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Do you think this method of a WBL would work?

Posted: Thu May 07, 2009 5:41 pm
by PanWitSyr

[The extension bmp has been deactivated and can no longer be displayed.]

You've probably noticed it's powered by latex tubing instead of compressed air. So do you think it would work? By the way, the twine on there is to hook to the panic snap.

Re: Do you think this method of a WBL would work?

Posted: Thu May 07, 2009 6:02 pm
by cantab
Sure, that'll work. The 'wild sling' types are commercially sold, they use rubber, although not in a barrel.

Having a barrel would make it more aimable.

The biggest problem might be making sure the rubber doesn't get tangled up.

Of course how it will PERFORM compared to air pressure designs is another matter altogether. You may find that enough rubber to give good range is too much to pull back by hand, in which case you'd need a mechanical advantage, like a winch or a multiple pulley system.

Re: Do you think this method of a WBL would work?

Posted: Thu May 07, 2009 8:36 pm
by C-A_99
The last time I tried an elastic based launcher, it didn't shoot so well, though that was because of poor design and a short rubber band. The problem with guided slingshots (i.e. slingshots with barrels) is that you need a lot of space for the slingshot to fire, and the barrel will restrict or prevent such action. They're accurate, but don't be surprised if you can throw the balloons farther than shooting them.

Air is still the way to go for best accuracy and power. However, the rate of fire is a lot less, and it costs more than standard slingshots.

Re: Do you think this method of a WBL would work?

Posted: Fri May 08, 2009 12:20 am
by Silence
A crossbow sounds like a good idea. If you need a stronger elastic band, you could even add a winch or ratcheted lever crossbow, Uruk-Hai style, maybe even loading the ammo at the same time. You'll need slots in the side of the pipe in order to reach sabot from the outside.

Still, I'm a little skeptical about its practicality for the reasons that C-A 99 brought up. WBLs already do well at range and throwing does well up close - you'd be hard pressed to find a situation in which this would be more useful.

Range is obviously the limiting factor here. But elastic launchers seem to shoot pretty far; and if you anchor the two ends close enough, more of the force from stretching it will go into the shot instead of canceling out. Ideally, you'd have a band on each side stretching directly back.

Re: Do you think this method of a WBL would work?

Posted: Fri May 08, 2009 12:38 am
by cantab
Quite often an elastic launcher needs a lot of length, since the elastic force has to be zero at the muzzle, unlike an air pressure launcher where the projectile can leave the muzzle while there's still pressure behind it. Since WBL's are limited by acceleration (too much and the balloon pops) I think to get the same muzzle velocity an elastic system would have to be longer.

Re: Do you think this method of a WBL would work?

Posted: Sat May 09, 2009 3:09 am
by PanWitSyr
Thanks everybody. I just started building and so far everything's going pretty well. The only problem I face now is figuring out what to use as a handle.

Oh, by the way, I didn't do an air powered WBL because of something I read in the homades section of this sight. It said that with compressed air, you can really hurt somebody from under 100 feet. Plus, I just needed something to scare the 11-year-olds in the neighborhood with, haha.

But anyway, this project has gotten me interested in the whole idea of different WBLs, and I'm definitely going to expirement with different ways of building them.

Re: Do you think this method of a WBL would work?

Posted: Sat May 09, 2009 3:02 pm
by Silence
Well, keep thinking and building, and keep us updated. :)

The danger of WBLs comes not from the way in which they're powered (pressure vs. elastic) but from that power itself. Air-pressure water balloon launchers tend to be too powerful to use up close. If you could throw a water balloon 400 feet, I wouldn't want to be hit by the same throw at 100 feet. The same thing applies to elastic launchers.

All you have to do to make a WBL safe up close is to reduce the power, regardless of how you're powering it. It also makes sense since you can't really hit anybody at 400 feet. 100 or 200 feet is a good compromise between accuracy and having more range than throwing.

Re: Do you think this method of a WBL would work?

Posted: Mon May 11, 2009 9:28 pm
by PanWitSyr
Yeah, I think after I'm done with this project I'll get the parts for an air powered one. But I could only use that for random drive-by attacks against the neighbor kids on the count of my dad's air compressor is a hogmolly.