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Nichrome Wire Igniters

This Page Updated: August 18th,
2003

Nichrome (pronounced
Nye-Chrome) wire is a blend is Nickel and chromium metals.
This metal
has the unique property of increasing its electrical resistance when
current flows through it... causing it to glow red hot. In short, a thin
piece of Nichrome wire will quickly heat up when even a small voltage is
applied to it. This makes it perfect of igniting fireworks, miscellaneous
pyrotechnic items, and rocket motors from a safe distance at the push of a
button. There are several different variations of making electrical
igniters, but they are all basically the same. Here are a
few:

The Nichrome/Fuse
Igniter

The Nichrome/Fuse igniter is
easy to make from available materials, and has the extra safety advantage of a
short delay produced by the fuse. This is the best igniter to use for smaller
Black Powder type ( Estes or homemade) rocket motors.

The materials needed for the
Nichrome Wire/Fuse Igniter. A short length of Visco Safety Fuse, about 1.5" of
Nichrome wire, and some insulated wire. You can use just about just about any
type of insulated wire ( speaker wire, alarm hook-up wire, etc... all available
at Radio Shack or your local hardware store ). Stranded wire is generally easier
to work with, and much more flexible than solid wire. It's best to use wire no
thinner than 20 gauge. If you plan on running the wires a long distance like 20
or 50 feet for launching model rockets, etc., then 16 gauge or 14 gauge wire
would be better. The lower the wire gauge number is, the thicker the wire... and
the less power it will take to fire the igniter.
If you need some Nichrome
wire, we sell it in 10 foot rolls, and is available on our Shells, Tubes & Fuse
page.

Strip about 1" of insulation off
the ends of each wire.

Using a sewing needle and a
pliers, push the needle through the end of the fuse to make a small
hole.

Twist the Nichrome wire tightly
around one of the wires and fold over so it is secure.

Insert the other end of the
Nichrome into the small hole in the fuse and connect to the remaining wire by
twisting and bending over as you did before. Make sure the two ends of the wire
are not touching each other, or the igniter will not work.

Finally, fold a piece of tape
over the connections so it protects them and prevents them from touching each
other.
When power is applied to the opposite ends of the wire, the small
piece of Nichrome will heat up, glow red hot, and ignite the fuse. Depending on
how long your wires are, and how thick the wire you used is... as little as 3
volts ( 2 flashlight batteries ) will be sufficient to make the igniter
work.
Long lengths of wire may require as much as 12 volts, and very long
runs may require even more.

The Nichrome/Paper Match
Igniter

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