Recreating the spud gun, sort of.

[cant hit rabbits 123]

Evening chaps,

 

A friend of mine aproached me today, asking for a bit of, and i qoute him, 'expert advice' on an idea he had. He asked if I knew much about a spud gun from years back that fired things using paper caps. Aparantly it looked like a very small revolver that took a single cartridge, with a paper cap on one end and potato bit in the other. He showed me a picture of one he dragged of the internet.

 

Well he showed me a 'fag packet sketch' of his idea, which is in essance the same method, but in a different form. The best way to describe it is as looking like an old percussion revolver, with four cylinders and a single action hammer. The cylinders are bored through at the front enough to accommodate a small plastic pellet (about 6 mm he says) (accompanied the design, in his pocket), then smaller to the back (About 2-3mm he says). at the back of the cylinders are niples to accommodate more modern round plastic cased caps (also present in the pocket). He includes a smooth bored barrel and the cylinder must be manually turned and hammer cocked before each 'shot'. Anyway, you can grasp his general idea.

 

What he asked was, A would this work in regards to propelling the pellet out of the barrel? B is there a legal issues now, seen as something very similar was produced as a toy. I'm not sure on either. Mechanically, the design sounded pluasable, but I dont know the answer to either of his questions.

 

Any help?

 

PS, found the picture, Lone star spud gun, Circa 1960

 

http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=spud+gun+lone+star&view=detail&id=B6AB0034C27302F2C0169435725EE5AD8AE90AB5&first=0&FORM=IDFRIR

[DSPUK]

I had a spud gun but don't remember it being like a revolver - in fact the only thing I remember was pushing barrel end into a spud for the spud plug - can't even remember how it worked.

 

In fact me and mrs's were sitting down trying to think what we did yesterday - took 5 min to remember. I drove 40 miles - had four tyres fitted and spent 40 quid :blush: hate this getting old bit.

 

Dave

[cant hit rabbits 123]

I had a spud gun but don't remember it being like a revolver - in fact the only thing I remember was pushing barrel end into a spud for the spud plug - can't even remember how it worked.

 

In fact me and mrs's were sitting down trying to think what we did yesterday - took 5 min to remember. I drove 40 miles - had four tyres fitted and spent 40 quid :blush: hate this getting old bit.

 

Dave

 

I think they work off a spring.

[jimbo1]

what about one of these puppies ??!! :o

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1vjgw3qzt-U

[jacksdad]

They were air pistols :blink:

You plugged the barrel up with spud, then squeezed the gun, just pushed a piston up the barrel and fired the plug out

Ones we had were cast steel and the whole pistol was simply 2 halfs, one slipped inside the other and were sort of airtight, squeeze 2 halves together, compress air, fire!

Anyone used to make pea guns?

[deershooter]

i rember these they had a removable piece in the cylinder where a triangler piece of potato went you then tore off a paper cap and placed on the rear of the removamle cylinder pulled the trigger and shot my mum in the face drawing blood

[cant hit rabbits 123]

Thats the one I think, although not the best of targets.

 

Anyone think his design will work? Is it even still legal? I've had 3 texts already in the same amount of hours.

[Bloke]

They were air pistols :blink:

You plugged the barrel up with spud, then squeezed the gun, just pushed a piston up the barrel and fired the plug out

Ones we had were cast steel and the whole pistol was simply 2 halfs, one slipped inside the other and were sort of airtight, squeeze 2 halves together, compress air, fire!

Anyone used to make pea guns?

 

I think these were the ones you mean:

 

http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?q=spud+gun+pics&hl=en&sa=G&tbm=isch&prmd=imvns&tbnid=7P3f2dEzjkhtXM:&imgrefurl=http://perezsolomon.com/2010/10/13/the-double-barreled-marshmallow-crossbow/&docid=1tcakWX0QhjqqM&w=338&h=400&ei=RyVxTv-1EoGY8QPb_5msAw&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=874&vpy=195&dur=1861&hovh=244&hovw=206&tx=123&ty=248&page=3&tbnh=159&tbnw=134&start=27&ndsp=8&ved=1t:429,r:7,s:27&biw=1120&bih=557

[del.gue]

I remember having one of those, mine was silver. I might still have it somewhere!!

[libs]

I remember firing and manoeuvring inbetween parked cars towards my best mate with one of the small red cast spud guns, stolen potato in the spare hand... trying to get him in the face because that was worth *10 points*

 

Them were the days.

[Thunderbird]

The first was called the Spud Gun, the pneumatic one was called the Spud-o-matic. I had both. I preferred the first revolver type. Shot my brother in the leg.

 

[Tam]

Evening chaps,

 

A friend of mine aproached me today, asking for a bit of, and i qoute him, 'expert advice' on an idea he had. He asked if I knew much about a spud gun from years back that fired things using paper caps. Aparantly it looked like a very small revolver that took a single cartridge, with a paper cap on one end and potato bit in the other. He showed me a picture of one he dragged of the internet.

 

Well he showed me a 'fag packet sketch' of his idea, which is in essance the same method, but in a different form. The best way to describe it is as looking like an old percussion revolver, with four cylinders and a single action hammer. The cylinders are bored through at the front enough to accommodate a small plastic pellet (about 6 mm he says) (accompanied the design, in his pocket), then smaller to the back (About 2-3mm he says). at the back of the cylinders are niples to accommodate more modern round plastic cased caps (also present in the pocket). He includes a smooth bored barrel and the cylinder must be manually turned and hammer cocked before each 'shot'. Anyway, you can grasp his general idea.

 

What he asked was, A would this work in regards to propelling the pellet out of the barrel? B is there a legal issues now, seen as something very similar was produced as a toy. I'm not sure on either. Mechanically, the design sounded pluasable, but I dont know the answer to either of his questions.

 

Any help?

 

PS, found the picture, Lone star spud gun, Circa 1960

 

http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=spud+gun+lone+star&view=detail&id=B6AB0034C27302F2C0169435725EE5AD8AE90AB5&first=0&FORM=IDFRIR

 

I had one of those if I remember correctly they were designed to use the plastic caps I couldnt afford them on my pocket money unless the game dealer accepted some rabbits or ring necks - 4 mile bike ride aged 8-9

Edited September 15, 2011 by Tam

[Thunderbird]

Nah it was paper caps that you bought in little circular cardboard boxes. For the revolver anyway. That was the only spud gun that relied on the blast alone.

[Tam]

You might be right, if you folded them it would give you more power at that age I don't think I would have tried the high charge plastic caps even cut down with your Dad's single edge razor blade to just above the charge, would they fit :blink:

[Imperfection]

I had one of them and chances are its still in old toy box in loft at family home.

 

Yes you're right it used a cap to fire the potato chunk out.

[njc110381]

I wouldn't want to get caught with such an item. So your friend wants to shoot 6mm BB's with it but at the end of the day it's a home made firearm. How easy do you think it would be to convince the police that you only loaded it with one cap and a plastic BB, rather than a load of caps/cap and powder and a metal projectile? All a bit of a grey area, and one I'd stay well clear of myself.

 

That's the sort of thing that society used to do to have harmless fun. These days you'd be more likely to end up in prison!

[mel b3]

ahem , at the risk of showing my age , the earlier spud guns worked by using the paper roll of caps that came on a roll that was inside a small round box(these would leave bruises and cut skin) .

as time moved on the spud guns evolved using the small round individual plastic caps (as powerfull and noisy but slower to load and not as much fun).

the latest type of spudgun is in two halves that slide together when squeezed and uses air pressure to shoot the small piece of potato from inside the barrel(these are pants).

 

i have no idea as to the legality of spud guns but i would bet my left nut that the ones with caps are illeagle these days as they used an explosive propellant to fire the potato

[Good shot?]

The only one I remember worked like a Gat gun and you pushed the barrel end into a spud to load it.In my day maybe we were not as technologically advanced as in your youth. We had only just moved on from 'throwing arrows' or doodlebugs as we called them.

Edited September 15, 2011 by Good shot?

[Thunderbird]

Look, it was like this:

 

Spud Gun - fired by cap, best of the lot and quite probably illegal nowadays

 

Spud-a-matic - had a cap but that was just for bang effect, the spus was fired by air pressure

 

Jet-a-matic - was ****.

[ack-ack]

I can remember buying one from a kid at school and running home to nick a potato to get cracking with. The old man saw it and confiscated it whilst giving me the lecture about never playing with guns. I never grasped the logic behind it, he had loads of guns.

[aldivalloch]

I had one that looked like Derringer; it was probably no more than three inches long. If I remember correctly the metal had a silver finish that started to flake off almost immediately, and the grips were of red plastic. It broke open at the breech to allow the rimmed "cartridge case", which was about the size of a 9mm shell, to be extracted. The case had a small hole drilled through where the primer would be in a real cartridge.

 

This "cartridge" had a chamfered mouth so that it could easily be shoved into the potato and wiggled so as to break off a "spud bullet".

 

All that remained to be done then was to slip it back into the gun, place a paper cap over the "primer hole", cock the hammer, aim at your mother/father/little sister/pal/dog/cat, squeeze the trigger and listen for the howl that followed the sharp crack of the report. And run like hell!

 

The spud bullet left the muzzle at a fair speed, and literally left its mark on the target. At close range it could break the skin, and I've no doubt that one in the eye could have caused permanent damage.

 

Sadly, my gun didn't last long. The combination of corrosive caps and potato juice put paid to the spring that operated the hammer, and it was consigned to the dustbin.

 

I've never seen one on sale again in the intervening forty-five years. Just as well, maybe!!

[the pelt man]

ahem , at the risk of showing my age , the earlier spud guns worked by using the paper roll of caps that came on a roll that was inside a small round box(these would leave bruises and cut skin) .

 

 

Thats the one that i remember Mel, Also you had a Rocket made of plastic with a metal head which you put the caps in then through the thing in the air. When it hit the hard floor the cap would go off with a bang

 

 

PELTY

[cant hit rabbits 123]

'From my research panel, it has been concluded that I could be in the **** for assisting with this project, so for that reason, I'm out'

[hamish64]

Evening chaps,

 

A friend of mine aproached me today, asking for a bit of, and i qoute him, 'expert advice' on an idea he had. He asked if I knew much about a spud gun from years back that fired things using paper caps. Aparantly it looked like a very small revolver that took a single cartridge, with a paper cap on one end and potato bit in the other. He showed me a picture of one he dragged of the internet.

 

Well he showed me a 'fag packet sketch' of his idea, which is in essance the same method, but in a different form. The best way to describe it is as looking like an old percussion revolver, with four cylinders and a single action hammer. The cylinders are bored through at the front enough to accommodate a small plastic pellet (about 6 mm he says) (accompanied the design, in his pocket), then smaller to the back (About 2-3mm he says). at the back of the cylinders are niples to accommodate more modern round plastic cased caps (also present in the pocket). He includes a smooth bored barrel and the cylinder must be manually turned and hammer cocked before each 'shot'. Anyway, you can grasp his general idea.

 

What he asked was, A would this work in regards to propelling the pellet out of the barrel? B is there a legal issues now, seen as something very similar was produced as a toy. I'm not sure on either. Mechanically, the design sounded pluasable, but I dont know the answer to either of his questions.

 

Any help?

 

PS, found the picture, Lone star spud gun, Circa 1960

 

http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=spud+gun+lone+star&view=detail&id=B6AB0034C27302F2C0169435725EE5AD8AE90AB5&first=0&FORM=IDFRIR

 

I think some of the AIRSOFT guns would do a similar job

[jacksdad]

Oh yes, I'm remembering now!

Those rolls of caps in carboard/paper were good, I remember blowing all my spends on them, I got 5 new p a week.

Then came the plastic rings that sat on pins inside the revolver, very loud. We also used to put roll of caps on the floor then whack it one with our dads' best hammers....deafening

Anyone put 2 bolts together on 1 nut, with some caps inbetween, pinch bolts together then sling it in the air, another loaud bang