Kings Howtizer Build

[buzz]

last time i had to do this i used a medal can and some charcoal i put in a copper line to the compressor and low pressure i used to blow the coals hot burned off is a nicer touch then acid wash
I just finished my cannon and so impressed with your biuld very nice job

 

[threepdr]

I finally got the capsquares fitted. Now She is all taken apart for sanding and painting. Hopefully I'll post a pic of a reassembled and painted gun in the next few weeks. I'm hoping the winter weather will stay warm and dry for a few days straight!

 

[BillinOregon]

Oh, man, that shop is way too neat and clean. No wonder your build is immaculate!
:grin:

 

[threepdr]

Bill, thats the new shop. I have'nt had time to trash it yet. You ought to see the other one. . .

 

[threepdr]

I got the main portion of the carriage painted and reassembled. The cold damp weather is slowing my painting scedule! The wheels have been primed and hopefully I'll get to paint them soon. There are some scuffs from assembly and the bolt and nut heads need a touch up. I'll do that after the whole thing is together. I'm looking forward to shooting this thing!

 

[threepdr]

Finally done! All painted and back together. Now to make the rammer, sponge and other implements.

 

[lonehorseman]

Wow!!!

 

[BillinOregon]

Yeah, WOW! What a nice build, Threepdr. Can't wait to see you shoot it and for that barrel to earn some patina!

 

[jimikinz]

Knowing nothing about cannons...I was wondering: is that size ration between the cannon itself and the carriage typically how they are "set-up"?

From an uneducaetd eye, it looks like the cannon is "too small" for the carriage...?
As the bore size increases does that ratio decrease so that the cannon is realatively larger in comparison?

Curious,
Jim

P.S> beautful piece of work. Craftmanship shows no matter if you are versed in the subject at hand or not!

 

[bnail]

I was wondering the samething myself. that is a BEAUTIFUL piece of work!
I was kind of wondering how that would look on a grasshopper carraige :hmm:

 

[BillinOregon]

Guys, I'm sure Threepder will jump in, but in the case of the king's howitzer, the barrel did seem disproportionately small compared to the size of the carriage. But I suspect this made the weapon very nimble in actual use. I believe this one is in perfectly authentic scale. With later guns like the mountain howitzer, the barrel is much larger in proportion to the carriage.
Remember, too, that if the carriage gets too small, it will not be stable in even slightly uneven terrain when pulled behind a horse at more than a walk. That is is, there is sort of a "maximum minimum" size for a horse-drawn carriage.

 

[Joel/Calgary]

I'm not familiar with the originals, but bear in mind that this is a howitzer, not a gun-howitzer like many of the later types were, and it needs to be able to super-elevate to fire in near-mortar mode, while still using a quoin under the breech for elevation adjustment.

Regards,
Joel

 

[threepdr]

"From an uneducaetd eye, it looks like the cannon is "too small" for the carriage...?"

Jim, You are right. No King's Howitzer carriages have survived and there are no detailed descriptions of the carriage from the period. Most scholars believe that they were a scaled down version of the British 8 inch or 5.5 inch howitzer. This barrel is about 17.5 inches long. If I scaled it directly from a Brit 8inch howitzer, the wheels would only be about 28 inches in diameter. (These are 32 inches)

Another issue in speculating what these looked like is how well a grown man can operate the gun. Scaled to a 28 inch wheel, the gun would just be too small to operate without doing it on your knees. With a slightly larger wheel at 32 inches, it can be loaded and operated while standing. So using common sense, the gun still fits the period description of weighing 250lbs or less, but can be sponged and loaded comfortably.

So, yes indeed, the scale of the carriage is slightly larger than the scale of the tube.

Does that all make sense?

Mark

 

[jimikinz]

Got it. Very interesting stuff. You learn somthing new every day! Thanks.

 

[rkmeyer]

From where I'm sitting "IT IS ON FINE CANNON" and a job very well done! :hatsoff: :thumbsup: :surrender:
Dusty

 

[BillinOregon]

Mark, when you gonna touch her off???

 

[threepdr]

I finally fired the little Kings Howitzer. Grand kids were visiting this week so I let them have the first shots on July 4th. For their safety I used fuse instead of lintstock. I used a half charge of about 1.5 oz of cannon grade powder. The last shot has a aluminum foil cylinder with about 2 cups of light potting soil. The report and recoil was three fold. Looking forward to firing it with a ball. Try the youtube link below for a short vid.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JDQwbnW7XnM&feature=youtu.be

 

[Bon Sauvage]

That is sooooo nice!

 

[cynthialee]

You are one cool grandpa. Wish my grandpa woulda had a cannon. :hatsoff:

 

[DTCoffin]

Very nice, the you tube video really enhances the whole thing.