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Why won't my trebuchet work?
Over the weekend, I built a trebuchet. It is two feet tall from base to arm, and it uses a 2.5 pound weight as a counterweight. It will only launch a golfball around 8 feet! It has barely any arc at all. Can somebody help?
Comments
Best Answer 11 years ago
Just from the looks of it, you may need to adjust the pivot point of the swing arm and/or the length of the sling. I would try moving the pivot closer to the counterweight.
Things to check:
Is the sling releasing cleanly?
Is the release point at or near 45 degrees?
Is the projectile hanging in the sling pouch?
Is the counterweight heavy enough?
Answer 11 years ago
I would say add more weight and move where the fulcrum is to get more speed less torque - look at all the other trebuchet plans on ibles here...note how they have a 3 or 4 - to - 1 ratio of length.
More weight = more oompth.
Answer 11 years ago
you need to get a certaint amount, too much and it will still fly bad
Answer 11 years ago
Definitely - that comment was based on the particular design why 'this' one doesnt work well - all based on leverage, and ratio of weight to armature length(s).
11 years ago
make a ledge about 6 inch up that the counterweight will land on, ajust the height of the ledge if needed
11 years ago
the release point has to be at ~45 degrees