cannon

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gwhunter21
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Joined: Mon Aug 26, 2013 8:28 am

cannon

Post by gwhunter21 »

so I have a 1.2inch piece of brass about 8 inches long so I was thinking of making a cannon. My plan is to leave the chamber area the full diameter and taper it down to the muzzle. I want to use 36 cal balls. I have 2 questions.

Will it be safe to fire?
What would be the boar diameter I thought i read somewhere that you take the diameter of the ball plus .005 inch for the patch is this correct?

Thanks in advance.
Tom
hammermill
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Re: cannon

Post by hammermill »

first off what kind of brass if you dont know it is unsaFE are you planning on smooth bore or rifled

my general advice is install a steel liner then the brass is decoration. muzzle loader barrels make great liners
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steamin10
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Re: cannon

Post by steamin10 »

A firing cannon is a toy, and should be favored with safties of material and conscience. This thing will never be all that accurate, and is better off firing toilet paper. That being said, considerable windage in the bore can be tolerated, to guarentee good loose fits that work well for demonstrations. .020 is not uncommon for miniatures for table size.

Perhaps rethinking what you want to do, is an option. Glass marbles create much less muzzle pressure than a steel or lead ball. A tissue blank can be as much fun depending. The gasses restrained is what makes it work, and heavier ball weight, not heavy charges make the biggest diference. Underloading a charge will make muzzle pressures soar too, so consult a reliable loading book with black powder tables to understand what is what with grinds and weights. Use a consistant measure.

Use your head, before you have fun. Cheers.
Big Dave, former Millwright, Electrician, Environmental conditioning, and back yard Fixxit guy. Now retired, persuing boats, trains, and broken relics.
We have enough youth, how about a fountain of Smart. My computer beat me at chess, but not kickboxing
It is not getting caught in the rain, its learning to dance in it. People saying good morning, should have to prove it.
GeorgeGaskill

Re: cannon

Post by GeorgeGaskill »

Shot should not be patched for use with a cannon. Nominal windage is bore is 2.5% larger than the shot. Measure a number of shot and use the largest since sticking a shot when loading is to be avoided. Cannon should not be loaded with loads for muzzle loading rifles or pistols of the same caliber; the cannon is not held the same way and recoil is excessive with small arms loads. Start with really light loads and let recoil be your guide to the maximum.

See the GBO Mortars and Cannons Forum for more info.
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steamin10
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Re: cannon

Post by steamin10 »

Thanks George, you said it much better than I did.
Big Dave, former Millwright, Electrician, Environmental conditioning, and back yard Fixxit guy. Now retired, persuing boats, trains, and broken relics.
We have enough youth, how about a fountain of Smart. My computer beat me at chess, but not kickboxing
It is not getting caught in the rain, its learning to dance in it. People saying good morning, should have to prove it.
gwhunter21
Posts: 4
Joined: Mon Aug 26, 2013 8:28 am

Re: cannon

Post by gwhunter21 »

thanks everyone I think I am just going to make a noise maker. I want to keep it safe and fun.

Tom
JackF
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Re: cannon

Post by JackF »

Sounds like a fun project. Remember, we will need to see pics of your project. :wink: :lol:

Jack.
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TGriffin
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Re: cannon

Post by TGriffin »

Tom,

A 1.2" diameter brass barrel will be more than adequate for a .36 caliber bore. My cannon is a 1/5 scale Napoleon has a .94" bore, is 2.25" diameter at the breech and I've been shooting it regularly for the last thirty years. How are you planning to do the trunnions? I spot faced each side of the barrel on mine and silver soldered the trunnions in place. If you make a nice tight fit and keep the solder to a bare minimum they will look like they were cast in place. As for sizing the bore, I would suggest using a gun cleaning patch and size the bore for a loose fit around it. I shoot a .88" ball in mine and it works very well. Here's a pic of my baby, and if you look on my YouTube channel, you can see it in action doing a little hard drive deactivation.

Tom

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Harold_V
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Re: cannon

Post by Harold_V »

TGriffin wrote:Here's a pic of my baby, and if you look on my YouTube channel, you can see it in action doing a little hard drive deactivation.
Beautiful cannon, one I'd love to see in action, but I perused your youtube site and didn't find it. Can you help?

Harold
Wise people talk because they have something to say. Fools talk because they have to say something.
redneckalbertan
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Re: cannon

Post by redneckalbertan »

Harold_V wrote:
TGriffin wrote:Here's a pic of my baby, and if you look on my YouTube channel, you can see it in action doing a little hard drive deactivation.
Beautiful cannon, one I'd love to see in action, but I perused your youtube site and didn't find it. Can you help?

Harold
I think this is one: http://youtube.com/watch?v=HOh3d6deKec
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Harold_V
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Re: cannon

Post by Harold_V »

Thanks, redneck.
That sucker does a great job! Amazing recoil, too.

Harold
Wise people talk because they have something to say. Fools talk because they have to say something.
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TGriffin
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Re: cannon

Post by TGriffin »

That's on about 1/2 ounce of powder (1/3 of a Dixie cup) and that's the point where where the muzzle blast just starts to crack. I've always wondered about the velocity of the ball, I imagine it's somewhere around 1000 fps. The recoil isn't as bad as it looks in the video. It generally rolls back about four or five feet.

Tom
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