Last updated 1/20/2021. This article has been updated since it was first published to utilize products in our current catalog. As a result, the show video and some photos may show products that are no longer available for sale.
As you welcome the start of summer with family and friends this Memorial Day, don’t forget to decorate your night sky with fireworks! Fireworks are a great way to end the day as we honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom.
A Memorial Day fireworks show is also a great practice run for your upcoming 4th of July show. You can try out new fireworks, fine-tune your timing and experiment with new techniques.
With Memorial Day as our inspiration, we created a fireworks show that includes several of our military-themed items, plus a lot of red, white, and blue. This show also features many of our new 2018 items, including Hero’s Welcome, Two if By Sea, Missile Defense, and the SFX Barrage Candle. We also use brand-new shells from Hammer of Thunder, which has been completely updated for 2018.
To fully duplicate this show, you will use several advanced techniques that might be new to you: fusing artillery shells together, using repeater boards, angling repeaters, and building Roman candle racks. This article will not go into the details of how to implement these more advanced techniques, but you can search for how these techniques are done online and pick the methods that work best for you. We also recommend reading our blog posts about How to Light Your Fireworks Show and Tips for Making Your Own Fireworks Show for additional tips on taking your shows to the next level.
The Fireworks
Below are the suggested fireworks for this show, but feel free to make it your own by substituting some of your favorites. You can also reach out to us if you need help with ideas. This full list is also available in an easy-to-shop category here on our wholesale website, along with some additional supplies you may need. You’ll need one case of each item:
| Firework | Type | Duration (Seconds) |
Case Qty |
|---|---|---|---|
 America’s Celebration |
500g | 30 | 4 |
 Combat Zone |
500g | 16 | 2 |
 Hammer of Thunder |
Artillery | N/A | 4 |
 Hero’s Welcome |
500g | 12 | 6 |
 Mother of All Bombs |
Rack | 35 | 2 |
 Missile Defense |
200g | 20 | 12 |
 Declaration of Independence |
200g | 15 | 12 |
 SFX Barrage Candle |
Candle | 40 | 12 |
 The Armory |
500g | 16 | 4 |
 Two If by Sea |
500g | 40 | 4 |
 Downtown Display |
500g | 20 | 4 |
The Setup
Firing Station Layout
This show requires two primary firing stations, ideally spaced about 50 feet apart. Below is a simple diagram of the firing station layout:
Show Rundown
You will notice that Station 1 and Station 2 are mirror images of each other. That is, whatever is being fired at Station 1 is also being fired at Station 2. Firing the same firework at the same time compounds the effects of the firework and is a technique used by professional shows.
| Event | Station 1 | Station 2 | Start Time | Duration (Seconds) |
End Time |
| 1 | 6 – Hammer of Thunder Titanium Shells | 6 – Hammer of Thunder Titanium Shells | 0:00 | 16 | 0:16 |
| 2 | Hero’s Welcome 2 – Declaration of Independence |
Hero’s Welcome 2 – Declaration of Independence |
0:16 | 12 | 0:28 |
| 3 | 7 – Hammer of Thunder Shells | 7 – Hammer of Thunder Shells | 0:28 | 4 | 0:32 |
| 4 | Two if By Sea 2 – Missile Defenses |
Two if By Sea 2 – Missile Defenses |
0:32 | 40 | 1:12 |
| 5 | 7 – Hammer of Thunder Shells | 7 – Hammer of Thunder Shells | 1:12 | 4 | 1:16 |
| 6 | Hero’s Welcome 2 – Declaration of Independence |
Hero’s Welcome 2 – Declaration of Independence |
1:16 | 12 | 1:28 |
| 7 | 7 – Hammer of Thunder Shells | 7 – Hammer of Thunder Shells | 1:28 | 4 | 1:32 |
| 8 | Downtown Display 2 – Missile Defenses |
Downtown Display 2 – Missile Defenses |
1:32 | 20 | 1:52 |
| 9 | Downtown Display | Downtown Display | 1:52 | 20 | 2:12 |
| 10 | Combat Zone | Combat Zone | 2:12 | 16 | 2:28 |
| 11 | 7 – Hammer of Thunder Shells | 7 – Hammer of Thunder Shells | 2:28 | 4 | 2:32 |
| 12 | Hero’s Welcome 2 – Declaration of Independence |
Hero’s Welcome 2 – Declaration of Independence |
2:32 | 12 | 2:44 |
| 13 | Two if By Sea 2 – Missile Defenses |
Two if By Sea 2 – Missile Defenses |
2:54 | 40 | 3:34 |
| 14 | 7 – Hammer of Thunder Shells | 7 – Hammer of Thunder Shells | 3:34 | 4 | 3:38 |
| 15 | The Armory | The Armory | 3:38 | 16 | 3:54 |
| 16 | SFX Barrage Candle Rack Mother of All Bombs |
SFX Barrage Candle Rack Mother of All Bombs |
3:54 | 40 | 4:34 |
| 17 | 2 – America’s Celebration | 2 – America’s Celebration | 4:04 | 30 | 4:34 |
| 18 | 7 – Hammer of Thunder Shells | 7 – Hammer of Thunder Shells | 4:30 | 4 | 4:34 |
Hammer of Thunder Introduction
We recommend you use the twelve titanium willow shells from Hammer of Thunder to open the show. Their massive size and lingering breaks are a fitting remembrance for our fallen servicemen and women. The remaining Hammer of Thunder shells are used to put an exclamation mark on the performance of the 500-gram repeaters throughout the show. You can set up the remaining shells from Hammer of Thunder however you like. You can see how we racked up our shells in this PDF of our two rack layouts.
200-Gram Repeaters
Declaration of Independence and Missile Defense are used to reinforce the 500-gram repeaters by covering the lower and middle sky. To copy our Memorial Day show exactly, you will need to put a slight angle on these items to increase the spread of their shots. If you decide to do the same, be sure to secure these items so they do not tip over when firing! We glued ours to plywood using a construction adhesive.
500-Gram Repeaters
You will anchor the show with the 500-gram repeaters, including Hero’s Welcome, Two if By Sea, Downtown Display, Combat Zone, and The Armory. These repeaters produce the bulk of the effects your audience will enjoy. They also provide the four-and-a-half-minute run time for the show.
You may have noticed that Combat Zone and The Armory are fired by themselves. This breaks away from the pattern of having multiple repeaters firing from a single station at a time. This is done to vary the intensity of the show, which will make it more interesting. Think of Combat Zone as a sort of half-time and The Armory as the calm before the finale storm!
The Finale
Your audience will love the show’s finale! Four America’s Celebration 500-gram repeaters provide a patriotic red, white and blue foundation to the big finish. These breaks are accentuated by the booming breaks of the two Mother of All Bombs finale racks. However, what will really amaze your audience is the use of an entire case of 196-Shot SFX Barrage Candles! The barrage candles are configured in two fanned out Roman candle racks as shown in the photo below. These barrage candles blanket the lower and middle sky with 2,352 shots in just 40 seconds. WOW!
Memorial Day Show Video
As you watch the video, you may notice that some of the firework timing is a little off. This is to be expected when putting on a fireworks show with consumer fireworks as there can be variations in internal fuse timing since all fireworks are made by hand. However, we are sure you will agree, the show still looks spectacular!
There is Still Time
You still have time to put together your own Memorial Day fireworks show! Using this article as a guide, you will be ready to entertain your guests and honor our fallen heroes. To help you shop our show ideas, you can find the products for a given show on our Fireworks Show Ideas page. Of course, we are also available to help at 904-213-0615 or you can email us at [email protected]. We hope you enjoy the show and share your own ideas in the comments. Be sure to get plenty of photos and video of your own show and tag #mysuperiorfireworks to share them with us!
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