Tropical Storm Coehorn

[Max Caliber]

We are in the midst of tropical storm Fay here west of Tallahassee. We have around 8 inches of rain so far with a 50 mile wide band of hard rain coming from the East. The weather people said for us to expect 4 to 5 inches per hour for the next few hours. We don't have to worry about flooding here since we live on a hill 150 feet above sea level, that's pretty high considering that the highest point in Florida is only 345 feet. It's a great day for shop work so have started finishing my last GB Coehorn. As you can see from the picture, most of the outside can be finished in the lathe but everything from the front of the rimbases back has to be finished with files, that's what I'm working on, The part that is hand finished is cast close to finish size so it wont take so much file work but the final finish suffers a bit. Now back to the shop where I can work while listening to the rain on the tin roof

Max

[Cannoneer]

   That's looking fine Max, I went looking for an earlier thread and couldn't find anything; did you cast the mortar yourself and is it brass?

[intoodeep]

Max Caliber,

 That's PURTY!!! I like it! Can't wait to see it all shined up and ready to shoot.

[irishman]

M C That is beautiful! I love the color.

Have you tried to "kiss-off" the trunnion ends by turning them? It will make your knuckles white the first few times.

                                                                         Michael

[dan610324]

I believe its to redish to be brass , more probably bronze .
but its an really nice mortar .
attach it to the jaws in one trunnion and you could turn the other trunnion and the reinforcement from the trunnion and up , then turn it around and do the other side and you have much less filing to do by hand

[Max Caliber]

The mortar I cast in bronze, it takes about 11 pounds of metal to cast a 1/3 scale coehorn. I have already done the rough filing so it wont take much more work to finish it. I usually have several projects going at the same time so it takes a while to finish one. I am going to make a different bed for this one that I think people will find interesting, will post pictures.

Dan, we need a whisky still forum here. I grew up in a place and time where copper pot stills were plentiful. I experimented with building a still years before I built my first cannon.

Max

[dan610324]

the still in my avatar is almost 300 years old

[Terry C.]

the still in my avatar is almost 300 years old

I was wondering what that was. It's beautiful, a real work of art.

Here in the Okefenokee, this is more the type of still I'm familiar with...

[Cat Whisperer]

WELL camoflaged!  You can't even see any trace of smoke nor paths leading up to it!

The folks near here in Floyd and Franklin counties would be right much proud of y'all.

[thelionspaw]

I recently sold mine at auction in 3 stages during 3 weeks, i.e. pot, coil, condenser. Safer that way.  Mere possession is a felony.    I remember when my uncle gave up working his and had it stored in the coal bin. He was at his 9 to 5 and came home to find my aunt had it polished and on the front lawn with flowers.   He was a blossom.  He taught me alot of things.

Saint Richard "The Reformed" (well almost)

[dan610324]

unfortunately that little hobby is illegal in most western countries now   

[KABAR2]

The mortar I cast in bronze, it takes about 11 pounds of metal to cast a 1/3 scale coehorn. I have already done the rough filing so it wont take much more work to finish it. I usually have several projects going at the same time so it takes a while to finish one. I am going to make a different bed for this one that I think people will find interesting, will post pictures.

Dan, we need a whisky still forum here. I grew up in a place and time where copper pot stills were plentiful. I experimented with building a still years before I built my first cannon.

Max

Are you casting them yourself or having a foundry do it? your casting came out very nice. I have a pattern for one
that I am still finishing and will have to farm it out to a foundry, I live in the suburbs and the neighbors would complain
too much if I start building a furnace in the back yard......... 

[dan610324]

dont be so sure about that , tell them what you are planning and I can guarantee that some of them need something to be cast . it could be an cannon , mortar or an piece to an sailing boat .
talk to them before you think its not possible to do it by yourself,
there is an yahoo group called backyard casting , check that out first .
there is no big deal to make smaller castings .
ok it takes a few hours of studies , but thats just fun .

[Max Caliber]

Kabar2, I do my own casting. You don't have to build a permanent melting furnace, you can build a portable furnace that uses propane. They are not expensive to build and you can melt 5 to 10 pounds of brass or more with a one burner furnace.

Max