Mini Floating Arm Trebuchet Kit

I have built plastic scale models for several decades and have a measure of experience with wood working. This is my first project of this type. I found this wooden kit to be well-designed, the parts are cleanly cut out, and the fit of parts to be outstanding. No glue is needed though I prefer using it. The instruction sheet is quite good and well illustrated with photographs. Follow the instruction sheet as printed, no skipping ahead. Parts are located on four pieces of plywood, carefully and accurately cut out, with very small wooden tabs holding them in place. The Instructions recommend using scissors to remove the parts, but I found it helpful to use a fine-tooth Xacto saw to cut away the plywood parts. Then smooth them using a sanding block with fine sandpaper. A flexible, fine-grit foam sanding pad is helpful in reaching inside curves. The "fuzzies" are few and easy to sand smooth. Construction moves along quickly. At completion, I decided to use a light weight twine rather than the included nylon string. Nylon knots have a tendency to slip loose. I cut the string for the heaving lines at 16 inches, then tied the cloth pouch and end-line knots. The included metal ring works well for the trigger on top of the trebuchet. The ring for the firing pin tends to slip off, but if there is enough weight in the pouch, it will stay in place. As indicated in the instructions, there is a lot of room for experimentation, using different weights in the buckets, different length lines, and a variety of projectiles. Be aware of the moving parts, stay clear, and have a lot of fun. This is a very well designed model and it works very well. I enjoyed building the kit and I highly recommend it.

I do not recommend this product. I teach Physical Science and ordered several trebuchets and catapults from Amazon for my students to assemble and use to conduct experiments. This model was the worst one to assemble.Besides the cutting out and sanding of each part, some of the pieces did not fit together and required additional sanding and trimming to make them fit. The instructions were confusing.I ordered all the other trebuchets, catapults and ballistas offered on Amazon and the assembly was easy enough for a 13 yr old to complete with little adult instruction. This was the hardest (and most frustrating) of them all.I do not recommend this product.

You have to file off all the edges. It's still sitting on the work bench unused.

I purchased this trebuchet kit as a hobby item, and after a few days with it my feelings are mixed.As far as the build quality, there are highs and lows. The initial cutouts were very poorly finished, and required several hours of time to cut out, sand down and finish properly. Ten minute assembly is certainly a misrepresentation of the amount of effort required to put this together from scratch. One of the board cutouts was covered with splinters; I highly recommend the purchase of a fine sanding sponge to compliment this purchase.Putting it together was simple enough, though I feel that the stability of the unit is fairly low. The arms shift from side to side with a light push, affecting the drop of the baskets.The construction instructions were, however, pretty good.. right up until it got to the sling. There are no instructions on which type of knots to use, how to attach them to the pouch, proper length or the effects length have on the throw. I got to that part and was basically just left to figure it out on my own. I found that section to be extremely disappointing. Furthermore, the link to a PDF is included with the instructions... but that link is dead.The pouch material is just simple fabric... that is already fraying at the edges heavily. The string given to you is extremely low quality, and begins unraveling the second it is cut. Unless you have a set of heat crimps you're going to find yourself frustrated. The purchase of some basic nylon, or even better some rounding cord (leather jewelry cord) will help with this. A bit of ultra-suede will also make your life easier.Overall this Trebuchet is a really cool idea, and if you have the time and willingness to spend days tweaking it you'll get good results. If you're just looking for a quick project as a means to an end (because throwing stuff with a trebuchet is an awesome end) you may want to look for something a bit more traditional.

The kids and I had a good time assembling this Trebuchet. It says you can assemble it in 10 minutes without glue...well, if you've done it 100 times before maybe you can do it in 10 minutes. But, glue is suggested because otherwise I don't see it staying together long.We probably assembled it in about an hour with the glue. There is another review on here about the final assembly where you have to work with the string and make the sling. The directions are a bit vague here but I think mainly because almost any way of making a sling works...still, better directions and photos would have been nice.Overall it's very well made and works fairly well. A lot of times, when preparing to launch, you bump things a bit and knock one of the strings out of place which is annoying...it's not fragile, just easy to knock a string out of place. Also, the string they give you is super slippery and doesn't tie well which is odd as you need to make lots of knots in it which then fall apart. The secret is to tie the knot and then use a lighter for just a second or two to melt the nylon on the string which will hold the know. Or use normal string :)When you are using this, do so outside because it can shoot very far. We did minor test runs and had it going fairly well each time, shooting around 20 feet, but on the 5th test it shot the ball (included) over a hundred feet easily. This thing can do some damage!

The kit is very well made, durable, and easy to assemble. Throws a six gram wooden ball with amazing force, easily over forty feet with 200 grams of counterweight. A great demonstration of mechanical energy and leverage at work, fun for kids of all ages. Highly reccomended.