Captain Jim

Post a etchin' o' yer swag, lad. We other pyrates wants t' see it.

I had a math teacher who always, at the beginnig of each class period, invariably would crush the papers in his trash can with his foot. One day we filled the can with water and floated some paper on top. Went in up to his knee, then withdrew his foot and started teaching as if nothing had happened. Stole the water cooler out of the main hallway in the middle of a school day. Wore overalls and carried a clipboard with a purchase order on it. Returned it three days later and no one ever knew. Moved the turning mark for a yacht club race, thereby running nearly the entire fleet aground. Teach them to ban us from the start of a race. Boarded yachts during races, stealing beer, ice and, occasionally, willing wenches. Always got us disqualified. Got us banned from one yacht club race (see above). The beginning of a long pyraty career. Hid a restaurant coworker inside a refrigerator and sent another to get a salad mix out. Worker #2 opened the door, #1 handed out the requested item and #2 took it, said "thank you" and started to walk away. After three steps #2 sort of exploded, nearly jumping out of his skin, throwing the salad all over the kitchen and screaming at the top of his lungs. Just a few highlights...

"LEE-GAUGE MARY!!!" Do I look like a Lee-Gauge Mary!?! Rat-bas***d name generator didna' even give me the benefit o' bein' weather-gauge somethin or other.

Here's one: This little item, standing about 12 inches tall, is called a thunder mug. It was used to test gun (cannon) powder, to launch fireworks or just make loud noises during celebrations. Several more examples can be found at:Cannon Manira You may also be able to buy a new one from South Bend Replicas the "thunder mug" name is, unfortunately, shared by another device, the chamber pot. It also is mug-shaped and under certain ah, gastro-intestinal conditions can produce a profound thundering of its own.

I ran accross the usage of "Filibuster" in the context of pyracy and, being of curious nature, looked up the etymology, to wit: fil•i•bus•ter (fĭl'ə-bŭs'tər) n. 1. a. The use of obstructionist tactics, especially prolonged speechmaking, for the purpose of delaying legislative action. b. An instance of the use of this delaying tactic. 2. An adventurer who engages in a private military action in a foreign country. v., -tered, -ter•ing, -ters. v.intr. 1. To use obstructionist tactics in a legislative body. 2. To take part in a private military action in a foreign country. v.tr. To use a filibuster against (a legislative measure, for example). [From Spanish filibustero, freebooter, from French flibustier, from Dutch vrijbuiter, pirate. See freebooter.] So it would seem that pyracy lends us a word for political wrangling by pirating the floor debate. I posted in this thread some time back under A pyrate by any other name.

Good ref Foxe, it is beginning to look as if the lock is OOP for my purposes, and I will go with a slowmatch for now. However... It has been my experience that prior to WW II, governments were at the back of the pack when it came to adopting new firearms technology, as also indicated in your reference. As another example, I submit the Henry rifle and the Union Army during the American Civil War. The Henry was readily available but was adopted only by individual companies at their own expense. Even after the war, the cavalry was equipped with single shot Spencer carbines, as witnessed by the defeat of Custer at the battle of Little Bighorn, where the First Peoples were largely armed with Henrys and Winchesters. So, while the military will likely be the source of the most accurate, complete and numerous references to changing firearms technology, it will probably lag behind, perhaps far behind, the actual general adoption of that technology. To that end I'm still looking, but I'm trying to find a civilian reference, perhaps a purchase order or a diary ref or something. Not trying to belabor a deceased equine here, just seeking for the origin of the advancement. With so much of the information about this period missing, vague or inadequately recorded, I think that we should seriously consider compiling a list of information that is largely unavailable, hunting it all down (with the help of as many University faculties as possible) and publishing.

My understanding is that the court could impose a variety of sentence modifications, commuting tthe sentence to life, forced labor or indenturement or delaying execution until after the birth thus orphaning the child. Nice, eh? I'll see if I can find resources confirming this, but I'm going afield now and havn't the time til later.

I do both, dependent on the weather. If I'll be taking the coat off and putting it on again all day, I'll wear it under. Also, I think that it is more comfortable under the coat than over, plus you can shed your coat and get to "fighting trim" faster. Which brings up the subject of baldrics on ships again. If I want to shed a scabbard, I can do it one-handed with a baldric, and be free to move about without being encumbered, but I have to shed the coat first.

Aye, ye must be providin' more data (would a Pyrate say "data"?). Also, does ye need any cast members or strollers to entertain the masses?

Fixed

Hmmm....1717...late GAoP. A very nice addition to the Oddball Gun Thread. I suppose we could expand the definition to include all sorts of oddball stuff, not just cannons, although that is arguably a small multi-round cannon, since it fired large projectiles (or 16 musketballs at once), not standard musket calibers. I am assuming no rifling, right?

Here we will assemble examples of oddball, no-so-bright or simply hazardous examples of cannons from the past. I'll start. From the North Georgia tourist page: One of Athen's most prized possessions, the famous Double Barrel Cannon, was cast at the Athens Steam Company in 1862 and today stands on the lawn of the City Hall in Athens, Georgia. The Athens Steam Company was renamed the Athens Foundry and Machine Works in December 1863 and most reports name the Foundry as the site of manufacture. The Cannon is a double six-pounder, cast in one piece, with a three degree divergence from the parallel between the barrels. Each barrel has its own touch hole so it can be fired independent of the other and a common touch hole in the center is designed to fire both barrels simultaneously. The idea was to connect two cannon balls with a chain and mow the enemy down like a scythe cuts wheat. The gun is four feet eight and one-half inches long, the bore is three and thirteen-hundredths inches and the gun weighs about thirteen hundred pounds. The gun was designed by John Gilleland who has been identified as a local house builder and mechanic, a Jackson County dentist, a private in Mitchell's Thunderbolts and as an employee of Cook's Armory. The Cannon was financed by a $350 subscription raised by 36 interested citizens and the casting was supervised by Thomas Bailey. The Cannon was taken out on the Newton Bridge Road in April 1862, for test firing. The test was, to say the least, spectacular if unsuccessful. According to reports one ball left the muzzle before the other and the two balls pursued an erratic circular course plowing up an acre of ground, destroying a corn field and mowing down some saplings before the chain broke. The balls then adopted separate courses, one killing a cow and the other demolishing the chimney on a log cabin. The observers scattered in fear of their lives. Some reports claimed two or three spectators were killed by the firing. The reports of the deaths have not been substantiated. The Watchman promptly reported the test an unqualified success. I will not be using this setup in my gun deck project.

Jose Gaspar is fictional; Billy Bowlegs is not: William Augustus Bowles (1763-1805) WILLIAM BOWLES The Spanish Florida-United States border problem was further complicated by the presence of colorful opportunists who profited from the region's lack of political control. None was more troublesome than WILLIAM AUGUSTUS BOWLES, a former British naval officer. While visiting Florida during the American Revolution, he lost his rank due to insubordination, insulted his commander, and threw his uniform into into the Gulf. Bowles escaped into the forests of West Florida, where he was adopted by the Creeks. In 1781, he gained a pardon when he led some Creeks to the rescue of Pensacola, then under seize by a Spanish fleet. Bowles accepted a job as an Indian agent, but was considered an unreliable and ruthless individualist. When the Spanish regained Florida in 1783, Bowles was told to leave, but instead elected to wage a personal war against the Penton and Leslie Company and its monopoly of the fur trade in West Florida. Gaining the support of the Nassau firm of Bonamy & Miller, Bowles tried to get the English to support him in an attempt to overthrow the Spanish in Florida. Authorities in London rejected Bowles' plans and the Spanish sought the help of Alexander McGillivray. Within weeks McGillivray's men captured Bowles and brought him to the Spanish in Pensacola. The Spanish tried to convince the daring Englishman to join the Spanish navy, but when Bowles refused them, he was sent to a prison in the distant Spanish Philippines. Several years later, Bowles was reassigned to Madrid, but escaped enroute off the coast of British West Africa. Bowles was treated as a wayward hero in London, but he elected to return to Florida in 1791 to renew his personal war against Spain. By now, his Creek friends had deserted him and Bowles was recaptured and sentenced to Morro Castle prison in Havana, Cuba. Struck down by the plague and on his death bed in prison, Bowles was visited by the Governor of Cuba who wanted to see the celebrity prisoner. Bowles informed his guard, "I am sunk low indeed, but not low enough to greet a Spaniard." The death of Bowles, however, did not lessen the conflict along the borderlands. Bowles was merely a symptom of Spain's lack of control of its frontier. I have not been able to difinitively pin the name Billy Bowlegs on Bowles, but the evidence that every generation of Seminole since has had a plethora of Billys and Bowlegs names. Actually there have been several notable Billy Bowlegs in the history of the Creek and Seminole nations. The next was: Billy Bowlegs whose Seminole name was Holata Micco Seminole leader Born: c. 1810 Birthplace: Florida Holata Micco, commonly called Billy Bowlegs, and known as the “Alligator chief,” was a Seminole leader who fought in the Second (1835–1842) and Third Seminole wars (1855–1858) against the U.S. government. As more and more settlers moved to Florida, the U.S. was determined to move the Seminoles to Indian Territory (now Oklahoma). The three wars resulted in 3,000 Seminoles removed from Florida and more than 1,500 dead. It was a costly, $20-million war for the U.S., which met fierce resistance. After the Second Seminole war, Bowlegs refused to move to Indian Territory and was given a small parcel of land in the Everglades. When whites then encroached upon this remaining land, Bowlegs initiated the Third and final Seminole war, in 1855. It was the last Indian war fought east of the Mississippi. After several years of attacks by the U.S. Army, Bowlegs and his remaining band of 40 warriors resigned themselves to removal to Indian Territory in 1858. There he eventually died of small pox. Died: 1859?

Internet order 50 lb lots from: powderinc.com $10.86/lb/25 or 50 lb lot Delivered in Florida, considerably more for smaller lots, however this company will ship lots as small as 5 lbs.

Aye, flintlocks might not be period for GAoP, but caps are way out.

Ever since I posted the title to this thread something seemed wrong about it. I think this is it. Sung to the Sound of Music's "Favorite Things" Flintlocks on cannons, and pistols on ribbons. Bright muzzle flashes, And blowin' up mizzens. Mainyards a' spint'rin While cannonballs sing, These are a few of my favorite things. When the rhum's gone when my head swims When I'm feeling sad, I simply remember my favorite things and then I don't feeeeeel soooo baaaad! Speakin' o' so bad....

Thanks Blackjohn. Anyone else got something earlier?

More examples: Late 18th C, cannon mounting and lock: Note the bolt holes that match up with the barrel holes: The guts, just your standard fare with the sear modified for a lanyard. Note that the mainspring powers both the tumbler and the frizzen: Wood sideplate, undoubtably a replacement: A different lock, this one pivots on the front hole and is pinned through the back during firing to allow the lock to be moved out of the way for the thumbstall during loading. This is an exact match to the Lady Burgess lock:

Thanks GoF, this idea has been percolating for a while, and this is the first time I have let it out in public. Also note the cannon lock thread in Captain Twill. First comes the estimating: -How much does a connon weigh -How much wood, what does it weigh, alternate wood types -Buckets, hardware, misc stuff -Is all this more than my truck can tow -Prices for all -Is there someone who has grants for this sort of thing (institutions) -Estimate time to build (I have most of the skills and the tools) -Build a collection of drawings and pictures of battle stations -Visit as many real ships as possible, take copious notes After all of the prliminary stuff, then its time to commit to one design and find drawings of sectons of battle stations. That model you like is actually a good place to start, and building the model will help to teach me how to build the big one. That's why shipbuilders made ship models, to help to iron out any unforseen dificulties before full scale mistakes were made. I may buy the model and modify the hell out of it and make it a model of exactly what I have in mind, trailer and all. It may help to sell the idea to museums, living history groups, historical societies or whatever to get them to invest. I'm doing all of the prelim stuff while finishing up a house we are building, so time this year is limited. This is, after all a long-term project. I plan to buy one of the rail guns this year, from wildimports.com. and mount it on a small section of rail and deck as sort of a pre project warm-up. That is where the Battle Station project will actually begin to take place. The rest of the project will proceed as time and money permit.

I am beginning the design and costing phase of a project that will eventually have its own thread: the Battle Station. I plan to build a full scale below-deck gun station on a trailer and equip it with a British six-pounder. Eventually, it will have a fold-down section of deck to do double duty as a stage (and enclose the station when up), and an upper deck with railing and at least one rail gun, two would be better. It will probably start out like this: But will eventually end up like this: Add folding stages that cover the open side and both ends, and move the solid upper deck to the railing and you get the idea of what I'm after. And only one cannon below deck. One will be enough to pay for. The idea behind the project is to provide the people ashore a similar or better experience as those who were able to go out on the tall ships for the sea battles at pyrate fests. I envision cannon demonstrations with stop-action instruction followed by full speed cannon drills against those offshore boats. For those of you who were in Key West, think about this set up on the parade ground or on Mallory Dock! And, since it will be equipped with front and side stages, it can do double duty as an entertainment stage. What better background, Eh? And yeah, I would like feedback on whether anyone thinks that this is a good idea and whether this creature would be desired by fest organizers enough to hire it for demonstrations and stage setups.

One from the Lady Burgess, lost 1806. All of the steel parts have rusted away, but the same general organisation is evident in this and the Charleville above with the exception that the pan seems to be designed not to fit in the touch hole, but to light off a prime set in the cannon's normal priming channel.

Here is one from the late 18th c. that is used by inserting the long pan into the touchhole and pulling the lanyard. I presume that the mechanism was fitted on some sort of rod with the spike-and-thumbscrew arrangement to control it when the powder went off.

A question for all: When did the flint lock come into use for firing cannon? I have only found one reference to the adoption of the practice that dates to the latter third of the 18th century. I am designing a full scale gundeck on a mobile base (read: trailer) to take sea battles to the people. I'll go with a linstock if that is more appropriate for the GAoP, but I would prefer to use a flint (a' la Master and Commander) if it is at all accurate. Anyone?

I would say that 99.9% of my dreams now are pleasant, fun, adventurous. At one time, though, I had a recurring nightmare, two or three times a week. It seems silly, but when I was a teenager, I dreamed that I could not find a clean white shirt. I would hunt all night (in my dream) panicked that I would not be judged as worthy (by whom I never knew) because I could not find a clean white shirt. I would wake repeatedly through the night, sweating, panicked, and be exausted the next day. I even went to a psychiatrist to solve this probelm, it was that bad. Nothing that the shrink did helped. Then one day I went out and bought a very expensive white shirt. Put it on a shelf in my closet, still in the wrappings. I still have that shirt today, on my closet shelf, almost 3o years later. I have never had the dream again.

Rumba, the shirt in the picture is only 6 inches tall. So its very short.