So fess up-who played around with these? Dad used to make them for us. A piece of lead pipe, threaded on one end, about 8-12" long. Mount it in a crude wooden pistol stock. The back end of the pipe was threaded, and he'd cut a slot in one side. Put a firecracker in that end with the fuse sticking out through the slot, screw a plug in behind it. Mount an empty shotgun shell on the other end, point it at something, like a garbage can, and light the fuse. With good firecrackers, if you could actually hit it, you'd cave in the whole side of a metal garbage can. We used to drag 'em out when we'd see a red squirrel in the back yard and lay seige to them up in the trees. I shot a branch right out from under one one time, and my brother actually hit one in the belly with one. Blew it in two. Man, those were fun to screw around with. Reminds me of the tennis ball and pumpkin cannons.
