Mess Canons
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Join Date: Aug 2005
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Mess Canons
Hello all,
Our UAS is having a mess canon competition with a visiting Spit pilot who is giving us a talk that night. I assume some of you are veterans of this sport, and I would appreciate any advice and instructions on how to build a mess canon without blowing my face off.
Much appreciated,
RR
Our UAS is having a mess canon competition with a visiting Spit pilot who is giving us a talk that night. I assume some of you are veterans of this sport, and I would appreciate any advice and instructions on how to build a mess canon without blowing my face off.
Much appreciated,
RR
Join Date: Mar 2004
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Whilst in Deci we would use practice bomb cases collected from the range. Put them together using gaffer tape to form the tube! A banger was lit and dropped in the tube followed by an empty beer can! Then point it over the barrack block towards the officers mess! We later experimented with putting another banger in the empty beer can to get a nice airburst!!!
It was all geat fun until the Boss woke up and sent us all to bed again!! Well somebody had opened his door and thrown in a couple of bangers for good measure!!
It was all geat fun until the Boss woke up and sent us all to bed again!! Well somebody had opened his door and thrown in a couple of bangers for good measure!!
I seem to remember that 'shell scrapes' down the corridor at Mountbatten evidenced billiard balls as ammunition - till AOC SouMAR stepped in and called a halt/cease fire!!
One understands that a small white cabbage makes rather an interesting projectile.....
Particularly if fitted with a suitable banger to optimise the air burst effect.
Particularly if fitted with a suitable banger to optimise the air burst effect.
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I recall in MPA Mess, the lighter fuel technology applied to a tube of Pringles (well it was more entertaining than eating the bloody things) was good value. It must have been effective because it was specifically banned (you 111, 11 and 56 Sqn lads know who you are!)
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The RNoAF F-16 guys demo'd their version to us 92 Sqn mates at Rygge - basically a piece of drainpipe firing a tennis ball - the fuel was Hydrazine, "borrowed" from their engine shop. It was a lethal weapon!
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Catering size tins give a 'meatier' cannon
making the ball out of gaffer tape enabled us to get an optimum sized projectile
although a rubber chicken worked fine for the 43 sqn demo
making the ball out of gaffer tape enabled us to get an optimum sized projectile
although a rubber chicken worked fine for the 43 sqn demo
Join Date: Nov 2006
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Mess cannons
If this is a modern day Spit jock and his name is Flt Lt C*****e B***n and he is stationed at Cranwell then you had better get a good one up and running. He was one of the best cannoniers I ever saw; what he could achieve with a couple of empty bean cans, some bodge tape and lighter fluid was mighty impressive.
3Putt
3Putt
Gentleman Aviator
Soldering and lighter fluid is cheating! Must be bodge tape and Lynx after shave (there's always some JP who uses it!).
Got complaints from air traffick at EGAA once cos the mess patio cannons were getting their rounds up to circuit height .........
Got complaints from air traffick at EGAA once cos the mess patio cannons were getting their rounds up to circuit height .........
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Together with Jacko once made a 6 barrelled `gatling` bazooka out of beer cans and maskers on wheels for the HWI dinner at VL, once warmed up it ran well but only managed to get 5 to fire in one swing, took a lot of lighter fluid mind!
Also made one out of 6lb baked bean tins, that went seriously well, fired plastic football again once warmed up we tried a full can of lighter fluid and managed to get the ball from the w`room (old one) over the tennis courts across main road and onto the swimming pool roof!! blew the back out but what a shot.
The best one made (can`t remember who) out of Wessex cable cutter breech plus cartridges and fired squash balls that took chunks of plaster out, banned after that!!
Also made one out of 6lb baked bean tins, that went seriously well, fired plastic football again once warmed up we tried a full can of lighter fluid and managed to get the ball from the w`room (old one) over the tennis courts across main road and onto the swimming pool roof!! blew the back out but what a shot.
The best one made (can`t remember who) out of Wessex cable cutter breech plus cartridges and fired squash balls that took chunks of plaster out, banned after that!!
In the good old days of wet-film tac recce, we found that 9" film tins from the RIC made good cannon barrels. Seem to remember taping so many together at Incirlik once that it resembled the Iraqi Supergun; my, how those Spam security police reacted when we let it off...
