Types of Mortar Racks
Their are general four types of mortar racks; "V", Fan, Finale, and Combination. Various combination of these four types of mortar racks make the professional shows that you might attend. This article will explain the different types of racks and their best use, to maximize the effect. The pictures are an example of some of the racks in the categories.
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"V" Style Racks These racks are a must when you want to give definition to each shell break. It makes sure that there is enough space between each shell so that you will see each break as if it were launch by itself. To get the full effect of these racks you should also make sure launch shells out of both sides at a time. |
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Fan Racks Fan racks are great when you want to launch multiple shells or mines at a time. If you rack is only 1 row deep you want to make sure that you fuse your rack so that all three shells will ignite at roughly the same time. If you rack has more than one row either fuse the rack in threes or set up the fuse so that the rack will shoot left to right and then right to left for every two rows it has. The full effect of these racks is seen when you load a shell in each tube or and setup the fuse so that they break in groups. |
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Finale Racks This type of rack is the most widely used rack. This type of rack lets you chain together multiple shells for that finale effect. Depending on what type of fuse you use will determine how fast or slow the shells will fire. When you have your mortars aligned straight next to each other the shell breaks will overlap causing the finale appearance. These mortar racks are the only rack where you can only light one shell and it still looks good. |
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Combination Racks These racks are a combination between the Finale racks and "V" style racks. The center mortars are setup like the finale racks, with the "V" style angle on the out side of the racks. These mortar racks will produce the effect where there is a group of shells that break closely together and shells spread apart on the outside of the group. |
