potato guns?

[eelgrass]

Remember when they were all the rage? I built a couple. My buddy built one that shot golf balls. I remember it shooting a golf ball clear through a sheet of 1/2 inch plywood.

A buddy and I took them up on the mountain with us deer hunting. During the heat of the day we would pull over at the top of the old cut blocks, walk over to the edge, and lob potatoes down over the hill trying to "flush out" a buck. You can shoot a potato a lot farther than you can throw a rock. It never worked but I'm sure a lot of deer were thinking WTF?

I'm sure a bunch of you guys had them. Let's hear some stories!

Eel

 

[kilowatt]

A friend that use to have a small diner here just down the road from where I live had made one back in the 90's. One morning I got there before they opened at 6AM and Bob said let me show you what I made.
So we go out on the back side of the building and he brings out this "gun" and begins to load it. He aims it toward the freeway which was about 300 yards away and fires off a round of raw potato...damn I swear that thing hit the freeway. We were both laughing when another friend of mine a Electrical Engineer and also a part time Deputy Sheriff shows up. So Bob takes Joe out back and shows him how it works......Joe came back inside and said, "I DON'T KNOW AND NEVER SEEN A THING".....LOAO

Brian
http://i25.tinypic.com/fxbjgy.jpg[/IMG]

 

[Deadred7o7]

Read California Penal Code Section 12301

(a) The term "destructive device," as used in this chapter,
shall include any of the following weapons:
(1) Any projectile containing any explosive or incendiary material
or any other chemical substance, including, but not limited to, that
which is commonly known as tracer or incendiary ammunition, except
tracer ammunition manufactured for use in shotguns.
(2) Any bomb, grenade, explosive missile, or similar device or any
launching device therefor.
(3) Any weapon of a caliber greater than 0.60 caliber which fires
fixed ammunition, or any ammunition therefor, other than a shotgun
(smooth or rifled bore) conforming to the definition of a
"destructive device" found in subsection (b) of Section 479.11 of
Title 27 of the Code of Federal Regulations, shotgun ammunition
(single projectile or shot), antique rifle, or an antique cannon. For
purposes of this section, the term "antique cannon" means any cannon
manufactured before January 1, 1899, which has been rendered
incapable of firing or for which ammunition is no longer manufactured
in the United States and is not readily available in the ordinary
channels of commercial trade. The term "antique rifle" means a
firearm conforming to the definition of an "antique firearm" in
Section 479.11 of Title 27 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
(4) Any rocket, rocket-propelled projectile, or similar device of
a diameter greater than 0.60 inch, or any launching device therefor,
and any rocket, rocket-propelled projectile, or similar device
containing any explosive or incendiary material or any other chemical
substance, other than the propellant for that device, except those
devices as are designed primarily for emergency or distress signaling
purposes.
(5) Any breakable container which contains a flammable liquid with
a flashpoint of 150 degrees Fahrenheit or less and has a wick or
similar device capable of being ignited, other than a device which is
commercially manufactured primarily for the purpose of illumination.
(6) Any sealed device containing dry ice (CO2) or other chemically
reactive substances assembled for the purpose of causing an
explosion by a chemical reaction.
(b) The term "explosive," as used in this chapter, shall mean any
explosive defined in Section 12000 of the Health and Safety Code.

I know, I know a total buzz kill but I'm just saying.



Kyle
"If it moves shoot it again"

 

[sageadvice]

One of my old Plumber buddies is a master potatogunsmith. He'd often bring his latest and greatest creations to the jobsite and we'd mess around with them during lunch...that was until one day when he overshot the intended distance by a half block or so and put a nice dent, Dodge, in the Job Superintendents new pickup. oops!!

Joey

 

[nickman]

Before there were paintball wars we had "spud guns" that we shot grapes, cherries and radishes in. Pistols....sort of.

Won't go near as far as a potato, but grapes at 200 mph are a hoot!

"whackin' a surly bartender ain't much of a crime"

 

[eelgrass]

DeadRed, thanks for the heads up. You ever hear of the 2nd Amendment? I have rights, you know. Nothing in the Constitution says I gotta buy a gun.

They grow corn for bio fuel, why not potatoes for ammo? You ever hear of "green technology"? No Condor ever died eating a potato.

Eel

 

[300wbymann]

oh ya, we made a bunch of them.

we tried every flameable substance known to man. whet ended up being the best was that purple PVC primer. just swab the inside, put the cap back on, flicks the ignition switch and KABOOOOM! you better be holding on to it!

only down side to the primer is it slowly ate away the threads of the cap, making it hard to get it on and off. but it'll throw a potato better than anuthing we ever tried, hair spray,starting fliud,carb cleaner, black powder, alcohal, i could go on and on!

 

[nvthrt]

Made many back in the day. Got a little impaicent on the first one and didn't wait long enough for the glue to dry. Not a very plesant experiance. That thing blew apart like no other lol.

 

[TAGATTRACTER]

Seems I was a bit more devious than some of you. Long before potato guns we had invented a Beer can cannon. We took an old drive shaft and cut one end off it. We made a neat adjustable tripod complete with a sight on the end of the tube. Drop a full can down the drive shaft and fill a tiny hole we drilled at the base with oxygen. Light the Acetylene torch and touch it to the hole. KABOOOOOM. There was a fine line between launching the can 2000 yards or having it explode and tear apart upon exit of drive shaft. Crap, that's another one of those stupid things that caused me to deal with Law Enforcement.

 

[bbreuer]

I always wanted a better ignitor than the Coleman latern ignitor.

What worked for you guys? I have a five year old and need to get this perfected before he comes of age in a few years. Gotta have him thinking his Dad knows what he's doing.

 

[D13er]

my 9 year old shot all his and his sisters eggs out of a potato gun yesterday.....



JB

 

[Brandon82]

We always used a BBQ ignitor for ours and they work great. If you use hairspray as the fuel you will need to brush the ignitors contacts every 30 shots or so. However we got wise and started using mapgas and damn... a fantastic starter.

We had plans built up for a big double barrel with 2 seperate chambers, mounts for the gas with a feed valve so there is no removing the cap.. ever. thing would weigh in the neighborhood of 30lbs so the shoulder strap was necessary.

Our old gun was a 6 footer.. one of the most fun things we ever did was get drunk and soak the potatoes in glo-stick solution and watch bright neon green, pink and yellow potatoes fly through the city... fantastic.

 

[cbat]

Try a stun gun for your ignitor. We started using them and holy cow that thing never fail to shoot. Good luck and have fun.

 

[projp]

Before potato guns it was black powder and pipe.
You were considered a sissy if you had eyebrows.

 

[eelgrass]

haha, good stuff! I still have a couple of the Coleman igniters in unopened condition. At one time you couldn't find them anywhere.

Eel

 

[NMPaul]

Had several when we were younger. One was a grape fruit launcher. It just made a big thump and launched them about 300 yards.

Brother visited this summer and made my son one that launches apricots.
I think he has gone through all my black powder with it.