Backyard ballistics
by William Gurstelle · first published 2001
3mentions
3recommended by
3HN commenters
2010–2024first – last mentioned
100% recommend
This updated and expanded step-by-step guide enables ordinary folks to construct more than 13 awesome ballistic devices using inexpensive household or hardware store materials. Clear instructions, diagrams, and photographs show how to build projects ranging from the simple, a match-powered rocket, to the more complex, a tabletop catapult, to the classic, the infamous potato cannon, to the offbeat, a Cincinnati fire kite. With a strong emphasis on safety, Backyard Ballistics also provides troubleshooting tips, explains the physics behind each project, and profiles such scientists and extraordin
Affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
…lot for me. When I was like 9 I got the book How to be Twice as Smart and it taught me a ton of mental tricks. This book taught me a lot (probably if the boy is like 10 or 12+?) http://www.amazon.com/Backyard-Ballistics-Cannons-Cincinnati...
on “What are great books for boys?” ↗William Gurstelle's Backyard Ballistics and The Art of the Catapult were two extremely influential books in my development as a young engineering minded person. Countless hours of fun were had experimenting with spud guns of varying designs.
on “Spudguns: Potato Cannon Guide” ↗Good book on this and similar subjects - Backyard Ballistics: Build Potato Cannons, Paper Match Rockets, Cincinnati Fire Kites, Tennis Ball Mortars, and More Dynamite Devices https://www.amazon.com/Backyard-Ballistics-Cannons-Cincinnat...
on “Spudguns: Potato Cannon Guide” ↗