Need help on I-Ding a possible cannon ball.

[SPWalker]

Need help on I-Ding a possible cannon ball.

While at a small local small gun show I came across an assumed ‘shot-put’ but I am thinking it could be a cannon ball. The previous owner knows little about its history from what I could tell. The ball is steel and solid and is 5 9/16” across. Anyone have a size index on what it could be?

If it is a shot-put after all, it is still worth the ¼ sawbuck it cost me and will be fun to show off .

Thanks for reading.

SPWalker
Mc Allen, Texas

 

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[NGE]

How about a picture?...NGE (T)

 

[SPWalker]

Photo attached. The size is 3-9/16 inch not 5-9/16 inch.

Thank you for the help.

SPWalker
Mc Allen, Texas

 

[Roadquest]

I found a grape shot cannon ball, that looked like that. Some years ago

 

[SPWalker]

My grand dad taught me what a saw buck was. I think it came from the days when if you worked a day you were paid one saw buck. This was in the old logging days in East Texas.

Saw buck = $20.00
Half saw buck = $10.00
Quarter saw buck = $5.00

I saw a 50's movie that had Bert Lancaster in it where he ask to barrow a 'saw buck' from a friend.

sw

 

[NGE]

All my sawbucks are turned into sawdust when my wife asks for one.... ....NGE

 

[SPWalker]

Any idea on a web site that has cannon balls foe sale. Possibly could compair with what is on the market?

SW

 

[GL]

Any idea on a web site that has cannon balls foe sale. Possibly could compair with what is on the market?

SW

Ebay.
HERE

 

[allen]

neat buy..i hope it is a cannon ball...

 

[SFHunter]

take a look at http://www.civilwarartillery.com/

Look at Field projectiles - smooth bore.

closest size to yours is the six pounder solid shot. What does yours weigh?

 

[SPWalker]

I am going to take it to work tomarrow and place it on a mail scale and get the exact weight. I will post it tomarrow evening.

SW

 

[Roadquest]

That thing could be live. You may want to be careful.

 

[woody50]

Great site SFHunter! http://www.civilwarartillery.com/
Here are also some sizes of British cannonballs, who knows...

On the other hand, maybe its too light, then it could be from the cannonball tree... :P

 

[romeo-1]

That thing could be live. You may want to be careful.

No it couldn't...it's solid!

 

[fortbball9]

Looks almost like the one that I have.Mine has a very small seam around it, but it is solid and the weight is almost 6lb.

 

[SPWalker]

I took the ball to the lab where I work (TxDOT). We weighed it and put a mike to it for the size:

Size is 3.565
Weight is 6 lbs 6.72 oz or 6.420 pounds.
Not perfectly round as it wobblies when I spin it.
No markings or cast marks that I can see.

After the help from comments provided I am going to say it is a 6- ponder 3.67-inch caliper solid shot (no fuse). It would probably have been used with a wood sabot to hold it along with the powder charge. I would date it around the 1860's and up. Similar items are listed and state that it could be both federal or confederate. One intresting thing is that here in deep south Texas several armies have been around both in Texas and in Mexico starting in the 1830's. British, Austrian, Belgen, Confederate, Union, Mexican, American and French up till the 1920's. I do not believe it is a shop put. I believe I now have my first cannon ball for my collection.

Thanks for all the help.

SW

 

[2fishon]

Did you ever get any idea about how much it's worth?

 

[BuckleBoy]

That thing could be live. You may want to be careful.

Almost certainly a Solid Shot--there is no Fuse hole that I can see. 


So absolutely no danger whatsoever. 


The most common solid shot, smooth-bore projectile of the CW was the 6-pounder.  Its weight was around 6lbs, 5oz.  You're right that the sabot would've been wooden.


My big concern is that the piece is not totally round.  So I will voice some skepticism of it being a solid shot on that basis.


Regards,



Buckleboy

 

[SPWalker]

Buckleboy has a point. If it is out of round it is only a few 100th of an inch. Would this be enough? If it is not 6 Pound smooth bore what else could it be?

SW

 

[woody50]

I do agree that it appears to be a 6 pond 3.67" solid shot cannonball. About it being not perfectly round, could that not be a technical fault of some sort happened when it was made, and it was just abandoned instead of being remelted? Maybe the fault was not seen until it was in the field, then abandoned there.

I would think that perfect roundness would have been one of the specs for a cannonball, that it must be perfectly round, otherwise you would not be able to aim it perfectly...