RLT Industries The Desktop Trebuchet

This was fun to build, and educational. The functional differences between the Trebuchet and the Onager (the two main classes of catapults - gravity powered vs. torsion powered at the simplest), their strengths and weaknesses, and basic construction of both, can sound more difficult than they really are, if you can just see how the two of them are built and play with them for 5 minutes in scale form.Building this was not that difficult, but don't be expecting a snap together construction kit to build quickly. You provide the carpenters glue and clamps (to hold pieces together while drying) in order to put this together. Some sandpaper, and a couple of different sizes / shapes of files allow you to clean up some spots nicely and make the parts fit well.While it might have been possible to put the entire kit together in under an hour, I spend some extra time sanding and filing to clean up some joints and make parts fit correctly, round the part where the sling slips off the end of the arm so it works smoothly, and so on. I also only had a half dozen of the small and medium size spring clamps to hold wood together while the glue dries, so I found some logical stopping points where I could let one part dry for 20 or 30 minutes so the glue was setup strongly enough before I started gluing and clamping another part of the kit. With the extra work cleaning up some rough parts (and just making some look better for cosmetic reasons), along with those 20 minute to half hour breaks for glue drying to re-use the clamps, my son and I spent a late afternoon and evening building this, for an overall time of around 4 hours total. If you had some other reason to go pick up more clamps at Home Depot, or you do other woodworking projects and just happend to have a dozen or more clamps available to keep working on more sections at once, you can easily cut that time in half.Be prepared to spend a little time experimenting with different weight projectiles, and slightly different lengths of line on the sling to see how it differs in launch angle and throw distance. The specs given to build it work out OK to get it firing and start some testing work. But you can see how varying the counterweight has little impact on distance, as long as it's much heavier than the projectile. Heavier projectiles come out of the sling at different launch angles, which varies the distance. We tried testing a marshmallow, the wooden ball that comes with the kit, and a slightly larger superball as test projectiles. Outdoors would be best, as even this small scale kit can launch harder projectiles like the wooden ball fast / far enough to cause problems with walls and furniture indoors if you're not careful.

I put this together overnight since I wanted the glue and finish to dry before putting on the sling and trigger. I found the kit to be well crafted and easy to assemble. The main reason for less than 5 stars is because I had to ad lib a little bit in the end. The gap between the two main structures was too small and put too much pressure on the spacers so the arm wouldn't rotate freely. I pinned the two sides apart just enough to free up the arm by CAREFULLY driving a nail down through the structure on each side into the shaft on which the arm turns (actually, I drilled a pilot hole first to decrease the amount of pressure I put on the structure). You can't see a gap between the spacers and the arm but the difference in resistance of the swinging arm is noticeable.Besides that, the fit and quality of the kit is excellent. Get yourself some good wood glue (not school glue), a knife, some sandpaper (the parts needed to be sanded a bit in some areas), and some rub on polyurethane for a finish and you'll have yourself one nifty looking and performing model trebuchet.Note the pieces must be cut from the main board slab - they are cut almost all the way through except a few thin attachments which hold the pieces into the board until you're ready for them. The little tabs left over must be neatly trimmed flush with the surface of the piece for best appearance.Once it's working, the little wood marbles really do fly 20 feet. My kids love it but we need to get permission from their school before I'll let them take a model weapon in with them.

Ok, I'll admit it. I didn't buy this for a child, a science project, or for a bonding experience. I bought it for myself. I have always been fascinated with this device and have always thought it would be neat to have a scale model sitting on a bookshelf to take down and wage siege. It is a conversation started. A working Trebuchet that is accurate and well made.I put it together in a little over 4 hours. I did use a power dremel to sand the wood bumps that are where it is attached to the main frame. I also used the dremel to cut the pieces free from the attached frame. However, this is not necessary and as has been stated, a sharp blade will do the trick.I bought some wood glue and used paper clamps for stabilizing the pieces as the dried.I had a spool of twine and added wrapping for effect around the joists.Overall, a fun way to spend a cold Sunday while watching a movie or two.Well made, sturdy, easy instructions, and every piece fit.Now, I am ready to attack the castle walls....Why waste it on your child, build it for the child in you.

The Desktop Trebuchet was purchased as a gift for my 14 year old son - an activity for the real world to pull him from the virtual one. The trebuchet is ingeniously manufactured. A single piece of wood has been machined with a numerically controlled router to leave all pieces attached by only a thin veneer. Separating the pieces is easy and the precision of the pieces made construction a breeze. It is a wooden kit and time is required for wood glue to dry, a foreign concept to the virtual generation. Simple tools like an X-acto knife, glue, drill, and a saw were used. Once assembled, the trebuchet works flawlessly and looks pretty cool. I see limited educational value, this is just for fun. Overall, a pretty good project and result.

Great kit--well-designed, quality materials (real wood, leather and twine), nicely cut and easy (though time-consuming) to assemble.My son and I went overboard on the "rope" detailing, but the company was happy to send us out some more twine to finish the job.Warning, this thing when fully loaded, will throw projectiles much farther and much harder than you expect. Do not aim it anywhere near a window and get some spackle ready for the drywall if you try it indoors. You can also load it up with fewer pennies to tame it.