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What did I just bring home?


Coytee

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Yeah, it's 100 guesses time.

 

Just got back from spending several days in Beaufort, SC visiting with my father.

 

My wife is less than pleased with me.

 

What might this be?

 

More later!  Heading out to neighbors house.

 

Yeah, I know the pictures don't really tell you jack squat.  Deal with it!  

 

:emotion-21:

 

 

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1 hour ago, oldtimer said:

Dont encourage him.

 

 

 

Funny how you sound like my wife....

 

Here's another tease...

 

along with a hint.  Tchaikovsky is going to have nothing on me.

 

 

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Interesting to me how the second picture (in the first post) looks like a black hole perhaps?  Maybe something related with outer space?

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Here's the rest of the story.

 

It was probably 1967-1969 time frame.  My dad drove myself with him to some place in Indiana.  Turns out the guy made cannons.

 

He bought one.  We had this at the house as I grew up.....years later, parents divorced and it went with him.  He's had it all these years either at his home or at his office.

 

It is operational, guessing the muzzle to be about 2 1/2 inches wide.  We'd stuff a washcloth into the muzzle and it would fire that piece of fabric maybe 200' away.  He has since had some iron (?) balls made for it.

 

So, @oldtimer, I can now honestly say that I've got some heavy duty balls.....  

 

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Oh, and it was just about all I could do to lift this into the trailer, and then lift it back out when I got home.  I was lifting it alone and didn't stop to think that the barrel is hinged so the base would swing freely as I try to hoist it.

 

I put it on a dolly so now it's mobile until I can get (whatever is blocking it) the barrel cleared out.  It's almost like there's a cannon ball stuffed in there but it's stuck.  

 

Dad at 92 isn't messing with this....and his wife at 67/68 isn't interested in it cluttering up the house.....  so I brought it home with me today.  (left there at 4:30 A.M.)

 

 

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As I loaded it into the trailer and tied it down....  I didn't put any thought into how it was orientated.  Dad walks up....  says something like "You need to turn it around so it's facing the BACK so when someone tailgates you, you can open the doors to let them know they tailgate at their own peril"

 

(it was facing forward towards me)

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40 minutes ago, Edgar said:

Is that a horn-loaded cannon? We only allow discussions of horn-loaded cannon here.

 

It's now here at my house.  It's probably not been fired in decades (Dad said he had never fired it but that simply means he's forgotten.....  I personally was there on more than one occasion.  He gets a pass at 92)

 

None the less....  now that I've got it home and not listened to it.....  I've been reading on the internet about upgrading things like this.

 

I intend to take the wheels off and replace them with butyl rubber wheels.  That is supposed to better absorb the kickback.  It has an iron "wedge" that slides under the firing end of the cylinder so you can raise the BACK side of the cylinder which lowers the front side....sort of some aiming ability.  Internet says if I replace that with a resin wedgie, it will make the aiming process more supple.  

 

Then, the hot thing to do is to coat the bore with nikasil lining to better eject the projectile.  I've not yet come to a conclusion if the balls themselves need to be coated with nikasil.....  still researching that.  I'll p robably do it anyway.....  it's only money and upgrades are always good, right?

 

The wooden frame will be replaced with an all carbon fiber frame.  The recoil rope has simply rotted away.  Rather than replace it with another rope, I will upgrade it to some rubber strapping that is interlaced with steel reinforcement wire, WAY more cool as it's also a bright florescent orange and this color is supposed to better dampen the recoil shock.

 

I forget the name, but I might then paint it that "ultimate black" that makes everything look like it doesn't exist anymore.  This way, I can put it in the living room where my wife won't be able to see it....  I haven't thought this upgrade through however.....  I'm still perplexed on how she's supposedly not going to see it but I have to wonder if she can't still stub her toe on it and find it that way?

 

Anyway, those are my first round of upgrades for it.....  I'll have to report back later for the 2nd round of upgrades.

 

 

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Indeed.  I've read that if I replace the cotter pins holding the wheels on with YELLOW cotter pins, it will dramatically improve the accuracy.

 

What I'm troubled with is, how do I find yellow cotter pins.....  would gold work?  perhaps Krylon?  I've never seen a yellow cotter pin.

 

My cannon-nervosa-anxietymaximus is starting to take hold....

 

 

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