Author Topic: A newbie question, Fg or FFg? (Read 949 times)

reddog · « **on:** March 13, 2006, 05:59:01 PM »

Hi all,

. The company I bought my cannon from said to use fg powder. My cannon is 1 inch bore[ 1.035 to be exact] I use A 1 inch dowel to make my aluminum foil cartridge. At 250 grains my cartridge is one and A half inchs long. I would like to try 300 grains then maybe 400[my cannon is rated for 438 grains max] if I go 400 my cartridge would be almost 3 inches long. I was wondering if I go with ffg would I get the same bang for half the size? :?

GGaskill · « **Reply #1 on:** March 13, 2006, 08:30:29 PM »

Are you firing shot or just a blank load?

reddog · « **Reply #2 on:** March 14, 2006, 03:23:08 AM »

Blank load, just wanna make some noise.

Double D · « **Reply #3 on:** March 14, 2006, 06:01:11 AM »

Stick with the FG.

Who rated your cannon a 438 Grs?

reddog · « **Reply #4 on:** March 14, 2006, 06:29:07 AM »

DD, the powder chart at cannon-mania on thier how to load page

Double D · « **Reply #5 on:** March 14, 2006, 06:52:03 AM »

Cannon Mania's recommendation scare the pants off me. Get a copy of the More complete Cannoneer and use that load chart. Go to the top of this forum and look for a Cannon shooting resource post and you will find a Link there to Matt Switlik's site where you can order the book.

reddog · « **Reply #6 on:** March 14, 2006, 07:33:54 AM »

Thanks DD, I thought 438 grains was alot too. right now I'm working with 250 grains then work up gradualy until I get a good boom. but I wont try 438 grains.

Double D · « **Reply #7 on:** March 14, 2006, 08:11:01 AM »

You are only going to get so much boom untill you start plugging the bore with a projectile. Whether it is an over powder wad or a round ball. Even loose flour. It still will be a projectile of sorts. What ever you stick down the bore over the powder is going to raise pressure and fly out the bore with velocity.

More powder won't make the windows rattle, it will just waste money.

Artilleryman · « **Reply #8 on:** March 14, 2006, 08:22:39 AM »

I have found that if you raise the muzzle (full scale 10pdr Parrott) that you get a louder report than if you have the barrel level. I wonder if you would get a louder report shooting it off a raised platform.

Eddiehorror · « **Reply #9 on:** March 15, 2006, 10:54:08 AM »

We get a good boom at my festival with a 100gr load big barrel rifle when fired off a 15 foot high wall. One of our tech said it is because the ground actually absorbs sound. So when you shoot up it makes more noise. and when you are raised it takes it out of the equation.

Cat Whisperer · « **Reply #10 on:** March 15, 2006, 12:37:23 PM »

Quote from: reddog

Hi all, . The company I bought my cannon from said to use fg powder.
....
I was wondering if I go with ffg would I get the same bang for half the size? :?

Faster powder = higher pressure.

If you violate the recommendation of the manufacturer you're on your own, although you MAY get away with it. And then again maybe not.

The only way to know, is to test two identical barrels - the first on increasing by increments untill it fails. Then back off an increment and test the second one repeatedly at that charge until it fails - then you know how many rounds at that charge the cannon will handle. Use the third one, but don't load that heavy or shoot that many rounds and you'll likely be OK.