Simple WBL

Threads related to water balloon launchers.
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blaze
Posts: 515
Joined: Thu Apr 15, 2004 11:45 pm

Post by blaze » Wed Apr 13, 2005 5:16 pm

I guess multiple people have thought up this same design, because it seems that Dux and Nibor have too. However, this WBL design is even more simple, and is gigantic, and even a moron can make it.

I will be cementing it together today, so wait until tomorrow when I shoot it and troubleshoot before you start thinking anything. But most likely, it will work fine.

So here's the design. Since you buy PVC in 10' sections, I thought "Hey why not use the whole thing?" So, just cut the pipe in half, so there are two 5' sections. A PC that is 5' long will take a long time to fill, so if you aren't patient, or if you don't have a good air compressor, make the division more like 3' and 7'. So then, get a 2" ball valve. I found that at Lowes, the regular 2" ball valves were much harder to open than the single union 2" ball valves, and that the double union 2" ball valves were the hardest to open. Union or not doesn't really matter in this case, as we won't be using the union anyways. Take whichever one opens the easiest. My single union one opens very easily and cost less than the regular one, and with a bit of lubrication it'll be even easier to open. The next step is to get a 2" PVC cap, and a tire valve that is either a screw-in kind or a clamp-in kind. Don't get snap in, because it will break and be uneffective. I used the clamp-in kind for my first WBL and it worked great. Put the tire valve on the end of the cap according to what the packaging says. So now, you'll want to take one of the 5' pieces and put primer on both sides, as well as priming one side of the ball valve and the cap. Now, cement the cap onto the primed pipe, and on the free side of the pipe, cement the ball valve. And that should be all the cementing you'll need. Now, close the ball valve and hook up the side with the tire valve on it to an air compressor, and let the pressure get to around 100 psi. DO NOT DO THIS THE SAME DAY YOU CEMENTED. Though the bottle of pvc cement may say it will work about 5 hours afterwards, don't take any chances. No one wants parts flying around, and it really isn't much of a wait. Once you have your PC pumped up, take your empty 5" pipe (the barrel) and in one end, put a waterballoon in that fits smug in the launcher, and behind it, put a styrofoam cup that has been cut to fit into the WBL. If you don't understand this, just wait until I have detailed instructions on my site. Next, put the barrel on the pc by putting the end with the balloon in it into the empty side of the ball valve. Now, move your 10' monster onto a grassy area, make sure your tire valve is capped, and angle it about 45 degrees for maximum distance. Aim, and open your ball valve. If the valve is too hard to open, duct tape a metal rod onto the handle. This will give you more torque, and will let you open it faster.

This whole thing only costs about $20, and if all works out as I planned, it will be awesome. If you want to make yours smaller, you could cut the sections to any lengths you want. Experiment with it. A small one could be made by cutting a 5' piece of PVC into 2' and 3' sections. This design is totally freeform and I encourage people to work off of it. You could use elbows and such to make it a double layer design. Or, you could use two PCs, with ball valves, for a "dual shot" design (this is what I will be trying for my next one. If you want to have "clips", like the AquaLabs design, you could use a small piece of PVC and a coupler after the ball valve and then a coupler on the barrel, and use small pieces of PVC as the clips. However, I found this useless and so I left it out of this design.

Good luck, and happy WBLing.

blaze
Posts: 515
Joined: Thu Apr 15, 2004 11:45 pm

Post by blaze » Thu Apr 14, 2005 4:43 pm

Sorry for this double post.

I finished building this beast in like 5 minutes yesterday, and it should be all dry and good today. I will try firing it off sometime when I get home. I heard from smudge that plastic bags scrunched up work well as buffers so I will try those as well as a styrofoam cup. The ball valve opens up really smoothly now after some lube and opening and closing it like 50 times...

Wish me luck. And by that I mean just hope the ball valve doesn't fly off and take me with it on a magical adventure through the sky...ending with a magical adventure through the ground.

EDIT!
I remembered that I took some pictures this morning, so I have links to them from my site.

WBL Full shot
Ball valve shot
Tire valve shot

I also made a quick guide video, but I will have that on my site as well as an article on how to make it soon. I will also have footage of it being shot.

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Monsoon
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Post by Monsoon » Thu Apr 14, 2005 5:53 pm

Hey that looks pretty simple. If it turns out ok, I might make one myself. It looks really narrow....does a water balloon actually fit inside the barrel?
Do not underestimate the power of stupidity in large groups

blaze
Posts: 515
Joined: Thu Apr 15, 2004 11:45 pm

Post by blaze » Thu Apr 14, 2005 6:29 pm

Yeah it's 2" PVC like almost all WBLS. 3" would take much more pressure, and 1" is too small. The water balloons might not be as big as throwing ones, but that's cause they have to fit in a 2" ID pipe.

And it's only $20, and takes about 5 mins to put together.

Actually, most WBL designs are very simple. Even the one on AquaLabs (although I'd only reccomend you build that model if the neighbors Don't care about noise, since it's incredibly loud) is pretty simple, you just need to buy some parts. I definately encourage taking my design here, which is about as simple as it gets, and working off of it to make better ones. Experiment with different sizes. I have some leftover 2" PVC from last year, I think I'll make a small WBL with this design out of them (only I might use a sprinkler valve, I'm not sure yet).

blaze
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Post by blaze » Fri Apr 15, 2005 1:47 am

Ok so I fired it first with a plastic bag as a buffer, 80psi. Balloon explodes, and partially vaporizes.

Second time, 90 psi, styrofoam cup buffer. Balloon explodes, cup explodes, barrel shoots off 20 feet (it wasn't glued, of course, so I can load the balloon and buffer). I wasn't holding on to the barrel that time.

I think I'll try some more on lower pressures to see if that's the problem. In the meantime, any suggestions?

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RacerSoaker445
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Post by RacerSoaker445 » Sat Apr 16, 2005 2:11 am

I use cotton insulation for my buffer. and 90% of the time, it works.
I don't check this forum anymore.

blaze
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Joined: Thu Apr 15, 2004 11:45 pm

Post by blaze » Sat Apr 16, 2005 2:15 am

I think my problem may be that I'm using weak balloons. The type I am using is different than the type I used for my other WBL. I'll try it with a styrofoam cup again, and then if that works I'll see what I can do with a plastic bag.

Where can I get cotton insulation?

Godzillasoaker65
Posts: 257
Joined: Tue Aug 31, 2004 12:00 pm

Post by Godzillasoaker65 » Sat Apr 16, 2005 2:22 am

Do you mean that house insolation? I think it comes in a pink panther package. I doubt you mean that, because it is harmful to breath. If that's what it is, they have it at Home Depot.

I didn't even realize how much I'm on the computer now. :huh:
Soak, or be soaked that is the question!

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RacerSoaker445
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Post by RacerSoaker445 » Sat Apr 16, 2005 2:28 am

Natural Cotton Insulation

We had leftover from when we did our house with it. So get a sample, that will last you a while.

This stuff is NOT harmful in any way.
I don't check this forum anymore.

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Crashdummy
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Post by Crashdummy » Sat Apr 16, 2005 3:28 am

Originally posted by Godzillasoaker65@Apr 15 2005, 06:22 PM
Do you mean that house insolation?
What your thinking about is the fiberglass stuff I think, it's the itchiest XPBackfire-esque ever.

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