Pirate Cannon - A working replica of a naval cannon that fires pneumatically

Halloween has been a pirate theme around here for a while. I had the sword, I had the treasure chest, I needed a cannon. More than just a prop, this cannon will fire a potato slug a couple of hundred yards. For Halloween we dialed back the psi and shot harmless "cannonballs" made from tissue paper filled with baby powder. The result was a VERY popular addition to the pirate party we had.

Step 1 Build the Jig

The jig is made from 2X4 and MDF. First I determined the diameter of the front and rear of the finished cannon and the overall length I wanted. I then drew the profile out on a sheet of MDF and cut the profile out with a jigsaw.

Then I split the profile in half to attatch to the sides of the jig. This profile would provide the template I would use to carve out the material.

A piece of 1.5 inch Schedule 40 PVC is used to lay up the layers of foam and will also act as the barrel.

Comments

[captrhedd]

Nice piece of work. well thought out. The jig can be made for any size cannon. It is a good project. The fiberglass is a key to making it durable. Honestly the best I have seen. Thank you for posting this. I will attempt this project and post photos when the weather gets better. I have the benefit of having a shop so I hope to make one (Or a few) and hope they will half as good as yours. Capt Rhedd

[jcrialp]

Did you finally make the cannon in fiberglass? I'm looking for a pirate model that can be mounted onto a standard sail wich handle and can shoot mechanically (spring).

[msmith9899]

Great build part time chef! Thanks for much for posting this. I decided to make a cannon of my own for a commercial I'm doing and I featured your build on my webshow. I'm doing a wheeled gun carriage in the next episode as a follow up. You can check it out if you like at: http://www.tectherobot.com/shows/moviemakerz/pirate-cannon/ This was my first time working with foam as well. Thanks for introducing me to this awesome process!

[ninjapants]

Hmm... I'm working on a pirate show this spring and might use a couple of these... One thing though - the fumes produced by hot wire cutting on styro are extremely dangerous. You should probably wear an appropriately rated respirator - no matter how good your ventilation is it may not be good enough. Sorry to be the safety monkey... great instructable!

[craftsmith]

the safest method by far is to build a cardboard cannon and inflate a balloon within it. fill the barrel of the cannon with talcum powder. when the balloon is popped with a pin there is a loud bang from the cannon and talcum powder smoke fires out. very effective and safe for a stage production and can be reloaded when not on stage, if its needed more than once.

[Part Time Chef.com]

Thanks. I'll get some more info on the respirator. This was my first project working with foam and I can think of a lot of projects I would be useful for. What type of pirate show? I have some other projects I plan on posting if there is interest. I did a treasure chest complete with treasure and lighting effects, a homeade costume including boot covers, baldric, and sword frog, and a cheapskate flying crank ghost with a pirate theme. Feel free to email me.

[stevegebhart]

Part Time Chef,

I'm working a conference in which we have a pirate theme.  You mentioned in this post other projects.  Where would I find them.

Thanks,
Steve
[e-mail]

[garypatty]

this site is great, we have had a pirate theme for years now. I have a few questions. what is 1/4" quick release? 1/4 - 3/4" fitting? Thanks, Gary.

[Metal4God]

what does it fire? Potatoes

[Part Time Chef.com]

It will fire just about anything you put down the barrel. A potato slug will make it 300-400 yards at 125 psi. I also shoot a lot of a reusable round I make out of pvc pipe, glow sticks, and hobby foam sheets. The ammo and another gun are on my personal site www.cordrogers.com

[jburley1992]

how are you changing the psi? I am not going to use an air compressor, I am going to use a CO2 tank instead. Is there away to change the psi or oz for that with the blow gun?

[Metal4God]

bowling balls!

[XkidXhavocX]

pedobear

[kdiver58]

What is the section of tube that comes out the top of the valve used for? I'm talking about the piece that has the red end .. Thanks K

[stewey]

I am having a problem with air leaking out of the barrel..When I put my finger over the spot where the solenoid is the leak goes away..Do I need to seal that hole where the solenoid goes with a little JB Weld?

[Ward_Nox]

YOU GOT FEATURED ON G4 AOTS Attack this

[husband4hire]

I'm looking for a little help. I've got no pop, when I push the release trigger. I've made the hole smaller, it got better, but still I can only send a small ball of tape a couple of feet. It's a slow pressure build, like the valve isn't popping open like it should. I've built it and rebuilt it a hundred times (backwards and forwards)and I'm stumped! Help me out and I'll think of some way to pass on the kharma. thanks

[Redgerr]

must've taken a while, eh?

[TechDante]

this be good says i. ok seriously could this be moderfied to fire tennis balls and at what pressure would i need to get the cannon at to fire one a fair distance

[Krinkov]

A tennis ball barrel would be 2.5 inch pipe. You can also find rifled pvc barrels online.

[Part Time Chef.com]

You bet. Look on potato cannon sites like www.spudtech.com and others for sizing on the tennis ball barrels. I believe it is three inch pipe. You could also use a threaded barrel an make the barrel changeable using spacers.

[Captn Avenger]

Instead of modifying the irrigation valve, you could trip the solenoid with a 9 volt battery. That is how we (irrigation service technicians) test them in the field.

[Part Time Chef.com]

That would work, but making the modifications the valve will open much quicker therefore giving much more range and a more effective shot. I took the learnings (and link) from a spud gun site. If you just want a stage piece to throw out some 'smoke' then you are correct. If you are like me and want something to really SHOOT then try the mod. UPDATE: I did fiberglass the cannon for strength and I'm glad I did. I made some reusable rounds that hold a glow stick and shoot the hell out of them. Big Fun.

[maxpower49]

how much was the fiberglass and how did you make the reuseable glowstick round

[maxpower49]

how big is the jig can you put some dimensions

[ootm]

COOL!!! I think you need a video.

[Ima_Pirate]

Yar, great for those who don't have an actual cannon. Infact, I used this when some ninjas attacked my houseboat the other day. "Stealthy Assassins" my peg leg.

[gotja]

OK NOW BUILD 5 MORE AND A WORKING BOAT AND HAVE A SHIP FIGHT WITH ANOTHER GUY IN A LAKE WOOT

[joemonkey]

cool idea and all, but i got to hand it to ya. pirates are, well, FRIGGIN RETARDS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ninjas, like me, can kill 200 pirates with two hands and a leg tied behind there back!!!!

[zmatt]

Thats a cool cannon, can you hook up a air tank to it so you can take it on a boat?

id love to have battles on a lake my friends are building boats like thislike this

[Adam 3750]

Anyone got any ideas for a fire extinguisher cannon?

[ledzeppie]

old cannons were actually known to blow up the operators almost as much as the enemies......funny they wernt smart enough to stop using these things? lol

[spasticgoblin]

"Almost as much" is a severe exaggeration. Most old cannons did not blow up. They worked fine.

[Geoffrito]

Actually, not true: Old cannons were made of cast iron which was only blown up if overloaded with gunpowder. Explosions were usually from exposed amounts of explosives that were heated too much in the atmosphere of the gun decks.

[spasticgoblin]

Actually Geoffrito, Most "old" cannons were made of Bronze, and explosions were typically a result of a flaw in the casting of the cannon.

[Geoffrito]

meh, I like bluffing better. I mean, WHO MADE EVERYTHING UP?! ME?!?!?! i thought they were iron tho...whatever.

[Geoffrito]

actually, i think some cannons were made of cast iron..it appears that for maritime cannons, largely at any rate, guns were made out of iron because of the lower cost, at least during the eighteenth/nineteenth century...

[ELF]

The cannons WERE very flawed, and some places (can't remember where, my dad told me this once..) the creator of the cannon had to be right next to it (or even on top of it... I don't believe that though) when it was fired for the first time, so they could be sure the cannon makers did their best to make working cannons :P

[thingygoboom]

ya but they blew up boats..... both ships maybe but still

[chuck norris]

brilliant me' matey!