snowball launchers

[Ryan Foley]

hi
I was wondering, if any of you out there could help me come up with some designs for a snowball launcher (one that is efficient, and safe).

the reasonn why:
A bunch of my friends and i are having a big snowball fight new years eve. Some of them think that I wont be a challenge because i am a nerd/geek/dork. I wish to prove that geeks arent to be underestimated

Any help you coud give me would be appreciated. Thanks

I already have the basic slingshot design, I was hoping for something a little more advanced/ creative/ precise

[ChrisH]

You might try a small trebuchet. Kind of like a catapult but no springs, just falling weight. I never built one, but there is lots of stuff out there on the web about how. They were feared seige engines until somebody developed cannon. They can be pretty accurate if you get the release right.

The problem with any sort of snow ball thrower is that it usually takes longer to reload it than it takes the other guys to overrun your position.

It is amazing how many ways there are to mess with non-technical people if you're a geek. However doing so usually means changing the field. Like the time in college where some friends got even with a social science type (an oxymoron I know, but hey I didn't invent it) who threatened violence by jamming his TV, legally. It took him weeks to figure out why his TV wasn't working.

We moved the battle from fists to electronics, where he couldn't compete. Not that we couldn't have handled the fists if needed, but it was so much more fun making a bigger fool of him than he already was.

[Andrew Rudolph]

yeah id imagine making a quick snowball launcher would be difficult seeing how they wouldnt like being shoved through two wheels...which is how i made my altoid/cheese it launcher. Cheeseits go 30 feet, altiods 50.

[Johca_Gaorl]

Originally posted by Andrew Rudolph
yeah id imagine making a quick snowball launcher would be difficult seeing how they wouldnt like being shoved through two wheels...which is how i made my altoid/cheese it launcher. Cheeseits go 30 feet, altiods 50.

Sweet! Would you be willing to post a list of parts?

[Amber H.]

My parents have created a sort of blow gun device thatthey use to launch marshmallows at each other (but mostly me lately).

Perhaps if you found a nice bit of PVC pipe with a diameter close to the size of your preferred thowing snowball. Cut an opening in the toop of it toward the back with a cover that slides back and forth (like the chamber on a top loading type rifle). Connect an air compressor of some sort to the back end. Then drop the snowball in the chamber, slam it shut and let your handy dandy snowball cannon blow! top loading with a constant stream of air pressure might give you instant firing as you close the chamber. Then you just quickly pull it back open and drop in another ball.

Pardon poor stream of consciousness writing style. I'm kind of making this up on the spot. I don't know if it will work well or not, but one idea usually leads to another. I hope this crazy idea helps.

Happy pelting!

[Andrew Rudolph]

Parts:
An old Tonka truck that has 3 motors in it (I picked mine up at a thrift store)
2 of the motors
the bed of the truck
wires/solder/crimps
switch
Foam wheels
Battery (I used a 12v 7ah battery that probably isn’t fully charged)

Steps:
1. make the bottom of the truck bed flat (if you get a project box that has an angled front it would work well, or use just a box and raise one end of it) The slope gives the angle that the projectile will fire.
2. next drill holes to mount the motors. The motors I had have little indentations that hold the motors bushings so I drilled the hole so the front of the motor can sits flush with the truck bed.
3. glue the motors in place (not like I was using them for anything else)
4. Then attach the foam wheels to the axles of the motors. My wheels were basically foam circles I took off a kite that looks like an air plane. I bet the wheels from the EDU robot would be sweet
5. then wire up the motors so that they spin in OPPOSITE directions
6. And then put a wire inline with the battery
7. hook it up to the battery
8. Turn it on and LAUNCH!

Right now I just use my good old fingers to put the projectile between the wheels, im working on a system to save my fingers from when I miss and hit the wheels (ouch! I think they go somewhere in the neighborhood of a bajillion RPMs)
Also you see the 6v battery sitting on the front, that’s there to weight the thing down cause the wheels aren’t perfect(yes I admit it) and it shakes and runs around on the table. Im sure I could make a really nice neat little thing, but this does the job.

[Ryan Foley]

thanks for your help.

We (my team) already have some long distance launchers that an handle 200ft

However, we are looking for something a little bit more handheld that we could use for closer combat. We were thinking a crossbow like devoce but we arent sure. If you guys have any more ideas they would be helpful, and thanks for all the ones you guys already gave me.

[Amber H.]

Would a clay pigeon launcher be close enough range for you?
I haven't tried it myself, but may attempt it on my kid brother tomorrow if he keeps annoying me.

[Johca_Gaorl]

A clay pigeon launcher would probably just vaporize the snowball...

[T967]

Freeze the umm... snow balls a little bit. Shouldn't break um then.

[Ryan Foley]

yeah, we already thought of the clay pigeon launchers, they would vaporize the snowball. We can't freeze the balls either, rules are no ice balls; snow only.

[Frank(Aflak)]

hmm. I haven't built a snowball launcher. But I have built a potatoe . . . no, gun isn't the right word. lets say cannon. I betcha It would handle a snow-cylinder. Say, 3, 4 feet long, 2 inch diameter. Put an icilcle in there if you want more, errr, results.

Anyway, my cannon is huge. The barrel runs the length of the gun (10 ft) so as to have the greatest possible time with high pressure behind it, more time to accelerate. Its air pressure, with an upper and lower chamber, both about 5 feet long, 4 inch diameter. The barrel runs through the upper chamber (it looks real good) but is not connected (we had some problems with leaks there, but you can't solve with lots and lots and lots of caulk.) You load in the back, bigass trigger/valve is also back there.

The one I patterned it after can shatter a cinderblock. Shatter, not break. I haven't fired at any cinderblocks yet, tho.

We were gonna mount it on a swivle stand in the back of a friends pickup, but he backed out. Coward.

[Gadget470]

I am working on plans for a potato cannon mod that would work for snowballs.

PVC Snowball Launcher w00t