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On February 18th and 19th 2006, boat builder, Andrew and software engineer, Dan,
teamed up to design, build and break a 10 foot tall F2K trebuchet in Richmond,
Maine. These are the chronological chronicles of that experience....
(parental discretion advised)
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| Basic treb stats |
| throwing arm: |
2.33:1 (7ft:3ft) |
rail slope: |
20 degrees |
| machine length: |
12 feet including winch mechanism |
CW drop height: |
10 feet |
| CW weight: |
50-200lbs (failure at 200) |
projectiles: |
grapefruits, medicine balls, various veggies |
| range: |
~250 feet and less |
total f-bombs used: |
2159 |
| wheels |
6 inch neoprene w/impact resistant bearings |
construction material: |
spruce + raw will power |
| sling length: |
~6 feet |
average outside temp: |
8F |
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02/20/06 - And so it Begins...
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On February 18th and 19th 2006, boat builder, Andrew and software engineer, Dan, teamed up to design, build and break a 10 foot tall F2K trebuchet in Richmond, Maine. These are the continuing chronicles of that experience.... (parental discretion advised)
success
Here is a short film of the one good throw. The credits are merely the ravings of the overzealous movie editor.
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failure
Here is the film of the third and last throw. The damn movie editor is out of control....(but at least I can spell safety)
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to be continued...
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02/21/06 - Andrew speaks out...
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Clearly moved by his recent adventures, Andrew speaks out...
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02/22/06 - Some images from the aftermath...
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the remains of our very first projectile...
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a shot of the disassembled treb.
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failed CW axel assembly
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shot of the poorly designed rail that led to catastrophic failure. (and we all know who the "designer" is)
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another shot of the busted rail
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02/25/06 - A new beginning...
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more of the breakage after taking apart the arm.
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uninsulated building... wicked cold.
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$100 worth of new hardware.. note the ruthless winch!
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preview
An audio/visual feast that will leave you in a near catatonic state from your overwhelming desire to see more... viewer beware!
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02/26/06 - Delays and Miscalculations...
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You know what they say about the road to hell and good intentions? Well the pavement is thick 'round these parts... We spent roughly 8 hours getting parts and making repairs and improvements. It was then the moment of truth, we carried the 2 ton mass of wood and screws out of the garage into the sub freezing winter weather and assembled the parts that are too tall. While making the final adjustments on the ropes, we noticed the issue, there was a serious miscalculation in the placement of the winch and trigger mechanism. The rope would need to be about 2 feet longer than the winch placement allowed... anyway... we didn't hurl a damn thing.. here are some pictures.. videos to come...
here's the new power plant... too bad it's in the wrong spot.
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another shot of the amazingly misinstalled winch.
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these pulleys are at the top of the CW tower.
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here's how we're attaching the pulleys to the top of the CW tower.
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we added these supports to the sloped rails... they sure look stronger.
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now we have an adjustable release pin.. better than pulling out the bernz-o-matic and bending 1/4 inch steel.. hopefully.
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the find of the century (not Jerry Orbach), two 4 pound balls for $1.52 each.
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02/28/06 - It's god damn cold out...
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Ice, Ice, Baby
Here's the video from the disappointing activities this last weekend.
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03/12/06 - Improvements, both real and imagined
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Last weekend we fixed some old mistakes and then quickly made some new ones. See the new video below!
I updated the website... it's more dynamic and stuff... and lives on my new server. There are now some comments and some galleries.. look around, you'll be awed by all the spectacle and wonder.
Hey look! A Cheesy Store!
High speed assembly and safety
Some video of actual speed building... yeah.. we know.. amazing...
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03/18/06 - The End: part 1
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Last Saturday, we added some vertical 2x4s to the uprights in an ill fated attempt to reduce the amount of torque on the trowing arm as it was winched up. We also added some barely useful structure to the winch extension thingy. I like to call this Engineering by Trial and Error.
Here is part one of a three part series about our final weekend working on this trebuchet. We hope you enjoy the everlovin' hell right out of it.
It sucks, that's why.
Dangerously pointy shrapnel and half assed success... at least it's warm out.
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03/19/06 - The End: part 2
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On Sunday, some help arrived in the form of Josh and John. We removed the vertical additions from Saturday and made some small adjustments to the firing pin and some of our supports.
We got some of the best hurls yet, but still not further than our second throw on the first weekend.
Flying veggies and nearly bionic powers.
Witness multiple consecutive, successful throws and the unveiling of Josh's amazing abilities.
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03/20/06 - The End: part 3
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As usual, our limited success was followed rather swiftly by utter and complete failure. This is the final video of this trebuchet... The death blow was struck when we had 200 pounds loaded on and one of the wheels slipped into the counter weight guide, forcing what was once a 1 inch gap to 6 inches.
We're moving on... our obsessions are fleeting as well as pointless. Expect a new thread of content and some changes to the site in the next few days.
Tragedy and Deconstruction
This is it.. we're not fixing it again.
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