A new kind of video for us, joint venture

[cannonmn]

I think you will enjoy this video, part 1 of a series, two released and a couple more to come.  My company teamed up with Historical Ordnance Video to adapt some of their older, "classic" cannon videos for You-Tube.  As you will see, this video is a much more elaborate production than my usual "simple" ones.  The video shown is part of one originally released by HIV in 1987.  Even tho this Krupp 5cm mountain gun is more "modern" than most we see on this forum, it should be considered appropriate here because it is fired with a 3.5 oz. charge of FG black powder and a 2 lb. lead projectile.  One "lesson learned" with this system, which is not shown in this old video, is that the use of white lithium grease on the lead projectile is highly recommended when shooting a cannon with rather fine (as opposed to coarse) rifling, like this gun which has as I recall 20 grooves.  It has a tendency to "lead up" otherwise, and the lead is very hard to remove.

[seacoastartillery]

     Cannonmn,    Thanks for working with them to make this clip much more available.  We need more of this type of clip to counter the trash and dangerous stuff that is out there now.  Mike and I love shooting these guns and do so every time we get out to the eastern Colorado MG and Cannon shoots.  Thank you!!

Tracy and Mike


Tracy gets to load and shoot the Krupp 50mm Mountain Gun.  The bullet is a one pound zinc bolt with a very thin copper driving band.  It is painted with a color not found in nature so it can be found and picked up to be used again. Unlike the expanding lead bolts, it's a hard surface, bore rider and is shot without any lube, just as we load our thin, expanding-skirt, mild steel, bolts. 





Here is a target we fired using a test barrel and unlubricated 12L14 steel bolts.  5 shots in 3.25" at 100 yards is the norm.  Without lubrication, the bolt's skirt flairs out and engages without any slippage.  Full engagement means superior accuracy.  Lubrication allows the expanding skirt to slip and skid across the rifling as it expands, resulting in incomplete rifling engagement and resulting loss of accuracy.




Here is a target fired at 100 yards in which each of five, 12L14 steel, bolts was coated with white lithium grease just to see it's effect on accuracy.  The group was expanded to 12 Inches!!  What works well for bolts with lead coatings or solid lead projectiles, DOES NOT work for saboted, bore riders.  The target results speak for themselves.

[RocklockI]

Sweet ! Awsome little gun 

[Artilleryman]

Doug was at Camp Grayling for a Michigan Sesqucentennial artillery event in 1987 that he filmed.  We had guns that represented the various wars the US was in.  I have a video around somewhere that Doug produced.

[cannonmn]

I have a video around somewhere that Doug produced.

Doug's a great guy.  I met him when we had some kind of cannon convention at Ft. Wayne in Detroit ca. mid-to-late 1980's, which included a limited amount of live firing.  The live firing resulted in at least one round lodged on or in a nearby building, which explains why that was the last year the event took place.  Doug has done me many favors over the years out on the left coast.

[Artilleryman]

Midwest Artillery Show and Competition at Historic Fort Wayne.  I was at all of them.  It was a great show.  Unfortunately we need a somewhat taller berm with less rubble in it.

[Frank46]

That was an excellent video. Anytime I get to see a cannon fired is a good time. Frank

[cannonmn]

Here's part 2, only about 4 min., showing antipersonnel and antivehicle firing:

[Cannoneer]

I could have loads of fun with that Krupp cannon, so the sooner you give me a ballpark figure on what one would cost, the quicker it'll be for me to get accustomed to not being able to have it. Thanks for posting the vids.

[cannonmn]

And finally, part 3: 

For cannoneer, the Krupp 5cm guns that are "out there" in the US vary in condition and completeness but I'm guessing it would be hard to find any of them for less than about $25K these days.  For one that is absolutely complete, in newish condition with a small supply of cartridge cases, you could expect to pay a whole lot more.  One problem is that for many years now the co-owner of a big winery in CA, who is also a very good attorney, has bought all of these Krupp 5cm mountain guns that came on the market and put them in his garden, and will presumably continue to do so.  He had seven of them there last time I asked him, and only 50 were ever made, all for Thailand.  All of those were imported by Interarms in the 1960's and sold to collectors and shoorters, as I recall for $400. each.

[moose53]

Thanks for posting the excellent video series on the Krupp Cannon . I enjoyed watching  them very much. It sets a standard for future efforts.