The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1862-07-04
How Parrot Guns are Made

A correspondent of the Baltimore Amer
acan, who has been visiting the Parrot cam
non foundry near West Point, gives the
following description of their manufacture :
The works employ FIVE hundred men, all
engaged in making the Parrott riaed cannon
and the solid shot and she'll suited to this
kind of ordnance. Captain Parrot. who
superintends the works, is a graduate of the
military academy. He served in the army
twelve years, but has resigned, and now de-
votes his entire attention to scientific inves.
LEGATIONS connected with cannon and various
projecties.
The practical results sought by inventors
are to increase the effective range of cannon;
to throw shot or shell of great weight
two or three hundred pounds--w without maks
ing the gun 80 large as to be manageable
and incapable OF transportation in the pres
ence of an enemy. These advantages are
attained by the Parrot gun, and hence make
it superior to the Columbiad, the Dahlgren
or the Armstrong. By means of band of
wrought iron which surrounds the breech,
great strength is secured, and by the use of
elongated or conical shot smaller bore is
required, and hence less weight of metal in
the gun. The range of the 200-pounders
is between four and five miles. At the diss
lance of three miles 200 pound shot can be
thrown so as to fall within the space of
twenty feet square. The initial velocity of
the ball is twelve hundred feet per second,
and the whole distance is accomplished in
about seventeen seconds.
The power of the l00-pounder Parrott
has been tested upon wrought iron plates,
thicker than the armor of the Mentor. At
distance of fifty feet plate of eight and
half inches thick, inclined at an angle of 20
degrees, was broken through the middle
vertically by the first shot. So convinced
Is the government of the power and accura-
cy of these guns, that Captain Parrot has
an order to furnish as many as he can make
by employing all the force that can work in
the foundry. Six hundred have been sent
to various Notifications and divisions of the
army-l0, "a, 100 and 200 Founders, with
others of intermediate caibre 1t was q
200 pound Parrot which caused the evac-
uation of YORKTOWN and the retreat of
Beauregard from Corinth.
The guns are cast in the usual manner
and then transferred to the turning plat
form, where they are cut down to the prop
er diameter, after which they present the
appearance of highly polished steel. They
are next bored out and passed into the
hands of the rifer. The process of riAing
is by simple gouge working so as to give
the proper twist. One groove is made at
time. The gun now passes into the shop
to receive its wrought iron band. This
surrounds the breech and is about one-hfth
the length of the cannon. 1t is made OF
wrought iron bar, varying from two to
six inches square, according to the callbre.
This bar is heated to a white heat
and then twisted into spiral and weld
ed into cylinder mass by
powerful trip hammer. The diameter
of the band is little less than that OF the
breech of the gun. 1t is made red hot, and
while expanded fixed upon the breech,
where it shriDks firmly into its place and
forms almost solid portion OF the cannon.
This process is upon the same principle by
which tires are fitted to carriage wheels.
The strength thus obtained is greater than
that of any single casting, however thick.
For a 1OO-pounder bar. of wrought iron
four inches square and 50 feet long is re-
quired 2OO-pounder, eighty-fve feet, Of
five inches square /; 3O0-pounder, one hum
dred feet, six inches square.
The cost of the smallest gun-6~pounder
is two hundred dollars; for 200-pounders
two thousand dollars each, which is said to
be one-tenth the cost of the Armstrong gun.
The charge of powder is one pound to