Build a Catapult in Your Backyard PDF
Preview Build a Catapult in Your Backyard
CATAPULT YOUR BACKYARD IN u 875 W55 . Wilson 2001x Bill Central Library Boston Public Library MA 02116 Boston, A Build Catapult Your Backyard In by Bill Wilson Loompanics Unlimited Port Townsend, Washington Neither the author nor the publisher assumes any responsibility for the use or misuse of information contained in ’ this book. It is soldfor entertainment purposes only. Be warned! Build a Catapult in Your Backyard ©2001 by Bin Wilson All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or stored in any form whatsoever without the prior written consent of the publisher. Reviews may quote brief passages without the written consent of the publisher as long as proper credit is given. Published by: Loompanics Unlimited PO Box 1197 WA Port Townsend, 98368 Loompanics Unlimited is a division of Loompanics Enterprises, Inc. Phone: 360-385-2230 E-mail: [email protected] Web www.loompanics.com site: Cover photo by Bill Wilson Interior photos by Bill Wilson and Eric Iverson Interior art by Jim Blanchard ISBN 1-55950-218-5 Library of Congress Card Catalog Number 2001089722 Contents , Chapter One History and Introduction V 1 Chapter Two Build a Catapult 9 Chapter Three Build a Ballista 25 Chapter Four Ammunition and Other Ideas 31 Chapter Five Resources for Further Study 35 V Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2017 with funding from Kahle/Austin Foundation https://archive.org/details/buildcatapultinyOOwils Chapter One History and Introduction 1 Chapter One History and Introduction Since time immemorial, human beings have sought bigger and better ways to kill each other. The first “wars” were likely fought with clubs and stone knives. People quickly figured out that tossing rocks at their adversaries was effective as well. Early experimenters found that the throwing power of the arm could be multiplied greatly by simple devices. Thus the atlatl and sling were born. As civilization became more advanced, so did both the tactics and weapons of war. Someone eventually figured out that by holding up a w'ide, flat piece of metal or wood they could deflect incoming projectiles, and thus the shield was born. The principle was expanded upon, and the results were fortresses and walled cities. The old hand-propelled missiles were ineffective against these, and weapons developers soon realized that something more powerful was needed. The ancient Greeks were the first to develop mechanical artillery, and their devices were later adapted and improved upon by the Romans. One of the earliest and most effective was the onager*, (Illustration pictured on the next page. 1) — “Onager” means “wild ass” a nickname the Romans gave for the way its rear would buck up upon firing. The weapon pictured used a sling, w'hich would throw projectiles much farther than the “scoop,” which was used later. Build a Catapult in Your Backyard ? Illustration 1 While the ancients had various names for their weapons, in the modern mind most forms of mechanical artillery have come to be known collectively as “catapults.” For simplicity I will use this general term in the chapters to follow. Chapter One History and Introduction 3 The throwing mechanism was very simple. A rotating timber was mounted inside a heavy frame. In its middle, the throwing arm was attached. Around the rotating timber the soldiers" wrapped an elastic rope-like substance, the exact composition of which has been lost in history. Most researchers believed the Romans used human hair woven together with animal sinews. This would be twisted tight by a gear mechanism turned by levers. They then bent the throwing arm to a ninety degree angle and secured with a it rope tied in a slip knot. At this point, there was tremendous tension on the throwing arm. Finally, they would load the sling or scoop and pull the slip knot. The arm sprung forward and hurled the stone at the target. The larger onagers could throw a fifty-pound stone several hundred yards. The onager was primarily a siege weapon, meant to either knock down enemy walls or throw stones over them. To supplement the Romans developed a lethal anti-personnel it, weapon which hurled a massive javelin directly into and through the enemy. An example is shown on page 4. Build a Catapult in Your Backyard 4 Illustration 2 Medieval inventors recreated this weapon and called a it ballista. The spears were mounted with heavy metal heads, and could pass through up to a dozen human bodies before they stopped. The largest of them could hurl a spear over five hundred yards. Alter the collapse ol the Roman Empire, Europe fell into the Dark Ages and much of what the Romans knew about weapons building was lost. Eventually, medieval engineers created their own versions of the ancient weapons. In addition, they developed an enormous throwing engine called the trebuchet. An example is shown on the next page.
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