Napolionic cannon

Oooo... That's so good. Love the shell-crane, the interrupted screw breech, the stabilisers, the rivets and everything else. Is it freelance or based on a real one? Super job.

Dave (Impressed!)

Its a 9.2" ww1 railway gun, made at armstrongs elswick gun works in 1918

This was one of the first railway guns that could traverse its barrel across the tracks using the outriggers, previously a curved section of track had to be built and the gun moved around the curve till it was pointing in the direction they wanted to fire in

Dougie

Edited By Dougie Swan on 01/01/2018 15:03:08

Edited By Dougie Swan on 01/01/2018 15:12:31

Dougie, can you give a pointer to your album with the other cannon in it, I tried a search in 'albums' for Dougie Swan but came up with nothing.

Brian

Try this link

http://www.model-engineer.co.uk/members/albums/

I cant find it doing a search either

Try this

If you click the photo link under my name on this post it will take you to my album

Dougie

Thanks Dougie, that works a treat!

Brian

Lovely!

Great work by all, hats off.

Just make sure you have the relevant licensing which likely will fall in to section 1.
Pre 1939 can be exempt unless theres intent to use them, they then cease to be afforded the exemption offered by Sec 58(2) and would be subject to licensing. What that means anything since 1939 is not exempt.
If in doubt give your areas firearms licensing a call.

Indeed it is cracking work.

Looking closely at the pic of the breech in the builders' gallery it seems that there is no continuous bore , so one would assume it is an assemblage of parts that look externally like a gun, rather than actually being a gun. Presumably this sidesteps the whole issue. Granted, brandishing it menacingly in a Post Office might get one into trouble!

I agree. Looking closely shows that Dougie's model is just that - it's only a model. Apart from the blocked barrel, the interrupted-screw breech doesn't lock, there's no chamber, and no firing mechanism. It's a long way from being 'a lethal barrelled weapon of any description from which any shot, bullet or other missile can be discharged'. Nor is it 'readily convertible'. Dougie's done a really good job.

Dave

This is the best I can do at the moment, got to get the camera sorted.

Ian S C

To add to the rather later 9.2" gun there are a couple of illustrations in Hall Caine's rather hack work of 1916 - www.manxnotebook.com/fulltext/hcog1916/index.htm

Centering a 9.2" HE shell - not sure exactly what is going on though

Edited By Frances IoM on 02/01/2018 15:42:47

Just a line in praise of the Royal Armouries at Portchester. After an enquiry about my intentions, I was invited to go down and meet a very knowledgeable staff member who took me personally to view the very cannon I am modelling. Assisted me to measure and photograph the piece and has offered any further assistance I may require. Could not have been more accommodating.

Thank you R.A.

That machine is puzzling. The cluttered background doesn't help, but it's fairly clear that despite the complicated pulley system on top there's nothing between the overhead arm and the shell. No obvious controls except the lady operator seems to be working a lever on top. The shell itself looks like a rough forging - I think I see hammer marks.

I wonder if making them involved whacking a hot steel billet roughly into shape with a steam hammer before machining the outside and innards. Centering might be something to do with finding the axis: the machine might be a relative of those wheel balancing machines they have in garages. Possibly the shell spins on that pillar, the wobble is detected, and the lady marks the shell to show how it should be mounted in a lathe to balance it.

Dave