Model Catapult

Building castles from toy blocks is only half the fun. Every child needs some siege weapons to then breach the enemy compound. Hence my first siege weapon. It throws a foam wine cork cut in half about 15-20 feet and knocks down blocks nicely. My son has a great deal of fun playing with it (when he can get it away from me—I’ve played with it a bit, too).

This is not my plan. I got this from a book at the library (http://www.amazon.com/Art-Catapult-Ballistae-Trebuchets-Artillery/dp/1556525265/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1297618166&sr=1-1). While it is intended for the junior-high or high-school age, it is a great read even for adults. I really enjoyed the history behind these designs. This is a roman design they called Wild Donkey which was credited with defeating an impenetrable enemy stronghold.

Not owning a lathe I was unable to turn a proper basket to hold the projectile. But after seeing Mafe, if I recall, turn on his drill press… I’ll have to get some turning tools and return to finish this properly.

P1: The Catapult
P2: This is the release mechanism I devised. It is a paperclip bent to be a hook, on a picture-frame eye-screw, with a string tied to it such that a pull on the string 90 degrees to the right releases the hook. You can almost see how I did the wheels. I cut discs from a dowel, drilled holes for the 1/4” dowels, and pinned them with toothpicks. It’s not top-notch woodworking, but I thought the design suited this project well.
P3: Here you can see the action. This is twisted rope, or torsion.

-- --bch