Japan makes some of the world’s best fireworks including record breaking giant sized shells like the Yonshakudama! We’ll head to a prestigious fireworks factory in Akita to see how they’re made.
The process includes 1) Milling 2) Granulation 3) Loading 4) Pasting
The secrets of the trade are passed down from one generation to the next, family businesses that have been producing fireworks since the Meiji era. The larger the firework shell, the longer it takes to grow the stars or black pellets needed. They start as ceramic balls the size of a sesame seed and grow day by day, taking a month or more to make a Shakudama 3cm star. The Shakudama is a 18.5kg / 19 lb beast that you’ll see launched at festivals outside Tokyo and urban areas. They get larger than that! The ni-shakudama, san-shakudama and yon-shakudama will literally blow you away with it’s 750m launch height and width.
