Tennis Ball/Potato Canons

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GTP_event / kevinr6287 (farming account)
Has anyone built one of these? We're gonna make one of these this weekend. We will be using the explosive flavor and use hairspray and maybe Butane. It will be mainly for tennis balls, since I have found 25 of them at my school. I'm gonna start researching into them. I am gonna see if I can use a spark plug as the igniter. were gonna use a 2 1/2" or 2 5/8" PVC pipe as the barrel and maybe a 4" for the chamber. Any tips? Has anybody actually built one of these?


I will post pics and maybe a vid or 2 when we're done, if I can find a host for the vid.
 
Well about a week ago, me and a friend started building an Orange Cannon (delayed as he's gone away for a while). We used 6" PVC Plumbing Pipe and I can't remember the chamber, maybe 8inch or something. I can get you a video of it some time, but it's only of them firing it, not making it.

For the igniter, we're using a Barbeque Igniter (it ignites with a spark too).
 
Do a Google search for "Spud Gun" and you'll find all the help you need, I bet. I built one ages ago, but don't ask me to help you, though. I don't want to be held liable for anything I offer you. I will say that my propellant of choice was Aqua Net hair spray. It was 99 cents at the time.
 
Klostrophobic
I thought ether was the best propellant. I've never made one, but this is just what I've heard.
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I don't know. I've heard this too, but I've never used it. Try oxygen and ether, and test the results, Kevin.
 
Jimmy Enslashay
I don't know. I've heard this too, but I've never used it. Try oxygen and ether, and test the results, Kevin.
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Unfortunately, Oxygen might be tough to aquire, as will Ether. I think we'll stick with Hairspray or Butane. Much cheaper and easier to obtain. Oxygen would probably be the best propellant out there becasue of it's volatility. That's the fuel they use on the Saturn-5 rockets as well as space shuttles. 👍
 
Event Horizon
Oxygen would probably be the best propellant out there becasue of it's volatility.
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That's what I thought, but I haven't used Ether so I wouldn't know about that. I can easily obtain some Oxygen myself from a school teacher that made an Orange Cannon for us, he used Oxygen just for some fun and it kicked whatever he used the first time (can't remember). But as for getting it elsewhere, I have no idea...
 
Hey good i dea. I have to make a stupid can opener in engineering. I got stumped so i made a volk LE 37 rim. Im not done yet. But maybe i should make a potatoe canon on the comp and see how it works.
 
A Potato Cannon would sure open a can...

Can Opener is easy, I think I've made one in Year 8. Not too hard, hardest thing is maknig sure it don't break, as I did a few times.
 
Oxygen just supports combustion; it doesn't actually burn, so you'll still need fuel. It's very unpredictable stuff.

Big cans of Aquanet are usually the cheapest fuel - besides, the aerosol propellant in them is butane, so that's mostly what causes the explosion anyway.

Look for designs - I don't have anything written down, and I'm sure they're well-diagrammed on the web. We also used a barbecue grill ignitor: it's called a piezo-electric device, in that it translates physical motion (the push of that red button) into electricity (as a spark on the plug at the other end). They should be available someplace that sells replacement parts for gas grills. With a few feet of wire it means you can stand a bit away when you fire it.

We used (I think) about 3 feet of 2-1/2" PVC for the barrell, necking up to a 6" PVC cleanout tee for the chamber. The cleanout has a cap that threads on so you can remove that, squirt 3-5 seconds' worth of hair spray in there, and then tighten down the plug. POW! and ours would hurl an apple the better part of a hundred yards.
 
neon_duke
We also used a barbecue grill ignitor
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That's what I said earlier.

We used a 6" for the cannon I believe, but ours was an Orange gun. I'm not sure on our measurements really though, that was up to my friend.
 
Jimmy Enslashay
That's what I said earlier.
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That's why I said 'also'. 👍 Ours was 2-1/2" because we used it to fire apples off a couple of little apple trees we had in the back yard. My parents lived on the water and people would tie up their pleasure boats just off the beach and drink, get obnoxious, and play crappy music really loudly. So one person would hide in the tree line with binocs and the other person would go out on the patio with the apple mortar, and we'd talk the shots in until we started plastering their deck with half-rotten apples...
 
:lol: neon_duke kickin ass with apples. That is sweet.
 
This tennis ball cannon might have to be a regular, run-of-the-mill potato cannon... :( 2 1/2" PVC pipe seems like it will be difficult to find.
 
dont get caught. i think its a felony here.
 
Silverzone
aren't these outlawed in Texas?
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Omnis
dont get caught. i think its a felony here.
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It is everywhere, but Cops won't waste their time if you're not causing any harm. Eg, if you're out in a Paddock, on your own property, out in the bush somewhere, they aren't going to care. Trust me, I come from a line of Cops in my family, and I'm going to be one. Lol. Plus, noone will complain, unless you have a nagging old bag living somewhere near you.

2 1/2" PVC Pipes are one of those hard things to find. 2", 3", 4", 6" and 8" are the most common you will find.

Also, neon_duke, the Apples would be great. I actually suggested Apples to my friend, but he's more of a careful person if you know what I mean, whereas I'm more willing to do anything and run. :lol:
 
432 feet per second.

Yes, using a set-up similar to an air Brake on a semi trailer, we built a double chamber tube using PVC, Duct tape and Jeans to launch a potato over an chronograph at that speed. Needless to say we couldn't fin much left of the potato. Keep in mind, that this was running the PVC to near it's limit (hence the jeans and the Duct Tape) and ohhh....Mildly hazardous, but we still did it.

We used compressed air for a propellent, a rubber sealed double chamber and 1'4 plexiglass as the divider.

I'll have to hunt around and see if I can find the design we used.

Not recommended as catastrohic failurte results in the PVC turning into a grenade.

More to come...

AO
 
"We have determined that these devices, as described, are not firearms provided that they are used solely for launching potatoes for recreational purposes."

First of all, what recreational purposes would there really be? :lol: Secondly, I would call them a fire-arm as they are propelling an object from a tube that could potentially knock someone out...
 
Any local hardware store will do. Specific measurements, however, may need to be acquired at a more specialised store.
 
Der Alta
432 feet per second.

Yes, using a set-up similar to an air Brake on a semi trailer, we built a double chamber tube using PVC, Duct tape and Jeans to launch a potato over an chronograph at that speed. Needless to say we couldn't fin much left of the potato. Keep in mind, that this was running the PVC to near it's limit (hence the jeans and the Duct Tape) and ohhh....Mildly hazardous, but we still did it.

We used compressed air for a propellent, a rubber sealed double chamber and 1'4 plexiglass as the divider.

I'll have to hunt around and see if I can find the design we used.

Not recommended as catastrohic failurte results in the PVC turning into a grenade.

More to come...
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This I can't wait for !..... :trouble:
 
1st stage - Getting materials: Done

2nd stage - Buiding Cannon: Done

3rd stage - Firing: Pending

We finished building the cannon. The parts totaled about $60, includuing 2 bags of potatos and 2 cans of Aqua-net (both super-strong and EXTRA super-strong ;)) We need to let the PVC Cement fuse, so we will leave it dry overnight. We would shoot it off tomorrow, but unfortunately the other members of my party are busy... :grumpy: thank god we have Monday off of school (though I have work from 9-3...).





 
The firing of the potatos was a rousing success! I have videos, if someone can host them. They're really cool despite the quality. That thing was loud! we probably got 250 yards out of it. Amazingly, the potatos were re-usable! :D We will definately buld more and do more shooting. It was great. :)
 

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