Floating Arm Trebuchet

by RLT Industries

Product Features

• Great for science projects.
• Converts potential energy into kinetic energy.
• Can hurl a golf ball 200 feet.
• Precision crafted of high quality hardwood.
• Designed and made in the USA for better quality, better performance!

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 14 pounds
• ASIN: B001ALP4T0
• Item model number: 10101
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #241,851 in Toys & Games (See Top 100 in Toys & Games)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)

Product Description

Engineered using modern mechanical principles and computer aided design, this mini-powerhouse can hurl a golf ball over 200 feet. It uses guillotine action and a plunging beam to maximize potential energy and a floating arm to convert that energy into projectile motion. Precision crafted of high quality hardwood, the kit contains everything you need to build a working model.* The trebuchet is essentially a gravity powered energy conversion machine - it's a great way to see classical mechanics in action! The completed model stands 34 inches tall, 18 inches long and 7 inches wide (12 inches wide with the included steel counterweight boxes). A common complaint from engineering professors is that "Students today have a great understanding of computers, but fewer and fewer of them have any real hands-on, real-world understanding of physics and mechanics." Our kits are designed and intended to spark an interest in real-world science and engineering, and maybe even a bit of history too! The detailed instructions are complete with diagrams, photos, tuning tips, equations for calculating the machine's efficiency and more! All parts are pre-cut, pre-drilled and can be assembled to a finished model in one evening (plus glue drying time). We've put a lot of time and effort into making this kit as easy and complete as possible. It's a fun way to learn about physics and engineering! WARNING! This is a functional model intended for educational demonstrations of physics. It contains a fast moving arm and projectile that can cause injury if you make contact when firing. Use only under strict, competent adult supervision. * We supply the containers, but you'll need to supply the counterweight material. Anything from nuts and bolts, BBs, coins, sand or a good fist full of pebbles will do! * Can throw 200 feet when properly constructed and tuned with sufficient counterweights. Your performance may vary.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Don't Tell My Students It's a Toy!, September 30, 2009

By 

D. Burrows (North Georgia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

= Durability:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Educational:5.0 out of 5 stars 

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Floating Arm Trebuchet (Toy)

I just completed assembly of the floating arm trebuchet kit. Using regular carpenter's glue, and spending a lot of (unnecessary?) time sanding, it has taken me just over a week to finish the assembly. (Most the time spent was simply waiting for the glue to dry.) The kit is extremely well thought out, the hardwood parts well fabricated, and the one question I had during assembly was answered the same day (via email) by RLT. The thoroughly-illustrated instructions are great.

It has not slung a golf ball yet - I am going to varish it before I take it outdoors - but watching the motion of the device is fascinating! Any detailed analysis of its operation would be, ah, challenging! It is destined to become a physics classroom demonstration device, for comparison to more conventional fixed-fulcrum models.

I fabricated two other classroom trebuchets this past summer ("Tiger" and "Arnie"), from my own design. They are comparable in physical size to the floating arm machine. I know I spent more on each than the cost of this kit, I certainly expended far more time in making them, and they are nowhere near as elegant as my new "Jack"! Well done, RLT!