The Great Cheap, Safe Fireworks Hunt

Ogboston

JTF has a few demo nights (one per store) over the coming days, if anyone sees them pleae post here what the fireworks were like. thanks steve.

AnthonyUK

In Rawtenstall Lancashire Winners Supermarket sell guy fawkes fireworks at less than cost price;and yes they are Brightstar in sheep's clothes. I got the two top of the range guy fawkes selection boxes last year along with portfires and 6xpacks of Guy Fawkes Mammoth Sparklers for £100!

Ogboston

Miles away from there though mate. £50 for a selection box even a big one might not be best value. Was it any good mate?

WildWarrior

This thread has been an interested read- I do a firework display every year for both Diwali and Guy Fawkes Night, spending about £400 give or take a few.

For cheap fireworks hunt I can make a suggestion. Avoid the big supermarkets. They are really quite expensive. You are better going to a shop that sells fireworks all year round, as these typically have some proper special offers, and some dud offers too. It's just a question of knowing what to look for. Ask to see videos first and also watch them on the internet. If you are unsure, try and go to a "demo night" before hand.



Some of the shops already mentioned I can recommend as well. To this list I can added two more, Fireworks Emporium and Firework Crazy. Both are run by a well trained staff who can give you a list of how to do your display. It is useful if you check out their websites because in the past both have run demo nights, and they may well be doing so again.


I cannot recommend Lidl because I have had a poor performing cake from there, and the manager refused me a refund. It stopped firing half way through, I felt I was entitled to a refund.


I would recommend a quality brand from a well known retailer. Brothers, Black Cat, Standard (same as Black Cat now) and TNT have all been reliable brands over the years at my displays.



There is already a very good specialist website for fireworks called the UKFR which has been active on the internet now for about 12 years, although they have not added any new reviews for about 3 years. At one point is was a very relaible site, but it seems to have taken a much more direct promotional role now. In an article "A Day at Epic Fireworks" they surprised me by making claims about a shop called Epic which were not true such as they sold everything half price (not true then, not true now.) The writer, the UKFR's editor, also made a direct claim that "Everything is good for these prices", a remarkable thing for a review site to say. Epic are a trade supply shop who also sell to the public, and are a very good shop but do hype themselves far too much.



On the UKFR policy seems to be to openly promote the site sponsors just because they are site sponsors "Please give these shops your business" they say, "please buy from them because they advertise here."


That said, it is a great site and has a useful forum (although domiated by trade members, commercial firers and commercial bloggers) and it has many good articles and when they will get back their old style it will be a very useful site for proper reviews. When they do it will be awesome.

dcossi1

Supermarket fireworks are in general overpriced and not that great. To say dont go to lidl cos of a bad experience is unfair.As for previously mentioned all year firework stores ,most people who light fireworks on GFN and NYE are not gonna buy from them.They will buy locally,probably from a supermarket or a seasonal firework shop. UKFR is a good read but they only rate the fireworks the sponsors sell I.e brothers ,absolute,royal party,epic. Ive bought online off 2 of the sponsors because of reading ukfr,and i cant fault the service.But are Brothers etc so superior to standard,DRd ,bulldog,bright star fireworks?

AnthonyUK

Ogboston wrote: »

Miles away from there though mate. £50 for a selection box even a big one might not be best value. Was it any good mate?

The performance of the Guy Fawkes inferno and magnitude selection boxes was roughly similar to Brightstar branded selection box fireworks, and reasonable value, the rockets weren't too hot though;and you can thank this due to the 2008 regulations on payload amounts in them (a weaker blackpowder burst than a hard loud flashpowder burst), but the fountains turned in a reasonable performance, the mines were fairly pokey but good, the roman candles did what you expect of them, the 18shot cakes were fair performers, the sonic mine made a good screech and crackleburst, the other four mines were reasonable, the 3 and 4bar roman candle bouquets(each box had one)on a stake performed adequately,and the wheels were as pretty as they got and the 56shotters made a reasonable ending lit together. The sparklers were reasonable, similar performance to Brightstar Mammoth Sparklers. 4/5 altogether. To get both boxes plus sparklers and portfires for lighting them at £100 is a bargain, but you would pay a lot more elsewhere. The two top of the range guy fawkes inferno and magnitude boxes were similar in style of contents to Brightstar Presidential and Brightstar Imperial. Prices £35.94 for inferno and £47.94 for magnitude and 66p a pack for coloured and mammoth sparklers.

AnthonyUK

Same great brand of fireworks same great low prices!

Go here:

http://www.winnersdiscountmegastore.co.uk/images/stories/200511a-retail-fireworks-mailer-12p-lr-all.pdf

Ogboston

Thats exactly the same as JTF except they have added VAT to the pices.

AnthonyUK

Ogboston wrote: »

Thats exactly the same as JTF except they have added VAT to the pices.

It's still much cheaper than full retail price-the aim of The Cheap Safe Firework Hunt is to enable people to get fireworks for their celebrations at cheaper prices, and the Winners range of fireworks and prices enables people to get plenty for their dosh and have decent family and public displays for reasonable amounts of money. If you're trying to put people off then that is going beyond the point!

Ogboston

Hey mate i'm not knocking them but thought it was odd that they have EXACTLY same book as JTF but they have done VAT on prices too. Its BETTER what they have done there! Still pay VAT at JTF I asked at lincoln and they said everyone pays VAT but some people claim it back.