$0 combustion

Boom! The classic potato gun harnesses the combustion of flammable vapor.
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Fnord
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$0 combustion

I made this a while back, (shortly after the contest) but never bothered to post it until now.
This was meant to be a test of my scavanging/MacGyver ability, so its nothing too fancy

This is my first basic full-sized combustion and my first attempt at woodworking as well.
The barrel and chamber are both abs that I scavanged from an abandon redneck camp and an abandon farm. The grill ignitor I got from a pile of junk down the road from my friend's house. I made 1" thick pvc plugs (because I didn't want to buy end caps) and used universal pvc/abs/cpvc glue and machine screws to hold them in place (you can't really see the screws in the picture)

The stock is made from a 2x8. I used a drill, dremel, hand saw and belt sander. I gave it a coat of minwax pecan stain for looks.
The cleanout cap was pvc-dwv, so I filled it with hotglue hoping to give it more strength.


Stats:
Overall lenght - a little over 7'
Chamber - 24" of 3" abs
Barrel - 54" of 1.5" abs
C:B - 1.7:1 (for noise)
Weight - 7 pounds
Chamber fan
Single spark gap
Schrader valve in the cleanout plug allows me to use my hybrids propane meter for fueling.


It shoots potatoes around 250 yards max. I mostly just use a propane torch to fuel it.
Attachments
Side view. The stock is attached with hotglue, but you probably wouldn't know by looking at it. <br />I just didn't want to drill into the chamber.
Side view. The stock is attached with hotglue, but you probably wouldn't know by looking at it.
I just didn't want to drill into the chamber.
welcome to the jungle.
welcome to the jungle.
Cleanout cap and battery box. My camera seems to make this part look overly crappy. I filled in some gaps with hotglue, but most of what you see are wires.
Cleanout cap and battery box. My camera seems to make this part look overly crappy. I filled in some gaps with hotglue, but most of what you see are wires.
size comparison.
size comparison.
damage to 3/4 plywood with 1.5&amp;quot; lead bullets. (exit side)
damage to 3/4 plywood with 1.5&quot; lead bullets. (exit side)
Last edited by Fnord on Thu Oct 07, 2010 3:47 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Hailfire753
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LOL sweetness!!! Great use of money!! I like the damage, like the woodwork, and like your face. This thing sounds like it has better range than my 50$ piece o junk.
UPDATED MARCH '08
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SnowFlox
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yeah idd ! nice use of money !!

im kinda jaleous :P
flamerz14
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PVC-DWV with ABS chamber??anyway It doesn't need reinforcement. What I know is DWV is safe for combustions.
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Fnord
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Cleanout caps tend to explode more often than other dwv components(probably due to the unnatual shape). Since I'm shoulder firing the thing, I'd rather have an overly strong cap than one that could explode in my face.
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lukemc
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im impressed with the stock. you made that with a hand saw? i wouldnt even try with out a band saw
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Fnord
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If I had pictures of the stock before I started sanding it down, you wouldn't recognize it.
I made the major strait cuts with a hand saw, then used a drill and dremel to.. "hack" out the more curved parts. It was very ugly for a long time.
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Scotty
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Awesome "Rifle" you got there.
Any idea on how much your lead projectiles weigh?
I like the damage pics! :shock: That thing could take down a roo at close range.
Very well done.

Peace
Scotty
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Fnord
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Thanks for the comments everyone.
They weigh over a pound each(.5 kg, actually).
This should give you the idea:
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pyrogeek
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I wouldn't have something like that next to my face man. Even with my cannon, I generally only fire it from the ground. Today was an exception when I fired it from my shoulder like a bazooka, but the grill was just asking to be shot with a golf ball.
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Scotty
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The heaviest iv'e gone is 250grms, do you have to "lob" your ammo or does it have a straight trajectory ( up to say 25 yards).

Again great work!

Peace Scotty
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Fnord
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It goes fairly level till about 30-40 yards, after that you have to compensate more for bullet drop.

Pyro: I tested it quite a lot before I started shoulder firing. I know it could still fail, but when it does it will probably be near the front. I made sure it was stronger near the cleanout area.
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TwitchTheAussie
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Scotty wrote:That thing could take down a roo at close range.
Very well done.

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What did the poor roos do to you? :lol: Anyway thats a beaut gun mate. Lovin it :P
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Flying_Salt
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How did you break your ankle?

Nice gun, that's one of the few combustions I've seen with a stock. They kick more than pneumatics so most people don't really bother with a stock.
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Scotty
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TwitchTheAussie wrote:
Scotty wrote:That thing could take down a roo at close range.
Very well done.

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Scotty
What did the poor roos do to you? :lol: Anyway thats a beaut gun mate. Lovin it :P
Nuthin...

Peace
Scotty
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