On 25 Feb 2006 21:37:18 -0800, I said, "Pick a card, any card" and
Post by mitchell_learyNichrome wire is some fun stuff to play with. You can make your own
Now here is another of Mitch Leary's ideas that cannot work under
any circumstance as described by the self appointed genius. I will
describe what is wrong and why you should take any advice he offers
and dismiss it as the exact wrong answer.
Post by mitchell_leary-Take about a 2 inch length of nichrome wire and bend in into a "U".
Why? As long as the wire is in contact with current, the entire wire
will heat up, not just the part shaped like a "U."
Post by mitchell_leary-Crush up some match heads into a powder.
Did you mean those with a white tip? Of course you did. The others
won't ignite with simple heat from a nichrome wire. At least not
reliably since the wire get's uniformly warm all over before one
spot burns through randomly. In book matches, the striker surface
actually begins the ignition in the match head. Open flame is
required to get the red bit to ignite. You need those old "strike
anywhere" type of kitchen matches to create what Mitch is only
partly describing.
Post by mitchell_leary-Dip the tip of the U-shapped wire into glue, then directly into the
grond up match heads.
Another waste of time and this act even further guarantees that the
wire will heat up wherever there is NO glue versus where there is
glue. The coefficient of heat transfer is far greater through the
insulated area under the glue than in the open air.
Post by mitchell_leary-Place on wax paper and allow to dry.
Glue can dry in air. Use an alligator clip to keep it away from the
table.
Post by mitchell_learyThis can be used to ignite flash paper or flash powder in a flash pot.
It is assumed the reader understands basic electronics and how to make
a complete circuit.
How about more than basic electronics knowledge, Mitch? How about
either stretching the nichrome wire to thin it at the place where
you want it to heat up or using an X-Acto blade to scrape it thin
where you want it to burn through? That would work. The match heads
are not needed. Thinned nichrome wire will burn through at the exact
thinnest point every time and are far more than enough to heat flash
paper to ignition without any nonsensical match head concoction.
Let me fill you guys in on something here. Flash paper can be
ignited by a proximity to a strobe flash or the bright light and
heat from a quartz halogen light bulb in one of those pocket
flashlights. Believe it. It's true. That's what makes it so
dangerous to handle and transport. In fact, most clubs in the US now
refuse to allow you to use it for any performance without a
pyrotechnic license. This isn't speculation on my part. It's the
absolute truth. Magicians have been fired on the spot, their act
stopped at the point fire was used if they didn't have the proper
permission ahead of time to use fire.
No, seriously.
This is a dangerous game to play. Setting off flash pots, flash
paper and other automatically lighting fires can get people killed
or maimed when they are mishandled. Do as you wish, of course, but
be ready to pay for your blind devotion to that idiot Mitch and his
harebrained ideas. No matter what else happens, YOU, not Mitch are
going to pay the price for any failure to obey the law or for any
flawed theory of magic that Mitch puts forward.
--
Ray