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Author
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Topic: My very own trebuchet.
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Shelly
Senior Member
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posted 03-20-2001 03:32 PM
  
I have endeavored to make a trebuchet, albeit a somewhat slapped together one with what I had on hand. Plywood and oodles of yarn basically and a rock filled towel acting as a hinged counterweight. I took my treb to our sideyard and on first attempt with my 7 foot(with the arm upright)"Tater Tosser" as I called it, the potato was launched backwards about 10 feet. The next try was only slightly more successful as the potato was thrown straight up about 30 feet, I think the sling got twisted on the first try and the potato just flopped out of it. By now some of the children living in my building were drawn to the goings on with this strange device and presented me with eggs to fling (it's always eggs I notice). Anyway the eggs were perfect, but my machine could no longer be called the "Tater Tosser". Another rock was stolen(shhhh-don't tell anyone;-)) from the buildings adjacent garden and was placed into the towel-counterweight.
The first egg landed just short of the building and splatted a badly frightened lawnchair dead on some 50 feet away. the next toss landed in the garden just on the other side of the fence from where the lawnchair had been slimed.
On the third and final try all of the kids ran over to ground zero- one of the parents had come over and said that whoever catches the egg would get a dollar for a coke. I had my doubts myself, I had the picture in my mind of someone getting egg on their face-literally, but to my surprise and relief one of the kids actually caught the egg without it breaking and so it was a success.[This message has been edited by Shelly (edited 03-20-2001).] |
Philip Davis
unregistered
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posted 03-21-2001 12:36 AM
What a wonderful thing to do. I suppose the next step is to build a trebuchet big enough to throw the local children  |
Fox Atreides
Senior Member
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posted 03-21-2001 07:38 AM
Mister you... I just happen to know oyur neighbour very very well, in fact it's me.....
Now I didn't like the eggthrowing business at all, you'll know why.
And therefor, I will not show you my signature. Ha-ha. And I want my rock back.
Just kidding,  great idea, your eggmachine, wonder how the chickens feel about it.
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Shelly
Senior Member
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posted 03-21-2001 11:04 AM
Ah...ha! Me, the mad scientist likes the idea of the "Kiddy Tosser"; unfortunately that would badly frighten the parents and they would take my trebuchet away. As to the other question-the chickens haven't been told-shhhhhhh. [This message has been edited by Shelly (edited 03-21-2001).] |
Peter
Member
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posted 03-21-2001 01:10 PM
Well eggs are certainly no worse than the mention in the other forum on Bridgenorth. Were a professional team, with a fair sized machine were reduced to firing blazing pineapples !
I think I'd stick to your eggs .. no pun intended ! |
Philip Davis
unregistered
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posted 03-21-2001 03:54 PM
A touch more seriously we've just had a couple of weeks of something called 'Techno Games' on the TV. This is a school engineering contest to build various machines (A high jumper, a swimmer, a runner etc) The shot putting machines were a selection of which the winner was basically a trebuchet. Perhaps you can get the kids to build the best egg thrower and see if they come up with torsion devices (catapults and balista) and perhaps some of those devices the ancients never came up with like gas compression devices, I'd draw the line at chemical energy based devices (or guns as they are often called) though. |
Shelly
Senior Member
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posted 03-23-2001 07:30 AM
Ahhhh...EGG FIGHT! |
AJR
Senior Member
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posted 03-23-2001 07:38 AM
Eggsactly !!! |
Fox Atreides
Senior Member
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posted 03-23-2001 11:14 AM
Kids are not allowed to use chemical stuff, so that's excluded, I say, now you've tried the eggs, go for the chickens, must be alot more fun
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Peter
Member
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posted 03-23-2001 11:55 AM
Fox'
Are you suggesting chickens would be more likely to put the enemy to flight ? |
Shelly
Senior Member
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posted 03-23-2001 11:59 AM
Thats one way to get a chicken to fly. |
wurdsmiff
unregistered
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posted 03-23-2001 12:23 PM
Even a frozen one!!!.....ouch. |
Fox Atreides
Senior Member
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posted 03-24-2001 06:18 AM
If you want the enemy to flee, try to shoot some elephants. With their large ears they should come quite far, when that doesn't work, try lions, when even that fails (very unlikely) Try to shoot my former english teacher, but you will need a very very very strong an d big trebuchet to get her in the air, Nice thing: when she lands, she'll bounce for about 20 times, squashing anyone nearby. |
fafwolf
Senior Member
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posted 04-28-2001 12:00 PM
Supposing you made a trebuchet bigg enough to hurl parents... Would the kids take it away? BTW has anyone ever seen the trebuchet in Age Of Empires II? VERRRRRRRY nice, I love to watch castles desintegrate under a barrage of rock. I think there's even a cheat to make them shoot peaseants and cows... ------------------
"Those who refuse to serve the Powers,
become the tools of the Powers.
Those who agree to serve the Powers,
Themselves become the Powers. Beware the Choice! Beware refusing it!"
-Book of Night with Moon Tetrastych XVI: "Fire Over Heaven" |
Fox Atreides
Senior Member
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posted 04-29-2001 09:43 AM
Yes!!
That's a very good one indeed, the cows are nice too |
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