Posted 2 years ago
hotairfan
(388 items)
Four months ago, I received two scale model Civil War Cannons.
The one was a Navel Cannon, and the other was a field artillery piece.
The navel cannon was the first one that I wanted to restore, because I knew that the Napoleon was going to be more of a challenge.
Three months ago, I posted the navel cannon on CW.
Now it was time to face a more formidable chore, The field artillery piece.
There were several broken or missing pieces which posed only a minor challenge.
The real problem was the wooden wheels, which were in terrible condition from being in a yard shed for 30 years and exposed to the weather. The hubs were so loose that they were facing 45 degrees from straight ahead. The only thing that held the fellows to the wheels and spokes were the screws in the metal rims.
I like to do restorations, but I also know my limits. Fortunately, I live in an area that have a lot of Amish and Mennonite communities, and they all use buggies pulled by horses. They needed wheelwrights to repair their damaged wheels, so I looked up a local wheelwright in Lancaster County, PA and he was happy to repair my wheels for me. He done a wonderful job as you can see. He even managed to dish the wheels as the original cannons had. I placed a 12 oz. beverage can in the picture to show you the comparative size to my cannon.
Being a very visual part of the cannon, the professional repair of the wheels was a smart move, if I do say so myself.
I'm looking forward to firing this beauty in the near future.
Looks fantastic! Great job with the restoration...what a great display piece!
BB2 was here, as you knew I would be. Nice piece and the guy did a great job on the wheels.
Thanks fellows, for the comments.
I mounted the napoleon on a board with a lazy Susan on the bottom. This way I can rotate it to show all sides at the historical shows that I attend.