Real big bores

I saw a segment on American Shooter last week where some big bore aficianados were shooting Civil War type cannons. These weren't the usual blanks, but real lead grapeshot, cannister and ball. It was a regular competition, just like the turkey shoots at our local rifle range. Big targets were set up for direct fire at 200 yds and many shots were near bullseyes. Best of all was the recoil. These babies really kick. I couldn't get enough of it. Before the invention of the howitzer, cannons were designed to roll back on their wheels. The artillerymen then would reposition the gun and aim the windage with simple iron sights and a compass type device for elevation. Looked like great fun. - CW

Was that the one where they were shooting at big targets painted on plywood panels? If so, that was incredible. I always thought of artillery as high arc trajectory weaponry, but these were shooting on the level, and were quite accurate, considering they were probably shooting soup cans filled with cement. ( I don't doubt you on the grapeshot, canister and roundshot, but that's gotta get expensive for target shooting)

They'd line up on the target, touch off the fuse and BOOM *Whock!!* A 3' hole would instantly appear in the plywood just like a cookie cutter in dough.

On that note, we had an old cannon at the scout camp I worked at years ago. It was used for firing blank charges for salutes, but those of us who stayed in camp over the weekends discovered that flashlight batteries fit the bore perfectly and made a great projectile for shooting across the lake into the swamp. Buying 1 lb cans of Pyrodex eats up a camp staffer's pay REAL quick...

El Capitan

# couldn't get enough of it. Before the invention of the howitzer, cannons # were designed to roll back on their wheels. The artillerymen then would # reposition the gun and aim the windage with simple iron sights and a compass # type device for elevation. Looked like great fun. - CW

I think you mean recuperators. A howitzer is just a class of gun designed for high angle, indirect fire. There were howitzers in use long before recuperators. The French 75 was the first issue artillery piece to use recuperators between the tube and chassis of an artillery piece so that the gun did not have to be relaid between each round.

There are a number of former cannon-cockers on this list who can give you more details.

'Policy for Work in the Liberated Areas for 1946' (December 31, 1945), Selected Works, Vol. IV, p. 76 Chairman Mao Tse-tung