[Danny Roth]

in reply to: Reply To: Is anyone else struggling to find good 500g cakes after the America 250 sellouts? #6014

Yeah the 500g situation is rough this summer. My local guy is basically out of anything good 鈥?all the World Class and Brothers stuff got snapped up during the America 250 run and the restock hasn’t caught up yet. I did manage to grab some 200g multi-shots that are decent filler for a Labor Day show. Not ideal but beats nothing. Heard some people are checking out Chinese brands directly but that’s a whole thing with minimum orders and shipping.

[Danny Roth]

in reply to: Is it actually legal to have consumer fireworks shipped straight to your door in every state, or do some ban the mail-order route? #5993

The mail-order thing honestly depends on the state more than people realize. There’s a handful of states where it’s illegal to have them shipped in, full stop, even if possessing is fine. I remember reading about it when I moved. Your best bet is to check your state AG or the actual statute. Some states only let licensed dealers import, so consumers have to buy in person. It’s not as simple as ‘legal = can ship.’

[Danny Roth]

in reply to: What’s your go-to Labor Day finale cake that won’t break the bank? #5931

Already got my finale rack half built lol. Going with a 36-cake setup this year since I got a bunch of 200g cakes left over from July 4th that I wanna use up as filler before the good stuff.

My plan is using like 8-10 of the higher end cakes as the backbone and then the cheaper stuff just for noise and color fill. Got a good deal on some Brothers cans thatll work great for the finale burst.

Anyone else doing a multi-tier setup or just sticking with a single row?

[Danny Roth]

in reply to: Labor Day shows are only 6 weeks out – anyone starting to plan their finale yet? #5888

I’m with you on keeping it chill for Labor Day. After the 250th I’m kinda burned out on the big productions lol. I still got maybe $150 worth of cakes left from the 4th so I’ll probably just supplement with a few new things and call it good.

What I’m actually trying to figure out is if any of the big retailers are gonna run Labor Day sales. TNT usually does something and Phantom always has some kind of promo. I got a coupon for Winda that I might use if they’re running a deal.

Honestly I think treating Labor Day as the ‘second chance’ show is the move. Less pressure, more just hanging out with friends and grilling. The 4th was so intense this year with the 250th that I need the chill version lol.

[Danny Roth]

in reply to: Post-4th firing system maintenance — what’s your routine? #5903

I use a Firefly system and yeah I’m guilty of just tossing everything in a plastic bin after July 4th lol. But I did learn real quick that moisture is the enemy. This year I actually took all the modules apart and hit the contacts with some contact cleaner. Also been storing my ignition wires in a ziplock with a silica pack. Probably overkill but my setup kept failing at the worst moments last year so I’d rather be safe.

[Danny Roth]

in reply to: Post-4th firing system maintenance — what’s your routine? #5871

Steve, I’ll be honest – I’m one of those guys who just throws everything in a tote and forgets about it til the next show lol. But I did learn the hard way last year when some of my clips were corroded and I had to jerry-rig connections mid-show. Not fun.

This year I picked up some contact cleaner and went through all my clips. Took maybe 20 minutes. I don’t have a Cobra though – just a basic firing system. My routine is basically: wipe em down, check for corrosion, test each channel with a cue light, and pack em up in a dry box with some silica gel packs.

The silica packs make a huge difference if you store stuff in a garage or shed.

[Danny Roth]

in reply to: Anybody else think fireworks packaging has gotten way better in the last few years? #5852

I actually noticed this too. Some of the America 250 branded stuff had way better packaging than usual. The Jakes Platinum series boxes have been looking real clean lately too. Kinda reminds me of how craft beer labels got all fancy a few years back ??feels like fireworks are going through the same thing.

The one thing I hate tho is when the box looks amazing but the actual cake performs average lol. Had that happen with a canister shell set last year ??coolest box on the shelf but the breaks were meh.

[Danny Roth]

in reply to: Is it cheaper to ship fireworks by sea or by air from China? #5827

Yeah I’ve been looking at a freight forwarder in Shenzhen. They quoted $5.50/kg for air vs like $1.20/kg by sea. The math pretty much does itself unless you’re real impatient lol.

[Danny Roth]

in reply to: What happens if a fireworks shipment gets held up at US Customs? #5808

Been through this twice man. First time they held it for 5 weeks and opened maybe 20% of the cases. Second time was only 2 weeks and they just checked the manifest and let it go. Storage fees are on you usually – the freight forwarder should’ve warned you about demurrage. Check your bill of lading terms. What’s the customs broker saying?

[Danny Roth]

in reply to: July 4th is done but I’m already thinking about New Year’s shows #5752

I’m with you man. Already looking at suppliers for my NYE show. Anyone here ever ordered direct from a Chinese manufacturer? I’ve been buying from the usual US wholesalers but thinking about cutting out the middleman for a container order. I know Skysong and a couple others do FCL only which is a lot for one guy lol. Winda’s got some good stuff too but their minimums are killer. Might just stick with Phantom for now and save the container idea for when I go in with buddies.

[Danny Roth]

in reply to: What do you do with leftover fireworks after the 4th? #5753

I usually save mine for New Year’s or just random weekend bonfires with friends. But honestly half the time I end up giving them away to neighbors with kids lol. Sparklers and fountains are perfect for that — the kids love em and I don’t feel like I’m wasting my good cakes on a random Saturday.

[Danny Roth]

in reply to: Post-4th fireworks drought hitting anyone else hard rn? #5736

Man I feel this. July is always a dead zone after the 4th rush. I usually just stock up on clearance and wait it out lol. But ngl it’s nice having a break — gives me time to restock and plan for Labor Day.

[Danny Roth]

in reply to: Anyone else hate how fast good fuse burns in humid weather? #5748

Dude yes! I thought I was going crazy. I timed some green visco last July and it burned at like 2 secs per inch vs the usual 3-4. Humidity definitely accelerates it. I started storing my fuse in a ziplock with those silica gel packs you find in shoe boxes — seems to help. Or you could just go the electronic route lol. Once I switched to a firing system I never looked back tbh.

[Danny Roth]

in reply to: America 250 fireworks sales were insane this year – anyone else notice prices went nuts? #5779

lol man you ain’t lying. I got to my usual Phantom on June 30th and the parking lot was packed like it was black friday. The guy working there said they sold more in the first 3 days of their season than all of last July.

What killed me was the 200g cakes – those are normally the ones that sit around forever but they were GONE. Even the generic stuff with the boring labels. People were buying ANYTHING that went boom.

The price thing is real tho. I saw Excaliburs going for $120 a box in some places. Last year they were like 80 bucks. Highway robbery but hey, supply and demand i guess 🤷

[Danny Roth]

in reply to: DIY fuse timing — anyone using electronic igniters these days? #5723

I built my own system using Arduino and some cheap igniters from Amazon. Honestly for the price its hard to beat. Ive had maybe 1 failure out of like 50+ firings and that was probably my bad wiring. The prebuilt consumer stuff like the Cobra system is solid but expensive. If you got time to tinker DIY is the way to go. Just make sure you test everything before show day lol.

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