Krackpot Kannon Koncepts

[cannonmn]

Start here, then just page down, there are maybe 20 or so illustrations of various new cannon concepts being considered ca. 1872, many breechloading.  Some are very impractical or appear impossible to produce.  A few will work, such as the Krupp.  I've never seen most of these drawings before.  Have fun, they continue until about page 493.

http://books.google.com/books?id=-p0FAAAAQAAJ&printsec=frontcover&lr=#PRA1-PA346-IA1,M1

[Cat Whisperer]

Cool reference.

Sometimes things that are very impractical give lead to the next design which works.

[KABAR2]

I see one of your patent models shown in there, and there are several which use Armstrong's breech design with a small twist, one a hinged breech block
like a Snyder Enfield,  the one's that are most bizarre are two designs with holes bored all over the cannon tube (weigh reduction?) if one of these fails
it will really put on a show!

[cannonmn]

That's Terrell's Perforated Barrel cannon, I kinda wondered about it to but didn't stop to read the descriptions of how it is supposed to work.  Maybe since each hole is nozzle-shaped it produces thrust that is supposed to make the barrel stronger.  I agree, firing it would be quite a show.

That's tne Nathan Thompson design you mentioned that's shown in one of my patent models.

[guardsgunner]

Merril (of civil war breechloading firearms fame) also had a rear tilting breech design somewhat like that of Kabar's gun. Maybe the later patent started here.

 http://www.google.com/patents?id=UvJeAAAAEBAJ&pg=PA2&dq=breech+loading+cannon+merrill&as_drrb_ap=q&as_minm_ap=1&as_miny_ap=2009&as_maxm_ap=1&as_maxy_ap=2009&as_drrb_is=q&as_minm_is=1&as_miny_is=2009&as_maxm_is=1&as_maxy_is=2009&source=gbs_selected_pages&cad=0_1

[cannonmn]

The Merrill's model looks a little different from the drawings, but you can still recognize it.  If I remember I'll put up photos here later, photobucket is doing maintenance now.  The actual model was confiscated by the Union, along with Merrill's rifles from his office in Baltimore in 1861.  It took him a few years to get it all back, the last thing returned was the cannon model, in about 1865.

[Victor3]

 Although not the strongest (and prone to gas leakage), I like the basic idea of E.A. Sutcliffe's design on page 438.

[cannonmn]

Here's Merrill's model.  Sorry no powder can when I took the pix but the model is large for a cannon model, about two feet long, a foot high, and around 10 inches wide.  It weighs around 80 lbs. and is rifled.  The rifling's hard to see because I'm sure the model was fired to demonstrate it, and it is somewhat worn down.

A friend of mine who is a Merrill rifle expert has found about a dozen documents in the National Archives that mention this exact model, since Merrill had to write many letters over a few years to get back.  He also found an article in the Baltimore Sun paper from 1861 that mentioned the US confiscating it along with the other weapons.  He has a list of the Merrill rifles that were confiscated, by serial number, and was recently able to buy one of the rifles on the list, for an ordinary price since the seller knew nothing about its history.

Merrill paid about $5000. to have this model made around 1859.  I wonder how much money that is today?

[guardsgunner]

Connonmn,
   Now that is something I will have to build someday so that I can have a complete Merrill set. We are in the middle of converting 3 Mississippi's and 1 1842 to the Merrill system and have recently sold a nice Merrill rifle. However the price anything but ordinary.
   I do not think that it would be any weaker that the other screw breechloading system and Merrill would have used a copper ring/gasket on the cone as a seal as he did with his rifles and carbines to prevent gas leakage. It appears that he dropped the operating arms to move the swivel breech up and down.
  Very interesting. Thanks for the pictures.

Bob
   

[Victor3]

That's Terrell's Perforated Barrel cannon, I kinda wondered about it to but didn't stop to read the descriptions of how it is supposed to work. 

 The holes are in the outer casting, into which a steel bbl sleeve (no holes) is inserted. Maker claims that his design is not as prone to bursting due to some kind of stress relief that the holes provide.

 Cannon board wrote back to him and basically said phooey on your holy cannon design; go peddle your papers elsewhere.

 Maker then wrote a several page long rebuttal to their cool response, telling them his cannon was the bees knees.

[Victor3]

 There's an interesting article (submitted by Krupp along with his proposal) about the manufacture of Krupp cannons and shells on pages 399 - 400.