Amazon.com: Adventures from the Technology Underground: Catapults, Pulsejets, Rail Guns, Flamethrowers, Tesla Coils, Air Cannons, and the Garage Warriors Who Love Them: William Gurstelle: Books

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The Age of Invention is Still Alive: Catapults, Air Cannons, and Skycars

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Taser Air Cannon

Skycar

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What is the technology underground? According to engineer and technology consultant Gurstelle, it's a community of like-minded amateurs--inventors, mostly, although some of them might more accurately be characterized as daredevils. Men and women who have devoted their lives to the things that conventional science has dismissed as unworkable, impractical, or just plain pointless. Flying cars, for example, or newfangled catapults, air guns, and flamethrowers. Or fighting robots and, of course, LDRS (large and dangerous rocket ships). The author explores not only the people who devise these wondrous new inventions but also the technological wizardry behind them: every chapter features illustrations and technical explanations of the devices discussed within. The writing is a bit scattershot, alternating frequently between clunky ("it is reasonable to outline, at the outset of a conceptualization or a project, the rules of conformance") and the outright funny: after describing an early flying-car design, the author deadpans, "It never got off the ground." But the book's target audience won't be bothered by the prose. They will be looking for adventure, excitement, and really wild stuff. They won't be disappointed. David Pitt
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

Hardcover: 224 pages
Publisher: Clarkson Potter (January 3, 2006)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1400050820
ISBN-13: 978-1400050826
Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.2 x 0.9 inches
Shipping Weight: 3.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)

Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (15 customer reviews)

Amazon.com Sales Rank: #100,253 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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#35 in	Books > Professional & Technical > Engineering > Mechanical > Machinery
#37 in	Books > Professional & Technical > Engineering > Industrial, Manufacturing & Operational Systems > Machinery
#54 in	Books > Science > Technology > Social Aspects

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	26% buy the item featured on this page: Adventures from the Technology Underground: Catapults, Pulsejets, Rail Guns, Flamethrowers, Tesla Coils, Air Cannons, and the Garage Warriors Who Love Them 3.6 out of 5 stars (15) $19.00
	25% buy Backyard Ballistics: Build Potato Cannons, Paper Match Rockets, Cincinnati Fire Kites, Tennis Ball Mortars, and More Dynamite Devices 4.4 out of 5 stars (48) $11.53
	23% buy Absinthe & Flamethrowers: Projects and Ruminations on the Art of Living Dangerously 3.6 out of 5 stars (10) $11.53
	14% buy Whoosh Boom Splat: The Garage Warrior's Guide to Building Projectile Shooters 4.8 out of 5 stars (4) $11.53

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Customer Reviews

15 Reviews

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

Average Customer Review

3.6 out of 5 stars (15 customer reviews)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars More like "Cool Tech for Dummies", March 21, 2006

By	K. Palmer "artist/musician/geek" (NJ United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I really wanted to like this book, but it's written in such a simplistic and unfocused way as to leave me very disappointed. The author barely scratches the surface of the many technologies/projects/events he covers, and I always felt cheated after finishing each chapter... thinking "That's IT?!"

Underground tech IS a very cool subject to write about, but the lack of information about the inner motivations and passions of these "garage warriors" leaves a glaring hole in the text. If you have a short attention span and hate to read long books, this book is easily absorbed in a few hours. This is NOT a deep exposition on underground tech; it is a quick overview for newbies. Considering that the audience for this subject would be (I assume) more literate that the national average, it's a shame that the writing seems to be limited to what a sixth-grader could easily digest.

I notice now that the price has now dropped to 10 bucks. At that price, it's more in line with the quantity/quantity of content provided, and could now be considered an "okay" value... just don't set your expectations too high. I know this was a fairly harsh review, but I really was disappointed that the amateurish quality of the writing didn't live up to the slick cover design. Don't judge a book by it's cover!

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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars fresh machines from the underground, April 27, 2006

By	Bob Parks (Brattleboro, VT United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I've been waiting for this book to come out, and it's cool to finally see it. Gurstelle wrote my favorite -- the authoritative book of cool and potentially perilous home projects, Backyard Ballistics.

"Adventures . . . ." describes projects and devices that are an order of magnitude more sophisticated (and probably more dangerous). No one is better at teasing out the details of these amazing and exotic home-built contraptions. There are the requisite tesla coils and air canons, but also stuff I'd never heard of before -- like coin shrinking machines, sky cars, and pulse jets (not to be confused with plain ol' turbine jets).

Damn, the book made me realize that the world is just so full of specialists in so many odd areas. Gurstelle has covered the terrain longer than anybody. It's full of imagination, and made me start thinking bigger about my own home projects and new areas I could explore.

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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A little mad scientist in all of us..., January 15, 2007

By	Timothy G. Niland (New Jersey, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Did you ever get the urge to go pick up some scrap metal and bang together a fighting combat robot, flamethrower or a gigantic pumpkin-chucker? This book is full of tales of backyard builders and basement scientists who have built just these machines and more. The builders are motivated by a desire to compete against other builders and the satisfaction of making something unique rather than any monetary reward. The competition gets fierce when pride is on the like at the World Championships of pumpkin chucking in Delaware where massive air cannons battle middle-ages catapults to see who can hurl a pumpkin the farthest. Homemade combat robots battle to the mechanical deaths in improvised arenas carved out of scrap metal yards. Wild performance artists use flamethrowers and mega-volt electrical generators to create wild spectacles for the audiences at the Burning Man alternative culture festival. Part Mad Max, part mad scientist, this book proves that the only limit to our creations is our imagination.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Intro to Alternative Science Projects!
Bill Gurtelle's latest book is a great intro to several fringe science & engineering contests & hobbies. Read more

Published 22 months ago by Jason Bardis

3.0 out of 5 stars Misleading web page
I must admit I was disappointed with one aspect of the book: the web page from which I ordered it showed a number of color photos of items that I expected to be in the book -... Read more

Published 24 months ago by Steve Kimball

1.0 out of 5 stars A RATHER DISAPPOINTING PUBLICATION.
Nothing technical in this book. More about the development and use of different items made by others. Lacking pictures, plans, etc. Read more

Published on May 12, 2007 by RAYSOUTH

3.0 out of 5 stars Adventures from the Techno;ogy Underground: Catapults, Pulsejets, Rail Guns, Flamethrowers,Tesla Coils, Air Cannons, and the Gar
I did not like this book at all. It just was not what I expected. I found it very "Verbose" and way to boring. I wished I had not bought it.

Published on March 8, 2007 by Michael L. Wingard

4.0 out of 5 stars Good fun, don't try at home
Great item for fun. My electrical engineering brother knew about many of the items, but started reading up on the mechanical items right away because they do look like lots of... Read more

Published on January 5, 2007 by D. Showalter

5.0 out of 5 stars A book I can relate to.
When Mr. Gurstelle contacted me asking for an interview for his book I immediately agreed; being familiar with his previous book (backyard ballistics) I knew exactly what to... Read more

Published on June 13, 2006 by Osanan L. Barros

5.0 out of 5 stars A light-hearted, fun survey of the scientist's motivation results
What drives over 25,000 inventors to Nevada's desert for the annual Burning Man festival - and why do inventors build fantastic machines in their garages from scraps? Read more

Published on May 21, 2006 by Midwest Book Review

5.0 out of 5 stars "I aim for the stars but sometimes I hit London"
I've enjoyed all of William Gurstelle's books so far and ordered "Adventures from the Technology Underground" as soon as it popped up on my radar. Read more

Published on April 25, 2006 by Jim

1.0 out of 5 stars Parental Advisory
I would advise parents thinking of giving this book to their teenage scientist to reconsider. Not because of the danger of catapults, Tesla coils, and air cannons--all that stuff... Read more

Published on April 1, 2006 by Gordon R. Durand

3.0 out of 5 stars Adventures From The Techchnology Underground
Although Amazon's service was excellent as always, I could only give the book 3 stars. It is somewhat overpriced. Read more

Published on March 1, 2006 by Amateur Scientist

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