BP Howizter cannon , 60 cal. rifled

[Tru Griff]

About a year ago I found a cannon on ebay that really caught my eye. As many have probably noticed most there are desktop models and not very large. I've always had this thing for getting a full size cannon but for the type I've wanted I couldnt justify the price.

When I saw this one listed there were no second thoughts to buying it mainly because of it's size and the fact that it looked like a civil war mtn howizter even though the carriage isnt quite correct. Looking at the picture it looks to be brass but it's steel. The picture is what it looked like before a good cleaning and fresh paint on the barrel. The wood cleaned up to a nice grey color so i left that alone.

The problem I've had is trying to locate the maker. All it says that it was made in Spain and to use BP. It's not new and most likely a discontinued model. One person I showed it to suggested it may have been sold by C.V.A. and made by D.ka. . Can someone tell me more or direct me to D.ka. or who else may have made this?

Spec's to the cannon are:
.60 caliber, rifled
Barrel length excluding the trunion ball is 10 1/2 inchs
Barrel width excluding flared ends is approx. 1 7/8 inchs
Carriage wheels are 11 1/2 inchs in diameter.

The person I talked with had a 6 inch cannon and was shooting 1F powder at ? grain with a patched ball. Any suggestions as to what I should use with this size cannon? Would a 58 cal conical bullet work in this 60 cal ? I only ask because I have 2 boxs of unused 58 cal greased conicals. I would appreciate any and all remarks, thanks!

 

[DogBonz]

Sorry

I cannot help you out, but welcome to THR, and man is that thing cool.

 

[Tru Griff]

Thanks for the compliment and the welcome Dogbonz. You said the same thing I did when I first saw it lol. Hopefully someone will chime in and can give me some clues on it. I'm eager to hear it bark with the proper load.

 

[Jim K]

I think an unpatched .58 Minie ball would probably work OK. Dixie and others sell those cannons and they are neat. Some are accurate models, others sort of "generic."

Jim

 

[Stickjockey]

(By the way, TG, that "trunnion ball" is called the cascabel.)

 

[Tru Griff]

"I think an unpatched .58 Minie ball would probably work OK. Dixie and others sell those cannons and they are neat. Some are accurate models, others sort of "generic." Jim Keenan

Thanks Jim. Dixie is an hour an a half drive from here and I've been there a few times, checked out the cannons, even the car museum. Thats where I picked up my last Colt. I've looked at all there cannons in the building and the catalog. They have a cannon exactly like this one as a howizter but it's not the same size or have the carriage at all. It may even be a smooth bore and not rifled like this one is.

I've thought about making a trip up there but wanted to know what powder to buy since they dont ship it. If I did go I would take the cannon but I've done this in the past and if you dont catch certain people there you are out of luck. I could still get the powder though

-------------

(By the way, TG, that "trunnion ball" is called the cascabel.) Dave

I appreciate the correction Dave. I got the pivot pins (trunnions) confused with the cascabel. I'll try to remember that

 

[4v50 Gary]

Nice find. Try .590 or .595 Round ball. A minie is a bit undersized if it's really .60, but go ahead and compare it to the results with the round balls.

 

[Tru Griff]

"Nice find. Try .590 or .595 Round ball. A minie is a bit undersized if it's really .60, but go ahead and compare it to the results with the round balls."

Thanks Gary. According to a caliber gauge I have it shows it to be .60 cal. . I checked it to make sure it was accurate and it was smaller and showed 58 on my .58 cal Colt contract rifle.
Do you think I should still go with 1 F black powder? What do you think would be a good starting point as far as the charge load? I would like to make sure I dont end up with a plugged barrel because of too little of a load of powder. Thanks again!

 

[4v50 Gary]

2F. German jaeger rifles could be big bore and .60 is leaning towards small.

 

[Tru Griff]

Thanks Gary. I'll keep looking for the proper size charge. No idea what the german jaeger rifles were but will see if I can find them and one thats 60 cal so I can see what charge is recommended.

 

[Heinrich]

Here is my penny's worth.

Make yourself an aluminum foil "cartridge", firstly, it is practical to load, shoot, and carry, and it will not ignite because aluminum will not spark. Lastly, the aluminum will leave a microscopic trace of oxide in the barrel, serves as a lube surface.

Load a charge between 50-60gr FFg, with a wad, and a .595 RB.

Get yourself a rod the diameter equal to the bore diameter. Roll a little cylinder, close the one side, put in the powder charge, place the wad, and lastly drop in the ball. roll the open end closed.

Once loaded, and ramed home you can then prick the bag via the touch hole, prime and shoot.

We shoot these aluminum cartridges out canon in size from .50 caliber, all the way to a 4 pound field canon.

 

[Tru Griff]

Heinrich, thank you for the cartridge information. I will have to give that a try. By the way, really enjoyed your mortor firing pictures. The amount of fire from the report of your cannon was amazing. I've shot BP at night with a pistol and seen how much fire came out but looking at your pictures was just great. Appreciate the penny's worth