Video-Black powder cannon project

[Al Cummins]

I found this piece of pipe out in the scap pile so I thought I would try my hand at building a black powder cannon...I started with a piece of what I believe to be schedule 120 seamless pipe about 3 feet long and welded two 3/8s plates over the end and decided to test it before I did any more to it, so I put 250 grains of my powder in it and tamped a newspaper wad over it and boom! She barks pretty good! I went up to 350 but it was blowing the powder out before it could burn up...so 250 seems to be the sweet spot so far......there are some dirty words in this one so if that might offend you...dont watch...but if you want to see something extremely cool...check it out!
http://youtu.be/FvVB_7O86ZA

 

[trent/OH]

It's Mother's Day, and mamma always said if you can't say something nice about someone........

 

[Al Cummins]

Man am I glad you took your mommas advice...I just couldnt take another expert opinion, thanks for keeping it to yourself.

 

[TheDoubleD]

Accident looking for a place to happen...

 

Who lays a canon in a brush pile and fires it?

The "brush hippie", that's who. :rotf:

BTW, that's not a canon, it's a pipe bomb missing one end. :grin:

 

[Al Cummins]

Yea not the best piece of pipe...but got the right stuff comin schedule 120 4130 XXH....on its way.

 

[Ringel05]

I hope you're not planning on bringing it to some event, at least not without a load of liability insurance, three million should about cover it.........

 

[zulu]

Let me hold your wallet. You're going to blow yourself up.

 

[Al Cummins]

Well I got news for all you "going to blow yourself up" guys.... I havent, thats what they said when I started making black powder.... and for the nine hundredth time Im only shooting powder from it....hence the name signal cannon....dang I forgot why I dont hang around this sight, waaaaay too many experts.

 

[TheDoubleD]

We may not be experts, but some of us have a pretty good idea what we are doing.

You need to spend a little more time doing your research and learn about guns and cannons, how to make them and how to not make them.

For the record your cannon may never blow up and you may never have an accident.

How ever, every year we see the reports usually around 4th of July and New Year where some one with a "device" like yours has had a failure and persons have been maimed or killed and the first words out of their mouth are..."been shooting it for years without a problem." Blank firing signal guns are the ones that show up in these accidents most frequently. Accidents involving Projectile firing cannon made to recognized safety standards usually revolve around improper loading procedures and seldom involve burst barrel.
http://www.komonews.com/news/8331442.html
http://www.civilwarnews.com/artillerysafety.htm


Perhaps, you don't hang around here because you are unwilling to accept that even though your idea is sane, your methodology is not.

We will be most willing help you build something safe that you can have fun with and not endanger everyone around. First step no pipe, use extruded seamless tubing.

 

[Al Cummins]

Point taken DD you are correct it is not the correct tubing, and it is not assembled correctly.

 

[robinghewitt]

dang I forgot why I dont hang around this sight, waaaaay too many experts.

I got the same when I didn't realise you can load a cannon without standing in front of it???

Didn't worry me, hope it doesn't worry you. Folk who get real serious about shooting cannons forget that it is supposed to be fun :thumbsup:

 

[Al Cummins]

Man I mean fun! They will burn through some powder!

 

dang I forgot why I dont hang around this sight, waaaaay too many experts.

I got the same when I didn't realise you can load a cannon without standing in front of it???

Didn't worry me, hope it doesn't worry you. Folk who get real serious about shooting cannons forget that it is supposed to be fun :thumbsup:

Nothing puts an end to your "fun" like a stupid, deadly mistake.

 

[Al Cummins]

Well I wouldnt do it if I were you jack..... I get it, you think its stupid and dangerous ....I think you have covered it.

 

Well I wouldnt do it if I were you jack..... I get it, you think its stupid and dangerous ....I think you have covered it.

I wasn't referring to you. I was addressing Robins comment about - "Folk who get real serious about shooting cannons forget that it is supposed to be fun". The point is, you can have fun and still be safe. They are not mutually exclusive.

You don't have to choose between "serious" or "fun". However, some might say that if you're not serious, maybe you shouldn't play with homemade canons?

 

[Col. Batguano]

The point is, you can have fun and still be safe. They are not mutually exclusive.

You don't have to choose between "serious" or "fun". However, some might say that if you're not serious, maybe you shouldn't play with homemade canons?

Then again, there are always the Darwin Awards.

 

[robinghewitt]

I was addressing Robins comment about - "Folk who get real serious about shooting cannons forget that it is supposed to be fun".

I have a wife to tell me I am an idiot.

I have buddies to tell me that shooting my cannon is fun.

Somehow I expected to find buddies rather than wives on this list :idunno:

 

[zimmerstutzen]

Better that some of us cautious old "women" call someone an idiot than a WIDOW calling a person one.

I know I do things that cause some here to wince . So when someone causes me to wince, it must be bad. I have been loading and shooting cannons since I was 14. Even I did some really dumb stuff over the years. I survived, some didn't. Those of us that survived are just trying to make sure others don't repeat the mistakes of those who didn't survive.

In the past few years, we have seen smokeless muzzle loaders explode, a guy using a cigarette lighter to see if the touch hole is clear on a loaded gun. (RIP)
and numerous other incidents.

A piece of pipe is a bomb not a cannon.

 

[robinghewitt]

This isn't an attempt to safeguard a fellow cannoneer. When a group gangs up on one of it's own members it is something altogether different.

The American clinician Eric Berne could spot a game when he saw one and the game you are playing is called "Let's get Joey". It is not nice, I suggest you stop it.