Cannon powder

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Mr.Entropy has the right idea...its way cheaper to make cannon powder. U can screen press (instead of compressing pucks and corning) to save time and use less equipment. Atleast thats my advice.
 
Local garden stores dont have the type of charcoal needed for making black powder...you cant use charcoal briquettes or activated charcoal etc (& if it barely works it will be such low grade weak powder and a waste of ingredients) , and most sulfur found at these locations has 10% clay. Id suggest that you only get one ingredient there...and thats the KNO3. If you get sulfur make sure its pure, and make your own charcoal from a type of wood that will give you the performance expected of black powder. Theres lists online of these types of trees and one is bound to be local to u.
 
For a cannon, I wouldn't bother with sulfur. Just use 4 parts KNO3 and one part charcoal (by weight). Mill it, wet it, screen it, and let it dry. Fire/fuse will set it off.

Instead of looking around for trees, just get red cedar wood chips from the garden store. Cheap, and makes great charcoal for black powder. You can also go to your shed and pick a nice untreated 2x4 stud, chop it up and char it. Makes plenty powerful black powder, although leaves more fouling, but is great for shotgun and I would imagine cannon powder as well.
 
Mr.Noelf2, i absolutely agree...pine/spruce 2x4 board are great for blackpowder aside from making heavy fouling compared to other types of charcoal...i guess the fouling issue wouldnt be too much of a problem for a cannon.
 
I make it. I've been at it for a while. Got started here with questions and answers. Never went to any other of the sites here mostly because I was having way too much fun here. People are just the best. Though there are plenty of ,"You're going to shoot your eye out!" folks to skip. That being said, I really miss some of the folks who helped me get started. Brush Hippy [sic?] Officers' Wife. OFITG, 4V50 to name a few. Great support. Anyway, I feel your pain as I go through pounds and pounds of the stuff. I make my cannons, mold's for the shot and like making electronic fuses. Fun to watch the capacitor charge, flip the safety and fire! If you want to try it I'd be happy to help. I have my old ball mill and can show you how I made all the other parts. Like the lead balls for the mill. I make 2.2kg per batch. I screen to cannon. I have my cost close to $2.25/pound. If I puck and grind it's great for my .50. High grade KNO3 and Sulphur are readily available. I like a binder. The charcoal is really the key. Perhaps of interest, the receipt for BP was widely known. The receipt and art of the charcoal was the highly prized secret. A really high grade float charcoal is a simple chore. If you do want to try this, let me know, I'll send you the ball mill canister.
 
I recall an old website by a Swiss guy who went extensively into making BP. As I recall he stated that hazel or willow sticks made the best charcoal. The process was to place 6" pieces into a can with a lid that could be skewered in place. The can lid was punctured in the center and the can was cooked over the coals of a campfire. The off-gassing volatiles from the hole were ignited and allowed to burn off and after some time you had charcoal.
 
Mr. Old stumpy...thats making charcoal in a retort free of oxygen. Its how i make my charcoal for my bp. I use red alder...so far for me its given me better numbers than swiss and is just as clean, beats the black willow powder i made too. They say paulownia is by far the best for hot clean black powder....but i dont have access to it. Wish i did. A great long sticky is posted on the castboolits forum, its by far the best for info on making black powder. A gentleman by the user name of "Fly" is one of the forum members and is by far one of the most helpful and knowledgeable people ive come across. Hes also a retired machinist and makes great puck making dies for sale. I have one and it is a work of functional art and very high quality. Id advise anyone whos serious about getting into making black powder to check out the posting.
 
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Mr ratshooter there are no red alder trees here...i have mine sent to me by my friend Randy who owns http://realmontanacharcoal.net/ , he will sell you willow too. Great guy to work with and he can sometimes find specific woods if you inquire. A lot of people who smoke fish use red alder for the flavor. You can also buy red alder wood on amazon. Paulownia is easy to grow..and it grows very very fast. Ive been thinking about growing a couple trees because they would grow into huge monsters within a year in hot, hummid sunny south texas...but i havent put much energy and planning into it. One of my neighbors has a paulownia tree but they are the most unfriendly rude neighbors you can have...i doubt theyd let me have a few branches being as they have been rude to every person on the block...even when others have tried to just be neighborly. I once said hi and waved and he flipped me the bird and reminded me that he always carries a gun and will shoot anyone who sets foot on his property no matter who they are or how old or young...all this while i was getting my 3 year old autistic daughter out of the car. As much as it made my blood boil for him to make that comment meant as a threat ive just since decided its not worth the issues and drama to even interact with them. Ive traded with fly before...as a matter of fact i sent him some red alder to try out and he really liked it, chrono'd it and got numbers passing swiss. Fly at the moment doesnt have paulownia tho, i already hit him up for some :p
 
ANYBODY ever thought of asking the OP what kind of cannon he's using? Blanks or live fire? What are the projectiles?
BIG difference between a Rev War Cohorn, and a 6 lb Napoleon. We used to shoot 1/4 pound of cannon powder out of our Mountain Howitzer in ACW reenactments. 1/2 lb was used for 6 pounder field guns, and smaller stuff could easily get away with 1/4 pound. Even when shooting targets. Now going long range....that's a different matter

This
CIVIL WAR ARTILLERY.jpg

Uses more powder than one of these:
REV WAR CANNON.jpg

And this uses even less than either:
SWIVEL GUN.jpg

10 lbs. would be from 20 to 40 to perhaps 80 rounds (depending on the size of the tube used)
Telling the guy to make 75 lbs. of powder, might be 300 rounds worth, if he has a AWI "Galloper" gun. He has to take the time to make it, and if he FUBARS the situation he as zero ammo, when 10 lbs. might be 40 rounds and OTC powder delivered to his door he knows is going to work and takes him no time. ;)

PLUS a large number of jurisdictions prefer you not to have that much powder stored. A lot limit the amount of powder to 50 lbs. and some hold the line at 5 lbs. or 10 lbs.

LD
 
Alliant Black MZ is the cheapest powder around at $10 a pound. However, I'm not sure I'd want to use it in a cannon. It seems hotter in my revolvers than even FFFFg.

https://www.sportsmans.com/shooting...lliant-black-mz-muzzleloader-powder/p/1318670

I clicked on your link and went to the reviews. Somebody said the product was discontinued. Not sure if there's any truth to that. It did appear that I can still purchase it though if I put it in my shopping cart, although I did not. Got pretty good reviews.
 
I clicked on your link and went to the reviews. Somebody said the product was discontinued. Not sure if there's any truth to that. It did appear that I can still purchase it though if I put it in my shopping cart, although I did not. Got pretty good reviews.

Buy 10lbs like I did, should last a long time...
 
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