Federal
Sawyer
DIAMETER: 3.62 inches
GUN: Sawyer rifle, 3.67-inch caliber
LENGTH: 5 3/4 inches
WEIGHT: 3 pounds 3 ounces (filler balls missing)
CONSTRUCTION: Canister
SABOT: None
FUZING: None
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Federal
DIAMETER: 3.62 inches |
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| This projectile is correctly referred to as Sawyer's solid shot canister. Addison M Sawyer patented this ridged cylindrical canister on November 19, 1861, patent #33,754. This canister was designed not to expand into the guns rifling, thus allowing for a more uniform dispersement of the canister balls. The Sawyer canister was designed so that it could be fired from a Sawyer rifle (3.67-inch caliber), or a 6-pounder smoothbore (3.67-inch caliber). This canister has three holes in the bottom which allowed the propellant charge to help force out the canister balls. The majority of Sawyer canisters have been recovered from Port Hudson, Louisiana. This style Sawyer canister is also found in 3.4-inch caliber. | ||||