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Re: Potato guns
A friend I have an assortment of cannons. The most recent, and impressive, has made use of a lot of fancy shmancy threaded connectors, allowing us to try different barrel lengths and such.
The best results have come from a ten foot barrel. We can't buy lengths any longer, and frankly, couldn't handle the weight. It's heavy! The chamber is perhaps 18 inches in length not including fittings and fueled by propane. We have not yet metered the propane, and just open up an unlit torch for about 8 seconds. It's worked well enough that we don't feel the need to invest a lot of time and money in a metering pipe.
We use an old flint style igniter. We prefer this over electronic because it gives a huge spark. I've never felt confident sitting there clicking away at a barbecue lighter waiting for something to catch. With the flint, we know it'll go if there is any fuel in the chamber. It also adds a nice tactile feel to the cannon.
We've also got a nice little muffin fan on the rear cap. It seems to do a nice job of stirring up the chamber, and it sure makes it a heck of a lot louder!
The next project to perfect is the silencer. We had a good proof of concept, but it requires refinement. We just have to figure out how to keep it from spewing confetti everywhere.
-Local
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