What is the best ratio for a trebuchet arm?
General advice is that the optimal ratio is 133:1. A golf ball projectile (1.62 oz) should fire best with 13.46 lbs of counterweight – and a 14 lb bowling ball should have 1862 lbs pulling on the other side of the arm to reach maximum distance.
What is a weighted arm trebuchet?
A counterweight trebuchet is powered by a very heavy counterweight, acting on a lever arm. The trebuchet is energized by lowering the long arm and raising the weighted short arm, usually with a winch, and is locked into the charged state by a trigger mechanism.
How does the sling release on a trebuchet?
The sling releases when a certain angle α is reached. At this point the ring (which is connected to the sling and loops around the finger for support) slips off and the payload is launched. The release angle α can be adjusted by changing the finger angle δ. For a greater δ the release angle α increases.
Is it legal to build a trebuchet?
The short, non-answer is of course you can build your own catapult. Constructing a small catapult for use in your kitchen or back yard appears to be pretty simple. And there are no laws prohibiting the construction of catapults.
How long should the arm of a trebuchet be?
Counterweights should be “approximately” 75-100 times the weight of the projectile. Swing Arm Lever: The primary swing board is commonly referred to as a swing arm lever, but some will call it a long arm lever or long arm beam. The swing arm lever works well when it is 1.4 – 1.6 times the base length.
How does a floating arm trebuchet work?
The floating arm trebuchet uses a counterweight held on top of a tall drop channel to transfer potential energy into kinetic energy. While this is happening, the wheel is moved backwards by the torque acting on the arm from the counterweight. The arm then jerks forward and releases the projectile from the sling.
What are the 4 types of trebuchets?
Trebuchets can be placed into four different categories:
- the swinging counterweight,
- the fixed counterweight on a fixed frame,
- the fixed counterweight on a floating frame, and.
- the floating arm (FAT) trebuchets.
Why is a trebuchet called a trebuchet?
A trebuchet (French: trébuchet) is a type of catapult that uses a long arm to throw a projectile. It was a common powerful siege engine until the advent of gunpowder. The later, and often larger and more powerful, counterweight trebuchet, also known as the counterpoise trebuchet, uses a counterweight to swing the arm.
How long should the sling be on a trebuchet?
Length of Sling is the length of the sling that connects the projectile to the arm. In general, the trebuchet works best if the dimension Length of Sling is just a little less than the dimension Length of Long Arm.
Why is my trebuchet shooting backwards?
If the machine is throwing with a very high arc, straight up or even backwards, the sling is slipping off the hook too soon. Add a little more bend to make it slip a little later. The same is true for the trebuchet sling.
Are siege weapons legal?
Most people have a perfectly legitimate reason to own a speargun, namely they are going out to hunt–er, spearfish–underwater. And that’s the funny thing about a speargun: its use is 100% legal and almost entirely unrestricted as long as its user is 100% submerged underwater when they fire off that spear.
What makes a floating arm trebuchet so effective?
Basic design. The forward motion of the axle as the arm rotates adds speed to the projectile end of the arm. This linear drop of the counterweight is more efficient in transferring potential energy to kinetic energy than the pendulum counterweight motion of a traditional trebuchet. The higher the drop channel, the more energy is released,…
What is the basic design of a trebuchet?
Basic design. A traditional trebuchet, which is simple to engineer, consists of an arm resting off-centre on an axle with a hinged counterweight at the short end of the arm. The difference in the lengths of the two ends of the arm provides mechanical advantage.
How tall is a walking arm trebuchet in feet?
His lightweight 20-pound, 41-inch tall trebuchet threw a 3-ounce ball 266 feet — scaled up, that’s equivalent to 780 feet in the heavyweight division. My 500-pound, 10-foot version threw a 5-pound cantaloupe over 700 feet — also a new record — but it went so high and so far that the spotter never saw it pass over him on its way into the woods!
Where are the eye bolts on a trebuchet?
Reducing the drop distance of the wheel axle to the glide track would reduce damage, but also reduce the range of the trebuchet. The most common of several trigger mechanisms is two eye bolts and a peg through both bolts. The eye bolts are usually placed at the bottom of the frame, locking above the arm to prevent accidental release.
