Cannons arrived :-)

[ricky5042]

Hi all
Here are a few pics of my cannon which a friend has made for me its taken a while but its here now and iv just had the trunions welded on today and he's done a great job.
Let me know what you think guys :wink:

side view before the trunions were welded on

Rick

 

[Wes/Tex]

Looking good! Won't be long and you'll be scaring hell out of the neighbors! :haha:

 

[Jasseji]

what caliber is that ?

please dont shoot it with anything but loose powder...

 

[ricky5042]

Hi
lol cant fire it unless down gun club
The bore measures .665" and why only fire it with loose powder?
In the uk before it can be fired it has to go to the proof house and they will fire it with double the load im going to use (100gns)they double it to 200gns in case I double load it by mistake, a friend had his brass cannon proofed to 240gns with no probs and he only uses 80gn loads as they are the most accurate.

Rick

 

[Jasseji]

ok, but they will proof-fire only the barrel, not while it's mounted on a carriage to test the whole construction...

i wish you luck with those welded trunnions and i HOPE nobody has to pay the price for this construction error...

 

[ricky5042]

Ok maybe you would like to explain in detail why this is an error in construction!! that may lead to a failure!! are you an expert in this field!

 

[robinghewitt]

please dont shoot it with anything but loose powder...

That must be where I keep going wrong

 

[rescuemike]

I think what they are referring too, is not your overall construction. Rather, they are concerned that the welds on the trunnions might not withstand the repeated forces place on them when shooting projectiles. The proof house will only test your barrel, not the carriage or the trunnions. Even when they proof fine English Doubles, the Gunsmith is required to remove the wood stocking, and submit only the receiver and barrels.

As I understand, trunnions commonly are press fit into a pre-drilled hole, then welded in place..

However, I am by no means an expert, and that cannon looks fabulous to me! Fine work!

 

[ricky5042]

Hi
Thanks
Yes I realise when its on its carriage there maybe issues with continuous fire! the carriage will have rope on the front with lead attached to control the recoil and of course I will keep a close eye on the welds on the trunions as well as the carriage.
The trunions are not just siting on the out side of the barrel the guy who machined it for me milled the flats where the trunions are sitting and set them 3mm into the barrel, the guy who welded them on is a very experienced welder and has been in engineering for decades and I trust his work and assurance the weld is more than strong enough for the intended use.

Rick

 

[satx78247]

LOOKS GREAT.

May I ask what is the overall length & diameter?

Is your cannon a replica of any particular firearm?
(Fwiw, small cannons were once quite common in frontier areas of the USA for "serious social purposes" like repelling boarders on boats and protecting large ranches from criminal gangs.)

yours, satx

 

[ricky5042]

Hi
Thanks
Its based on an old iron side cannon used on ships not identical but close it doesn't have the loop on the rear.
The cannon is 380mm in total and the bore is 315mm of which is an 8mm chamber which is 10mm deep so if I load with no powder I can pour some 4F powder down to push the ball out, the bore is .665" the cannon diameter at the flash hole is 56mm as is the next section and the narrowest part is 38mm and the muzzle band is 48mm so its no light weight

Rick

 

[satx78247]

NICE.
That is NO "little toy gun", for sure. - What sort of carriage are you going to mount it upon?

yours, satx

 

[ricky5042]

Hi
Here is a pic of the type of carriage im going for the only real difference will be il be using a bolt with pins to turn it for the elevation instead of the wedge you see in the pic

Rick

 

[robinghewitt]

I have a pair of ships cannon c1800 in my garage. (I just took a picture otherwise Alden will not believe me) :idunno: :rotf:
The beds are missing but you can see how it goes together. Notice that the semicircular cut out at the bottom of each cheek is actually just a chamfer. Makes sense when you think about levering the thing sideways :thumbsup:

 

[ricky5042]

Hi
Thanks for the pic I wasn't sure if I was going to use wood for the axles or steel axles but the loops bolted through to the rear axle looks a good solid fixing
Thanks

Rick

 

[Alden]

I still don't believe ya...

 

[Jasseji]

Hi,

My point being that the trunnions would need to go much further than 3mm into the barrel itself - i personally only rely on barrels where the trunnions have been cast along with the barrel, therefore creating a single piece of metal connected on the whole area to the barrel itself.

In your case, the barrel would have to be machine-milled from a single piece of metal.

The technique you are using (with all due respect to the person who was welding) only creates a point of contact between the trunnion and the barrel on the outer trunnion diameter - in case of the rest area there is no contact whatsoever - you only have a 5-8mm band of weld holding the trunnions in place.

As long as you use only loose powder, nothing should happen but if you want to use paper wads rammed heavily inside or even balls (lead, steel) then i would really advise against it, no matter what the proofing house says.

Dont get me wrong, it's a nice piece you are doing there but i saw already accidents with cannons where trunnions were welded - the barrels have a nasty tendency to break the welds and fly back in the direction of any bywatchers.

No matter if you take care not to do any rapid-fire, each shot will have a chance to weaken the construction and after some time of strain + rust (you never can clean all of it off), this piece will become a hazard.

 

[rescuemike]

I think it's brilliant, and next time I'm on that side of the pond, I'd love to buy ya a pint and see it!

That thing would be perfect for firing off on the "Glorious 12th", hurry with that carriage! Give the Drivers and dogs a proper start!

 

[ricky5042]

Is this just your opinion or do you have pictures or news clippings of accidents with cannons and trunions failures?
I will be more than happy to read any articles you have stating that welded trunions are not advised!

 

[ricky5042]

Hi
Thanks sure you would be more than welcome to come and see it and even pop down the gun club and have a go
Im hoping to get the carriage done in the next week or so, a friend is getting me a couple of oak planks to make it so it should look great once done I might even stain it.

Rick