24 pounder Project

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GeorgeGaskill

24 pounder Project

Post by GeorgeGaskill »

I casually mentioned I was starting on a 1/5 scale 24 pounder English pattern naval gun and it was suggested that I make some posts with pix so people could follow along. So here is post number one.

The prototype (actually multiple prototypes) of this gun is on the USS Constitution in Boston harbor. It is a 24 pounder of the English pattern of 1779; the originals were cast in iron. I started with a piece of surplus steel round 4 3/8" x 24". It's now had the 4" diameter area roughed out and the cascable (the knob on the breech) roughed out (see this image.) I didn't have a dog big enough to turn 4" material so I quickly roughed up one from 2x4 fir (see this pic.) It has worked perfectly so far. The next pic is a detail of the roughed cascable.

I plan to do the rest of the breech detail with the barrel in this arrangement, then turn it end for end and use a forged dog to turn the rest of the barrel, then swap ends again, hold the breech ring in a steady rest and finish the cascable. I will have to move to a longer lathe (currently using an 11x24 Logan) to drill the bore.

I will add future posts to this thread with updates and more pix.
Last edited by GeorgeGaskill on Sat Jul 22, 2006 11:17 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Harold_V
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Re: 24 pounder Project

Post by Harold_V »

Thanks for sharing, George. The dog setup is clever, especially the way it drives. You're certainly getting the most our of that smallish lathe!

Susan and I enjoyed the tour of the web site you included and are now downloading the video to watch the gun being fired. It's slow business on our dial-up, but well worth the wait, I'm sure.

Good luck with the gun, which should be a handsome addition to your arsenal.

We're looking forward to future installments of your progress.

Harold
Wise people talk because they have something to say. Fools talk because they have to say something.
Michael_Az
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Re: 24 pounder Project

Post by Michael_Az »

Thanks for the post and photo's George. Looks like a good start! Will be looking forward to the progress. In 1965 I took a tour on the Constitution while in the Navy. When you find out how the fellows had to live on board those old ships it makes you wonder how they did it.
Michael
Saimp 2 HP 10 X 44 mill, #2 Cin Horz Mill, Cholchester 13" lathe, LeBlond 15" Dual Drive.
Al_Messer
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Re: 24 pounder Project

Post by Al_Messer »

This is a very practical way of driving your workpiece. Congratulations for coming up with a simple solution.
Al Messer

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GeorgeGaskill

Re: gun service video

Post by GeorgeGaskill »

There are several faults in the video (including the use of female participants.) The primary one is that the shot is passed back to the rear instead of being loaded, rammed and fired. But it does give a little idea of the teamwork required to fire one of these cannon.
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Harold_V
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Re: gun service video

Post by Harold_V »

There are several faults in the video (including the use of female participants.) The primary one is that the shot is passed back to the rear instead of being loaded, rammed and fired. But it does give a little idea of the teamwork required to fire one of these cannon.

I was rather surprised with the film in general. The download was painfully slow for us considering we are on a dial-up. I would have expected, at the least, that we'd have seen a nice shot of the cannon being fired. The high quality of the web site is certainly not reflected in the video.

I'm sure I speak for all the readers when I suggest your model will have a much nicer outcome than the film, George. [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/cool.gif"%20alt="[/img]

Harold
Wise people talk because they have something to say. Fools talk because they have to say something.
GeorgeGaskill

24 pounder Project, Phase II

Post by GeorgeGaskill »

I was able to put some time on the 24 pounder project today (Sunday) and finished roughing out the various decorative bands on the breech end of the gun. All the external right angles will be radiused later.

This view shows the rings on the breech face; the largest step will be made into a broad radius. There are also a couple more rings at the stem of the cascable but they are smaller in diameter than the rough stub so they don't show up yet.

This view shows the rings and bands on the muzzle side of the breech face. The various bands are leftovers from the early days of gunpowder artillery when the barrels were hand forged and reinforced with bands like kegs or wooden barrels. By the 1770's, some of the forward thinkers in the field were questioning the use of bands and decoration in general but the powers that were couldn't think past "we've always done it this way" and the bands remained in use (in decreasing quantity) until the middle of the 19th century (another example of how the old paradigm remains until its defenders die.) It wasn't until the War Between the States and its shortages (especially in the Confederacy) that decorations were finally left behind.
Last edited by GeorgeGaskill on Sat Jul 22, 2006 11:19 pm, edited 3 times in total.
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Harold_V
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Re: 24 pounder Project, Phase II

Post by Harold_V »

Wow!

That sucker is really starting to take shape!

Thanks for the report on the bands. That's something I had never heard. Interesting how old ways die hard. Especially for me! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/blush.gif"%20alt="[/img]

Curious about what you're using for coolant, George.

Harold
Wise people talk because they have something to say. Fools talk because they have to say something.
GeorgeGaskill

Re: coolant

Post by GeorgeGaskill »

I bought my machine from a shop that went out of business that primarily did thread grinding (I don't know what he used the lathes for but he had two of these 11x24 Logans.) It came with a coolant pump and reservoir filled with some kind of oil based cutting oil. It works OK; I am too lazy to clean it out and replace with something else. I have the 5 gallon pail the oil came in if you're interested in its exact name.
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Harold_V
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Re: coolant

Post by Harold_V »

I have the 5 gallon pail the oil came in if you're interested in its exact name

Nothing urgent. I was just curios when I realized the barrel was fully covered with oil. Roughing that much stock makes using a coolant a pretty good idea. The only negative is how messy it can be, especially if you're running carbide at high speeds.

Harold
Wise people talk because they have something to say. Fools talk because they have to say something.
GeorgeGaskill

Re: coolant

Post by GeorgeGaskill »

It can be a mess, especially working at the end of the machine. I was thinking tonight about painting the shop floor so the oil wouldn't soak into the concrete.

I run my carbide faster than HSS but not at the official speeds normally used for carbide but that's still fast enough to throw coolant from 4" material.
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Harold_V
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Re: coolant

Post by Harold_V »

I've always run coolant in my Graziano, but a water based chemical one. My policy has always been to keep a generous amount of Oil-Dri on the floor where ever there's a chance of oil or coolant hitting the floor. I'm not fond of oil soaked concrete, so that seems to be a good method to keep it dry and clean. You have to make sure to use it religiously.

You can leach oil out of concrete fairly easily, just soak it well with (Stoddard) solvent, then cover with Oil-Dri, which is also soaked. Let dry, repeat again if necessary. The evaporating solvent draws the oil out of the concrete quite well.

I painted the floor in my last shop, in Utah. I used epoxy paint made by Pittsburgh and was delighted in how it turned out. The two problems with painted floors are that they burn if you do any welding. The floor doesn't ignite, but anywhere hot things hit the paint, it turns brown. I had chosen a very nice silver gray color, so the brown stood out badly. The other negative is that it's VERY slippery when wet. That can be controlled by the addition of sand in the paint. I used some 30 mesh silica, which is a bit course. I think I'd recommend something around 70 mesh in place of it.

Harold
Wise people talk because they have something to say. Fools talk because they have to say something.
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