Rail Guns

Thread Starter

Wendy

Joined Mar 24, 2008
23,415
I wonder how hard it would be to make a rail bb gun or pellet gun. Wouldn't neet to be super powerful, maybe 1200feet per second. Do you think that would be a doable project for a hobbiest? Or should we be working on phasers instead?

Or possibly modify the rail gun propulsion system to launch a little rocket or plane of some sort (Model rocket or plane size). Nasa says their interested in using it to launch stuff into space.
It's one of the things that will get your thread closed here at AAC. There are some very good sites out there devoted to the subject though, and we still get people who are experimenting with them in now and again.

If those Estor caps ever turn out to be more than vaporware there are some interesting technologies that could help make them practical.
 

shortbus

Joined Sep 30, 2009
10,045
I wonder how hard it would be to make a rail bb gun or pellet gun. Wouldn't neet to be super powerful, maybe 1200feet per second. Do you think that would be a doable project for a hobbiest? /QUOTE]

Nuts and Volts magazine did one a while back, last year I think. I'll look up the issue if you want.

Home made coilguns are real big in Russia. One site is; <snip>

Note: These forums do not support information about devices that can cause harm to people.
 
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Thread Starter

Wendy

Joined Mar 24, 2008
23,415
To an experienced hobbiest I doubt it is that difficult. Odd part is, it is actually easier in theory than a lot of folks think. The hard part is the incredible amount of current it requires.

A true rail gun does not need coils at all. It uses counter EMF generated with a slug of metal is between two metal rails (hence the name). I've always thought the blast of plasma at the end (which resembles the blast from a chemical weapon) was really cool.

Basically it is a solenoid on steroids.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rail_gun
 

shortbus

Joined Sep 30, 2009
10,045
maxpower097 - The ram/pulse jets remind me of the little ads in pop mechanics and pop science from the 1960's selling the plans to make the engine and a helicopter that used the jets on the rotor tips.

Ahh,the good old days, you could go into almost any drugstore or market and buy saltpeter, sulfur and many other chemicals to make your own fireworks and black powder :) Not that I ever did anything like that, anyway the statute of limitations has run out on those things anyhow.
 

retched

Joined Dec 5, 2009
5,207
Depends on whether they find the bodies or not. :p
Or the thousands of fingers that were lost due to short fuses.

I remember my grandfather talking about a friend of his who had always collected spent brass shells from local out-door firing range.

Sometimes the "big guns" would show up and put on a demonstration.

He sat a 5gal bucket near the ejector and "caught" dozens of 6" shells.

One of his favorite past times was taking match heads and cram-a-laming them in to the shell casings. By complete accident, he used a wooded dowel for all of his previous works. These newer shells had a much larger opening so the smaller wooden dowel wouldn't compress them well.


Oh looky here! A metal rod of the PERFECT diameter!

Well, he has 3 fingers left.

The act of cram-a-laming the match-heads into the shell casing caused a spark and Ka-blewey.

Not a good idea kids.

I also remember hearing from a friend of mine in high school about a similar "finger removal". This kid was doing basically the same thing, but he ran out of match heads.

Oh looky here! Strike-on-anywhere matches!

I dont have a finger count on this one.

BUT, the act of cram-a-laming the strike on anywhere matches caused ignition and finger-removal.


The moral: Keep your fingers attached to your hand.

Buy your fireworks and use a resistor or electric match to light them.
 

shortbus

Joined Sep 30, 2009
10,045
Yeah all the modern day safety stuff should be used! My Mothers dad worked at the Ohio Blue Tip match company and used to bring us kids home small amounts of the mix that was put on the matches. My uncle showed us how to fill empty rifle cases with the mixture to make rockets, kind of like the ones made with a book match and tin foil. But MUCH more powerful. Ahh the good old days ;)
 

BillO

Joined Nov 24, 2008
999
There is a way to make these little 'match head' rockets safe. You need to make sure pressure cannot build up to dangerous levels.

...
 
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Thread Starter

Wendy

Joined Mar 24, 2008
23,415
To folks in the know most of the chemicals are still available, but sold for specific uses. I remember seeing a list on another forum a while back. It doesn't need repeating here, but all the chemicals can be bought for specific applications (such as stump removal) at a hardware store.
 
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