welder1074 Posted August 11, 2010 Posted August 11, 2010 When preparing my BP for my cannon or shells. Do I need to compress the BP, like in foil? Or is it fine right out of the can? I have inquired before on BP and I was told to spike it..? I have looked around but I am unable to find out what that means. I guess I was just wanting to know how the more experinced people prepare their supply. Thank you
Ralph Posted August 11, 2010 Posted August 11, 2010 spiking means putting in a paper canister and wrapping string around the canister till a net shape is made from the string this gives the canister more strength alowing for a greater pressure to build up giving a louder bang and also providing more force it is optional though you can get perfectly fine results by just tipping it in
Dr Boom Posted August 11, 2010 Posted August 11, 2010 (edited) Welder- Are you using homemade BP or commercial first of all? "Spiking" refers to strengthening the outter container of a shell, container, tube, etc. If you are using homemade BP, and it is slow burning- you'll need to reinforce your container that holds the BP so it will generate the right gas pressure in the right amount of time. For Commercial powder, you can use a cup of choice and a few turns of paper tape. The shell's weight on top is enough for proper confinement. What grain size are you using? Weight of shell? 3 inch, 4 inch? ((ah Ralph beat me to it! I take too long typing...)) Edited August 11, 2010 by Dr Boom
jwitt Posted August 11, 2010 Posted August 11, 2010 (edited) Isn't that a Maltese technique- making a maroon for lift? Edit: oh crap, cannon. Duh. Oops. Re-edit: OK so I'm not as dumb as I thought..."or shells" Anyway- I have seen salute cannon or thundermug shots wrapped in foil, and they put the charge in bags back in the old days if I recall, then punched a hole with a pick poked through the touch hole. I think the pick might have been part of the gizmo that held the slow match, but I could be wrong. This, and the foil-wrapped salute shots, are simply to keep from having loose powder all over the place though, and not for confinement. A maroon, on the other hand, is designed to confine the charge. Edited August 11, 2010 by jwitt
OneEyeCharlie Posted August 11, 2010 Posted August 11, 2010 Welder As you can see, your post is a bit confusing. You reference both cannon and shells. With cannons, the foil "charges" are beneficial for several reasons. It's a convenient way to prepare multiple, pre-weighed shots ahead of time. It also is far safer than pouring loose powder and worrying about stray, lingering sparks. Use a dowel that has an OD just a bit smaller than the ID of the cannon bore. Cut a strip of foil, wrap around the dowel, slide a bit off the end of the dowel, crimp and flatten, and then slide your foil tube off. You can then safely pour your measured charge in and close it up. I use a small length of brass wire stock sharpened on one end to pierce the charge through the touch-hole and then insert my fuse. To increase the boom of my cannons, I ram a judicious amount of slightly damp wadding on top of the foil charge. With a bit of compression from the wadding, even crappy BP gives off a healthy boom. Please bear in mind that my cannon barrel (including trunnions) was milled from a solid billet of modern steel. Always start small with your BP charge and wadding. As a final note, after each shot I swab the barrel with water followed by WD-40.
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