I made a Potato Cannon

[CyberDruid]

OMG it's LOUD(nutkick)

My ears are still ringing from a few test shots into the night sky. Dayyyum I shoulda made one of these a long time ago.

I'll make some destructo vids tomorrow. 3" x 2.5' chamber and 1.5" x 2.5' barrel wrapped in Neon Green Duct Tape with a Neon Green Scripto grill lighter epoxied into a threaded cap for an igniter. I had to mod the tip of the grill lighter to get it to work. Using the cheapest hairspray I could find (Rave Unscented) for a propellant and some Russet Potatoes. I load the tater first. Then unscrew the end and a 1 second shot of spray does the job, 2 seconds has more oomph and 3 seconds of spray seems about the same as 2 seconds so probably a waste. I'm using an acrylic rod 1.25" diameter I had laying around for a Ram Rod.

Straight up looks like the spud gets about 200 feet of loft. I shot it at my crappy shed I am tearing down and it dents the steel :D Seriously LOUD report. Like a shotgun. My ears are actually hurting.

Can't wait to play with it tomorrow(nutlick)

[JC316]

Dude, you're awesome.

[Jizzler]

Nice!

I remember making quite a few back in the day. My favorite pipe size held a D sized battery. Kept my radio on a lot, so I'd have more rounds available.

[MT Alex]

Neat.
We shot my buddies ashes out of one at his wake. What a party.

[Wile E]

Yet another fine use for CD's favorite: Taters

[Papahyooie]

Neat.
We shot my buddies ashes out of one at his wake. What a party.

Hunter S Thompson, redneck style lol... nice.

And a D-Cell battery??? That could be dangerous lol

[MT Alex]

Why would you say Hunter wasn't a redneck?

[mlee49]

Subscribed for videos...

wait I already subscribe on your YT channel anyways.

[Papahyooie]

Why would you say Hunter wasn't a redneck?

Well, just because his ashes were shot out of a cannon rather than a potato gun.

[ProgressiveTokyo]

Pics or it didnt happen

[DannibusX]

Neat.
We shot my buddies ashes out of one at his wake. What a party.

That is the most awesome thing I have read all damn day.

[CyberDruid]

There will be pics...but vids will be more entertaining :D

D cell battery...oh my. I have a bunch of those. D cell versus laundry jug could be just the ticket.

[CyberDruid]

Vids are uploading, but they take forever. First one is 4:20 and it will take about 5 hours :(\

So here are some pics

http://img535.imageshack.us/img535/8094/spudchucker900000228488.jpg

http://img99.imageshack.us/img99/4835/spudchucker900000328750.jpg

http://img202.imageshack.us/img202/3922/spudchucker900000428992.jpg

[de.das.dude]

moar pics!

[CyberDruid]

http://img291.imageshack.us/img291/9651/chuckingspuds0078492213.jpg
http://img412.imageshack.us/img412/8229/chuckingspuds0088518070.jpg
http://img291.imageshack.us/img291/1708/chuckingspuds0098559952.jpg
http://img832.imageshack.us/img832/7079/chuckingspuds0118585835.jpg
http://img716.imageshack.us/img716/450/chuckingspuds0148605554.jpg
http://img837.imageshack.us/img837/9973/chuckingspuds0158628739.jpg
http://img826.imageshack.us/img826/9735/chuckingspuds0168649840.jpg
The start of any healthy breakfast: fresh fruit and whole grain cereal :D

[MT Alex]

You could feed an entire tribe of Ethiopians with that load.

[brandonwh64]

Cyber! video! NAW!

[CyberDruid]

I had to cancel the first vid...it hung up at 37% :(

Now uploading some very short vids hope that works.

[Jizzler]

Hmmm... I never made one with a chamber that long. But sounds like it's a good design!
Can't wait for vids... on the way home I might be stopping by the hardware store...

Tip: For easy potato loading, can taper the end so it's "cuts away" the potato that doesn't fit. But also sand around the inside of the tip so it's diameter is a hair bigger than the rest of the tube. Potato loads easy, but keeps a tight seal.


Yes - D battery could do some damage. I remember it going through 3/8", maybe 1/2" ply at 40'. I also took a sanding wheel (a little bigger than a D) and with drill bit extensions was able to sand down any imperfections the inside of the tube has.

[CyberDruid]

rAg16msaXRA

[CyberDruid]

I'm not sure what the best dimensions are for a spud gun. They cost about $25 to make, so I might try some variants. I'd think maybe a shorter fatter chamber and a longer skinnier bore would produce the highest velocities. The amount of spray does not seem critical. Anything between 1 second to 5 seconds of squirt seem about the same. What does matter is how long you wait before firing it. The spray definitely drops out and the longer the wait the less bang.

[de.das.dude]

i think using more spray in a longer expansion would be better. more air to burn the spray.

[CyberDruid]

EKdqpa-3OYc

[de.das.dude]

LOL igniter FAIL.

[CyberDruid]

e8g_27JOLac

[yogurt_21]

EKdqpa-3OYc

lol scenes on this video
*load potato
*potato too big, smash with hand hammer
*push it down into the chamber
* rav hairspray is the best
* load up
* damn failing lighter
*woot

[CyberDruid]

IF you like that...
97bIKT9LEVg

[CyberDruid]

wt_UPbt2Gzo

[jmcslob]

I really want to build a spud cannon again...I used a grill ignitor last on I built...they are so much fun

[CyberDruid]

Eu4B60iK1tc

[CyberDruid]

I really want to build a spud cannon again...I used a grill ignitor last on I built...they are so much fun

The guys over at Overclock are digging it too and posting pics of their uber Propane-powered cannons and 200 PSI compressed air mortars...it's giving me ideers.

Ideally a breach loader with some way to charge the chamber without unscrewing anything...that would be sweet.

[CyberDruid]

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I think Gravel is the gnarliest so far. It could put a real hurting on someone/ Talk about nonlethal deterrent.

[de.das.dude]

use a smaller barrel and use AA or AAA size batteries! they are awesome!
i had made a spring loaded gun that way!

[Wile E]

64KK73vuRiA

I think Gravel is the gnarliest so far. It could put a real hurting on someone/ Talk about nonlethal deterrent.

Do a rifled barrel and pre-form some taters into a bullet shape. :D

[CyberDruid]

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[CyberDruid]

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[CyberDruid]

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[CyberDruid]

WHr3Ys7GGUk

[Jizzler]

Yeah, batteries do best when the pipe is fitted for them. Thanks for the vid though!

I remember doing fine steel wool as well. Get it covered in hairspray or WD40. Was a flamethrower or fireball depending on how tightly it was waded up. IIRC....

[CyberDruid]

Thanks for the tip.

[DannibusX]

If you wanted to get crafty you could use a barbecue igniter (http://www.woodmanspartsplus.com/8303/29265/Barbecue-Ignitor-Replacement-Parts/Barbecue-Push-Button-Igniter-03100.html) for the firing source. That lighter is pretty handy though.

[Wile E]

Do a rifled barrel and pre-form some taters into a bullet shape. :D

So that's a no go on the rifled barrel idea?

[CyberDruid]

Thanks for the link Danni that is a useful source there. I like the idea of making it more like a bazooka or RPG launcher so a remote igniter is perfect. Still trying to figure out how to make one that breach loads. Latest idea revolved around making some projectiles using a hole saw and some scrap and gluing little circles together using maybe a small dowel. I could use a paper towel tube to contain the payload (explosive would be awesome).

Another idea I had was to shoot something with a parachute...maybe one of those little army men.

[CyberDruid]

So that's a no go on the rifled barrel idea?

Rifling would be pretty easy on the slug, but not the barrel. Some angled slits on the slug would get it spinning and stabilize it. I have nothing planned today so I'll probably play around with that some.

[WhiteLotus]

You are a god among insects.

Only thing I could suggest is making your own paintball gun, but with spuds.

[CyberDruid]

Well the payload on a projectile could have paint in it :D I should definitely try that. Imagine what a 1/2 cup of cayenne could do to deter someone. Especially if the impact just about knocked their teeth out :eek: Let's take spud guns to the next level I say.

Just thought of something: remember those 35mm film cannisters with the pop off lids? That's probably the perfect size.

[de.das.dude]

right o! you can fill em up with paint! too bad they are an endangered species now.

[CyberDruid]

I built a "whirlibird" type projectile from some UV reactive blue Acrylic. Just need to mod up a UV LED and it'll be awesome for night launches. I tinkered with it for a few hours this afternoon and finally worked out some stuff so it wouldn't break every time it makes landfall.

http://img190.imageshack.us/img190/185/heli0174949228.jpg
I routed out the little disks to perfectly fit the Spud Chucker 9000.

http://img4.imageshack.us/img4/4346/heli0194971718.jpg
Holding it upside down to show how it opens the blades.

http://img203.imageshack.us/img203/8083/heli0204996412.jpg
I used small cable ties for the "hinges" on the blades and some tire weights at the bottom.

http://img266.imageshack.us/img266/2379/heli0215018535.jpg
I cable tied a little LED unit to the shaft.

http://img88.imageshack.us/img88/2218/heli0225042663.jpg
It works pretty well to illuminate the blades and I was able to track and retrieve it at night.

I need to make a couple more adjustments... a rubber disk under the blades to make them spring open...the wind does not always catch them just right, and a UV led instead of green.

[CyberDruid]

DKf1x22ZXQ8

[CyberDruid]

fd_dNxVS60E

[MT Alex]

It makes a neat sound when it slides down the barrel.

[JC316]

The sound when it comes out reminds me of the grenade launcher in Quake 2....

[WhiteLotus]

Watching these videos I have come to the conclusion that CyberDruid sounds a bit like Jeremy Sisto (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pGA-DY2SCUo) from Law and Order

[CyberDruid]

I improved the Spud Chucker with a proper igniter.

QWbm3UCP9UM

[CyberDruid]

RgutIP3oHKE

[CyberDruid]

http://img252.imageshack.us/img252/9601/projectiles0137667087.jpg

http://img246.imageshack.us/img246/6869/projectiles0147706799.jpg

http://img227.imageshack.us/img227/7053/projectiles0157732519.jpg

http://img832.imageshack.us/img832/975/projectiles0197744399.jpg

http://img180.imageshack.us/img180/333/projectiles0207756389.jpg

http://img231.imageshack.us/img231/1952/projectiles0227771076.jpg

[DaMulta]

I bet with a natural gas/ \propane converter you could pick up at lowes to stop the back draft issue...You might be able to pipe mapp into it.

We just always sprayed it in there like you did with hair spray then close the end.

Yes those ignitors you are now using are a lot better.

[jmcslob]

LOL
Get some "Whip its" and a ball pump and a 1/4 inch fine threaded pneumatic control valve and launch them spuds with NITROUS MUAHAhahahahahahahaha!

[jmcslob]

The guys over at Overclock are digging it too and posting pics of their uber Propane-powered cannons and 200 PSI compressed air mortars...it's giving me ideers.

Ideally a breach loader with some way to charge the chamber without unscrewing anything...that would be sweet.

Whip its with a pneumatic valve.... Just gotta figure out an autoloading system LOL

[CyberDruid]

That's drug abuse.:o

In other words a terrible waste of Nitrous :D

[CyberDruid]

If you wanted to get crafty you could use a barbecue igniter (http://www.woodmanspartsplus.com/8303/29265/Barbecue-Ignitor-Replacement-Parts/Barbecue-Push-Button-Igniter-03100.html) for the firing source. That lighter is pretty handy though.

Well the BBQ igniter lasted one session:(

I will try out an electronic igniter now.

But I did make an awesome projectile using some melamine routed into a bullet shape.

[CyberDruid]

http://img829.imageshack.us/img829/8441/slug0014626231.jpg
http://img63.imageshack.us/img63/6227/slug0024655656.jpg
http://img831.imageshack.us/img831/7893/slug0034681315.jpg
Nasty

Found that the Rave Hairspray is not that good. Too wet. I am using some White Rain and getting better ignition.

Damn Piezo stopped working last night then this morning it works again. In the meantime I ordered an electric igniter off eBay.

Going down to the shop to make some more slugs. Going to try cutting rifling grooves in the slug to see if that helps it fly straight.

Vid incoming :D

[CyberDruid]

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Made 4 rifled slugs but now the piezo is dead for real. Oh well.

[CyberDruid]

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http://img220.imageshack.us/img220/3957/rifledwoodslug009776595.jpg

[Wile E]

HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! The slug is fuckin brutal. I love it.

[de.das.dude]

what did and how did you make the grooves?

and put a lazer viewfinder on it. your aim is bad. :(

[CyberDruid]

There's a vid on my YT Channel

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