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British 6 pdr cannon of the Waterloo era - velocity?

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T

TFoley

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Right now I'm getting a hard time from an 'expert' here in UK about the velocity of the aptly-named Waterloo 6 pdr cannon employed to such devastating effect again Naopoeon's cuirassiers when charging the squares ar Waterloo.

He is of the opinion that the shot could not possibly have been moving at more than around 250 fps - indeed, according to him, no cannon of the day could possibly fire a ball faster than that due to 'undeveloped19th century ballistics'.

My 700 fps was poo-hoo'd as being utterly ridiculous - impossible at the time, he said.

So you can see what I'm up against here.....

I've watched a few Youtube movies of cannon of similar calibre fired by cannoneers in the US of A, and TBH, those balls seemed to going like the clappers!

TIA.
 
Double - hawkeye2
Also would you please check if one of your legs is longer than the other?
 
Last edited:
I've seen references for 6-pounders of the era having a muzzle velocity as high as 450 m/s (1476 fps).

British velocity tables of the 1750's show that a 9-pounder charged with 2-1/4 pounds of powder might produce its ball at a rate of 1,052 feet per second.

Spherical case-shot was an attempt to carry the effectiveness of grape and canister beyond its previous range, by means of a bursting shell. It was the forerunner of the shrapnel used so much in World War I and was invented by Lt. Henry Shrapnel, of the British Army, in 1784. There had been previous attempts to produce a projectile of this kind, such as the German Zimmerman's "hail shot" of 1573—case shot with a bursting charge and a primitive time fuze—but Shrapnel's invention was the first air-bursting case shot which, in technical words, "imparted directional velocity" to the bullets it contained. Shrapnel's new shell was first used against the French in 1808, but was not called by its inventor's name until 1852.
 
That guy is obviously trolling you. I'm no expert but common sense says 6 pounds of solid iron leaving the muzzle at 250 fps wouldn't stay airborne long enough to hit anything, would it? It's not like it has afterburners and will pick up speed.
 
TFoley said:
Right now I'm getting a hard time from an 'expert' here in UK about the velocity of the aptly-named Waterloo 6 pdr cannon employed to such devastating effect again Naopoeon's cuirassiers when charging the squares ar Waterloo.

He is of the opinion that the shot could not possibly have been moving at more than around 250 fps - indeed, according to him, no cannon of the day could possibly fire a ball faster than that due to 'undeveloped19th century ballistics'.

My 700 fps was poo-hoo'd as being utterly ridiculous - impossible at the time, he said.

So you can see what I'm up against here.....

I've watched a few Youtube movies of cannon of similar calibre fired by cannoneers in the US of A, and TBH, those balls seemed to going like the clappers!

TIA.
Click to expand...
"going like the clappers"???
 
TFoley said:
Right now I'm getting a hard time from an 'expert' here in UK about the velocity of the aptly-named Waterloo 6 pdr cannon employed to such devastating effect again Naopoeon's cuirassiers when charging the squares ar Waterloo.

He is of the opinion that the shot could not possibly have been moving at more than around 250 fps - indeed, according to him, no cannon of the day could possibly fire a ball faster than that due to 'undeveloped19th century ballistics'.

My 700 fps was poo-hoo'd as being utterly ridiculous - impossible at the time, he said.

So you can see what I'm up against here.....

I've watched a few Youtube movies of cannon of similar calibre fired by cannoneers in the US of A, and TBH, those balls seemed to going like the clappers!

TIA.
Click to expand...
The first sign was the EXPERT moniker.
 
'Going like the clappers' - comes from the times when all important news was spread to the village/town by use of the church bells. The "clappers" in question are the things that clang on the inside of the bell making the ringing sound - a vigorously rung bell implied a sense of urgency or speed.

Sometimes it's hard to forget just how much common English speech and usage has been lost between UK and the former colonies.

One of our exchange officers, who had literally never left the USA in his life before his posting to England, was at a loss at least five times a day in normal speech.

Suddenly thrust into a mixed Army/Navy/RAF teaching environment must have 'done his head in' - he requested, and got 'short-toured' and was replaced by a somewhat more-travelled officer who had been commissioned from the ranks, and had spent time here in UK in his non-commissioned service. He must have enjoyed being here, as he had married a 'loocal gal' from 'Noomarkut' on his last UK posting.
 

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