really interesting to hear about the requirements for filming and the compromises that need to be made. Looking forwrd to seeing how you optimise things over time.
@@tods_workshop I do indeed, I get offered costumes to wear that are, well lets put in politely, not up to standard, Particularly armour that just doesn't even vaguely fit. I'm just super excited to know you have a real treb!
@@tods_workshop - Are you going to post the stats for the Trebuchet? ie height of pivot, ratio of counterweight to projectile weight, length of throwing arm, etc?
@@JayM409 I'm also interested in this. Depending on the height of the counterweight drop and the weight of the bowling ball, I suspect Tod's getting somewhere around 20-25% efficiency out of the trebuchet currently, which is really good for something that needed to be built that quickly and to meet the customer's requirements. I was expecting closer to 15% for something with those compromises and not yet tuned.
I love Todd's honesty when he does TV work. So many RUclipsrs do nothing but nitpick about Hollywood, but Todd explains that all these little cheats are really for good reasons.
Thanks and the bottom line is it is a job that has requirements that need to be met and of course like any job, we whinge about it, but actually I am enormously privileged to be able to do this and I think we all learn a lot more from honesty than from whinging. I could be an absolute purist and make something that is wholly historic, but it wouldn't meet the brief of the job, so what good would that be?
@@tods_workshop For a cheat that might look passably historic (or that can be hidden under cord) you should look into the steel strapping/banding that’s used in shipping, for banding some of your timbers. Full-sized coils are pricey, but at least some manufacturers offer mini/portable coils that should contain more than enough footage for your needs. The heavier-duty strapping can exceed 5,000 lbs. in maximum load.
Tbf, not all the little cheats are for good reasons. Some are just industry conventions and some are done for preconceived notions of how things *must* be shot in order to appear exiting.
@@tods_workshop Reminds me a bit of the Myth Busters, both did work on films and would always be proud of the little things that had to be done to get the project to work, or make safe, or be on time etc... But that is the way of the whole world, doing things perfect usually cant be done on time, or in budget. Its just easier to pick on films because they public, unlike a piece of accounting software... Speaking of Mythbusters I think they had a Trebuchet at some point, maybe you can use yours for some good networking...
@@tods_workshop Yes! I was going to ask exactly the same thing! Actually, if you could film a few different projectile trajectories (heavier/lighter ammo, longer/shorter/heavier/lighter sling) that would be pretty neat. Pretty please?
@@euansmith3699 Do you have stock in the GoPro company or something? Isn't it enough that the man has already shot one with a crossbow? Or do you just want to see GoPros get flattened? (I want to see a GoPro get flattened by a boulder, too.)
I'm surprised he killed that one. My 9 Black survived 3 crashes while mounted on RC planes, the third one coming almost straight down after elevator failure. All 3 happened in grassy fields that were cut with a lawn mower, so less padding than the longer grass in the video.
I see Tod putting the GoPro in the pumpkin. I think to myself... ok, but how is it attached? Surely it's not just push-fit, it would fall out right away. He'll probably put some extra wiring or rope or something to prevent that, right? ... right? ... ... WHYYYYYYY?????
@@Tennouseijin Yeah I was like, that just gonna fall out, and was wondering what he had done to try and make it more secure than what it looked... geuss that answer was nothing xD
The Science Museum's trebuchet was loaded and live for many years until it was pointed out that a kid could pull the pin and launch the rock through the glass ceiling!
@@lightwoven5326 "You guys have a trebuchet in the atrium. There's a rock in the sling, and, having just had a look, the bucket has its weight in it. This is exactly equivalent to having a cannon stored in the building with a powder charge and ball loaded with a lit match just sitting next to it."
@@magnusbergqvist2123 my Latin is a bit rusty, but I think you said "I have a trebuchet. The shaft is hefty and the stones in the sack are of maximum heft". I'm I close? Or shall I let someone else have a guess (no googling it!)
Hi Tod, I'm captain onboard a ship, started out on an old cargo ship that used block and tackle to move cargo. Looking at your wooden block and basing it of the size I would say it has a safe working load of around 5 tons. If you double them up you can then increase the load weight to between 7.5-10 tons.
@@andrewsuryali8540 Exactly: liability, untested medieval weapon and fire hazard don't go together too well. Especially since it sounds like they were on a particularly tight schedule.
Off field, a German accented voice is heard: "Maybe, if we add a rapid recharge winch and a cartridge loading system? Ho ho ho!" Nobody tell Jörg, or we are going to get WWIII...
Regarding light projectiles, they have an additional problem I discovered while slinging - for a good release, you need the forces acting on the sling itself to keep the thing more or less straight as it goes. Problem is, if your projectile is light, your startup speed lets the line slacken a bit and then catch up, jerking it around. When this happens with slings, it pretty much obliterates any semblance of accuracy you have - I suspect this may be what happened to your treb. This problem gets worse if you have a heavy sling pouch and light projectile, my scavenged-from-belt sling pouch and tennis ball setup is about at the edge of practicality, and since your treb had both heavy pouch and light projectile issues... What the reason for this is, I'm not 100 percent sure, but I suspect it's because the sling works best if the projectile is the clear majority force acting on the string as far as keeping it taut goes, and if the string is heavy enough to be able to not be overwhelmed by the projectile... The solution with slings is to increase your windup speed with lighter projectiles to where this isn't a problem, but something like a tennis ball is just about at the edge of where that is easy to do. A treb, on the other hand, isn't very good at going fast (especially from the start), it's good at going no matter how heavy the load. Another solution is heavier projectile, obviously. When I switch from tennis to baseball ball, the problem disappears - but slinging baseballs in the park is liable to murder someone's dog, so...
I had the same issue on some items. Sling wasn't fully extending due to not extending fully. For flaming ammo I use a rope or chain instead of the sling.
I find it amazing how something as impractical as a trebuchet, well for most "modern" people at least, can still be so damn fun :-) Also love the mace-head on the crank handle.
I think the attraction is simple actually. It is large, it is kinetic, it throws things, relatively big things, you can see the projectiles travel and all the workings are on display and obvious as to how they work and interrelate. Taken all together it has a whole list of properties that make it interesting
Put a bunch of buckets of water in a chest freezer, wait overnight, apply some warm water on the outside of the bucket if needed to detach the ice from the bucket, load and fire. Cheap and "reusable". Oh and add food colouring to increase visibility.
"I've got a trabuchet, and I'm gonna use it." that is the most logical and sane thing i have ever heard, and I now want a trabuchet so I too can use it
Keep these videos coming. This is like once in a lifetime opportunity and I love seeing everything about it. It is so hard to put in words the possibilities and things I would like to see.
I cannot believe the Age of Empires team didn't want the incendiary charges, that is the most badass medieval looking projectile yet! The visuals were amazing!
You can make a trebuchet in nearly any size, you know. Using popsicle sticks you can make a desktop model that will fling grapes, dice or small bean bags.
@@MonkeyJedi99 i meant to construct the trebuchet out of legos. That has been done using LEGO-technic elements. of course using LEGOS as ammo is always an option.
I'm really glad to see how you enjoy these experiments :) The burning projectile looks absolutely stunning, hard to believe no one added VFX to it :) I'm looking forward to next videos! By the way, I imagined a medieval engineer describing his built like "I wanted this part to be longer, but there was no such timber available, I also planned it to be a bit narrower, but this crazy duke said he wants to sling some wardrobes, cows and cauldrons, eh!" :D
"I have a trebuchet." Is a sentence i have longed to say, im so jealous of you and your mighty flinger. If you ever get it dialed in and want to test the destructiveness of it (say, against brick walls), might i suggest atlas stones as munitions? They are essentially massive bowling balls without the finger holes, used for StrongMan competitions, assuming your trebuchet can throw 100+ pound weights.
The word "Trebuchet" comes from the french: "Trés Bougie" which translates to: "very boujee". Even back then they recognized the swag in someone flaunting their trebuchet
I'm smiling from ear to ear! Tod, you've brought joy to my evening & I'm sure will bring joy to so many others following your Trebuchet journey. Fantastic stuff, keep up the great work :)
Idea for a Christmas special in times of Corona: Contactless present delivery by Trebuchet... maybe need to add little parachutes to the packages. Naughty children get incendiary charges.
So, I built a trebuchet for a physics class many years ago. Wasn't as big as this one, only about 6' tall. But I can confirm that trebuchets are exactly as much fun as they look.
You’re truly living the dream! We have a festival here called Pumpkin Chunkin where people from around the world gather their trebuchets, cannons, etc. in a field during the fall to gallantly fight back against pumpkin spice. Though this sometimes makes tv, film rarely captures the pure fun and enthusiasm of seeing the machines fire in person. In that regard, I think you’ve done a wonderful job at making us all want to play with a trebuchet.
Again a great video. I'm building model trebuchets for a couple of years now, but I never could explain and film it that perfect! All informations are so true. Great work Tod!!! The weight of the projectile and the sling material (low weight) is absolutely defining the performance of your trebuchet. I 3D printed a few trebuchets and even if the base components are almost 100% identical, the sling length, material and projectile is not. They must have had very good weight measuring tools in the medieval times to find equal projectiles to perform accurat hits again and again :) my full respect to the handcrafted technology back then. Looking forward to the next trebuchet videos :)
Hi! Great as always! On the framing part you said that you think they would have reenfored the joinery with steel work. Maybe but not sure. From my expérience as a timber framer doing some expérimental archéologie I would say no. I have done and use a few wooden winch, crane, weel crane, pulley ... wood is quite thaught. For example we were able to put more then 1T of loard on a 1" wooden axes on a pulley with out breaking (sadly I stop working a that place so we didn't try more). I think if the joinery is well made with the right joint at the right place no metal reinforcment are needed. I think a wooden axe would work to but that is somthing to experiment with !
Ancient machines have such a beautiful and clever design, I love them. Those slow motion takes from the shooting are really good to see how it all behaves when you shoot, and that gives a clear image to understand how the weapon works. The movement of the weight, the rotation of the arm, the acceleration on the projectile... When you see it in those slow takes, it all comes together and makes sense. It may not be a perfect replica, but the concepts are there, and they are brilliant. You usually say that "they had the same brains" to imply they would do things that we can achieve with their technology and knowledge, but this case is the reverse. Seeing how the trebuchet works makes so much sense that we can understand why they did it that way.
Whoo Hoo! Tod has a Trebuchet! When I was about 14 or 15 we made a catapult out of 2x4 and 4x4, twisted rope design, it would throw a 5Kg stone a long way. We put an old big steel pot on it for the projectiles and we took a couple of the roundish rocks and wrapped them in denim then soaked them in diesel, lit them on fire at night, and launched them! The visual was spectacular but the most epic thing was the sound, the ROAR of that flaming rock going through the air was NOT to be forgotten. Cheers from Tokyo!
Tod: It's all about the film, nobody cares about me. Also Tod: *Receives the trebuchet for free, after being paid to make it* It's great when people who don't care about you, still manage to accidentally make you super happy.
To be fair, they were probably like, "How much will it cost us to move / dispose of this?" Logistics both sucks and can be awesome. Same reason you can get great deals at government auctions. You have to physically pick stuff up because they won't ship it.
@@arthurmoore9488 yeah, there are situations when it is cheaper to sell something for pennies, or gift it away, than it is to (legally) dispose of it. I know this can happen with cars in some countries.
Congratulations Tod! i never thought the day would come that you could experiment with something of this calibre! 8:45 I do like the brass knob on the end of that lever.
4:05 the beam is spit, you can see it on the side, you should replace it because it will break and maybe you'll get hurt! You must prevent, then cure! LOL Nice machine and well built.Thank you for the video!
Thank you Tod for allowing us all to be a kid again and letting us watch you have fun with your trebuchet and launching stuff. In our world today the control freak "it's dangerous, scary, and isn't safe so it can't be allowed" crowd has seriously denied the enjoyment of life and made being an adult even more sucky. Well you're safe, go and enjoy launching objects, have fun, and film it for us all to see and live vicariously through you and your trebuchet launching shenanigans.
Did I hear that right... The people in charge of the advertising for Age of Empires using a trebuchet, didn't want flaming projectiles? What on earth were they thinking? Even the sound of the flaming projectile was incredible! (And I think they should have sent an audio recorder to sample it for the in-game trebuchet sound effect)
It might have been a time of day or safety thing. If it's not dark enough, then it would not look good, and they didn't have the time to wait around. Alternately, maybe they were missing a permit, or the safety person wanted firefighters on hand or the insurance company wouldn't allow it. There are many things that are easy and we want to do that people who don't know what they're talking about stop us from doing.
brilliant! I also enjoy your insight into production targets and working with production deadlines and targets. you certainly deserve a gopro sponsorship.
That looked like a lot of work in the making, but your emotions are almost physically tangible. Thank you for sharing both the product of so much effort and your joy.
I like AoE 4, I like Trebuchets, I like Tod. I'm pretty happy when all my interests align like this. Its also great to see more footage of this thing firing, explanations of the reasoning, just more of everything. Trebuchets were a big unknown to me before, seeing it operate helps me work out what is going on a lot. I also don't know why they didn't use the incendiary charges, they're incredibly photogenic as they launch. They really missed something there.
Did those birds actually realise that pumpkin was going to land right in the middle of them? They seemed to have quite accurately predicted its trajectory!
I'm kind of shocked the GoPro broke. They've been dropped out of airplanes and survived the fall. Maybe give a GoPro a parachute and launch it? On a different note, can a trebuchet throw a giant dart? Since there are darts that are thrown with what's essentially a sling it seems like it should be possible.
@@tods_workshop Medieval cluster bomb or single warhead, either way that should be interesting. Seems like the sling might need a bit of tuning. From the documentation I've read there seems to be a bit of fiddling involved with the sling length depending on the rotational axis, the projectile weight, and the weight used to propel the projectile. I'm interested to see how that is optimized. The only references I have on this computer are: Donald B. Siano 2001 Trebuchet Mechanics WinTrebStarXP Trebuchet calculator I used to have some excellent scans of transparency overheads that were much better, but that was many computers ago.
@@earthknight60 The release angle is kind of tricky to control. Do you know if they ever used a release cord to control the exact release angle? It was the first thought I got when I saw the first throw. If there wasn't for the sling I'd say a release cord for the payload would be the way to go, but with the payload swinging at the end of a long rope sling I'm not sure it would work very well.
"The longer your stick is, the harder it is to wave around" ... er, are you speaking from experience, Todd?! :P sorry how you managed to say that without buckling I don't know, sir hehe :P
I had no idea I wanted this content before I saw it but now that I've seen it I can't imagine living without it. Thank you for bringing a smile to my face Tod!
Absolutely fantastic and I can't believe you built that monster in 2 weeks no less! Love the explanation for all your design decisions and the new modifications. Good luck with dialing this baby in!
I've been giggling like a madman since I saw those incendiaries in the intro. Fantastic! I can't wait to see the "proper" incendiaries. And whatever else you've got planned!
If you form a slight upturn to the tip of the release hook you can then have a loop fastened to the subframe that can again hook over the end when the mechanism is in the cocked position and act as a "safety" until you are ready to fire?
Yes! Tod falls to the lure of the MACHINE ! Strong the dark side is.... Been there - huge fun! With consistant projectiles they can be surprisingly accurate - spent some time lobbing black latex water filled balloons through an arrowslit at Castle Rising many years back. A chap leaning against the other side of the crosswall inside said he could feel the impact through the crosswall, and hear a deep "Boom" each time. He was a guest at a wedding party who no-one had told us would be there - fortunately on the other side of the crosswall so no one got soaked.
Looking at the cross joint in the bottom as a classical carpenter, I predict the wood will split there; always leave at least half the wood intact in a joint. Regarding the net, the two I have been part of, has had the sling made from leather.
Tod, I found myself charmed and swept along by your infectious enthusiasm and the pleasure you took in beginning to sort this trebuchet out. While I wait for your next treb vid I shall revisit Tom Stanton's coverage of his own treb journey, as it offers an engineer's perspective on the loads and forces involved. Thanks for keeping us all entertained!
This is proper content for a Friday night, I'm grinning ear to ear from having watched this and Tod's infectious enthusiasm. It would be a criminal oversight it there wasn't a trebuchet themed t-shirt in time for Xmas.
Tod, you are just a magician! I am always baffled by your knowledge, passion, craftmanship and dedication to detail. Keep going! Your work is just amazing!
Yeah... So now I want a 1:1 version too 😅. (Still have the small model I made in the past) Have fun Tod! Great stuff! Really looking forward to future videos!
Good guy Todd; understands that even if it isn’t period correct we still have to see the incendiary round. I’m very happy for you T.T. You deserve nice things like trebuchets.
Truly every man's dream to have such a magnificent piece of siege engineering! I've got to say thanks to the guys that let you keep that beast, the world is a better place for it. What a tragedy it would have been letting it rot in a prop warehouse somewhere or being disassembled for the lumber. I hope you'll film your making of the modifications and projectiles. Can't wait to see more!
Its cool how the weight accelerates the arm, then decelerates it as it reaches the bottom. I would love to see a wider shot of the flaming projectile to see the full arc.
Find someone that looks at you, like Tod looks at his Trebuchet.
amen
I was thinking the same thing.
I have my trebuchet and I love it.
And then wave your stick atom
FOR REAL
really interesting to hear about the requirements for filming and the compromises that need to be made. Looking forwrd to seeing how you optimise things over time.
Thanks Jason and you must know the deal - making it work for the production is paramount and then everything else follows
@@tods_workshop I do indeed, I get offered costumes to wear that are, well lets put in politely, not up to standard, Particularly armour that just doesn't even vaguely fit. I'm just super excited to know you have a real treb!
@@tods_workshop BYZANTINE FIRE GRENADES!!!!!!!!!!!
@@tods_workshop - Are you going to post the stats for the Trebuchet? ie height of pivot, ratio of counterweight to projectile weight, length of throwing arm, etc?
@@JayM409 I'm also interested in this. Depending on the height of the counterweight drop and the weight of the bowling ball, I suspect Tod's getting somewhere around 20-25% efficiency out of the trebuchet currently, which is really good for something that needed to be built that quickly and to meet the customer's requirements. I was expecting closer to 15% for something with those compromises and not yet tuned.
The sound the incendiary makes when it is launched is amazing
Yes that was rather pleasing
100% that sound is bad ass
There is genuinely nobody I would rather have a trebuchet, this is so cool:)
I love tod best channel on RUclips by far.. but I'd rather have a trebuchet then him
The only person I would rather have a trebuchet would be myself! Lol
I've got to scale mine up to the size he has
@@SamlSchulze1104 I'm on my way. Just launched some fantastic fireballs. I'll join them soon
Maybe could be interesting to see what Jorg sprave could do with a trebuchet, but yeah Todd certainly appreciate its beauty more though
I love Todd's honesty when he does TV work. So many RUclipsrs do nothing but nitpick about Hollywood, but Todd explains that all these little cheats are really for good reasons.
Thanks and the bottom line is it is a job that has requirements that need to be met and of course like any job, we whinge about it, but actually I am enormously privileged to be able to do this and I think we all learn a lot more from honesty than from whinging. I could be an absolute purist and make something that is wholly historic, but it wouldn't meet the brief of the job, so what good would that be?
@@tods_workshop For a cheat that might look passably historic (or that can be hidden under cord) you should look into the steel strapping/banding that’s used in shipping, for banding some of your timbers. Full-sized coils are pricey, but at least some manufacturers offer mini/portable coils that should contain more than enough footage for your needs. The heavier-duty strapping can exceed 5,000 lbs. in maximum load.
Tbf, not all the little cheats are for good reasons. Some are just industry conventions and some are done for preconceived notions of how things *must* be shot in order to appear exiting.
@@tods_workshop Reminds me a bit of the Myth Busters, both did work on films and would always be proud of the little things that had to be done to get the project to work, or make safe, or be on time etc... But that is the way of the whole world, doing things perfect usually cant be done on time, or in budget. Its just easier to pick on films because they public, unlike a piece of accounting software...
Speaking of Mythbusters I think they had a Trebuchet at some point, maybe you can use yours for some good networking...
I just love the noise of the fire ball leaving
Can you please refilm Incendiary with wider lens? To fit entire trajectory in frame. It should nicely show how projectile fly.
Yes will do - still trying to get used to filming it
@@tods_workshop Yes! I was going to ask exactly the same thing!
Actually, if you could film a few different projectile trajectories (heavier/lighter ammo, longer/shorter/heavier/lighter sling) that would be pretty neat. Pretty please?
@@tods_workshop A shot from the receiving end would be really cool too. 👍
@@euansmith3699 Do you have stock in the GoPro company or something? Isn't it enough that the man has already shot one with a crossbow? Or do you just want to see GoPros get flattened?
(I want to see a GoPro get flattened by a boulder, too.)
@@ShadowDragon8685 Gotta see a hit from every ammo type! :D
I was sure about it! Tod is destoying GoPros on purpose. And now he's got a trebuchet to do it
I'm surprised he killed that one.
My 9 Black survived 3 crashes while mounted on RC planes, the third one coming almost straight down after elevator failure.
All 3 happened in grassy fields that were cut with a lawn mower, so less padding than the longer grass in the video.
I see Tod putting the GoPro in the pumpkin.
I think to myself... ok, but how is it attached? Surely it's not just push-fit, it would fall out right away. He'll probably put some extra wiring or rope or something to prevent that, right? ... right?
...
... WHYYYYYYY?????
@@Tennouseijin I wondered the same thing myself !
@@Tennouseijin Yeah I was like, that just gonna fall out, and was wondering what he had done to try and make it more secure than what it looked... geuss that answer was nothing xD
Kinda sad we couldn't see the footagr
The Science Museum's trebuchet was loaded and live for many years until it was pointed out that a kid could pull the pin and launch the rock through the glass ceiling!
pointed out or found out?
@@Hirosjimma pointed out by a professional. Found out would have been messy 🤕
@@lightwoven5326 aww that's a shame.. found out would've been funny as shit and made the papers
@@lightwoven5326 "You guys have a trebuchet in the atrium. There's a rock in the sling, and, having just had a look, the bucket has its weight in it. This is exactly equivalent to having a cannon stored in the building with a powder charge and ball loaded with a lit match just sitting next to it."
Your saying that like it’s a bad thing .
There is nothing more adorable than Tod being giddy about his Trebuchet
"Now I have a trebuchet... Ho, Ho Ho!"
- Die Hard, Medieval Edition
Damn you! I thought the same thing, and posted it before reading the comments.
It's like you have a time machine and want to make me look foolish!
;-P
90 KG OVER 300 METERS
Yip ye kiy aye..... Period authentic catchphrase 😁
Catapultam habeo. Da mihi omnem pecuniam tuam, aut magnam saxum mittam in te. ;)
@@magnusbergqvist2123 my Latin is a bit rusty, but I think you said "I have a trebuchet. The shaft is hefty and the stones in the sack are of maximum heft".
I'm I close? Or shall I let someone else have a guess (no googling it!)
Hi Tod, I'm captain onboard a ship, started out on an old cargo ship that used block and tackle to move cargo. Looking at your wooden block and basing it of the size I would say it has a safe working load of around 5 tons. If you double them up you can then increase the load weight to between 7.5-10 tons.
Thanks
@@tods_workshop also: if you test them to 5 tons and they do not bend or break you can be certain to use them at 2.5...
No clue why they never used the incendiaries it looks so cinematic!
Insurance, most likely.
they launched a pillow and a teddy. Not sure whose idea it was
I am not sure why either - it was lined up with appropriate fire cover and insurance
@@andrewsuryali8540 Exactly: liability, untested medieval weapon and fire hazard don't go together too well. Especially since it sounds like they were on a particularly tight schedule.
Historically accurate or not, **somebody** in the VFX department clearly did a splendid job.
I love the excitement in his face. It is truly contagious.
"I've got a trebuchet. And I am gonna use it."
When a British person says those words, you know things are gonna get interesting.
Look out! He's got a trebuchet, and he's not afraid to use it!
If he were French I'd be worried that he's about to start a chain of events that will end with Mongolia conquering southern China again.
Off field, a German accented voice is heard:
"Maybe, if we add a rapid recharge winch and a cartridge loading system? Ho ho ho!"
Nobody tell Jörg, or we are going to get WWIII...
@@dlevi67
Trebuchet 2.0, Let Me Show You Its Features!
@@RagnarLodbrok1 nj
Regarding light projectiles, they have an additional problem I discovered while slinging - for a good release, you need the forces acting on the sling itself to keep the thing more or less straight as it goes. Problem is, if your projectile is light, your startup speed lets the line slacken a bit and then catch up, jerking it around. When this happens with slings, it pretty much obliterates any semblance of accuracy you have - I suspect this may be what happened to your treb.
This problem gets worse if you have a heavy sling pouch and light projectile, my scavenged-from-belt sling pouch and tennis ball setup is about at the edge of practicality, and since your treb had both heavy pouch and light projectile issues... What the reason for this is, I'm not 100 percent sure, but I suspect it's because the sling works best if the projectile is the clear majority force acting on the string as far as keeping it taut goes, and if the string is heavy enough to be able to not be overwhelmed by the projectile...
The solution with slings is to increase your windup speed with lighter projectiles to where this isn't a problem, but something like a tennis ball is just about at the edge of where that is easy to do. A treb, on the other hand, isn't very good at going fast (especially from the start), it's good at going no matter how heavy the load.
Another solution is heavier projectile, obviously. When I switch from tennis to baseball ball, the problem disappears - but slinging baseballs in the park is liable to murder someone's dog, so...
Thanks Martin
Well that's interesting to know!
It's a shame you don't have access to somewhere you don't have to worry about collateral damage!
I had the same issue on some items. Sling wasn't fully extending due to not extending fully. For flaming ammo I use a rope or chain instead of the sling.
@@tods_workshop BYZANTINE FIRE GRENADES!!!!!!!!!!!
I think the someone presents more of a target area than the dog.
Would need to experiment to confirm. 🤔
I find it amazing how something as impractical as a trebuchet, well for most "modern" people at least, can still be so damn fun :-)
Also love the mace-head on the crank handle.
Crank handle or ratchet lock?
@@andrewsuryali8540 I'll be back with an answer once I've had more than 3 hours of sleep in the last 36 hours...
Maybe it is precisely because it's not 100% sure everything will go the way we want :)
I think the attraction is simple actually. It is large, it is kinetic, it throws things, relatively big things, you can see the projectiles travel and all the workings are on display and obvious as to how they work and interrelate. Taken all together it has a whole list of properties that make it interesting
@@tods_workshop Fair enough :-)
It's wonderful seeing you so happy
Really brightens my mood
Thank you so much 😀
it must be real hard not to smile while watching Tod having so much fun. I know I can't help but smile while watching his films!
Thanks and I will try and keep you smiling
Doesn't matter that the incendiary wasnt period correct, looked incredible! Can't wait for the next installment.
Thanks
Aye, I'd love to see incendiary shots later in the evening, against a darker background.
@@tods_workshop It was really, _really_ freaking cool!
Never mind how it looked, the SOUND was amazing!
Yeah even imagining that small one landing on straw roof inside a castle is terrifying.
Put a bunch of buckets of water in a chest freezer, wait overnight, apply some warm water on the outside of the bucket if needed to detach the ice from the bucket, load and fire. Cheap and "reusable". Oh and add food colouring to increase visibility.
"The longer your stick is, the harder it is to wave about" said wth completely straight face,
that slayed me faster than one of your swords would xD
And said as deadpan as Matt Easton.
Well, when you are Tod, waving a big stick around isn't a joking matter, it is a burden you live with every single day
Somewhere out there, Matt Easton has shed a manly tear of pride.
"I've got a trabuchet, and I'm gonna use it."
that is the most logical and sane thing i have ever heard, and I now want a trabuchet so I too can use it
Keep these videos coming. This is like once in a lifetime opportunity and I love seeing everything about it. It is so hard to put in words the possibilities and things I would like to see.
Thanks and I will do what I can
I cannot believe the Age of Empires team didn't want the incendiary charges, that is the most badass medieval looking projectile yet! The visuals were amazing!
Tod: So... I have a trebuchet.
Me with my gun, bow, and sword collection: 🥺🥺🥺🥺
My girlfriend: Absolutely not.
You can make a trebuchet in nearly any size, you know. Using popsicle sticks you can make a desktop model that will fling grapes, dice or small bean bags.
@@MonkeyJedi99 LEGOs also work.
@@ulrichkalber9039 Indeed! making it a weapon which can inflict damage twice!
(The second being when it is stepped on)
@@MonkeyJedi99 i meant to construct the trebuchet out of legos.
That has been done using LEGO-technic elements.
of course using LEGOS as ammo is always an option.
@@ulrichkalber9039 Oh shit, now I want I a desktop trebuchet for shooting people to me with complains.
This is probably the coolest thing I've seen so far from your workshop Tod !!!
That sound the incendiary projectiles made when they were being accelerated was awesome.
I'm really glad to see how you enjoy these experiments :) The burning projectile looks absolutely stunning, hard to believe no one added VFX to it :) I'm looking forward to next videos!
By the way, I imagined a medieval engineer describing his built like "I wanted this part to be longer, but there was no such timber available, I also planned it to be a bit narrower, but this crazy duke said he wants to sling some wardrobes, cows and cauldrons, eh!" :D
This is basically the plot of the second part of Don Quixote: where high nobility are vastly sillier than he was at massive expense
"I have a trebuchet."
Is a sentence i have longed to say, im so jealous of you and your mighty flinger.
If you ever get it dialed in and want to test the destructiveness of it (say, against brick walls), might i suggest atlas stones as munitions? They are essentially massive bowling balls without the finger holes, used for StrongMan competitions, assuming your trebuchet can throw 100+ pound weights.
It was really designed for 5-10kg weights I am afraid
@@tods_workshop oh, cool.
So a frozen turkey would work?
@@DH-xw6jp That your mind went to frozen turkeys is funny and disturbing.
@@MonkeyJedi99 i realize it isnt a plague cow or anything fun, but lets give that ol' bird one more flight.
@@DH-xw6jp Now I have the phrase "a spherical cow in a vacuum" back in my head.
It's a reference to physics problems.
that smoke trail from the incendiary must be great for fine tuning the release angle
I saw it and thought exactly the same
I really want to see you make a little shack or a cinderblock wall and just pummel it to bits. Great video btw!
The word "Trebuchet" comes from the french: "Trés Bougie" which translates to: "very boujee". Even back then they recognized the swag in someone flaunting their trebuchet
The sound of that fire charge...
Yes - that was unexpected and very cool
I'm smiling from ear to ear! Tod, you've brought joy to my evening & I'm sure will bring joy to so many others following your Trebuchet journey. Fantastic stuff, keep up the great work :)
"I've got a trebuchet!" should be the new slogan for this channel.
I need a T-shirt with that slogan and a trebuchet with a projectiles smoke trail 😁
Idea for a Christmas special in times of Corona: Contactless present delivery by Trebuchet... maybe need to add little parachutes to the packages. Naughty children get incendiary charges.
So, I built a trebuchet for a physics class many years ago. Wasn't as big as this one, only about 6' tall. But I can confirm that trebuchets are exactly as much fun as they look.
You’re truly living the dream! We have a festival here called Pumpkin Chunkin where people from around the world gather their trebuchets, cannons, etc. in a field during the fall to gallantly fight back against pumpkin spice. Though this sometimes makes tv, film rarely captures the pure fun and enthusiasm of seeing the machines fire in person. In that regard, I think you’ve done a wonderful job at making us all want to play with a trebuchet.
Thanks - that's appreciated
You have exactly that kind of smile in your face Joerg Sprave has when he comes up with a new toy.
oh, and features it has!
Again a great video. I'm building model trebuchets for a couple of years now, but I never could explain and film it that perfect! All informations are so true. Great work Tod!!! The weight of the projectile and the sling material (low weight) is absolutely defining the performance of your trebuchet. I 3D printed a few trebuchets and even if the base components are almost 100% identical, the sling length, material and projectile is not. They must have had very good weight measuring tools in the medieval times to find equal projectiles to perform accurat hits again and again :) my full respect to the handcrafted technology back then. Looking forward to the next trebuchet videos :)
"the longer your stick is, the harder it is to wave about"
It's rubbing off more and more with the recent collabs :)
Hi!
Great as always! On the framing part you said that you think they would have reenfored the joinery with steel work. Maybe but not sure. From my expérience as a timber framer doing some expérimental archéologie I would say no. I have done and use a few wooden winch, crane, weel crane, pulley ... wood is quite thaught. For example we were able to put more then 1T of loard on a 1" wooden axes on a pulley with out breaking (sadly I stop working a that place so we didn't try more). I think if the joinery is well made with the right joint at the right place no metal reinforcment are needed. I think a wooden axe would work to but that is somthing to experiment with !
From watching these I can only conclude that the secret of happiness and the meaning of life is owning a trebuchet
Ancient machines have such a beautiful and clever design, I love them.
Those slow motion takes from the shooting are really good to see how it all behaves when you shoot, and that gives a clear image to understand how the weapon works. The movement of the weight, the rotation of the arm, the acceleration on the projectile... When you see it in those slow takes, it all comes together and makes sense. It may not be a perfect replica, but the concepts are there, and they are brilliant.
You usually say that "they had the same brains" to imply they would do things that we can achieve with their technology and knowledge, but this case is the reverse. Seeing how the trebuchet works makes so much sense that we can understand why they did it that way.
Very cool!
I want a trebuchet now.
One request: for the follow-up can you please have one camera far enough away to view the entire projectile arc?
Yes I will - still getting used to my new toy and how to film it. Which is surprisingly hard, but I will try a different camera set up next time
Whoo Hoo! Tod has a Trebuchet!
When I was about 14 or 15 we made a catapult out of 2x4 and 4x4, twisted rope design, it would throw a 5Kg stone a long way.
We put an old big steel pot on it for the projectiles and we took a couple of the roundish rocks and wrapped them in denim then soaked them in diesel, lit them on fire at night, and launched them!
The visual was spectacular but the most epic thing was the sound, the ROAR of that flaming rock going through the air was NOT to be forgotten.
Cheers from Tokyo!
Tod: It's all about the film, nobody cares about me.
Also Tod: *Receives the trebuchet for free, after being paid to make it*
It's great when people who don't care about you, still manage to accidentally make you super happy.
To be fair, they were probably like, "How much will it cost us to move / dispose of this?" Logistics both sucks and can be awesome.
Same reason you can get great deals at government auctions. You have to physically pick stuff up because they won't ship it.
@@arthurmoore9488 yeah, there are situations when it is cheaper to sell something for pennies, or gift it away, than it is to (legally) dispose of it. I know this can happen with cars in some countries.
Congratulations Tod! i never thought the day would come that you could experiment with something of this calibre!
8:45 I do like the brass knob on the end of that lever.
4:05 the beam is spit, you can see it on the side, you should replace it because it will break and maybe you'll get hurt!
You must prevent, then cure! LOL
Nice machine and well built.Thank you for the video!
The sound the trigger pull makes is very satisfying. Also, loved the woosh the flaming projective made. Didn't expect it.
So we're going to see medieval myth busting: Armor vs Trebuchet? I mean it only seems logical..
The armour might survive. The one wearing it... unlikely.
@@StergiosMekras against a pumpkin I think they would. against a bowling ball absolutely not
How is this even a myth?
@@Kanner111 I know right? Obviously the trebuchet doesn't stand a chance.
@@Kanner111 because its unmarried and so not a mythith. 🤔😁.
With this series, Tod clinches the title of "World's Coolest Neighbor." Some guys have all the fun!
He would be the perfect neighbor for us. Wished he was nextdoor lol
Thank you Tod for allowing us all to be a kid again and letting us watch you have fun with your trebuchet and launching stuff. In our world today the control freak "it's dangerous, scary, and isn't safe so it can't be allowed" crowd has seriously denied the enjoyment of life and made being an adult even more sucky. Well you're safe, go and enjoy launching objects, have fun, and film it for us all to see and live vicariously through you and your trebuchet launching shenanigans.
A pleasure and as I have a long background in SFX, making stuff look scary that is safe is part of the service
To load a light projectile, just fix a variable/ removable dead weight to the long end of the arm, where the sling hangs from.
Amazing machine!!
Did I hear that right... The people in charge of the advertising for Age of Empires using a trebuchet, didn't want flaming projectiles?
What on earth were they thinking?
Even the sound of the flaming projectile was incredible! (And I think they should have sent an audio recorder to sample it for the in-game trebuchet sound effect)
20 gallons of flaming oil on them: ok try flaming white phosphorus, ya. A. Thats worken
It might have been a time of day or safety thing. If it's not dark enough, then it would not look good, and they didn't have the time to wait around. Alternately, maybe they were missing a permit, or the safety person wanted firefighters on hand or the insurance company wouldn't allow it.
There are many things that are easy and we want to do that people who don't know what they're talking about stop us from doing.
They forgot to research Chemistry
brilliant! I also enjoy your insight into production targets and working with production deadlines and targets. you certainly deserve a gopro sponsorship.
Tod Cutler trebuchet's now available to order. The ideal home defence weapon.
That looked like a lot of work in the making, but your emotions are almost physically tangible. Thank you for sharing both the product of so much effort and your joy.
I can't get over Todd's huge 5 year-old grin, as he has the trebuchet to play with
..Tod, you utter madman..more of this pls..jousting or a variation of?..your enjoyment is infectious..
There's nothing more wholesome than a man and his trebuchet
I like AoE 4, I like Trebuchets, I like Tod. I'm pretty happy when all my interests align like this. Its also great to see more footage of this thing firing, explanations of the reasoning, just more of everything. Trebuchets were a big unknown to me before, seeing it operate helps me work out what is going on a lot. I also don't know why they didn't use the incendiary charges, they're incredibly photogenic as they launch. They really missed something there.
Did those birds actually realise that pumpkin was going to land right in the middle of them? They seemed to have quite accurately predicted its trajectory!
Loved the "burning" shot, all the smoke was great! Also your sheer enthusiasm was awesome!
My first thought was how is that GoPro going to stay in that pumpkin.
I didn't expect it to spin quite so much
That sound at 11:59 !! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
Good job, Tod. Enjoy 'the toy' as anyone of us would too aswell 😁
I'm kind of shocked the GoPro broke. They've been dropped out of airplanes and survived the fall. Maybe give a GoPro a parachute and launch it?
On a different note, can a trebuchet throw a giant dart? Since there are darts that are thrown with what's essentially a sling it seems like it should be possible.
I think he said he was going to try throwing bundles of the plumbata (those war dart things) in his first trebuchet video.
GoPro - bad luck and a rock I guess. Darts - apparently they did, so I guess I shall have a go too....
@@tods_workshop Medieval cluster bomb or single warhead, either way that should be interesting.
Seems like the sling might need a bit of tuning. From the documentation I've read there seems to be a bit of fiddling involved with the sling length depending on the rotational axis, the projectile weight, and the weight used to propel the projectile. I'm interested to see how that is optimized.
The only references I have on this computer are:
Donald B. Siano 2001 Trebuchet Mechanics
WinTrebStarXP Trebuchet calculator
I used to have some excellent scans of transparency overheads that were much better, but that was many computers ago.
@@earthknight60 The release angle is kind of tricky to control. Do you know if they ever used a release cord to control the exact release angle? It was the first thought I got when I saw the first throw. If there wasn't for the sling I'd say a release cord for the payload would be the way to go, but with the payload swinging at the end of a long rope sling I'm not sure it would work very well.
Those todcutler mace heads on the ends of the winch handles is a really really cool touch, love it!
AoE 4 now needs a heroic trebuchet unit, the Tod's chucker. Has extra range and damage, but can damage your camera/computer screen
and if it does the game would display a crack in the center of the screen for the remainder of the game.
still grinning like a little kid. Its so awesome to see that excitement :)
Thank you Tod for investigating the methodology for securing a GoPro in a Pumpkin. I will let NASA know for their next Mars mission. :D
"Is there life on Mars?" "Yes; we are now certain that there is a pumpkin lying on the opposite side of Olympus Mons"...
Loved this video, absolutely loved it, especially the 'exited basket'! Can't wail for the next instalment!
Glad you enjoyed it!
So bloomin satisfying to watch!
The sound alone of the incendiary being launched gives me chills. I love it. Great job and I look forward to more.
"The longer your stick is, the harder it is to wave around"
... er, are you speaking from experience, Todd?! :P
sorry how you managed to say that without buckling I don't know, sir hehe :P
The sound the flaming shot makes right as it's making its upward acceleration is enchanting.
Now you just need to get a proper target like a old car.
I have a plan....
@@tods_workshop Can't wait to see keep up the good work.
I had no idea I wanted this content before I saw it but now that I've seen it I can't imagine living without it. Thank you for bringing a smile to my face Tod!
Blimey! - Thanks Jack. Appreciated
Consider buying second hand GoPros on eBay if that sponsorship doesn’t happen
Absolutely fantastic and I can't believe you built that monster in 2 weeks no less! Love the explanation for all your design decisions and the new modifications. Good luck with dialing this baby in!
Thanks
Plague ridden horse corpse > pumpkin, just saying...
This is awesome!
Looking forward to LOTS of things being thrown.
thumbs up
Paul
so where are the "I HAVE A TREBUCHET"-tshirts? i want to throw my money at you! (preferably with a trebuchet)
(also: attach the gopro to a wire, pull that wire through the pumpkin and fixate it on the other side.)
T shirts will be coming and yes I worked that out after...
This was awesome!! Love your content Tod!
This may be my new favorite video of yours!
I actually don't even skip the ads to support todd
I've been giggling like a madman since I saw those incendiaries in the intro.
Fantastic! I can't wait to see the "proper" incendiaries. And whatever else you've got planned!
They had incendiary devices!? Didn’t use them? Are they mad?
quite
If you form a slight upturn to the tip of the release hook you can then have a loop fastened to the subframe that can again hook over the end when the mechanism is in the cocked position and act as a "safety" until you are ready to fire?
Yes! Tod falls to the lure of the MACHINE ! Strong the dark side is.... Been there - huge fun!
With consistant projectiles they can be surprisingly accurate - spent some time lobbing black latex water filled balloons through an arrowslit at Castle Rising many years back. A chap leaning against the other side of the crosswall inside said he could feel the impact through the crosswall, and hear a deep "Boom" each time. He was a guest at a wedding party who no-one had told us would be there - fortunately on the other side of the crosswall so no one got soaked.
Looking at the cross joint in the bottom as a classical carpenter, I predict the wood will split there; always leave at least half the wood intact in a joint.
Regarding the net, the two I have been part of, has had the sling made from leather.
Tod, I found myself charmed and swept along by your infectious enthusiasm and the pleasure you took in beginning to sort this trebuchet out.
While I wait for your next treb vid I shall revisit Tom Stanton's coverage of his own treb journey, as it offers an engineer's perspective on the loads and forces involved.
Thanks for keeping us all entertained!
This is proper content for a Friday night, I'm grinning ear to ear from having watched this and Tod's infectious enthusiasm. It would be a criminal oversight it there wasn't a trebuchet themed t-shirt in time for Xmas.
Tod, you are just a magician! I am always baffled by your knowledge, passion, craftmanship and dedication to detail.
Keep going! Your work is just amazing!
Wow, thanks! That is really appreciate and I just like making things
The incendiary was interesting as smoke trail showed it's actual arc through the launch( cool sound too )😁
Yeah... So now I want a 1:1 version too 😅. (Still have the small model I made in the past) Have fun Tod! Great stuff! Really looking forward to future videos!
Good guy Todd; understands that even if it isn’t period correct we still have to see the incendiary round. I’m very happy for you T.T. You deserve nice things like trebuchets.
Truly every man's dream to have such a magnificent piece of siege engineering! I've got to say thanks to the guys that let you keep that beast, the world is a better place for it. What a tragedy it would have been letting it rot in a prop warehouse somewhere or being disassembled for the lumber. I hope you'll film your making of the modifications and projectiles. Can't wait to see more!
Its cool how the weight accelerates the arm, then decelerates it as it reaches the bottom. I would love to see a wider shot of the flaming projectile to see the full arc.
Absolutely brilliant. Can't wait to see what's next. Thanks for the great content.
This really brings me back to the trebuchets my brother and I used to build out of Lego as children. Can't wait to see more from this one!