Punt Gun

Exactly, there was NO WAY pun guns were loaded w/ a pound of powder. A HUGE one would have been 1 pound of shot, and an equal volume of powder.

A more practial (!!?!!) size would be 4ga. (1" bore), assuming you were going to shoot it more than 1 or 2 times ever.

I bet it would do a number on the grackels that congregate in the Dallas/Ft Worth area every winter if you loaded it with 8's....

Indeed 2 inch bore, 4 inch diameter, (walls of one inch thick) is NOT a punt gun. It is a cannon.

That thing will weigh a ridiculously large amount.

And yes a whole pound of powder is way too much for any punt gun.

I know you are dreamin' while on deployment, but one thing you may want to really think about here is going with a 4 bore 1 inch bore.

I can tell you I have one and it is a hoot and a half to shoot and it is a great crowd pleaser. And it is a very reasonable weight!

There was a punt gun built in the UK nick named Irish Tom that weighed over 300 pounds over a 2 inch bore and shot a service load of over 50 ounces of lead thats 4lbs 2 oz and was propelled by 1 pound of cannon powder.. The average load for it though was 3 lbs 2 ounces of lead an a 10 ounce load. Sorry guys I have done my research I know you are looking out for me but I do know what I am talking about based upon the reasearch I have done.. Maybe it would be considered a cannon since the gun had to have a bore of 1.75 inches to be a legal punt gun for hunting while it was legal. Research it guys its quit facinating.. But for the record I prolly will never shoot more then 6-7 ounces of powder from it when its built.

Either way it will make a huge bang

Cool. And I think it is better to have the nomenclature cannon and not punt gun since the walls will be 1 inch thick. Glad you are looking at ounces and NOT a pound of black powder too.

I really like my 4 bore. It makes a heck of a boom especially when a double pack the wad (when I am using it to entertain crowds). I do use it for target and hunting too. It can create a massive, dense pattern.

littlejohnZ,

Fwiw, I celebrate your service in Afghanistan. - My last "action" was Desert Storm. - I retired from the USA soon after those "fun and games".

That said, have you found any "plans" for a punt gun that you are willing to share??
(I'm retiring OCONUS to a place where MUZZLE-loading puntguns of up to 40mm bore are LAWFUL for hunting waterfowl in "tidal zones" but not inland and am seriously considering building a TWO MAN, 24x4ft gunning/sailing punt, Maryland style & either building or having a punt-gun built.)

Should you want to see the plans for a 2-man punt that I have "coming" from a maritime museum, we can talk when you get back to "the land of round doorknobs".

NOTE: At least ONE MD puntgun used MORE than a pound of blackpowder and 4 pounds of shot. - "THE WALKER" (which was "captured" in 1925 by a Maryland Ranger) had a 6.5" bore, a @12ft long barrel, weighed over 300# and had a "converted to percussion" Brown Bess lock mounted UPSIDE DOWN!!!
CANNON probably describes "THE WALKER" better than puntgun!
According to a MDPWD officer, "THE WALKER" probably accounted for at least 200,000 waterfowl killed over the 60+ years that it was used.

yours, satx