Pirate Cannon (Part 1)

What could be more fun on Halloween than boarding a pirate ship & firing a cannon?

Nothing, that's what. Except that this has to be absolutely safe because it is going to be part of a free-to-the-public Halloween shindig for kids. And, ideally, it should have something to do with candy.

Part 2 of this instructable, when posted, will show how to construct the cannon (hint: it has a lot in common with the more-powerful cannon by Part Time Chef.com). This instructable will outline the creation of a glorified pop-gun mechanism.

Step 1 Gather tools & materials

For this project I used the following tools:
- Power drill with 1/4" drill bit
- Hacksaw
- Channel lock-style pliers (to open PVC Cement)
- Gumption

You'll need to gather or acquire these materials:
- Bike Pump (get this first, the next items will need to be adjusted to work with your specific pump)
- 1" (interior diameter) PVC Pipe
- PVC Cement (Please work in a well-ventilated area)
- PVC 'end cap' (internal measurement should be the same as the external measurement on the PVC pipe)
- Hose Barb Adapter - Threaded (like a screw) on one side, ridges on the other side to grip the inside of hoses
- Rubber stopper (internal measurement should be the same as the external measurement on the PVC pipe)
- Barb Hose Splicer (just like the adapter, but barbed on both sides)
- 3' of fuel hose the same internal measurement as the bike pump's hose

All together, these materials totaled less than $20 for me, your mileage may vary. With the exception of the bike pump, all these items should be available in the plumbing section of your local home improvement store.

I bought the "cheap" bike pump & got great results - it seemed made to be taken apart (which is good, because your going to have to take it into the other store to make sure the Hose Barb Adapter will fit your pump's hose).