Ideas for cannon ball extraction?

[coldsteelva]

How about liquid nitrogen poured into the ignition hole? The ball's mass would shrink faster than the cannon bore and may slip right out.

 

[npalen]

How about liquid nitrogen poured into the ignition hole? The ball's mass would shrink faster than the cannon bore and may slip right out.

Now we're getting down to the cold hard facts!

 

[GeneV]

I'm just here to say that "I inherited a cannon", not something you hear every day. Is the powder breach loaded? If not, hell charge it up and fire that effer! That will free that ball...or mushroom out the barrel, send shrapnel flying everywhere, just epic!

 

[scaredychicken]

Okay, I get it the expanding foam / insulating foam (we have used it at the back door to seal off drafts) is a bad idea. Fair point.
Yet the ball is still in there, and at one point it seemed to me like a possible option to aide in the problem solving. Oh well.

Yea, that’s a terrible idea. That stuff is horrible to clean up and it wouldn’t work anyway. It doesn’t make a lot of psi expanding.

I wasn't at all thinking of PSI or the clean-up mess ... I was thinking of it as a seal to produce suction and hopefully continue to inch the ball along, as it was moving at one point.


it is likely stuck in the gunk / blemishes behind it, rather than the gunk in front of it

What got me to thinking about expanding type foam is the stuff they inject under concrete slabs to raise and level.

bingo - expansion and loosen
still a bad idea, at this point

 

[Alien]

Big rope over a tree and tow it up with the tractor and drop it on the end of the barrel on some concrete. I'm sure that woud jar it out real quick. Take the barrel off the carriage first.

 

[jmc]

The problem with the many "drop it on the muzzle" suggestions is if whatever is interfering with the ball doesn't give way, the contour of the ball at its equator cause significant wedging forces.

 

[Egon]

Since the op has drilled into the lead ball threading in a coarse lag screw should give a point to pull from.

If excitement is wanted a little gasoline or propane down the ignition hole with a long fuse may be considered!!

 

[CADplans]

If excitement is wanted a little gasoline or propane down the ignition hole with a long fuse may be considered!!

This thread is worthless without excitement!!

 

[2manyrocks]

I think it's an iron ball which was either used to blast through the wooden sides of a ship or was supposed to bounce off the ground to kill or maim anybody in its path.

I searched the question of how to remove a stuck cannonball to compare the results against the ideas posted here.

None of it as was interesting as this thread.

What I read elsewhere said it only takes a little propellant to send the ball flying. That's a lawsuit waiting to happen.

 

[3Ts]

I originally thought it was an iron ball as well, however, looking at the photos on post #109. I don't think so anymore. He's using a hand drill with a wood cutting bit with an auger threaded point. To get metal shavings like that, it's more likely lead. If nothing else, he can hang it with muzzle pointed down and melt out the ball. - That means he'll end up with the barrel coated with lead and will have to use bore cleaner to get it all out afterwards.