NEXT: A NUCLEAR BB GUN

Our military is pondering a giant slingshot.

(Via Gizmodo)

Comments

[anon]

All I can say is, COOL!!!!!!

[Hammond Rye]

The linear accelerator/railgun idea has been around for years. It'd be nice to see it actually work. Look for it soon at the Punkin' Chunkin' competitions.

[PeeJay]

Hmm. Could we test it with my neighbors extra 60,000 Christmas lights?

[Clean Hands]

Can we locate one in my backyard? And, can a blow-up Paris doll withstand 10,000 Gs?

[Dr Acula]

Not a giant slingshot. It's a giant peashooter.

[almne]

That is so cool. Magnetics are being talked about as a replacement for a lot of things, like bearings in generators to get rid of oil and grease.

[lance]

"U.S. Air Force has awarded Launchpoint a two-year 500,000 dollar grant" and they wouldn't give me any money for my "gravity consumption machine" i am working on in my basement.

[Punkin Poo]

Nobuddy's chuckin' me ANYWHERE!

(Not again)

[Dr Acula]

And could it be used to put Paris Hilton in orbit?

[Otis Wildflower]

Somewhere, Dennis the Menace is drooling...

(and his assisted-living care technician is wiping it up ;)

[«LabSpecimen»]

It can only handle 220 pounds, huh? I guess I need to talk my mother-in-law into dieting.

[Siouxie]

CH, not the doll. The real one. Please.

[Clean Hands]

Shhhhh, Siouxie! We pull the switcheroo at the last minute. Nobody'd even notice, but it's got to stay TOP SECRET NOPORN until then.

[blurk]

This AIR FORCE computer won't let me look at the AIR FORCE funded gizmo.
Stupid AIR FORCE IT weenies.

[Hammond Rye]

Cool! Codeword stuff. It's been a while.

[blurk]

SNORK @ "NOPORN".

[Siouxie]

I\'ll switch with your AF computer, blurk. You can have my \\s.

LOL CH

[insomniac]

don't you know you'll put an eye out with one of those things?

[Jazzzz]

Since it's "brain splattering" we could use a brainless pilot. Say, a certain hotel heiress?

[Heinrich the Lab Rat]

Hammond Rye --
It's about time someone showed the air cannon folks that they aren't the cat's meow.

I'm not sure that most pumpkins would survive 10,000 G, though. In the meantime, I'll have to use my trusty trebuchet.

[Lisa Bisa Fo Fisa]

Yes, but does it work on the Bernoulli Principle?

(I've read things that said the pyramids were built using magnets. Mystery solved.)

[casey]

Magnets frighten me. I eat a lot of broccoli and spinach and I'm always afraid the iron in my blood will be drawn to the magnet. That is why I wear a tinfoil hat. Also, tinfoil panties and bras. Yep, that's right, at least 3 pairs of tinfoil panties and 6 tinfoil bras, all at the same time. Makes me feel all safe inside, ya know?

[Lisa Bisa Fo Fisa]

The waste-management people have already placed an order for this item. That way, instead of landfills, they can simply launch trash into space.

Also, there is discussion about burying a certain Cuban dictator via use of this device. "Here sir, right this way into the limo."

[Hammond Rye]

Now sulking with a case of trebuchet envy...

[The Dread Pirate Chris]

Lab Rat - 10000 G probably would cause you to make pie. Maybe with a specially-engineered sabot...

[Siouxie]

casey, just stay away from the microwave...

[Kibby F5™]

Suppose we could use this on Politicans?

It would be a blast for skeet shooting!

[Clean Hands]

Oooh, the chafing, casey. Ouch.

[Clean Hands]

(I thought you'd get and appreciate that one, blurk... from one zoomie to another.)

[Jazzzz]

OK casey, I can't get that image out of my head!! *searches cabinet for Reynold's Wrap™*

[Cheesewiz]

God forbid a rogue squirrel gets his little buck teeth into that wiring!

[blurk]

I agree Jazzzz.

I have a sudden urge to become the tin man from the Wizard of Oz.

[casey]

SNORK!

[tonymus]

They're still looking for inexpensive ways to launch items into space? I hear ex-New York Met pitcher Jose Lima is still available...some of the baseballs he threw at hitters have yet to come down.

[Jazzzz]

Blurk...I'm just looking for that serated edge that cuts it off. ;0

[blurk]

*rethinks whole tin man thing*

Hey! Get that serrated edge away from that!!

[Siouxie]

Jazzzie & blurk?? personally I think saran wrap works better.

[blurk]

Saran wrap and baby oil.

I've heard.

[KCSteve]

NMTU - there's an even cooler concept called, IIRC, the 'slingatron'. It's basically a huge tube that sits above ground on eccentric casters. You insert a payload and the whole mess starts swaying around like a giant hula-hoop. The payload is kept chasing the outermost point of the looping and can, in theory, build up the ungodly speed needed for launch at which point you pop open a hatch to a straigh(ish) section that sends it whizzing on its way. Going back to the Hula-hoop, remember the ones with the marbles inside that you could spin up to incredible speed? Same thing, but much larger and more expensive.

Wonder what other geezer toy we can use for a launch technology?

[Siouxie]

um...me too...Ive heard.

[Clean Hands]

I'm going to have VERY strange dreams tonight. Saran wrap, baby oil and sling-a-trons. Oh my.

[Siouxie]

Add a few characters from Star Trek (pick your fav show) and THAT\\\'s a strange dream.

*thinking of Spock in a saran-wrap sling-a-thong*

add baby oil if needed

[Siouxie]

whoops...

*forgot about our new PG-rating*

[blurk]

Saran wrap, baby oil and a waterbed with no sheets.

That oughta get yer PG mind workin'.

[Siouxie]

WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

slip & slide

what?

[blurk]

And don't forget the weedeater, the live chicken and the peach jelly!!!!!

Um...maybe I went too far.

[Siouxie]

LOL uh...yeah...

*slowly backs away*

live chicken???

[Heinrich the Rat]

DPC -- from the official rules for Punkin' Chunkin':

4. No "wadding" (including bean chaff, straw, foam, metal, or any other object, or foreign matter

Full rules are at http://www.punkinchunkin.com/rules.htm -- if I figure out tinyurl all of us will be better people. If you want to see how scary/inspired people can be, poke around the web site.

My treb would have placed 4th in the adult class without the secret modifications this year. After, probably in the running for 2nd. I'd have to really torque out the beast to compete for first.

The theatrical class, however, does permit and even encourage chaff. Unfortunately, tosses have a 100 foot limit.

[The Dread Pirate Chris]

So if you put a titanium cage around a young, developing pumpkin, and the pumpkin grew around and through the cage, would that pass the rules?

[Jazzzz]

True story... I know a guy that long ago had a "bachelor pad", and decided to get satin sheets to impress the ladies. He and a date got frisky one night and he *threw* her onto the bed where she proceded to slid all the way across, off the bed and broke her arm. Explain THAT in the E R !!. (hey, baby....take an aspirin, the E R is open 24/7!!)

[Jazzzz]

We're on the same track Blurk, but have you tried guacamole and a bisexual ostrich?(NTTATWWT)

[CJrun]

Heinrich: I'm way into it and have been messing with design software; think I'm ready to start building. However, as the rules require that the punkin leave the device intact, do the judges check the temperature of the 'ammo' or can people cheat and freeze them solid? I've written and asked and never heard back.

[blurk]

The ostrich was too tall No, I've never tried that.

[Heinrich the Rat]

DPC -- Growing the perfect pumpkin is part of the challenge. I haven't heard of growing internal supports inside the pumpkin. You might want something like a polycarbonite instead of metal, though. If something goes wrong and metal comes in contact with large amounts of electricity, having a pie shot is the least of your worries.

I'm not making this up: We started looking at magnetic conduction, but we would have had to borrow Fermi Labs to be cost effective. The guy I asked at Fermi declined our request to use the electrical capability and facilities. He figured we could keep it safe, but if the physicists caught wind of the project the research skills that are devoted to solving the world's energy problems would cease while competing teams of physicists would try to toss pumpkins and ignore particle theory and whatever else.

[Siouxie]

blurk & Jazzzie,

NTTAWWT (whatevah toots yer horn)(as Chris always says) but... a live chicken OR ostrich AND a waterbed may not be such a great idea.

(neither does a dead one for that matter)

[Siouxie]

and *SNORK* @ Jazzzie\\\'s slip & slide story

Ooooo baby I cant wait to whoaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

*THUNK*

[blurk]

Geez, Siouxie! Are you not payin' attention??!!

That's what the duct tape and the roller skates are for!

[Siouxie]

blurk, I use velcro for THAT..sheesh...

*eyeroll*

[blurk]

I thought the velcro was supposed to be for the monkey costume.

[Heinrich the Rat]

CJ Run -- I think frozen is more brittle. I'm pretty sure that you could keep the pumpkin frozen on day one, but by day three you might be in trouble.

I've had to use frozen water balloons in Jack-o-Lanterns, but there needs to be some regular water balloons to maintain the carved pumpkin's structural integrity. On our treb, the pumpkin is going from 0 to 85ish mph in (number highly classified) feet of arc with the shroud adding another (number highly classified) feet to the (number highly classified) throwing arm.

I'll add some frozen one gallon milk jugs to the mix for this Spring's test. I'm not sure I'll get more than one toss if the projectile ends up doing serious damage to the landing zone. My fear in the testing isn't as much if the sucker sails on my and goes beyond the safe zone into the nearby highway. I'd worry about a Montezuma's Revenge (Vertical shot that lands on the equipment).

[Siouxie]

blurk, I use honey and feathers with the monkey suit...just sayin\\\'

[CJrun]

Heinrich: thanks for the thoughts. I may drop you an email or two as this progresses. Testing is no problem, as I will be firing into Tampa Bay. The contest rules I've read say 8 to 9 lbs, 3 shots, reload and fire in 1.5 minutes. So I think I have my arm and shroud length figured out and am working on the [highly classified] reload. I'll check the rules you linked, as they may be more clear.

[ShyJan]

Blurk and Clean Hands.

I will be sure to change the stamp to read that. Get some giggles out of the Special People. NOPORN indeed!

[Heinrich the Rat]

CJ Run -- I'll drop a note to the address linked from my yahoo account.

I'd suggest that The Next President of Cuba His Daveness check out a Chucking event, but I fear his productivity on the blog would suffer.