How To Make Fireworks Strobe Pots

These strobe pot formulas were lifted from the PML and used with the author's permissions. Some of the ingredients may not be available to everyone, but it’s a worthwhile project anyway.

All parts listed are by weight and do not necessarily add up to 100.

Ammonium perchlorate 60
Magnesium, atomized, -100 + 200 mesh, coated with potassium dichromate 30
Potassium sulfate 10
Potassium dichromate, milled dust additional 2-3%

OR

Ammonium perchlorate 60
Magnalium (magnesium-aluminum alloy) -60 mesh, coated with potassium dichromate 25
Barium sulfate 7.5
Strontium sulfate 7.5
Potassium dichromate, milled dust additional 3-4%

The blend of sulfates gives a nice clean white with no greenish cast. (For a nice star substitute 10% of the 60 mesh Mg/Al with -200 mesh. Adding a tiny bit of medium mesh titanium makes a fun star.)

For strobe pots, dampen lightly with nitrocellulose solution and tap or press into a thin wall tube with a wood or aluminum rod. Prime as is normal for ammonium perchlorate mixes.

Materials Needed
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