1/4 scale Napoleon

[Rifleman1776]

A true beauty and example of outstanding craftsmanship.

 

[BigCity]

That is awesome. May I ask how much you have invested in said project? If not, I understand

 

[Rich44]

That is awesome. May I ask how much you have invested in said project? If not, I understand

Way too much, till he looked in the mirror and saw his smile. then it was dirt cheap.

 

[zulu]

Rich44 is right. The secret is not to care how much time something takes. You can look at his perfect barrel he made and easily tell he just didn't care how long it took as long as it turned out how he was seeing it in his head.
My investment is time. A whole lot of time. It is not done until it looks like I see it in my own mind.
I buy the barrel and the wheels. They are not inexpensive at all.
This is what takes the time. Consider that every piece is hand forged and welded by me.

 

[zulu]

I have about 5 hours in just the 1/4 scale sponge bucket. Hard to believe? Try to make one yourself.

 

[zulu]

For informational purposes.
The Napoleon barrel I use is 27% size of the original full scale barrel.
The Napoleon was mounted on a #2 field carriage as opposed to the lighter Parrott and Ordnance barrels which were mounted on a #1 carriage.
The drawings for the #2 carriage can be found here (picture attached).
Every single piece that makes up the entire carriage can be found in these drawings. I took every drawing and scaled it down to 27%.
I made my own 27% drawings for every piece.
That makes the scale of my gun carriage as close to perfect as I can make it.
At 27%, there are a few very small metal pieces that I had to customize so they would fit. But there are not many.

The drawings can be found here.
Catalog #20 for the #2 carriage.

http://gunneyg.info/html/AOPCatalog.htm
The rest of it is only your willingness to put in the time. A few tools help also.
Barrel and wheels are fairly costly.

End product is a magnificent piece of artwork!

 

[shorthair]

I am so envious of your talent and dedication.

 

[Rockflyer]

You did an outstanding job on that project ! I've done a bit of forging and understand completely the time involved. The requirement to stay involved to the finish speaks volumes to your commitment !
You absolutely should be proud of your accomplishment !!

 

[Rich44]

Will I be making another cannon? Not sure, I would like to find a piece of Bronze large enough to machine one. Have made lots of cannons in my life from 11 years old to 78. The Naval cannon pictured was made in 1960 (age 14) at school. Barrel is about 11 inches long and has a 1 inch bore. Made a wood mold to cast the cast iron base, which is very heavy.

I like to be continually making something and have many home made items of metal and wood including furniture around the house. The list would be long. But as you know the time invested would never be regained in cash. My wife will pass my so called treasures to the children. And what happens then who knows. Nothing is marked made by me. Well except a model gasoline engine (31 years ago) that was machined completely (piston, rings, crank, flywheels, well everything but fasteners) from cast iron mostly and runs. The real value to me is being able to make just about anything I want. Also high on the list is my Tool & Die job which allowed me to teach other apprentices the trade.

Did just finish this sighting aid for the cannon. Helps to get it level as the tapered barrel can be difficult to judge. Probably not period correct, but helps in firing. Made of brass with vial from ebay. Pictured.

Now your cannon is much better than mine. You took the time and cost to get the prints. And scale them to your size. And the detail is incredible. What you have is a real heirloom that should be tagged. I would have to make a special wooden table to display it correctly. I judge you to be the master.

 

[zulu]

Rich44,
Your engine is a marvel! Wow!
I have access to almost any barrel drawings you might need. Let me know if you need something.
78 years old? I will turn 70 in 15 days.
Us old guys have to stick together. We are a dying breed.
Here is my biggest cannon carriage. At the Alamo supporting a 2240 lb. 16 pounder barrel that actually fought in the famous battle in 1836.

 

[Captndan]

I'm a little confused. Is it a sponge bucket or a grease bucket?

 

[zulu]

The sponge bucket hung under the cannon carriage and was used to sponge out the barrel after firing. The grease bucket was hung under the limber and used to grease axles.
Pictures of each.

 

[Captndan]

Thanks for the clarification.

 

[zulu]

Rich44 suggested that my 1/4 scale Napoleon needs a show table made specifically for it.
Well, I did it.
A few years ago someone gave me a bunch of untreated railroad ties which I had slabbed out.
I have no idea what the wood is. It's a hardwood and has some color in it.
I used some of it to make a display table for one of my Napoleon cannons.
The top is 54" long X 25" wide and 1.5" thick. The bottom is a little less than 1" thick.
It turned out nice.

 

[zulu]

 

[Rich44]

Now that is what I call class. What a nice job, you are the master craftsman for sure. I like the new display table and so will many others.

 

[TDM]

You definitely knocked it out of the park. Just Beautiful.

 

[appalichian hunter]

That a walrus tusk.

 

[zulu]

That a walrus tusk.

Yes it is.

 

[Rockflyer]

Your attention to detail is outstanding ! It leaves no doubt about the skills you have.