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How do you build a potato cannon?
November 13, 2009
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You asked:
How do you build a potato launcher? — Pamela, Kodak, Tenn.
Marshall Brain answered:
The basic idea behind a potato cannon is simple. You have a piece of PVC pipe that acts as the barrel of the cannon. You have a screw-on cap at the end of the pipe that you can open to spray in fuel (usually hairspray). And you have a spark-producer of some kind – often a piezoelectric lighter from a grill or something similar. Put it all together and you have this:
Here’s a nice explanation of the construction and firing of a potato cannon:
