Last update was on Jan 7, 2017.
I don't think Valve has pushed any changes since then which changed particles.

Light particles is more of a targetted edit in that it specifically removes certain systems whereas this one here is a global "everything is effected" sweep.
A lot of particles made by Valve have lax limits on the number of individual emissions per system, leading to very heavy CPU demand with a lot of systems playing at once.
This sweep forces a throttle that effects maximum emissions, rates, and durations.

I've made no attempt to bypass sv_pure with this and more than likely won't be investing time into doing so.
If you'd like to see this sort of particle limiting officially supported in TF2, then please do send an E-Mail to the TFTeam.

I've asked in the past to add this feature but after some time just made it myself and released it to the public here and other sources.
Then I asked to allow my pack to be signed for allowance within sv_pure, but no response.

Valve tends to ignore things I send their way until a public outcry happens forcing their hands.
It just isn't worth it in their eyes as a business I suppose.

The patch from the 11th fixes it, and this hotfix is no longer needed as far as I can tell:

This sort of edit will make the trails less visible at once, but as far as it making it more difficult to see is subjective.

For me even preset 2 works fine for gameplay, though preset 1 tends to get more people saying that it's a good middle grounds between performance and still relaying game information to the viewer.

Rockets tend to be a bit more difficult to judge for airblasting with preset 2 for me, but that's due to the yellow/orange glow behind it not being too visible and my usage of the glow to be the differentiation between the rocket and the background.

Your mileage may vary.

As with any modifications, if it hurts your gameplay then merely uninstall it; it's free.

I checked out what the person edited, and all that's changed in the pcf is that the Array of Elements portion for the emitters, renderers, operators, and initializers (edit: also children) to all be null tables.

If that sort of editing actually goes over into sv_pure 2 land, then I'm at a huge loss as to why that would stick.

Sort of hard to take a screenshot of something that's constantly changing, but I'll whip up a config showcasing some common particle effects and shove them to the Mediafire Steam screenshots because that's much easier- I'll post here again when they're up.

Editing to not do a double post:
They're now viewable by clicking the Preset # in the OP.

Screenshots don't do particles justice, but it's something to look at.

Quite correct you are, unfortunately.

'sv_pure' is the bane of all things good.

From what average to what average?

FPS isn't linear, and so that could be relatively large or insignificant in your case.
Also you'll only see great benefits if these little things were a bottleneck, which they tend to flock to the CPU on all cores it can go to.

You may find the pack download link at the bottom of this post for all presets.

This pack contains generated edited particles that applies a global limitation on every particle.
A limited particle is any system that falls above the criteria and will force an upper bound limitation on it.

What this mod is:

• Limits particles from their impact on rendering.
  
• Helps gain performance in terms of FPS in particle-heavy environments.
  
• Reduces the chance of getting a client-based crash due to too many particles rendering at once.. Yes, this is actually a thing that happens.

What this mod is NOT:

• A cheat mod.
  
• You will be putting yourself at a disadvantage for using any of these.
  
• This is due to some particles relaying information which will cease to exist after their cutoff time, which may shorten the information relay.
  
• See: Spy disguise smoke and electroball Hallowe'en spell.

How it does it:

• There are three main variables particles can use to render.
  
• There is a particle duration for how long one particle lasts in the world before disappearing.
  
• There is a particle emission rate that controls how fast the particles spawn in the world.
  
• There is a burst number that states for burst effects how many particles to spawn instantly.

Since it is automated I have four presets, but am open to creating more if requested.

Valve Default

• Preset 0 - You have a decent setup but want to limit Valve's inane particle spamming ways.
  Each limited particle lasts 5.0 seconds, emits at 60 particles per second, and bursts 60 particles.
  
  
• Preset 1 - You want some bare minimal eyecandy while maintaining the goal of a particle in what it is to do.
  Each limited particle lasts 2.0 seconds, emits at 30 particles per second, and bursts 30 particles.
  
  
• Preset 2 - You are running a toaster but it does have a potato in there somewhere that can render something once in a while.
  Each limited particle lasts 1.0 second, emits at 15 particle per second, and bursts 15 particles.
  
  
• Preset 3 - You want particles pretty much dead.
  Each limited particle lasts 0.1 seconds, emits at 1 particle per second, and bursts only 1 particle.

Download HERE.