Armed Polite Society

Main Forums => The Roundtable => Topic started by: Balog on December 13, 2012, 01:50:28 AM

Title: Why can't I find any of the large road flares?
Post by: Balog on December 13, 2012, 01:50:28 AM
Stocking up for a road trip, and looking online all I can find are the 20 or 30 minute road flares, not the longer (60 minute?) models? I was planning on buying them locally anyway, but does anyone know why I can't even find a mention of them on the web?
Title: Re: Why can't I find any of the large road flares?
Post by: French G. on December 13, 2012, 03:41:30 AM
Dunno. Tried a good truckstop?
Title: Re: Why can't I find any of the large road flares?
Post by: vaskidmark on December 13, 2012, 06:16:41 AM
Contact the nearest railroad yard - to ask where they get theirs, not to get theirs.

Contact your local cop shop - same restriction as above.

"Honestly, Pinky, do I have to do all the thinking around here?"

stay safe.
Title: Re: Why can't I find any of the large road flares?
Post by: charby on December 13, 2012, 07:32:23 AM
or you could join the 21th century and go LED

http://www.amazon.com/Life-Gear-LG437-Eco-friendly-Emergency/dp/B0074ZA0DQ/ref=sr_1_fed1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1355401781&sr=8-2&keywords=road+flares

Title: Re: Why can't I find any of the large road flares?
Post by: Scout26 on December 13, 2012, 09:29:07 AM
You can thank the DOT for that.  Road flares are HazMat.  Meaning they are are PITA to ship.  IIRC, the shorter ones have less "stuff" that burns, so you can ship a small quantity of those without paying the HazMat fees.  Ship the big ones (and/or larger quantities of the small ones) and you have to have a placarded truck and HazMat certified driver.   It's been a while since I was on the trucking company side of the aisle and I don't have any of my Hazmat books any more, so IANAL, YMMV, IACHCST, etc.
Title: Re: Why can't I find any of the large road flares?
Post by: Balog on December 13, 2012, 11:38:01 AM
Like I said, I wasn't planning on buying them online, just seemed odd that even the manufacturer wouldn't list them as a product they make.

or you could join the 21th century and go LED

http://www.amazon.com/Life-Gear-LG437-Eco-friendly-Emergency/dp/B0074ZA0DQ/ref=sr_1_fed1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1355401781&sr=8-2&keywords=road+flares



Can't start a fire with one of those. And emergency fire starting is higher on my use list for them than emergency signaling. As well as they have no batteries to corrode or die, no solder joints to fail, no led's to break etc etc.
Title: Re: Why can't I find any of the large road flares?
Post by: charby on December 13, 2012, 11:44:05 AM
Like I said, I wasn't planning on buying them online, just seemed odd that even the manufacturer wouldn't list them as a product they make.

Can't start a fire with one of those. And emergency fire starting is higher on my use list for them than emergency signaling. As well as they have no batteries to corrode or die, no solder joints to fail, no led's to break etc etc.

Flares do degrade in high heat and humidity. We use the 30 minutes ones to light fireworks off and they seem to last about 18 months in our fireworks trailer until they start to fall apart.

Also if you can't get a fire going with a 20 minute flare you need to go back to Boy Scouts 101.

Title: Re: Why can't I find any of the large road flares?
Post by: Balog on December 13, 2012, 11:47:20 AM
Oh, the extra length ones are for road signaling purposes. Anyone of them work just fine for fire starting.

Here in WA we don't get much high heat, and sealed up properly not much effects from humidity either. I'll still take 1-2 year cheap replacement and guaranteed to work over an electronic gizmo with no real advantages.
Title: Re: Why can't I find any of the large road flares?
Post by: Tallpine on December 13, 2012, 11:50:23 AM
I dunno what "large" road flares are, but we keep a supply of the standard size ones (only size I've ever seen - maybe 1" x 12") on our fire trucks for emergency ignition.  You can save yourself and the truck by getting in an open grassy area and burning out around you before the main fire hits you (never yet had to do this).

Also, you can stick them together end to end to make a flare that either burns longer or saves you from leaning over when lighting off grass.
Title: Re: Why can't I find any of the large road flares?
Post by: charby on December 13, 2012, 11:58:54 AM
I dunno what "large" road flares are, but we keep a supply of the standard size ones (only size I've ever seen - maybe 1" x 12") on our fire trucks for emergency ignition.  You can save yourself and the truck by getting in an open grassy area and burning out around you before the main fire hits you (never yet had to do this).

Also, you can stick them together end to end to make a flare that either burns longer or saves you from leaning over when lighting off grass.

Those are the 20 or 30 minute flares, the 60 minutes are about 2' long.
Title: Re: Why can't I find any of the large road flares?
Post by: charby on December 13, 2012, 12:00:07 PM
Oh, the extra length ones are for road signaling purposes. Anyone of them work just fine for fire starting.

Here in WA we don't get much high heat, and sealed up properly not much effects from humidity either. I'll still take 1-2 year cheap replacement and guaranteed to work over an electronic gizmo with no real advantages.

You could just get a set of the reflectors that truck drivers use. They don't require batteries and signal all night.

Title: Re: Why can't I find any of the large road flares?
Post by: charby on December 13, 2012, 12:05:37 PM
Anymore I see police use these instead of flares.

http://www.chiefsupply.com/3166-AmeriGlo-10-2-Hour-Lightsticks-w-Stand-Pack-of-10.aspx
Title: Re: Why can't I find any of the large road flares?
Post by: Tallpine on December 13, 2012, 12:54:01 PM
Those are the 20 or 30 minute flares, the 60 minutes are about 2' long.

Just stick two together, then  :facepalm:
Title: Re: Why can't I find any of the large road flares?
Post by: AJ Dual on December 13, 2012, 02:34:48 PM
I think they're used in one production method of Meth, like any of the other components or agents in it's manufacture, they may be limiting availibility due to that too.  :P
Title: Re: Why can't I find any of the large road flares?
Post by: Boomhauer on December 13, 2012, 02:36:44 PM
I found 60 minute Flares at Wal-Mart of all places recently.

Title: Re: Why can't I find any of the large road flares?
Post by: brimic on December 13, 2012, 04:29:22 PM
 :facepalm:
(http://I think they're used in one production method of Meth, like any of the other components or agents in it's manufacture, they may be limiting availibility due to that too.)

Gah! If it isn't mothers against pointy boomy flamey things banning stuff, is the mother hen of big government banning everything and anything ever possessed by a meth head. :mad:
Title: Re: Why can't I find any of the large road flares?
Post by: Scout26 on December 13, 2012, 07:13:29 PM
Well there you go just have Meth-head Av29 pick some up for you at his Wallyworld.
Title: Re: Why can't I find any of the large road flares?
Post by: Boomhauer on December 13, 2012, 08:15:08 PM
Well there you go just have Meth-head Av29 pick some up for you at his Wallyworld.

If I was cooking ice Id have a lot more money than I do now...
Title: Re: Why can't I find any of the large road flares?
Post by: lupinus on December 13, 2012, 08:16:34 PM
If I was cooking ice Id have a lot more money than I do now...
And wimmin folk
Title: Re: Why can't I find any of the large road flares?
Post by: Tallpine on December 13, 2012, 08:25:52 PM
And wimmin folk

We had such a torch going [/kaylee]  =D
Title: Re: Why can't I find any of the large road flares?
Post by: Boomhauer on December 13, 2012, 08:38:46 PM
And wimmin folk

Yes if I was a criminal scumbag Id have women hanging off both arms
Title: Re: Why can't I find any of the large road flares?
Post by: AJ Dual on December 13, 2012, 09:33:42 PM
Yes if I was a criminal scumbag Id have women hanging off both arms

Eww. Where would their legs be?  :-X
Title: Re: Why can't I find any of the large road flares?
Post by: RoadKingLarry on December 14, 2012, 01:35:31 AM
Just stick two together, then  :facepalm:

I've seen them laid out in a cross hatch kind of pattern where as one burns down it lights off the next one in series. the cross hatch keeps tehm from rolling off on a minor slope like the crown of a road.
Looks like a long string of overlapping WWWs.
Title: Re: Why can't I find any of the large road flares?
Post by: Tallpine on December 14, 2012, 09:17:44 AM
I've seen them laid out in a cross hatch kind of pattern where as one burns down it lights off the next one in series. the cross hatch keeps tehm from rolling off on a minor slope like the crown of a road.
Looks like a long string of overlapping WWWs.

The ones we use have ferrules and you can stick 2 or 3 together  =|
Title: Re: Why can't I find any of the large road flares?
Post by: Ben on December 14, 2012, 10:09:47 AM
The ones we use have ferrules and you can stick 2 or 3 together  =|

Wait, are you guys talking about road flares, or meth head groupies?
Title: Re: Why can't I find any of the large road flares?
Post by: HankB on December 14, 2012, 11:24:24 AM
Contact the nearest railroad yard - to ask where they get theirs, not to get theirs . . .
I grew up near the GTW (Grand Trunk Western) railroad yards in Chicago, and as kids we would scavenge partially-spent flares that the railroad guys would use for signaling . . . IIRC, they were handheld and I don't recall ever finding the stub of anything more than a 5, possibly 10 minute flare. After signalling, the guy would throw the flare in the air - contact with the ground would extinguish it. And we kids would roam the tracks to salvage the unburnt "flare juice" for our own amusement.

The railroad flares never had the "spike" at the bottom, just a cardboard tube extension for handheld use.

On the 4th of July, many folks would burn flares in front of their homes; I remember even the Walgreens drug stores would carry them in various colors, but I don't remember ever seeing one more than 30 minutes.