blackpowder signal cannon

[colima]

I'm very new to black powder issues. I bought a Ruger Old Army at a gun show, but have not used it yet. I'm looking forward to having fun.

Then I bought the following item on eBay:

Vintage Brass Black Powder Signal Cannon - 1 1/8" Inch Opening

It came with no instructions.

So I thought I'd give it a try. I had some 777 from the ROA deal. I put 1 tsp into the cannon, stuffed some tissue in to hold it in place, added a fuse and - big disappointment. It just went PFFT and released a lot of white smelly smoke. This procedure I picked up from the web. Its not working.

Questions:
1. Do I need a different powder?
2. Do I need a stronger wad material? Not sure what to use, since I'm not really trying to shoot projectiles.

Any suggestions

 

[rcmodel]

You need real black powder. FFF or FFFF grade.

Now , here's the bad news!
I think That is not a shooting cannon, or a signal cannon.
Nor is it 'vintage'.

It is a newly made cast brass & cast aluminum replica meant for decoration on a coffee table or mantel.

BeWare of shrapnel if you do get it to go BANG with black powder!

It may contain the pressure.
Or it may not!

rc

 

[smkummer]

That might be the size for a golf ball. Start with about 100 grains of real black powder and I wrap masking tape around a wine bottle cork until it fits tight in the bore for packing. Lite fuse and stand 30 ft. away with protective eyewear on. I am shooting a 1" bore cannon and the charge is way more than that. So 100 grains is fine for a start and work your way up until you get the bang you want.

 

[4v50 Gary]

That coehorn mortar looks like a scaled down version of mine. Mine is beer can bore.

 

[zimmerstutzen]

That looks exactly like a mini mortar kit sold by Dixie gun works sold thirty years ago.

Contrary to the advice above, NEVER put ffff powder in that thing. I believe circle fly sell some very large wads that may fit and help with the boom. Or use a hole punch from an industrial supply house.
Also the bore probably has a powder chamber in the bottom of the bore. A reduced diameter chamber for powder. You want to use just enough powder to fill the chamber and not leave an air space between the powder and the wad. Probably about 40 grains.

Your charge would not boom because the paper did not hold the pressure back enough to create a sonic wave when the gun went off. A fiber wad will do that.

 

[CANNONMAN]

This could be fun!

The size is just wrong for a golf ball "mortar." But you could shoot 1" ball bearings. Problem is I can't tell what or how its made. So DON"T! You could shoot FFFF if you are NOT shooting anything but a wad. As a matter of fact, that's probably the only way your going to get a decent "signal" or boom out of it. Most of the stuff that looks like what you've got has a "charge" pocket in it. Look for a hollow at the bottom of it. If it's there, good for you. Fill the pocket, which is considerably smaller than the diameter of the thing, with BP F,FF,FFF,FFF. A small piece of 1" wood with a cotton or patch. Tap into place, never with steel. Tap with wood and a dead blow. Place fuse. Be safe. light fuse. enjoy results. Try different powder. Most of these are well over designed for the amount of pressure you might be able to attain. After much practice and study, order 1" bearings and enter new phase of mortaring. Duck hunting!

"A single successful endeavor is worth a thousand dreams." CANNONMAN

 

[zimmerstutzen]

As I recall, that is about the size of a "D" cell battery. I have one without the mount. I just never made a stand or fired it. (I have a few others to fire.)

Dixie Gun Works suggested getting a piece of pipe the same size and compressing wet newspaper into it and then allowing the wad of wet newsprint to dry into a wad. A slow process at best.

A cutter can be made from a hole saw. You need a hole saw with an inside diameter the same as the bore and then slowly, watching th o keep the heat down, grind the teeth away, making a sharp round knife type blade. Chunks of homosote can be cut to use as wads.

 

[colima]

Thanks

I knew I could get some insight here - thanks to all who replied.
I don't know about the Dixie gun works connection, but this cannon does indeed have a charge pocket at the bottom that takes close to 1 tsp of powder.
I suspected that more containment would be needed to make a boom. I'll see if I can't work something out. Several responders mentioned cutting fiber to size, but I'm not sure what kind of fiber is being referred to.

I'm on the West Coast, and we are in the middle of a serious drought. Things are really dry around here. The kleenex wad I tried before came out smoldering, so I definitely need something more fire friendly. I might be better off waiting until rainy season (if we have one).

Any notions on the legality of firing this thing?

 

[zimmerstutzen]

Legality depends entirely on your location.
I have inquired here in pa about firing my large cannon on holidays. I have received six widely different answers from have at it to you need a special state pyrotechnics license to it being an illegal explosive device

 

[CANNONMAN]

You need a hole saw

Go to any hardware store and buy a 1" hole saw. This is like a drill bit that drills out things like door knob holes in door. Get one that you can remove the centering bit. Next, wood as thin as a 1/2" will work. Drill out these cores [oh yeah, you'll need a drill!], wrap them in your wife's or girlfriend's friends favorite towels. That is, cut out a patch that is about 1 1/2" round. Place core in center of towel or patch. Fill charge pocket with your favorite BP. I'd start with cannon powder and work up to the F's. Don't over fill! Won't help anyway... Tip mortar up so as not spill charge pocket. Place wrapped core into mortar. Tap in, all the way in, with wood with something wood or plastic. Aim at something like the sky. Place fuse. Check surroundings anything that might not want to be burnt. {Patch might be slightly ignited from being blown up!} Light fuse and run away from wife or girlfriend who will be going off much louder than this type of mortar.

Buy wife or girlfriend new towels and repeat above steps. Enjoy life! CANNONMAN

 

[MikeJackmin]

I have two of the Dixie GW signal cannons, not like yours but very similar construction - a rough cast bronze barrel, and a screw-together aluminum frame. Mine are about 50 caliber.

Dixie says to use newspaper wadding only, and I agree that the rough castings may have voids or other weaknesses that would make them unsafe to shoot projectiles. I'd be careful what I used here, a burst barrel is basically a pipe bomb and a very dangerous thing.

Personally, I had no luck getting a good bang with newsprint, and like you, I didn't want smouldering hunks of paper around. I finally ordered some half-inch cork balls from Amazon, which will fit snugly when patched with a folded cigarette rolling paper. I charge mine with 2 .45acp cases worth for FFF and it gives a nice bang. The cigarette paper comes out smudged but not smouldering. I've never found a cork ball after it was fired.

The balls come if several sizes, they have 1" and 1 1/4 available here (priced from about 80 cents to a buck each):

http://www.widgetco.com/cork-balls-agglomerated

 

[zimmerstutzen]

In germany, they fire muzzle loading salute guns called Bollers, and the bores run 18mm to 40mm They fire standard wedge shaped corks Perhaps 5/8 inch think and narrower at the bottom than the top. Of course they really wack them with mallets to smash them in there.

check these sites for pictures of the salute guns and accessories

http://www.boellerkaiser.com/Boller...er/hauptteil_stangassinger_schaftboeller.html

http://www.boellerkaiser.com/Bollerpruefung/Bollerzubehor/hauptteil_bollerzubehor.html