Cannonball restoration?

[Charles (Sabre)(Tx)]

Anyboby know how to preserve a cannonball? I have about a dozen 8 pounders that were from the Texan-Mexican revolution that are beginning to rust away. I soaked them in motor oil but now since the oil has dried up, huge rust flakes are falling from them. Thanks in advance.

Charles

 

[GRAY GHOST]

hey charles. electrolysis is used to clean heavily encrusted cannon balls and shells. in your case though, you don't say whether it's solid shot. maybe the best thing to do is to tap off the excess with a small hammer, wirebrush them down, then prime and paint them with some good quality primer and paint. i'm no cannonball or shell preservation expert, rarely ever finding one, just relating what i have seen and heard about here on the forum.
there are quite a few who preserve old artillery balls and shells here on the internet, and they do it professionally. if you think for one second that they may be active, i'd definetly have them de - activated by a pro. hh!

 

[d-2]

The one my wife found we did more or less like GG said. It is solid and I used the wire wheel on the grinder on it to remove the rust and scale. I then put it in the oven on the warm setting and when it got hot I rubbed canning wax on it. It soaked up the wax and aint rusted in 10 years...d2

 

[Nemo]

If they are powder filled (have fuses or fuse holes. They need to be deactivated by a professional. If this is the case, PM me and I'll give you the name and Phone number of a professional.

Nemo

 

[Charles (Sabre)(Tx)]

I've had them weighed and had an engineer use a caliper on them to find the diameter and weight comparison. Definitely 8 pounders...solid shot. Thanks for the feedback.

 

[ET-Phone-Home]

We used to soak iron artifacts than we recovered from salt water shipwrecks in a Lye Bath for a year or so. This process really slowed the deterioration down.
Red Devil Lye ( Drain Cleaner ) is easy to find at hardware stores. Good Luck!