BDH Posted May 3, 2003 Share Posted May 3, 2003 Okay, I don't have any really cool pictures of my guns, so I decided to post a couple of photos of the 2002 Punkin Chunkin World Champion in the 'Unlimited Air Cannon' class. While no gunpowder is allowed, this was still a pretty cool thing to go see. It's basically a 3 day party and people come in from all over. The goal is simply to launch a pumpkin farther than anyone else in your class. They have multiple classes including catapults, trebuchets, slingshots, centrifigal machines, etc. They get everyone from the local Boy Scout troop who's just out for fun, up to the big air cannons where people really take this serious! Here's a little closer shot, and yes, SECOND AMENDMENT is the name of the current World Champion (they're from Michigan). If you want to check out any of the other details or pictures of the various machines, go to Punkin Chunkin. So just how far did SECOND AMENDMENT launch a pumpkin????? 3881.54 feet, or just shy of 3/4 of a mile! I'd say that would definately make MAJOR!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SiG Lady Posted May 3, 2003 Share Posted May 3, 2003 This is very serious fun...! All I can say is: ULMAO!!! (Uncontrollably Laughing My Ass Off) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BDH Posted May 4, 2003 Author Share Posted May 4, 2003 Sig Lady, did you check out the muzzle blast in the first picture? Or go to the website and check out some of the other machines? This really was worth the trip. I know it probably looks weird, and I figured it was a pretty small event, but we waited in a traffic jam (this is in rural DE) for more than two hours to even get to the gate! I would guess that there were probably at least 50 - 60 entries of different sizes and shapes, and probably 20 - 25K people....... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry White Posted May 4, 2003 Share Posted May 4, 2003 I saw this on tv not too long ago, now everyday when I drive by the refinerys and the oil field supply yards, I think if I had some ot that pipe and just a little bigger air compressor? A 8lb pumpkin makes major at 3 fps. This could be some serious major fun!!! Larry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SiG Lady Posted May 4, 2003 Share Posted May 4, 2003 Sig Lady, did you check out the muzzle blast in the first picture? God, yes! What a rush! The shooting pastimes of the human animal know no limits....! Aren't we great??!! Thanks loads for these photos. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SmallPaul Posted May 4, 2003 Share Posted May 4, 2003 Well I'm sure it makes MAJOR, but can you make a head shot with it at 25 feet? How 'bout 2500 feet? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BDH Posted May 4, 2003 Author Share Posted May 4, 2003 Well I'm sure it makes MAJOR, but can you make a head shot with it at 25 feet? How 'bout 2500 feet? On the first day, they do a charity shoot, and actually shoot these things at targets, as opposed to shooting just for distance. I'm guessing a little here but I think they use either 4 X 4 or 4 X 8 plywood for the targets. Not sure about the distance downrange, but if someone is curious, they can probably pull it from one of the Punkin Chunkin websites. Imagine the overlay required.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
megaman Posted May 5, 2003 Share Posted May 5, 2003 now all you have to do is find a holster for it and........ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeffro Posted May 5, 2003 Share Posted May 5, 2003 OH GOD!!!!! SiG Lady is probably at the range right now looking for someone to handload for her first "pumpkin shooting" event........ and I don't mean shooting AT pumpkins!!!!! Jeffro Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jake Di Vita Posted May 5, 2003 Share Posted May 5, 2003 "Well I'm sure it makes MAJOR, but can you make a head shot with it at 25 feet? How 'bout 2500 feet?" Head shot? With a few thousand PF, Any shot becomes a head shot. Do the seeds count as shrapnel? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gm iprod Posted May 5, 2003 Share Posted May 5, 2003 Just saw a rerun of Monster Garage, when they built a "mail" delivery truck. Gas cannon, giant crosbows and a trebuchez(sp). Which is a GIANT holy crap sized sling shot. I want one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ErikW Posted May 5, 2003 Share Posted May 5, 2003 The gas guns are nice but I prefer the old-fashioned stuff like trebuchets, catapults, ballistas, etc. Oh yeah, and the crazy centripetal launchers. There's more creativity and engineering to appreciate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BDH Posted May 5, 2003 Author Share Posted May 5, 2003 Do the seeds count as shrapnel? Stallion, as you can see from the pictures, it was a perfectly clear blue sky. I was standing out there, when all the sudden it felt almost like it was sprinkling very lightly. You guessed it..... they blew one of the pumpkins coming out of the gun, and of course tiny pieces of pumpkin and pumpkin mist rained down over the crowd. These guys actually grow their own 'competition pumpkins'. They put extra lime in the soil and that makes the shell grow about twice as thick as a normal pumpkins. Then the trick is they gradually keep turning the pressure up, so they are bound to blow one every once and a while. The gas guns are nice but I prefer the old-fashioned stuff like trebuchets, catapults, ballistas, etc. Oh yeah, and the crazy centripetal launchers. There's more creativity and engineering to appreciate. Erik, I hear you, and probably our favorite machine was one of the centrifical machines, Bad to the Bone. Here's a picture just for you...... Sorry I couldn't get closer, but we had to sneak into the pits, and to be honest with you, when this thing got up to speed, the whole truck and machine itself were shaking so hard, I was concerned that this thing would come apart! A still picture really does not do these machines justice because just before they launch they are spinning to hard you can barely see the arm, and they make a serious amount of noise. The smoke is from the diesel that is powering the machine. I guess the thing that amazed me the most about all of this is 1) how serious most of these teams took this, and 2) the amount of people that would come out to see poor, defenseless pumpkins hurled downrange and smashed into pulp. I guess we better hope that PETP (People for the Ethical Treatment of Pumpkins) doesn't ever find out about this! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
megaman Posted May 6, 2003 Share Posted May 6, 2003 now i've heard it all, "competition pumpkins" and "pumpkin cannon" squibs ....what's next? match grade watermelons? btw would those lime treated pumpkins be considered fmj's? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BDH Posted May 6, 2003 Author Share Posted May 6, 2003 now i've heard it all, "competition pumpkins" and "pumpkin cannon" squibs ....what's next? match grade watermelons? btw would those lime treated pumpkins be considered fmj's? Megaman, the Discovery Channel came out and covered this event and runs a one hour special. I have no idea when it will run again, but there were a couple of things that were well worth while...... the best was these two chemical engineers that decided to build an air cannon. They show them testing it by shooting pumpkins through one of their old Chevy Blazers..... What a blast! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cpty1 Posted May 6, 2003 Share Posted May 6, 2003 And here I was thinking a potato gun was cool. I need to get out more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tightloop Posted May 6, 2003 Share Posted May 6, 2003 Very cool pictures. Closest I have seen to that is a canon match at 1200 meters at a 4x8 piece of plywood. You might not be surprised at the regularity with which they hit it, but I was. Also very cool. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SiG Lady Posted May 9, 2003 Share Posted May 9, 2003 Oh, and btw, NOW there's a flap about the 'safety' of Potato Guns...!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tightloop Posted May 9, 2003 Share Posted May 9, 2003 Well, if you are a real klutz, I suppose you could stab yourself in the eye with your fork during dinner, but no one is suggesting we go back to eating with our hands. Stupidity is its own reward. If you are blinded by a spud gun... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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