I'm buying a Cannon

[Birdgun]

Yes, I have a firing cannon on it's way to my house.

True, it's small. Only 4 inch long and fires .177 BB's. But it looks to be a hoot to shoot. And, I'll be able to shoot it in my own back yard, without having to go to a range.

Video.
I do not approve of the alcohol abuse and destruction of other fine stuff in this video. However, I do plan on standing up some carrots in three ranks, like Napoleonic soldiers. Maybe even stick some toothpick in them to mimic muskets.
[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tAoSikxY66I[/ame]

Can't wait to shoot this little M6 Field Cannon.

God bless,
Birdgun

 

[Echo40]

That looks like it would be insanely fun to mess around in the backyard with.

 

[Iggy]

I had one in which the barrel weighed 75 pounds and it fired 35 MM film cans filled with cement or half pound lead wadcutters that would go through a pickup cab at 100 yards. It was a 1/3 scale replica of the 12 pounder main guns on Old Ironsides.

Also had a Coehorn that would fire V-8 Juice cans filled with cement.
It would lob them a good 300 yards.
Had a friend that had a bowling ball mortar too.

They were a hoot. I was the Earl of Chugwater, Chief of Artillery, (I was the only one with a cannon) in the 69th Irish Poltroons.

We had a couple of road apple artillery barrages at ronyvoos.. I also fired the ashes of departed buckskinners out over the mountain side a few times.

 

[Absalom]

There is a place in this country where people put ice in their red wine?

Cool gun though. Should be a ton of fun. Personally I like the naval model.

Maybe this will become the next big thing in really hardcore varmint shooting

 

[moosedog]

I like it. I need a magnum model.

 

[Gripgrabber]

Very cool, here’s my magnum!!!!
Semper paratus

 

[jtcarm]

That must've been some bad coffee.

 

[steelslaver]

My model cannon. Cannon is a bit over 13"long, 2" OD at widest, .75 bore.
Oak carriage with 6" wheels, and used slices of 6" pipe for rims.

I keep looking for the right piece to make one that fires the small juice cans full of concrete. The full meal deal that fired a 48" can might make some of the people I make nervous a bit to nervous. LOL

 

[Frank46]

Ihave a '4 section of 40mm anti aircraft barrll sitting in my garage and maybe in the next 100 years it will ready to shoot. Sad part is due to the nature if the steel it cannot be welded upon. Breech is no problem but the part over the breech can be threaded. Oh

 

[Birdgun]

I received my little cannon in the mail today. I set up an artillery range on my patio and fired a couple of shots. The second shot is in the facebook video below.

Many cannons were rated by the weight of the ball they fired. I weighed one of the gun's cannon balls. The ball weighed 8.2 grains. So my gun must be an 8-grainer!

Watch the fall of the shot. On the target, look at the 10-ring at about 4-5 o'clock.

Facebook

This little gun has put a giggle on my face. I'm just a little boy trapped in an old guy's body.

God bless,
Birdgun

 

[nachogrande]

CANNONS ARE WAY COOL.

Our gun club has an organized cannon shoot a few times a year. They drag an old car or 2 out to 200 yards & shoot at it with anything from golf balls to bowling balls & anything in between. The bowling balls move slow enough to see them in flight. Better than the machine gun shoots, IMO. Congrats.

 

[Muley Gil]

If y'all enjoy cannons, you need to attend a North-South Skirmish Association National skirmish at Fort Shenandoah near Winchester, Virginia. National skirmishes are held the third weekend in May and the first full weekend in October.

We shoot every firearm from the War of Northern Aggression from cap-n-ball revolvers to full size field pieces and mortars.

 

[Eddietruett]

A local gunsmith around here built a cannon back in the late 70's and I'm guessing from memory it had about an 18-20 barrel. Smooth bore and was made to shoot golf balls. Didn't think without rifling it would be a joke, but the dimples on the golf balls made it a lot more accurate than you would think. We had a hoot shooting it. Bored it out of a piece of solid stainless bar stock. always planned on rounding it with taper to appear like a cannon but don't think he ever did. Might have had the only square cannon ever made but I doubt it.

 

[jack the toad]

Cannons can be a hoot to shoot.
And not to hijack but...
A few years ago I had a full scale firing replica of a Woodruff (smallest arty piece fielded during CW) that I reluctantly swapped toward a nice t-bucket roadster (will try to find pics of both) and then sold the roadster after back surgery since it was difficult getting in and out. Wish I had my cannon back now...

Lovett Artillery - Woodruff Gun (2 Pounder) American Civil War

The Turner Brigade: The Woodruff Gun

Although I never fired any projos (only salutes on certain holidays or when g-kids wanted to), it no doubt could've.

I also didn't find it but have seen a vid of whitetail after being shot with muzzle-loading cannon using 1" grape shot. IIRC, it was a 6 lb. Napoleon and very effective.

 

[Absalom]

....We had a hoot shooting it. Bored it out of a piece of solid stainless bar stock. always planned on rounding it with taper to appear like a cannon but don't think he ever did. Might have had the only square cannon ever made but I doubt it.

Quite a few of the full-size replica cannon you see at Civil War reenactments these days have tubes that started out as surplus naval gun barrels from decommissioned scrapped vessels. Cut those down to the right length, and you can be sure to have a barrel that won’t blow apart on you. When I was active in the hobby back in the 1990s, we had several of those around.

 

[Mike SC Hunter]

Now a cannon in the front yard. Aimed down the driveway would be a nice people determent.

 

[44wheelman]

Growing up, stepfather had a half gauge naval cannon. Little V-8 cans fit perfectly. 1 can of cement, 1 can motor oil, one can gasoline....and load.
First the gas hit the air an ignited...you feel the heat and a big white light. The oil made white billowing smoke rings & clouds that rolled across the back yard. Then the whistling of the concrete through the trees & leaves to complete the re-enactment....it was just too cool.

 

[Rayfan87]

A few years ago I was into desktop size cannons, haven't fired them in a while. I have a few around ranging from .32 to .54 cal. They were mostly kits I ordered online, one is a Dahlgren a forum member made a run of.

 

[Narragansett]

Years ago, a friend of mine had one that we used to fire dead D cell batteries out of. You could hear them crashing through the trees a hundred yards away. Dixie Gun Works has a bunch of them

 

[Birdgun]

I have posted on YouTube a video of shooting my BB firing mini cannon. It is just too much fun.
(No alcohol was abused in the making of this video.)
[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4RI7xqamxw[/ame]

God bless,
Birdgun