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What are they
Single ignition fireworks are one of the types of fireworks that are the most exciting to watch. Though they vary in size, they all include a single fuse which ignites a preset routine of shells, fountains, and rockets. Bigger cakes work well as a grand finale while smaller cakes can be used to build anticipation or provide shorter, self-contained shows. Square and rectangular cakes shoot straight up while fan-shaped cakes provide slightly greater sky coverage. The two things to look for with cakes are weight and number of shots. Generally, the heavier a cake the more powder/shells it holds and the bigger and better the show. More shots in a cake means you'll get a longer show while less shots means you'll get a short, but very intense show. A 119-shot cake will usually work well as its own show while a 9-shot cake will work better as a grand finale of a longer performance. If a cake doesn't list a number of shots, you can tell by running a finger along the top of the cake and counting the number of tubes below the wrapping. It's hard to go wrong with "e;maximum load"e; cakes (usually 500 grams of powder) while smaller cakes can be more varied. At Manchester Fireworks we can allways help you in deciding the right kind of Single ignition firework for your event.
The types of fireworks considered cakes will say "e;ejects stars and bangs"e; with the added "e;with reports"e; if they also have loud bangs. Cakes will include a number of tubes wrapped up with only a single fuse, which differentiates them from other types of fireworks
How they work
Single ignition fireworks are just as complex as Roman candles because that's basically what a repeater is - many tubes of mini-"e;shells"e; all in one unit. These clusters of tubes each have a clay plug in the bottom and a black powder lift charge. There are two holes in the side of each tube, and as the device is being constructed, small chunks of fuse are used to connect each tube to its neighbor. This way, when the first lift charge ignites and sends the effect into the air, the tube next to it ignites shortly afterwards, and so on. Most devices have several parallel-fused tubes towards the end of the "e;fire trail"e;, so that several tubes ignite simultaneously (or in very rapid succession) at the end of the performance in order to intensify the display.
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