I was watching another one of those fact filled shows that had some cannon stuff in it. They were talking about these cannons that were used in the civil war - really pretty brass jobs! - and made the statement that the rate of travel had a lot to do with why these were so important to the war. If I recall, and as I recall my recollection ain't so good these days, they said 1,200ft/sec. And i think they were 12 pounders! 12# of lead coming at you faster than a .45! WOW! I plan on chronoing as soon as I find out what I did with a lost upright to my chrono. In the mean time, how fast do cannons shoot balls? How fast were the early 3#ers going? I'd be interested in any cannon in any time period or war. OH yeah! the pictures. This ball was 2.75" shot with 5oz my home made BP and shot at a sandstone cliff 350yds away. This thing is sheared in half. Most of these pretty much splatter against the cliffs. Right now I have no idea about their speed. Any guesses?
How fast should my cannon balls be going?
- Thread starter CANNONMAN
- Start date
- Status
72coupe
Member
These little howitzers shoot a 40 pound projectile at 2800 fps but they don't use black powder.
CaptTripps
Member
- Joined
- May 21, 2015
- Messages
- 284
I can;t help with the speed question but I wanted to say I think its awesome, playing with cannons as a hobby, how did you get started in that? I have been to Gettysburg Battlefield a few times and in one of the museums, there is a display of a large brass cannon, split down the barrel. Really neat stuff.
WestKentucky
Member
Just went up a few notches on bucket list.
splattergun
Member
"The breaching power of the 10-inch 300-pounder Parrott rifled gun, now about to be used against the brick walls of Fort Sumter, will best be understood by comparing it with the ordinary 24-pounder siege gun, which was the largest gun used for breaching during the Italian War.
The 24-pounder round shot, which starts with a velocity of 1,625 feet per second, strikes an object at the distance of 3,500 yards, with a velocity of about 300 feet per second. The 10-in rifle 300-pound shot has an initial velocity of 1,111 feet, and has afterward a remaining velocity of 700 feet per second, at a distance of 3,500 yards.
From well-known mechanical laws, the resistance which these projectiles are capable of overcoming is equal to 33,750 pounds and 1,914,150 pounds, raised one foot in a second respectively. Making allowances for the differences of the diameters of these projectiles, it will be found that their penetrating power will be 1 to 19.6. The penetration of the 24-pounder shot at 3,500 yards, in brick work, is sic 62 (misprint for 6.2) inches. The penetration of the 10-inch projectile will therefore be between six and seven feet into the same material.
To use a more familiar illustration, the power of the 10-in rifle shot at the distance of 3,500 yards, may be said to be equal to the united blows of 200 sledge hammers weighing 100 pounds each, falling from a height of ten feet and acting upon a drill ten inches in diameter.
— The Washington Republican, August 12, 1863"
quoted from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parrott_rifle
The 24-pounder round shot, which starts with a velocity of 1,625 feet per second, strikes an object at the distance of 3,500 yards, with a velocity of about 300 feet per second. The 10-in rifle 300-pound shot has an initial velocity of 1,111 feet, and has afterward a remaining velocity of 700 feet per second, at a distance of 3,500 yards.
From well-known mechanical laws, the resistance which these projectiles are capable of overcoming is equal to 33,750 pounds and 1,914,150 pounds, raised one foot in a second respectively. Making allowances for the differences of the diameters of these projectiles, it will be found that their penetrating power will be 1 to 19.6. The penetration of the 24-pounder shot at 3,500 yards, in brick work, is sic 62 (misprint for 6.2) inches. The penetration of the 10-inch projectile will therefore be between six and seven feet into the same material.
To use a more familiar illustration, the power of the 10-in rifle shot at the distance of 3,500 yards, may be said to be equal to the united blows of 200 sledge hammers weighing 100 pounds each, falling from a height of ten feet and acting upon a drill ten inches in diameter.
— The Washington Republican, August 12, 1863"
quoted from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parrott_rifle
I got started back in High School when I made my first cannon. The shop teacher told me it wouldn't work. So I poured in about a 1/2oz of something I bought at a gun store and put a bottle rocket fuse in it. One more thing, I filled the thing with a bunch of scrap metal for some odd reason. With the teach next to me, I benched viced it up and had it pointed to the scrap box. This is a 4x6' made entirely of steel. I lite the fuse. I was told the principle heard it some three floor up and in an entirely different wing of the school. The teacher made up something to keep his job and for some reason cannons were no longer to be made. There was a 15" hole in the scrap box. I don't know if he ever explained that. Now some 40years later. I still wanted to make a cannon. Semi-retired and time to have learned a bunch of life lessons regarding safety and how not to blow oneself up, I made a golf ball mortar. Cute! It will punch out a ball so fast it's hard to see much less find. Then came a night adult gunsmith class. I started to make cannons! I've made quite a few but as it turns out the cannon is the easy part. It's the making of everything else that takes soooooo much time. But in the meanwhile, I've learned to make gun powder - thanks in most to the good folks of THR - , my own balls, recently electronic fuses. This hobby could not be more fun!
kBob
Member
72coupe,
Try 494 meters per second or just shy of 1621 fps.
I just trotted down to the library and pulled *WCXXS, HB ,Dec 80, Field Artillery Cannon Weapons Systems and Ammunition, Handbook, issued to cannon battery officers in training.
That is what is listed under M102. I loved those guns and they could flat out shoot......but the folks higher up really wanted those darned 155mm M198s every where a towed gun could go. Some one was not thinking as those big guys weighed almost five times as much.
I have a picture taken with a little instamatic from just behind the ring on the trail as the gun fires that you can see the HE round headed down range in.
You might want to check your projo weight as well.
It has been a long while, don't sweat it. I had to look it up.
-kBob
Try 494 meters per second or just shy of 1621 fps.
I just trotted down to the library and pulled *WCXXS, HB ,Dec 80, Field Artillery Cannon Weapons Systems and Ammunition, Handbook, issued to cannon battery officers in training.
That is what is listed under M102. I loved those guns and they could flat out shoot......but the folks higher up really wanted those darned 155mm M198s every where a towed gun could go. Some one was not thinking as those big guys weighed almost five times as much.
I have a picture taken with a little instamatic from just behind the ring on the trail as the gun fires that you can see the HE round headed down range in.
You might want to check your projo weight as well.
It has been a long while, don't sweat it. I had to look it up.
-kBob
Cannons didn't generally shoot lead balls, usually all steel, or cast iron. Been doing a bit of research on cannons lately, got a 1/2 scale 6 pounder finally being shipped this week from Greystar. 1.5" bore 34" barrel, then to make an authentic carriage for it.
WestKentucky
Member
I'm liking the idea of golf ball mortars and cannons. Heck of a way to play the next company scramble...oh how fun that would actually be. My HR manager teases me about carrying, so this spring I put a shotgun buttstock in my bag just for grins. The clubhouse sent out folks to inspect my bag, I was asked to put it in the truck...I didn't tell them that the entire scramble team was packing concealed. Seriously...small mortar for escaping sandraps sounds incredible.
elhombreconnonombre
Member
There was a fellow back three years ago at a local Austin gun show that was selling "golf" ball cannons with with a full wooden gun carriage and 36" wooden steel rimmed wheels and all the loading tools for $695 each.
The barrel was made from high pressure drill stem tubing. I could gave sold the Le Mat I bought that day for $250 and resold it for $700 to another dealer there and I would have had me a cannon, but no where to shoot it.
Ive been looking for him ever since.
The barrel was made from high pressure drill stem tubing. I could gave sold the Le Mat I bought that day for $250 and resold it for $700 to another dealer there and I would have had me a cannon, but no where to shoot it.
Ive been looking for him ever since.
The night gun smith class is the most fun I've had with my pants on since... uh... my prostrate started to compete with the size of a .... well anyway, it's a lot of fun. I really don't belong there but the night machinist course, a precursor to the gun smith class, did not make. However, the instructor, having seen the genius in my hidden abilities, [Oh stop laughing!] allowed me to take the gun smith course. [Along with anybody who wanted to take it for any reason.] So there are a group of guys who have a compost set of knowledge and skill that have taken this class since its inception some 2 -3 hundred years ago. OK, sorry about that. The instructor will even tell the class that this group has taken this class more of the then he has taught it. A lot of times these guys have no project but as a good-'ole-boys club, go and help anyone with what ever they are doing. This makes it awesome! Side note: After class these guys go out to the local Village Inn and have apple pie together. A lot of older rifles get a lot of upgrades and modifications. They mostly teach me how to not hurt myself or break things. The cannon that's pictured in my latest post was made on a $40,000 lathe. Who gets to do that? The class only cost about $125 and you get all the steel or aluminum ya care to use. 4140 or aircraft aluminum... nice! What was very unexpected for me was that the making of the cannon was the quick and easy part. It's the rest of the thing that eats time. This looks like the last semester the class will be offered. A sign of the times. As I understand, this may be the only college campus with a gun smith class. I only wish I had started taking it years ago. I plan on getting my own mill and lathe some day. I wish I could take a greater knowledge base with me when I do acquire one. I know some of you are machinist and would love to hear your comments on how to become self taught and/or what you would choose for a mill and lathe. For the purpose of refining the use of BP of course. Last, I know look at my first effort, the golf ball mortar and see the sub-sophomoric skill set that created it. If I remember I post a shot of it.
Gaucho Gringo
Member
The original cannons shot stone cannon ballls made by stone masons.
- Status
Similar threads
