That was absolutely incredible.

I want one. Wait, I want a couple of them.

/droooooolllll

Hopefully they're surrounded by miles of farmland. That's a lawsuit waiting to happen.

That aside, it's farking awesome.

This debate has raged for hundreds of years. We cannot apply a new set of rules now. There are just too many things that will go wrong when we attempt to enforce them.

The pumpkin cannon is a local marvel for now, but Gill and Arold have bigger dreams. They hope one day to enter it in the world "Punkin Chunkin" championship in Delaware, where the record is 4,483 feet.



Dayyyyyym

FTA: "They once scattered some geese by accidentally shooting into the flock."

Accidentally? Riiiiight.

They better be careful or the Israelis will bomb it.

/That's Bull!
/Too soon?

and I thought I had a crappy day...

VAZEWWWWWW!

?

I'm gonna start saying that all the time.

Somebody post one of those clever "WANT!" pics...

Discovery Channel has run a couple of programs about "Punkin Chunkin".

It probably wouldn't take too much work to make a sabot casing for one of those pumpkins.

Is it just me, or does it look like the aluminum extension isn't on straight? You think they'd get better range if they straightened that out.

Jebus...how does the pumpkin not just blow into pieces in the barrel?

christ93: Discovery Channel has run a couple of programs about "Punkin Chunkin".

But there's nothing quite the same as actually being there. I grew up just a few miles from where they used to hold the event.

America! F*ck Yeah!

Not amused.


/hotlinked

Well, with a name like Hurley . . .

Intrigued

Approves.

My robotics team built a t-shirt musket over the summer at the suggestion of the pricipal (caught sayof). They use about 35psi, and can shoot into the upper tier of the stadium. But they're looking into the possibility of using a couple paper cups and a water balloon as a sabot round. Strictly for... research purposes... of course.

There's a gang of physics professors in the area who like to take a ten-foot three meter pipe, open at both ends, insert a ping pong ball, cover both ends with duct tape, then use a pump to evacuate as much of the air from the pipe as possible. They put a couple empty soda cans at one end, and then use a knife to cut through the other end. As the air rushes in to fill the vacuum, it pushes the ball through the duct tape on the other end with such force that it obliterates the aluminum cans.

You don't want to get behind in your protection payments to the physics prof mafia.

Yes, one giant, super-pressurized pumpkin cannon is cool,

but five . . .

or six . . .

(plus a few catapults and trebuchets) is a REAL PARTY!

World Championship Punkin Chunkin' Contest (new window)

Look out downrange!

"No, we don't have any permits."

Ain't that America, home of the free!
Little punkin-splattered houses for you and me.

Pffft... using a compressor is cheating. I prefer trebuchet style.
Saw an episode on Discovery Channel I think, hurled a big round rock at
some old stone fort. Missed. But that rock made a huge rut. They finally hit the target. Nasty.

Little People Big World, didn't they have a pumpkin trebuchet to entertain the crowds? My cousin built one with some friends for a school project. It would hurl a pumpkin a couple hundred feet easily. They got an "A", when they set it up at his house and recorded it working. Still has the parts sitting there. Dangerous "machines", gotta be very careful with them, the counterweight has to always be considered (see the Little People episodes)

I absolutely hate the title 'Punkin Chunkin'. As terrible as it is, I get 'Punkin'. But 'Chunkin'?!?! WTF is that? Chunk?!? Chunking?!?

/I wish I was more passionate about things that matter.
//But alas, I am not.

PressPlayOnTape: I absolutely hate the title 'Punkin Chunkin'. As terrible as it is, I get 'Punkin'. But 'Chunkin'?!?! WTF is that? Chunk?!? Chunking?!?

/I wish I was more passionate about things that matter.
//But alas, I am not.

My grand dad from Mississippi uses the word chunkin as a replacement for the word throwing. As in " You all stop chunkin rocks at that cow ya hear!"

No one asked the seminal question. Was there frost on the pumpkin.

that was supposed to be Granddad with out a space...need coffee I guess.

Here's a little photo goodness:





Plus a Newspaper Slide Show (new window)

Cervantes3773: Somebody post one of those clever "WANT!" pics...


WANT

Mayostard: We go to Punkin Chunkin every year. Used to be in Lewes DE, now it's held in Seaford DE. Dumpy little Eastern Shore town, but it holds a whole world of awesome one weekend per year.

Also, that cannon isn't shiat.

2nd Amendment (pops - video)

That made the coolest noise I've ever heard. evar.

John Gill and Gary Arold fire the pumpkin cannon at Gill's Farm Market in Hurley.

I wonder how Gill's will retaliate?

No matter what you make, someone else will make it bigger and better. Either some nerds will do it or it'll be a close replica, bigger, a lot more dangerous and require the input of several rednecks.

Hey, hold my beer! Watch THIS! Get that chihuahua outta the way...no, wait a sec, hang on.

Sure, there have been some minor mishaps. Like when one pumpkin popped out of the barrel and broke into pieces, raining down bits of veggie shrapnel on people in Gill's corn maze.

"They were shook up a little while they were walking around, but they got over it," Gill says.

1. Apparently they've never considered trying to ensure that nobody's down range before firing.

2. Jeff just revealed his true identity.

CruiserTwelve: People are starving in other parts of the world and we're building pumpkin cannons. Let's shoot 'em some pumpkins!

This is so true. One thing I would like to see the Chunkers do is direct some of the proceeds from the event to alleviating hunger, either in Delaware (there are plenty of worse-than-dirt-poor people in the state) or around the world.

On a slightly different track, it's interesting that it takes a videographer from a newspaper to do a story right: let the people tell the story, not the reporter auditioning for a job in a bigger market.

This needs to be a new weapon in Doom 4.

FTA - "They were shook up a little while they were walking around, but they got over it," Gill says.

/If only more people would just "get over it"...

My namesake makes me proud!

krusher: Pffft... using a compressor is cheating. I prefer trebuchet style.
Saw an episode on Discovery Channel I think, hurled a big round rock at
some old stone fort. Missed. But that rock made a huge rut. They finally hit the target. Nasty.

Little People Big World, didn't they have a pumpkin trebuchet to entertain the crowds? My cousin built one with some friends for a school project. It would hurl a pumpkin a couple hundred feet easily. They got an "A", when they set it up at his house and recorded it working. Still has the parts sitting there. Dangerous "machines", gotta be very careful with them, the counterweight has to always be considered (see the Little People episodes)

Didn't that thing really fark one of their sons and cousin up?

PYROY: John Gill and Gary Arold fire the pumpkin cannon at Gill's Farm Market in Hurley.

I wonder how Gill's will retaliate?

I would expect he would return in kind.

PYROY: I wonder how Gill's will retaliate?

Approves

One of my friends made a potato launcher when we were kids. PVC pipe, hairspray igniton. Good times. Nothin like this, though.

Pretty much why the terrorists hate us.

Thanks for reminding me about Punkin' Chunkin' subby, gotta call my brother and make plans...

Teddy Hopper: One of my friends made a potato launcher when we were kids.

I still make them, and I'm 38. I'm more into compressed air as a propellant, though.