Potato Cannons A History

Cannons... When gunpowder was first invented in China its uses were limited. Mainly gunpowder was used for fireworks, bombs, and bambo-tube shooters (for scaring enemy horses). It was the Turks and Europeans who refined the idea and created an entirely different breed of weapon, the bombard. Bombards were primitive cannons used in many sieges to knock down walls along side traditional trebuchets, onagers, and ballista. From there the cannon continued to develop from ring bound, to one piece, to breech loading and finally to its epitome, the potato cannon.

What is a Potato Cannon? Potato Cannons are homebuilt cannons that using stored energy (pnuematic, combustion, etc.) to propel produce, tennis balls, and other common missiles. Spud Guns have been around for many years (+60) and have been used all around the world.

Types of Spud Gun Energy Types: Combustion Pnuematic Hybrid Build Types: Standard Mortar Automatic Ignition Types: Red-neck Electronic Valve

Combustion Combustion potato cannons are the most common, cheapest, and simplest to build of the cannon types. They also have a fast prep time. They work by the combustion and subsequent expansion of hot gasses which push the potato. Typical fuels are hairspray, deodorant, aerosols, propane, and butane. Combustion spud guns are unreliable unless they have well built electronic ignition systems and fuel mixture monitors. What not to do: What to do:

Pneumatic Pneumatics are reliable, more powerful than combustion, and safer. Typically their prep time is longer and they are slightly more complicated than their combustion powered compliments. They use a reservoir of compressed air to propel a potato, instead of combustion. The air is compressed by means of an air compressor or a bicycle pump. Pneumatic potato cannons always use a valve-type “ignition” system.

Hybrids These cannons have a pre-compressed chamber of a gas and air mixture. When ignited electronically the gas combusts in an already pressured chamber and causes a burst-disk valve to rupture. This is the most powerful, most dangerous, and longest prep time type.

Build Types Standard: Mortar: Automatic: Dumb!!!

Ignition Types Redneck: Occurs when stupid people simply stick lighters into a hole made in compression chamber to ignite the cannon. It is a disease. Don’t do this! Electronic: Broad range from stun guns, and piezos to flyback transformer systems. Highly effective ignition for combustion cannons. Valves: Solely used in pneumatic and hybrid systems. There are many types of valves from simple ball bearing to burst disks, and butterfly valves Burst disk not implant!

Extras: Locking Cam Lever Action Couplings: Pumpkin Cannon s:

Do Before Next Meeting Go online Look at some cannons Make a design by Wednesday Bring it to our next meeting