trunnion welding jig

[freekforge]

I am wanting to make some cannons since I have made a lot of mortars but very few cannons. The trunnions are what have always slowed me down (i am a horrible welder) but my cousin said he would weld some up for me so I figured I would make some before he leaves for his underwater welding training. I was wondering if any of you have a jig you use to weld the trunnions on straight and if you do can you post some pictures?

[de_lok]

freekforge,
If you use the method I developed over 20 years ago welding is strictly optional. I have posted pictures here before but will add them again. You simply drill and tap the center hole of your trunnion to depth and machine a tre-pan slot around it. Custom machine the trunnion to fit your slot. Torque in a set screw with red lock tite then torque on the trunnion with red lock-tite. The small gap/clearance between the trunnion and barrel can be filled in with a body filler (bondo) or JB Weld and sanded smooth. For me welding and polishing are only necessary if I plan to hot tank the finished barrel (bluing or black oxide, etc). Hope this helps...............

Dewayne






This is the cutter I use. It started out in life as a hole cutter but I custom ground
it to work like I wanted it to on my barrels.

[engineer]

Well sir, that's a fine piece of work! Seeing that kind of creative machine work puts a smile on my face. Thanks for sharing!