10 inch 1861 style mortar questions

[entsminger]

Hi, I'm a newbee to this forum so please bear with me. I am very interested in owning a full size 10 inch 1861 style mortar cannon and am wondering if there is anyone on this forum who owns one or knows of anyone who has and shoots one? I see that Paulson Brothers Ordnance sells one for around $10,000 but I can't afford that much now so I'm wondering if one can be had for less anywhere? They look like they must be fun to own and also shoot so any help will be appreciated.

  Scott Springston
  Arlington Va

[CAV Trooper]

Scott,

Welcome to the board.  

One of the other guys will know for sure but in the time I've been here, I haven't heard of anybody that has a mortar that big.

While it would be cool, there are several things that would keep me from owning one:

1. The tube alone weighs almost 1900 pounds. Add the base and you're into the 1 1/2 to 2 ton range. Transporting it would be problematic at best.  

2. It uses LOTS of powder which gets expensive. (During the War of Northern Aggression, a war shot was 4 POUNDS of powder behind an 87 pound exploding shell)

3. You need a REALLY large area to shoot it. (Range with the stated load was 2100 yards which equals 1.2 miles)

4. 10" ammo (solid) will be very difficult, if not impossible to find.

5. The most important thing though is that the mortar you mentioned is a antique and very likely wouldn't be safe to fire.

A while back, South Bend Replicas cast an 1841 10" Seacoast mortar for a special order. Call them and talk to J.P. Barnett the owner. I'm sure he'll be happy to fill you in on all of the details.

If you decide that starting out with something a bit smaller and less expensive is a good idea, we can certainly help you out.

[Evil Dog]

Hern Iron Works has come out with one in bowling ball size.. 1900 pounds and $6000.  Sure does look nice.

[CAV Trooper]

Hern Iron Works has come out with one in bowling ball size.. 1900 pounds and $6000.  Sure does look nice.

Good catch, I forgot about that one. Still a royal PITA to move around but ammo is sure a whole lot easier to find.  

[GGaskill]

I know $10,000 sounds like a lot of money but lets examine that.  A 10" siege mortar of the 1861 pattern weighs 1900 lbs.  The tube is cast iron and the mount is wrought iron.  New steel is going for about $1.50 a pound these days so in just finished weight material, you have a materials cost starting at $2850.  In fact, there will be a significant wastage of material during the construction process so you will need to start with at least 30% more material (add $850 for a subtotal of $3700.)  

How many hours of labor are in it?  A lot.  If you are going to cast the barrel, you need a pattern to make the mould.  Then you need to make the mould.  Then you need to melt the iron and pour the mould.  Then you need to shake out the mould and remove the sprues and risers.  Then you need to machine the casting (which is 24" in diameter.)

The mount is made of perhaps 15 pieces per side plus fasteners.  Only one part is made 4 times, all the rest twice.  Several are of complex shape.

Paulson is one of the premier builders and produces a very good product; their prices are commensurate with the product.  If you find something for less, you will likely be getting less, whether in fidelity to the original design or workmanship or finish.  If you really want one of their mortars, start saving your sheckels.  If something less will satisfy you, check out http://www.buytheworld.com/prod1584-Big_Black_Powder_Cannons-8_6_in_1_4_scale_Dictator.html" target="_blank">Big Shots of Idaho's bowling ball mortar.

[Cat Whisperer]

Hi, I'm a newbee to this forum so please bear with me. I am very interested in owning a full size 10 inch 1861 style mortar cannon and am wondering if there is anyone on this forum who owns one or knows of anyone who has and shoots one? I see that Paulson Brothers Ordnance sells one for around $10,000 but I can't afford that much now so I'm wondering if one can be had for less anywhere? They look like they must be fun to own and also shoot so any help will be appreciated.

  Scott Springston
  Arlington Va

Scott -

WELCOME to the board!  I admire someone who plays in spades!  Great attitude!

Your best bet, I'm guessing, is to do what you're doing - to put feelers out and see what shows up.

One of the places to do that is where the larger mortars are used - N-SSA nationals are coming up in a few weeks and only a few hours drive from y'all.  You could make a number of connections there.  You'll see at least 2 or 3 8" mortars there and see what it takes to move them around.

Although the 10" may not be considered a WMD, you're probably in range of all those politicians in DC from where you live, and there might be someone who would fund the project for you for urban redevelopment purposes  :eek: .  That is to say, in a more serious frame of mind, you might have to drive a long way to find a safe place to shoot it.

It might be worth an e-mail to everyone you can think of - including some of the folks in N-SSA and the American Artillary Assn.  

How about a joint-venture with a museum?  That could solve some of the funding issues and you could provide live demonstrations.

Hmmmm...

[CAV Trooper]

I have to retract my comment that 10" cannon balls would be very difficult, if not impossible, to find. Paulson Brothers sells them. 127.5 pounds of solid iron at $190 EACH!   :eek:

I like the mortar from Big Shots of Idaho that GGaskill mentioned. Bowling balls are cheap, easy to find and you won't break your back trying to load the thing.    And the price is right. For $300 less than the cost of the 10" Seacoast that Paulson has, you can get THREE of the 1/4 scale Dictators and have your own mortar battery!  :-D

Of course, moving 750 pounds of mortar around still won't be a piece of cake but it's a whole bunch better than trying to shift a ton or two.