Spud Gun Myth for Mythbusters?

[rcman50166]

Perhaps someone like a senior member on here could go on as an "honorary mythbuster" like they sometimes have on. I agree with distancing spudguns from this, call it something else so people think of it as something that is out of their league so idiots don't attempt it.

How about we call it potato launchers. It has to be a name reffered to and known but enough to distance it as a weapon.

[DYI]

Quote:
Even the Mythbusters don't have the budget to make one of those things properly.


Do you remember the myth with the stamp and helicopter? Do you remember the cost of the model they wrecked? Over a thousand. I think they can afford a spud gun. Sorry if I sound offensive.

A light gas gun would run up several thousands in materials costs alone. That, and from what I've seen from the Mythbusters already, they don't have the engineering skills to build an LGG that doesn't explode violently on the first or second shot when several pounds of piston hits the stop at a few hundred fps.

And thermobaric mass driver is a brilliant name for a hybrid. But if they didn't call it a spud gun, it would kind of defeat the whole purpose of a supersonic spudgun, wouldn't it?

I'm against the idea for the record. I like Mythbusters, but sometimes they seem similar to that bull they let loose in the china shop; they do some great stuff, and come to a lot of good conclusions, but it seems like they got there by accident. For example, the bug bomb - if they had done it properly, and used some simple chemistry, they could have leveled that whole house to the ground. It was sheer dumb luck that they even managed to ignite the aerosol, and the mix was far too rich, and poorly mixed. They may do something great with spudguns, but the possibility that they would f*ck it up horribly somehow is far too high for my liking.

I believe spudinator actually took pictures of a supersonic chrony reading from one of his hybrids. It's difficult to get a whole lot more definitive than that.

[SpudUke5]

i see why you would need a reference to call it a potato launcher, but if you use that then it would refer to spudguns and that is something that i dont want happening.

Maybe something else?

[TurboSuper]

I thought Joel (Spudtech dude) made a supersonic pneumatic cannon that ran on helium. Or is that my imagination acting up again?

I need definative proof of this to disclaim it as a myth. Even if I do get proof, I still wanna see if the mythbusters are capable of making one powerful enough.

http://www.spudtech.com/content.asp?id=10

Look near the bottom of the page. I remember it being mentioned somewhere else too, but I forget where.

Oh, and building a basic spudgun isn't exactly a nobel-prize winning achievement, no offense. I don't see anything wrong with people wanting to build their own after watching the show, seeing as how the Mythbusters constructed pneumatic cannons before.

A hybrid is a different story, but I don't think you could build one by just watching it on the teevee.

[rcman50166]

I thought Joel (Spudtech dude) made a supersonic pneumatic cannon that ran on helium. Or is that my imagination acting up again?

I need definative proof of this to disclaim it as a myth. Even if I do get proof, I still wanna see if the mythbusters are capable of making one powerful enough.

http://www.spudtech.com/content.asp?id=10

Look near the bottom of the page. I remember it being mentioned somewhere else too, but I forget where.

Oh, and building a basic spudgun isn't exactly a nobel-prize winning achievement, no offense. I don't see anything wrong with people wanting to build their own after watching the show, seeing as how the Mythbusters constructed pneumatic cannons before.

A hybrid is a different story, but I don't think you could build one by just watching it on the teevee.

A video of a cannon firing through a chrono and the chrono after the shot is needed to call it officially confirmed. As much as I'd like to belive a typed claim I can't be sure. The same goes with a photo. It can be photoshopped to dispay another image. I could even do that.

[DYI]

A video can be altered to display something completely different with the right skills and software, and enough time on your hands. It's all a matter of the level of plausibility you want.

You may want to try to contact the user Dumbascii. He chronoed superonic wax slugs out of the Taternator II, and he may be able to get you a video.

[rcman50166]

A video can be altered to display something completely different with the right skills and software, and enough time on your hands. It's all a matter of the level of plausibility you want.

You may want to try to contact the user Dumbascii. He chronoed superonic wax slugs out of the Taternator II, and he may be able to get you a video.

Well outside of a homemade hollywood studio, I don't see anyone having that ability or that dire need to make the supersonic claim.

[DYI]

But it can be done. Just as a picture can be photoshopped if the maker feels the need to do so. Either one is a waste of time, especially since very few people are impressed by someone who can build a supersonic spudgun, and those who are won't be fooled by false claims anyway.

[Fnord]

I have a "good" idea.


Remember the "Steam powered centrifugal machine gun"?

How many of you were doing the math in your head and realized it wasn't going to work as soon as you saw what they were going to build?

Well, it didn't work, and worse yet, they didn't replicate the results in the end.


That's why they should build a steam powered vortex gun.

[Ragnarok]

Well outside of a homemade hollywood studio, I don't see anyone having that ability or that dire need to make the supersonic claim.

Even I have software to do that, cost me £95, and it can be bought in the US for about $180 - or if I had the time, I could edit a video frame by frame using just Paint and Windows Movie Maker if I had to.
So, if I wanted to fake said video, I could do it - and I'm not a particularly good editor. But I did make a good picture of me punching Hitler in the face.

The truth is, it's easier to identify a photoshopped image than a videoshopped shot - a video doesn't have the quality to identify the tell tale signs. Thus, although a photo of said event is easy to fake, it's also easy to tell it's fake. The video is hard to fake, but hard to identify.

Frankly, the truth is, I have never seen a supersonic claim (from someone I would trust) where there isn't at least a reasonable chance that it could be true.
What makes it so hard to believe that not one of the couple of dozen spudguns that their owners have said have shot supersonic, not even one could have possibly achieved it?

I can see little reason for anyone who's spent long enough around these forums to risk their credibility by making a claim they don't have pretty good evidence for.

[frogy]

There's definitely proof of spud guns shooting over the speed barrier!

It's not like we're lying to you or something... Nearly every (decent) hybrid could break the speed barrier with the right ammo...

Even pneumatic spud guns have broken the sound barrier before If I remember correctly. I'm almost positive Joel from SpudTech broke it with a "Supah" valve... or was it a Mega

Mach one is only about 1116 FPS...

GGDT even with the low end efficiency of my new valve predicts 1120 FPS with a paintball through a 3/4" CPVC barrel 10 feet long...

Once my glue dries I'll try a few test shots and a chrono...

[DYI]

Unless you have an extremely fast valve, and a frictionless barrel, along with loads of pressure, I don't expect you'll be breaking Mach 1 with your setup.

GGDT tends to be inaccurate once things get trans-sonic.

[Ragnarok]

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention. The mythbusters are pretty poor cannon builders, you'd do better proving it to yourself.

And how exactly are you going to pitch it to them?

You'll have to explain where the myth comes from, that it's limited to gases for propellant, and not solid fuels (because just about every firearm shoots supersonic, or at least very near it)...

"Yeah, there's this myth that you can't use a gaseous fuel to go supersonic."
"Interesting, where did you hear that?"
"Errr... Look, a distraction!" (You'd be surprised how often this works)

[frogy]

I doubt it also, but I should be getting over 800 fps...

Using paintballs, friction is not much of a factor. CPVC seems to be easily lubricated, and paintballs have a small amount of oil on them already.

I was shooting over 600 fps with my last setup, and it's valve was very inefficient...

My new valve (once I fix the piston's seal) should be very nice...

I need to borrow a chrono from the paintball field I used to work at

[pizlo]

I agree with all the comments people have made about myth busters. they know a very little amount in a very large number of subjects, there is no way that they know more that the veterans of this site, MUCH less the combined knowledge of all of us. You want someone to use they're resources, with the knowledge of this community. that wont hapen any time soon.