home the fool's tarot© sculpted wood engineered wood other stuff i wrote stalemations© wooden machinery yo mama
TREBUCHETS last updated 07/19/09. FREE PLAN for smallest trebuchet! (Which can be built to any size.)
home the fool's tarot© sculpted wood engineered wood other stuff i wrote stalemations© wooden machinery yo mama
TREBUCHETS last updated 07/19/09. FREE PLAN for smallest trebuchet! (Which can be built to any size.)
There are many fine websites specializing in different types and sizes of trebuchets, and so I will limit my space to history and self-construction,(the self being you, of course) since I cannot possibly compete on the market against the excellent trebs already available for sale.
I made this desktop model from a curly oak plank. This is a very difficult wood to work with but the results are worthy of the effort. It is stained in dark oak and finished w a gloss finish. After much research via trial and error I am comming to several conclusions. A hinged counterweight is essential to get a good first fling. Ive tried fixed and flexible and flexible has a distinct advantage. Secondly, if your treb wants to slide back and fourth during swinging, you may want to install wheels. They allow more concentration of force to the first swing. |
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Click the animation below to see my minitrebs. Click this image to see my treb history animation.
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Imagine yourself way back in ancient times. You are a farmer working on the edge of a river. Using a watersweep, you are drawing water up to your field. Now imagine your friend coming up behind you and giving you a wedgie so bad that you drop the half-filled bucket. The bucket flies upward and goes far away. What fun! I am serious in that I truly believe that this was the epiphany that caused the trebuchet and other slinged siege weapons to come into being.
I have recently been toying around and have re-discovered something that may be of use.
One of the problems treb freaks face is the occasional drop, that being when the projectile falls prematurely from the sling, hopefully causing no injury to machine or operator. At best, a waste of time to reload, at worst, someone is hurt. The solution? Tethered projectiles.
As you can see on the illustration, there is no sling. The line is permanently attached to the projectile, with a loop on the other end. If you make a few of these, you can scare the bejeebers out of the enemy with rapid fire capability!
The other is wheels! They are great! They allow the machine to fire a bit further, but really fast as all the energy is loosed in the fling! Happy hunting for now.
See catapultkits.com for a wide range of offensive alternatives.
home the fool's tarot© sculpted wood engineered wood other stuff i wrote stalemations© wooden machinery yo mama
To see a detailed mural of this machine, 
