Author Topic: Confederate Coehorn 24 pounder/Enjoy it (Read 1555 times)

copdoc · « **on:** December 15, 2006, 04:20:38 PM »

An original in Ft Benning

Replica in Ft Fisher made by CSA arms in NC My Great grandfather was stationed at Ft Fisher.

Barel with truninon welded on after boreing and rounding back

A powder can in bore so I don't get spanked for hiding the size.

A look at the 5.86" bore with 2" powder chamber. I made the Union Coehorn with a 3" chamber as it was overkill to go to 2". I did not have a way at the time to taper it like the Burgundian and the Taupia mortar or it would be 2" tapered to 3"

The mortar with a powder can.

billy_56081 · « **Reply #1 on:** December 15, 2006, 04:58:55 PM »

I love watching the BP mortar and cannon fire. There are some guys from Litchfield MN that are big into mortars. That looks like a beauty have fun.

copdoc · « **Reply #2 on:** December 16, 2006, 09:14:54 AM »

thanks
I'll have to get some help to drag this one out to shoot. It is prob 50-75 lbs heavier than the Union Coehorn. (thicker breech, no rings, smaller powder chamber) When I finished this one I thought about getting into building pistols.

Powder keg · « **Reply #3 on:** December 16, 2006, 10:15:05 AM »

Great Job!!! Bet She's pretty loud.

Wes

copdoc · « **Reply #4 on:** December 16, 2006, 10:37:48 AM »

Thanks
I have not shot it yet. I am going to have to have at least 3 other people to load it in the truck. If I don't take it apart. It is HEAVY. I dismounted the bbl put it on a handtruck and rolled it up on my truck to get it to the shop. When I started I could just make rolling it to the bed. Only a few years have gone by but the last time I put it in the truck I asked for help. The dismounted bed is not too bad. Before it was bored we could only use a tow motor to move it.

Rickk · « **Reply #5 on:** December 16, 2006, 11:11:21 AM »

You ain't gettin younger...none of us ain't. If you can't get your wife to load it, your drinkin buddies prolly won't want to either.

how about a heavy duty wagon (like the ones they have a farm stands) or a home made version of same, some ramps (like you would use to load an ATV into a pickup) and a come-along?

Or, maybe it is time to get a tiltable trailer. Home Depot carries 1 ton tilt trailers btw. I have one, and I love it.

I turn 50 in 11 days. A couple of days ago I brought an 80# piece of prototype electronic equipment to a customer. I went with my boss and another engineer. They are both in their early 40's. I opened the back door to the van and said "How about you young whipper-snappers pickin it up and I'll hold the door for ya?".

I think I am going to enjoy being 50.

copdoc · « **Reply #6 on:** December 16, 2006, 11:39:25 AM »

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I think I am going to enjoy being 50

I'm 53 and except for the pain it is nice to have the kids do the lifting. Several in our age bracket suggested the tilt trailer and leaving it on the trailer except when shooting. That is what I need. I can go to the car wash after the shoot and wash it on the trailer. I also thought about a hydrolic lift for the pickup.

Rickk · « **Reply #7 on:** December 16, 2006, 11:53:19 AM »

My pickup is an F350 dually with a 10' flatbed. The bed is over 4 feet high, so lifting stuff on it is none-too-easy. That is where the tilt trailer comes in handy.

I also borrow my 4 year old's heavy duty wagon to move my mortar around. The sides fold down, making it sort of a flatbed and easy to load/unload. The handle removes, revealing a hitch that can be hooked up to the garden tractor or the Farmall.

accuratemike · « **Reply #8 on:** December 16, 2006, 01:31:36 PM »

Quote from: Rickk on December 16, 2006, 11:53:19 AM

I also borrow my 4 year old's heavy duty wagon to move my mortar around. The sides fold down, making it sort of a flatbed and easy to load/unload. The handle removes, revealing a hitch that can be hooked up to the garden tractor or the Farmall.

Are you SURE you got that wagon for your 4 year old ? Sounds fishy......
MIKE

Rickk · « **Reply #9 on:** December 16, 2006, 02:09:17 PM »

cool thing about having a 4 year old is that if i go shopping and buy something that i would like, he will no doubt like it as well.

And I do have a Brookes mini-coehorn that I let him play with, so one hand washes the other

copdoc · « **Reply #10 on:** December 17, 2006, 04:50:35 PM »

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My pickup is an F350 dually with a 10' flatbed. The bed is over 4 feet high, so lifting stuff on it is none-too-easy. That is where the tilt trailer comes in handy.

This made me think about the dents in the side of the trunk I removed an few years ago. Here is what I used to haul my first cannon when I was about 19 years old. It got slung into the side once and I learned that cannon really had to be tied down. Sorry I don't have a powder can beside it but when I was younger and had more time there was almost always a few powder cans inside.

I know its not a cannon so forgive me. (but it is loud) I'll take some pics of the cannon later and post it.

Rickk · « **Reply #11 on:** December 18, 2006, 12:51:28 AM »

My GTO was a 68, black, 400 ci, 4 speed, 4.56 posi rear.

copdoc · « **Reply #12 on:** December 18, 2006, 02:00:47 AM »

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My GTO was a 68, black, 400 ci, 4 speed, 4.56 posi rear.

You mean your cannon hauler. We have to stay focused and on subject. Post or eamail me a pic if you have one.

Seriously, I did learn about securing one in this car. We took out the spare tire and tied it through the spare tire bracket after it hit the side once. I also drove slower with it in the back. I'm glad it was not too big. 2' bore. I take pics later. Somehow I still have the car and the cannon.

GGaskill · « **Reply #13 on:** December 18, 2006, 07:29:57 AM »

I think I am going to enjoy being 50.

50 was pretty good. Didn't feel old but made lots of jokes about it. At 60, I am starting to feel it.

Rickk · « **Reply #14 on:** December 18, 2006, 02:07:31 PM »

Alas... no pictures... that was in the days where a camera was a luxury that was passed aside in favor of a new set of headers. I also had a '61 chevy impala that had a 10 inch hood scoop on the hood.

After the gas prices went up in the late 70's the cars went away and were replaced by pickup trucks. I never looked back on the change, and do not understand "cars" any more. Besides the F350, I also have a 1990 E350 dually cube-van with a 14 foot box and a 460 ci in it. I use neither for a "business"... they are basically just personal vehicles. I just hate shopping and not having enough room in the trunk

Oddly enough, both the E350 and the F350 "cannon haulers" (staying on topic :-) get better gas milage than the GTO.

Bizarrely enough, the '61 Chevy got better than 25 MPG, in spite of the 327 and the quadrajet 4-bbl.

copdoc · « **Reply #15 on:** December 18, 2006, 02:37:10 PM »

You are right about the camera. Photos were expensive and I only have a few of the goat from those days. My cannon hauler now if a F150. It has been great. 175000 miles and still going. I like having room also. The bumper mount is also useful. Her is a scanned pic when it was new. I didn't have a digital camera until recently.

My goat is geared 3.23/1 4 speed and gets about 18 mpg. With a 4.56 I bet you were lucky to get 8-10mpg.

I wish you did have a pic of your goat. My bullitin board in the office has pics of peoples GTOs and guns. (I let a few Chevelles and Mustangs slip in)

Rickk · « **Reply #16 on:** December 18, 2006, 03:06:39 PM »

the "cannon haulin" goat engine was put together at the local trade school as a class project. Thus, it had all the gas guzzlin things that they could come up with installed (big valves, crazy cam). I suspect that it was .030 over... whatever that worked out to.

It got 6 MPG... didn't matter if you were doin 30 or 100... it got 6 mpg. It was capable of picking the left front tire up off the ground any time i wanted it too. The 50 series tires on the back (the wheel wheels were radiused for clearance) insured cannon-haulin traction.

Interesting tail-gating prevention device you have in your F150. I used to hang my semi-auto 1927 Tommy-Gun in the gun rack in my Chevy "Luv" pickup and no one tailgated me either.

Was your goat originally equipped with a 4 speed, or was it converted from auto? I didn't think they put 3.23 gears in 4-speeds.

copdoc · « **Reply #17 on:** December 18, 2006, 03:33:42 PM »

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Interesting tail-gating prevention device you have in your F150. I used to hang my semi-auto 1927 Tommy-Gun in the gun rack in my Chevy "Luv" pickup and no one tailgated me either.

We call it the fighting chair. We don't have time to fish but we still enjoy a little time in the fighting chair.. This gun is a US Ordnance semi.

My GTO is factory 4 speed and 3:23/1 4bbl I ordered the Pontiac historical data although I have had it since 1969 and met the other 2 original owners. It gets about 18 mpg on the road. In the lower gears it eat it up. It is also factory 2 tone with the white top and came from the dealer with a trailor hitch. (to pull cannon on a trailer) I'll say that so we can not get removed from the thread. The trailer hitch was missing when I bought it.

You can see where I used to store the gunpowder under the seat. Sorry this is a PDA photo and low res. If you wan better pics I'll take some and email you. If I can get in time for some daylight.

Double D · « **Reply #18 on:** December 18, 2006, 05:53:04 PM »

Gentleman, Topic drift is allowed most of the time. This topic was started by copdoc as a discussion on 24 PDR Coehorn mortars. Copdoc has drifted his topic a bit to talk about cannons in general and what he uses to haul them. Very good topic. Cannon hauling vehicles are on topic here on the board, car and truck talk is not. Discuss your cannon hauler all you want.

When I lived in America, land of the free and home of the brave, I used a Toyota 4x4 Pickups and various Ford F150's. My current XLT F-150 with 5.4 liter Triton V-8 is sitting in storage in Montana. I wasn't allowed to bring it with me to South Africa. Steering wheel is on the wrong side and it is way to big for the highways and parking lots in this very urban country. So here's what I have over here.

This is our Hyundai Atos. It is a Korean car made in India. I has a 1.1 liter side mounted 4 cylinder engine with efi, 3 speed w/overdrive floor mounted automatic tranny, CD player a/c and no airbags. Seats 5 people with plenty of room as long as one the three in the back is small. Its 35 liter fuel tank gives 14 km to the liter. Just in case you think this is just some sort of muscle car built for looks, it can haul the frieght also. Plenty of room for cannon and supplies!

Cannonmaker · « **Reply #19 on:** December 18, 2006, 06:41:20 PM »

DD That car also works for haull'en books, does it not. My Dodge with the Cummins ain't no looker anymore but she'll haul my Cannons, and right to the top of the mountion if I wish.

You guys with the GTO's, did you ever race a cannon ball, I remember the days of the mussle cars very well myself. The only real car I had was a Galxey 500 XL with a 390 and four Bbl.
Rick

jeeper1 · « **Reply #20 on:** December 18, 2006, 09:57:30 PM »

My cannon haulers.

76 CJ7, 258ci, T-18, locked diffs (true 4x4) for summers.
97 F250, 7.3 diesel, 4x4, longbed for winter.
The powder can isn't tall enough to be seen.

copdoc · « **Reply #21 on:** December 19, 2006, 02:00:35 AM »

Sorry about the drift. I really was thinking about carring the cannon and repairing the GTO after Rickk's post. Feel free to seperate to another post"Cannon Haulers" Securing a piece is very important as I learned with the GTO.

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Plenty of room for cannon and supplies!

Nice vehicle. Do you leave the stern chaser mounted while you drive. If so you need one of those warnign signs that says "BACK OFF"

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The powder can isn't tall enough to be seen.

Powder can? There is so much snow you can hardly see the truck. Nice pic. I appreciated it when you emailed it. We get little snow. It is fun to shoot over snow at night. My Dad and I used to do that when we both were younger and there was more space. We used paper powder bags in those days and not starting a fire was a major consideration. I would make ground illumination flares and 2" dia tracers to shoot. In those days the when multiple family members had farms in the same location we has about a 1 mile by 3 mile area to shoot.