Pre-made cannon barrels?

[RonT]

Would certainly be prudent these days to print a discliamer. We fired a few golf balls and a lot of wood "slugs" once at a rondy, I just don't have the urge to fire ball bearings or lead. I'm too cheap on the lead thing, want to save that for small roundball for my rifles, and have no ready access for ball bearings.
Read my above responses again. Fortified plaster of paris, or Green Pears or other small fruit in season at some target would be a hoot. Not much powder (read "cheap" again), a BANG, and a SPLAT. Don't get any better than that.... :grin:
R

 

[ThreeToedWolf]

Would certainly be prudent these days to print a discliamer. We fired a few golf balls and a lot of wood "slugs" once at a rondy, I just don't have the urge to fire ball bearings or lead. I'm too cheap on the lead thing, want to save that for small roundball for my rifles, and have no ready access for ball bearings.
Read my above responses again. Fortified plaster of paris, or Green Pears or other small fruit in season at some target would be a hoot. Not much powder (read "cheap" again), a BANG, and a SPLAT. Don't get any better than that.... :grin:
R

LOL. I could see an orange going down range at Warp 6 :grin:

I did read the responses; just trying to get more info.

I'm wanting a full scale cannon one day. Something that can shoot Lead projectiles. I think a 3" bore loaded with grapeshot would equal the playing field against an impending zombie attack...LOL :grin: just kidding of course

 

[TheDoubleD]

Full size cannons seldom use lead projectiles. Lead has to much mass at these large sizes and will have greater recoil and generate higher pressures than necessary.

Zinc is a common projectile for use in the big guns. It approximates the weight of the original projectiles and is recoverable for reuse. Reduced weight means less stress on your gun from recoil and pressure.

We have just convinced Fox Industry's a grinding ball company to produce a golf ball size round ball. The balls are for use in golf ball bore cannons using the 1/40 or greater windage rule. The balls will be forged carbon steel and will go for $1 plus shipping. 100 balls weigh about 70lbs and UPS shipping is $65. That makes the ball cost $1.65 each in 100 round lots.

A golf ball gun with proper windage would need a minimum bore of 1.723 inch. The diameter of a golf ball is 1.68 inch. (1.68/39)x40=1.723 http://www.learnaboutgolf.com/beginner/balltypes.html

 

[TheDoubleD]

Just And no,
I just went to Kansas Cannon works to look around. It seems all of their cannons are(Exact words on the site) "intended for signal use only; not intended to fire projectiles"

Since they do state this, would adding the pressure of firing a heavy projectile actually be safe?

Just curious



Bob

That's to bad and a false sense security on their part.

I would ask KCW what kind of steel they use to make their cannons-1018 or 4140 preferred.

I would ask what the diameter of the barrel is over the breech. Since all their cannons are one inch bore you want the breech measurement to be greater than 3 inch.

If those two criteria were met then I would shoot their guns with a projectilejust not lead.

If you buy one of their guns I would ask them to not use JB weld on the trunnions. Ask them to weld them or weld them your self after you get the cannon.

Get a copy of the The Complete Cannoneer from Matt Switlik

There is a chart for developing maximum loads for cannon under 2 inch bore in the back of the book.

 

[ozark57]

We made a golf ball cannon once out of a piece of 1 3/4 304 stainless steel. Built an angle iron frame for it and shot projecties made by pushing a golf ball into sand moist enough to hold form. Then a piece of 1 3/4 OD tubing 3 inches long was pushed into the sand and the whole thing half filled with lead. This gave the spherical radius of the golf ball at the front of the projectile. Made a wierd whooshing sould when fired.
The gun finaly died when a guy ran out of BP and put in some red dot. The barrel was ripped frome the frame and flew end over end like a batton right through the wall of his father-in-laws house. Barrel did not rupture.

 

[TheDoubleD]

We made a golf ball cannon once out of a piece of 1 3/4 304 stainless steel. Built an angle iron frame for it and shot projecties made by pushing a golf ball into sand moist enough to hold form. Then a piece of 1 3/4 OD tubing 3 inches long was pushed into the sand and the whole thing half filled with lead. This gave the spherical radius of the golf ball at the front of the projectile. Made a wierd whooshing sould when fired.
The gun finaly died when a guy ran out of BP and put in some red dot. The barrel was ripped frome the frame and flew end over end like a batton right through the wall of his father-in-laws house. Barrel did not rupture.

sounds like a stainless steel pipe bomb to me! Not a cannon at all!

 

[ozark57]

yeah, I know. I will never build, sell, or give one to anyone again after that one!

 

[TheDoubleD]

I would take the time to learn what the safety standards are for building cannons and build to meet those standards.

A rule I was taught a long time ago about building guns; never build a gun for how you will use it, but build it for how the next guy will use it.

 

[MtnMan_03]

I had a cannon (sold it) that fired 1" lead balls, and I also shot C batteries out of it. I bought the barrel, and built the carriage myself.

One of my friends has a barrel that he fires beer cans filled with concrete from. He once filled a can with some of that "dipping" rubber for dipping the ends of rope in, and let it set up. The next day out on the range, when he fired that rubber-filled can it hit the berm at 100 yards, flew back over our heads, bounced off the ground and sailed over the heads of the family members/spectators back there.

Since then, I've wondered about the safety of some of the projectiles used...

I've often thought a golf ball cannon would be great. I spend a lot of time chasing rabbits around on the edges of golf courses, and have no shortage of access to golf balls. But I'm concerned with the potential "bouncability" of golf balls. One of the biggest "pro's" of lead, in my mind at least, is that it doesn't bounce so well... Ball bearings can bounce, as can rubber, golf balls, etc.

Any of you guys experienced problems along those lines? Maybe I should have started a separate thread...

 

[grizs50]

As Griz approaches the T we notice something new, What's that.... Why it looks like a...a....a...Cannon!!!.

The fist hole is a par 5 but he may only need one shot to get in on the green, the dogleg will be tricky, but if he can bank it off the tree he might just have a chance!!

He is loading, let's see if we can find out.... Chuck down at the T can you get close enough to see what he's doing?....

Well it looks...like 2oz of goex cannon powder and a patched golfball!!

Realy Chuck?, can you see anything else?.... Well it look's like he is going to use the traditional match to set'er off....

He's getting ready for the shot.... he is carefully alining.... he has the cannon site and is ready to fire... As you know this is a dogleg to the left par 5,... so if he brings the old oak tree into play and the wind does affect the shot to much he might just eagle this one.

Shhhhh...Cover your ears, BOOOOOMMMMM!!!!!!!!!! WOW LOOK AT THAT, It STUCK IN THE TREE!!!!, THAT IS A REALLY BAD LIE!!!!! :rotf:

 

[TheDoubleD]

Truth be known, golf balls mke pretty poor cannon balls, just not enough mass.

They do make pretty fair mortar round.

 

[ozark57]

Truth be known, golf balls mke pretty poor cannon balls, just not enough mass.

They do make pretty fair mortar round.

That is true, but the lead ones I discribed earlier in the post will go at least a mile!

 

[Many Klatch]

A buddy has a golf ball mortar. We happened to have some golf balls and some excess powder so we took it to the range to try it out. We shot out over a 350 acre field into a fairly stiff wind. I don't remember how much powder we used, probably around 80 grains. The ball took off like a scalded rabbit and then the wind caused it to curve to the right and the golf ball eventually landed in a lake to the right and behind us. That proved to me beyond a shadow of a doubt that even a cannon can't make a golf ball go straight.

Many Klatch

 

[TheDoubleD]

How do you know they went a mile, do you have a range that you can shoot and see a golf ball impact a mile away and then find them. If you do then you are lucky and I am Jealous!

 

[Darkgael]

A mile? Makes me wonder. Given the normal angle of elevation for a BP mortar, how high would the arc have to be for the range to be one mile?
How much powder? Ninety grains of FFg might possibly throw a .50 cal PRB a mile, maybe; a lead ball the diameter of a golf ball.....hmmmm. Seems that you'd need a pretty heavy charge.

Pete

 

[ozark57]

I have a hill a half mile away that is clear. The barrel was close to 5' long 304 stainless steel. The lead/steel projectiles as discribed earlier in this post weighed well over a pound. We fired aprox. 3 ounces of FFG. You could see point of impact easily. figuring trajectory was easy from that. The recoil would slide the angle iron frame back like a sled. It ws really loud!

 

[Pete G]

All of the KCW descriptions state
"trunnions set in milled pockets in barrel and J.B. Welded in place".
I would be leary of even signaling use.

 

[missionary5155]

Good morning
The question was raised about using "Ball Bearings" as a possible projectile.
I have fired .685 industrial electric motor ball bearings with standard shotshell (Win RED) wads in my specially choked Round Ball Fox B double barrel. If a high velocity Ball Bearing strikes an object it cannot penetrate or imbed it will fly off at whatever angle with much retained velocity.
I decided once to try some penetration tests. At 1600 fps the .685 Ball Bearing (BB) would penetrate 6"oak post and continue deeply into impact berm. Next was 1/2" colded roll steel... no problem & again deep penetration in bern. Next was an old standard 14" Ford tire rim. At 25 yards rim was struck so BB could pentrate the lapped welded two piece section of rim (about 1/2") . BB completly penetrated nearside, smacked far side with enough force to bulge & crack the double thickness moving the rim 3" in the dirt. The still moving BB bounced back digging under but nicking the rim and passing to my right about 3 feet. BB smacked the concrete blocks to my rear bouncing off those and continueing back down range somewhere with enough velocity to be audible.
I cannot recommend Ball Bearing as a cannon projectile unless you could positivly garentee the BB would always be stopped safely by a bern that would absorb it. Think about a pool ball bouncing off the table walls and you have a good idea what a BB is going to do. BB's are tough items to stop once they get moving. Mine were just .685 diameter... Imagine what a 1" (double the weight) BB would do.

 

This one has yet to be shot. I haven't considered 1" ballbearings, am leaning more toward a 1" "cannonball" fishing sinkler mold (Jann's Netcraft)and shoot fortified plaster balls. I built this on a whim thinking that I might someday build a scale gun deck to go with.
There is a fair sized Civil War shows in nearby Mansfield Ohia in May each year, lotsa' displays and historically correct data to pick from.
OTOH, I did have another 1" bore cannon that I shot on a regular basis at rendezvous. Ate waaaaay to much powder... :grin:
Yes, rope is for recoil....action/reaction... :shocked2:
R

Hail the camp!

When it comes to cannon fodder, you want to lean towards iron, steel or zinc. And away from lead. As we all know, lead is heavier than iron, steel or zinc and serves to increase chamber pressure and increase stress on the tube.

PS Sorry DD missed your post.

 

Good morning
The question was raised about using "Ball Bearings" as a possible projectile.
I have fired .685 industrial electric motor ball bearings with standard shotshell (Win RED) wads in my specially choked Round Ball Fox B double barrel. If a high velocity Ball Bearing strikes an object it cannot penetrate or imbed it will fly off at whatever angle with much retained velocity.
I decided once to try some penetration tests. At 1600 fps the .685 Ball Bearing (BB) would penetrate 6"oak post and continue deeply into impact berm. Next was 1/2" colded roll steel... no problem & again deep penetration in bern. Next was an old standard 14" Ford tire rim. At 25 yards rim was struck so BB could pentrate the lapped welded two piece section of rim (about 1/2") . BB completly penetrated nearside, smacked far side with enough force to bulge & crack the double thickness moving the rim 3" in the dirt. The still moving BB bounced back digging under but nicking the rim and passing to my right about 3 feet. BB smacked the concrete blocks to my rear bouncing off those and continueing back down range somewhere with enough velocity to be audible.
I cannot recommend Ball Bearing as a cannon projectile unless you could positivly garentee the BB would always be stopped safely by a bern that would absorb it. Think about a pool ball bouncing off the table walls and you have a good idea what a BB is going to do. BB's are tough items to stop once they get moving. Mine were just .685 diameter... Imagine what a 1" (double the weight) BB would do.

While I have been known to attempt to blow up a handgonne or two. And use a car door for a target. When it comes to fielding an artillery piece, one must always be aware of their backstop and what is down range. Live fire of any artillery piece, scale or full, it would be more than irresponsible of the handlers not to carefully choose their target and insure safety in all ways.

Having said that, there always seems to be some moron who ignores these issues or attempts to use a "pipe bomb" as a mortar or cannon. Knowledge is power, let's attempt to educate those interested in our hobby. And run like L for cover from those who ignore our warnings!

CP