How to Build an Easy Catapult With 9 to 10 Popsicle Sticks
Catapults were used as siege engines to knock down the enemy's fortifications. Your catapult made of Popsicle sticks won't be knocking down enemy castle walls, but should be up to knocking down structures made of blocks, marshmallows or playing cards. You can use your toy catapult to lob wads of paper, candy, rubber balls or other small objects. If you'd like to play with other people, you can devise a game that involves knocking down your opponents' structures, lobbing an object the farthest or hitting a target.
- Difficulty:
- Moderately Easy
Instructions
Things You'll Need
- 10 Popsicle sticks
- 1 rubber band about five inches around
- 1 piece of paper
- Ruler
- Pencil
- Scissors
- Masking tape
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1
Cut six of the Popsicle sticks into four-inch pieces with flat ends on both sides and one Popsicle stick into a four-inch piece with one rounded end and one flat end. Cut another one of the Popsicle sticks into a three-inch piece with one flat end and one rounded end. Finally, cut the remaining two Popsicle sticks into three two-inch pieces with flat ends on both sides.
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2
Tape two four-inch pieces and two two-inch pieces together to form one long stick. Alternate four-inch and two-inch pieces so that the long stick is one four-inch piece, one two-inch piece, one four-inch piece and one two-inch piece.
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3
Fold the long stick into a box shape with four-inch pieces on the long sides and two-inch pieces on the short sides. Tape the two ends together to form the last corner.
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4
Tape the last two-inch piece to one of the short sides on the inside of the box structure. Use tape at both ends to secure the piece in place, but do not use any tape in the center of the stick so that you have a slit between the two pieces.
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5
Tape two of the four-inch pieces together side-by-side with tape wrapping both ends so that you have a piece that is four inches long and twice as wide as a single Popsicle stick.
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6
Attach the two pieces you made in the previous step to the box-like structure with tape. Tape the four-inch pieces with the edges fitting into the corners. At the corners, use tape in both directions, length-wise and horizontally so that the pieces are secure. There will be a space between the two four-inch pieces.
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7
Cut the rubber band so that it is one long piece instead of a circle. Tape the rubber band to the three-inch Popsicle stick so that one inch of the rubber band overlaps the stick and the rest hangs over the rounded edge.
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8
Place the rubber-band Popsicle stick piece in the gap created in Step 4. You may need to use a tool (such as a screwdriver or file) in the gap first to help create enough space.
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9
Create a hinge by taping four pieces of masking tape together, one on top of another, so that you have a piece of tape that is four layers thick with one sticky side. Cut this piece of tape so that it is two inches long and then cut that piece in half, length-wise so that you have two two-inch pieces. Place a Popsicle stick over the non-sticky side of the two pieces of tape, on its side, and draw lines on both sides so that each piece of tape has two lines on it with a space between that is the same width as the side of the Popsicle stick (approximately 1/16th of an inch).
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10
Attach the hinge pieces to the remaining four-inch Popsicle stick. Line the tape up so that the bottom of the two lines drawn on it matches up to the flat end of the Popsicle stick and the rest of the tape hangs off the end. The sticky side of the tape piece should hold it to the stick. Place the other two-inch piece on the other side of the stick, again with the bottom line matching up with the flat end of the stick and secure it in place. The two pieces of tape should be on either side of the stick and hang off equally and the flat end of the stick should now look like a "Y". Pinch the two pieces of tape together so that they stick together and secure the tape pieces with more tape wrapped around the stick.
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11
Tape the parts of the tape that are hanging off the four-inch stick to the upright stick you made in Step 8. The two sticks should form a right angle with the base of the angle lining up with the top edge of the box. The four-inch piece is the arm of the catapult.
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12
Tape the free end of the rubber band to the hinged four-inch stick. The stick should now be at a 45-degree angle to the upright stick.
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13
Cut the piece of paper into a two-inch square and use your pencil to draw lines along all four sides that are 1/2 inch from the edge. Cut four of the lines, one at each corner, from the edge to the line you drew. You are just creating slots, not cutting the edges free. Fold the piece of paper into a box-like shape and secure the corners with tape.
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14
Attach the paper box to the arm of the catapult with tape, making sure to leave enough space at the rounded end of the stick so that you can press on it with your finger.
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1
Tips & Warnings
Use lots of tape to secure the pieces together to prevent it from pulling apart when you apply pressure to the catapult arm.
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References
- Photo Credit Dynamic Graphics Group/Dynamic Graphics Group/Getty Images
