. This is because people throw the hot sparkler wires on the ground and other people step on them. If you use sparklers, please make sure you have a bucket of water handy to place the used sparkler wires in when the sparkler burns out.

Spinner- A spinner is a type of star that spins in the sky and gives off large quantities of white light. Another name for spinner is tourbillion.

Squib - A type of fireworks slang for an electric match (see definition of electric match above). True squibs are actually blasting caps (initiators) used in the explosive industry to set off high explosives. This term crept into fireworks jargon by individuals that did not understand the differences between an electric match and a blasting cap. True squibs are not used for fireworks.

Star - A small pellet of composition that produces a pyrotechnic effect. Stars are used in aerial shells, rockets, roman candles, cakes, and fountains to produce streaks or light, pulses, long golden tails, and other aerial effects. A single shell could contain several hundred stars.

Strobe - A strobe is a blinking effect. When used in a shell with hundreds of strobe stars, the strobe effect looks like shimmering water in the sky. Strobes can be a variety of colors, including white, green, blue, and orange.

T

Tail - A burning trail that follows a star in the sky. Most comets have tails, and so do willow and brocade effects.

Titanium Salute - An aerial salute that produces white sparks along with a loud report. Titanium is frequently used in fireworks to produce bright silver-white sparks.

Tourbillion - Another name for a serpent. A tourbillion is a type of star that spins in the sky and gives off large quantities of gold, silver, or white light. These are generally constructed as a small paper tube with holes on each end that allow it to spin.

Tube - A tube is another name for a mortar (see definition for mortar above).

U

UFO - A term for a device that spins very fast and lifts high into the sky, only to explode or burst into a special aerial effect. These are also called helicopters, planes, or sky flyers.

V

Visco - Visco is a type of rugged water proof fuse that is used to light fireworks. Most visco fuse is green in color, but is available in almost any color. Because visco fuse is know to spit fire when it is lit, you should never light visco directly with a match or anything that would put your fingers in close proximity to the fuse. Instead, visco should be lit with a propane torch, a road flare, or a long punk (see definition for punk above).

W

Wheel - A wheel is a stationary device that spins and creates a circular ring of fire and sparks. These are generally nailed to a pole or a tree before they are lit. You should always be careful to make sure the area is free from flammable debris before you light a wheel as the sparks can carry ten feet or more.

Whistle - Whistles are generally small paper tubes filled with a composition that makes a sharp howling sound. Whistles can be found in rockets, fountains, cakes

Wholesale Fireworks - Fireworks that are sold by the case. You can generally save twenty percent of more by purchasing fireworks by the case.

Willow - An aerial effect that looks like a giant gold willow tree in the sky. A true willow effect has delicate golden trails that hang in the sky ten seconds or more.

个—PC(PCS)

袋—SACKS

盒—BOX(BOXES)

包—PKG(PKGS)

幅—PAIR(PAIRS)

挂—STG(STGS)

打—DOZ

罗----GROSS(GRO,1罗为12打)

PGII----包装等级II 中度危险品

After reading these 2 articles, are you more familiar with our fireworks industry and its products? For more information, please take a visit to our website:www.pyroally.com.