Forums > Technical Discussion > Cold Spark Heads (without wire wool)
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Your friendly neighbourhood mad scientist
479 posts
Location: Over the hills and far away, United Kingdom
Your friendly neighbourhood mad scientist
479 posts
Location: Over the hills and far away, United Kingdom
Posted:
So I was looking around a toy shop in town, trying to find cool things to whirl. (FYI, it's quite an amusing thing to do on your lunch break...) Suddenly, a cunning plan struck me. Does anyone remember having a spark gun when they were little? You know... Like a little gun, containing a flint covered flywheel and a scraper. Pull the trigger and -- SPARKS!
Well I suddenly realised. Attach a small motor (and perhaps some gears so the motor has an easier job) and you'll have a little sparkle generator.
Do you see where I'm going with this...?
So if you were to stack about four of these flint wheels inside a metal cage. At the top you have motor and gears, power supply (a 9V battery?), flick switch and a metal ring to clip it to your poi chains... Voila! The safest sparkly poi ever!
They give these things to kids to play with, so as long as you're not spinning near a gas leak or someone's dipping bucket (or wearing a shellsuit!
), you should be fine. The sparks are cold enough they don't even sting if you touch them. The only downside woud be the grindey noise they'd make, which could actually be pretty cool while being swung about.
What do you all think? Might take a little engineering, but it sounds like a sweet idea, no?
So I was looking around a toy shop in town, trying to find cool things to whirl. (FYI, it's quite an amusing thing to do on your lunch break...) Suddenly, a cunning plan struck me. Does anyone remember having a spark gun when they were little? You know... Like a little gun, containing a flint covered flywheel and a scraper. Pull the trigger and -- SPARKS!
Well I suddenly realised. Attach a small motor (and perhaps some gears so the motor has an easier job) and you'll have a little sparkle generator.
Do you see where I'm going with this...?
So if you were to stack about four of these flint wheels inside a metal cage. At the top you have motor and gears, power supply (a 9V battery?), flick switch and a metal ring to clip it to your poi chains... Voila! The safest sparkly poi ever!
They give these things to kids to play with, so as long as you're not spinning near a gas leak or someone's dipping bucket (or wearing a shellsuit!
), you should be fine. The sparks are cold enough they don't even sting if you touch them. The only downside woud be the grindey noise they'd make, which could actually be pretty cool while being swung about.What do you all think? Might take a little engineering, but it sounds like a sweet idea, no?
"Love the art in yourself and not yourself in the art."
--Konstantin Stanislavisky
SILVER Member
The lone Fire Spinner
236 posts
Location: Channel islands Jersey UK
The lone Fire Spinner
236 posts
Location: Channel islands Jersey UK
Posted:
It's an interesting idea.
But how visible would the sparks be when the poi is being swung round?
I say give it a try and see if it works
It's an interesting idea.
But how visible would the sparks be when the poi is being swung round?
I say give it a try and see if it works
To play it safe is not to play
SILVER Member
Your friendly neighbourhood mad scientist
479 posts
Location: Over the hills and far away, United Kingdom
Your friendly neighbourhood mad scientist
479 posts
Location: Over the hills and far away, United Kingdom
Posted:
I'm planning on it (or some other non-lethal spark poi). Just wanted to get some other poisters opinions in case I was just being crazy -- which happens frequently.
I'm planning on it (or some other non-lethal spark poi). Just wanted to get some other poisters opinions in case I was just being crazy -- which happens frequently.
"Love the art in yourself and not yourself in the art."
--Konstantin Stanislavisky
BRONZE Member
old hand
929 posts
Location: Oregon, USA
old hand
929 posts
Location: Oregon, USA
Posted:
Sorry, not going to work nearly as well as you think it will. The flint you speak of is actually ferrocerium, which has taken the place of the steel in traditional flint and steel. The ferrocerium in lighters is just a short piece about the size of the lead in a pencil, it would be ground to nothing in no time. That and you'd have to find a way to direct the sparks straight out the bottom. It is possible to find larger sticks, but they tend to be a little on the expensive side for something i'd just grind away.
Sorry, not going to work nearly as well as you think it will. The flint you speak of is actually ferrocerium, which has taken the place of the steel in traditional flint and steel. The ferrocerium in lighters is just a short piece about the size of the lead in a pencil, it would be ground to nothing in no time. That and you'd have to find a way to direct the sparks straight out the bottom. It is possible to find larger sticks, but they tend to be a little on the expensive side for something i'd just grind away.
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SILVER Member
Your friendly neighbourhood mad scientist
479 posts
Location: Over the hills and far away, United Kingdom
Your friendly neighbourhood mad scientist
479 posts
Location: Over the hills and far away, United Kingdom
Posted:
Unfortunately, I know it's not going to work nearly as well as real wire wool. Nothing's quite that impressive.
Just to set the record straight here... The flint I speak of isn't actually the flint from lighters, which I know isn't excessively large. I'm talking about the flint wheels from kids spark guns. They consist of a large grinding wheel covered in coarse ground flint. They last quite a while if the ones I had as a kid were anything to go by.
And the plan is not to direct the sparks out of the bottom, but to let the sparks escape from the sides (through the metal cage) to increase the visibility.
Maybe it will work, maybe it won't... Finding out is hopefully going to be the fun part.
Unfortunately, I know it's not going to work nearly as well as real wire wool. Nothing's quite that impressive.
Just to set the record straight here... The flint I speak of isn't actually the flint from lighters, which I know isn't excessively large. I'm talking about the flint wheels from kids spark guns. They consist of a large grinding wheel covered in coarse ground flint. They last quite a while if the ones I had as a kid were anything to go by.
And the plan is not to direct the sparks out of the bottom, but to let the sparks escape from the sides (through the metal cage) to increase the visibility.
Maybe it will work, maybe it won't... Finding out is hopefully going to be the fun part.
"Love the art in yourself and not yourself in the art."
--Konstantin Stanislavisky
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