Bowling Ball Cannon

[motocam25]

I saw 2 of them at the Oklahoma full auto shoot, and I have to have one. They were made from cut down compressed gas cylinders and using cannon locks for ignition. I have secured a couple of tanks. I thought I would seek advice here before I get started. Any experiences? Thanks!

[Cat Whisperer]

motocam -

WELCOME to the board!

You will find a thread or two or three on bowling ball mortars.  Do a search and see what turns up.

Your cylinders must be large enough on the inside to swallow a bowling ball.  This REQUIRES a circumference of something over 29" (I'd trust what's posted over trusting my memory for the exact dimensions).

A powder chamber is in order, to take the peak pressures, then the rest of the tube guides the ball under much reduced pressure.

You'll find good folks here that will pitch in on the process of making it.

Thanks for checking here, I hope we live up to your expectations of safety and soundness of mind.

[motocam25]

Thanks for the nice welcome. I look forward to learning from others experiences, and hopefully adding some of my own.

[Double D]

Got to our  References: Books, the web, and "How to build ..."  stuck to the top of the and you will find a link to bowling ball mortars.   Also further down inthe post under the subject" Bore Size of commonly used items for cannon projectiles:" you will find this:


A bowling ball gun with proper windage would need a minimum bore of 8.815 inch.
Circumference of a bowling ball.  Max 27.002 inches.  27.002 xi .31831 = 8.595 maximum diameter of a bowling .  (8.595/39)x40= 8.815 inches http://www.topendsports.com/sport/tenpin/dimensions.htm