14” total
5 7/8”
2/8”
7/16”
1 11/16”
1 5/8 ”
Holes are 1/8” in diameter
triggersto
p
goes here
1 1/8”
2 ½”
4¾”
Holes are 1/8” in diameter
1/8”
1”
2” high
body
(A)
1 ¼”
(F)
cer
spa
grip
3 15/16“
3 ¼”
gripspacer
goes here
4”
barrelspacer
2”
`
1.23”
1.51 ”
(G)
This bit should be covered by page 2 – tape or glue pages 1 and 2 together
1/8”
1 1/16”
Cut off this piece of the blueprint
[also] body (A)
barrelspacer
goes here
1 ¾”
2 3/8”
Hole is 1/8” in diameter
Pinwheel (D)
Triggerstop (E)
1” x ½ ”
Straw dowel (B)
3 13/16” ish
Hole is 1/8” in diameter
Trigger (C)
3 7/16”
See oftheword.com/awesomecliplauncher
Design by Ryan Schroeder
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons
Attribution 3.0 Unported License.
(so no restrictions – change it, sell it, etc...)
(but please don't hurt people with it =)
Instructions how to make an Awesome Paperclip Rubber-Band Launcher
1.
Print the blueprints. You definitely can change these – this is just how I did it. The blueprints have lots of measurements, but you probably won't
need those – it's just in case you want to check that you cut something right, or something like that. So don't worry about the numbers.
2.
Cut off the left part of page 2. Overlap pages 1 and 2 so that the body (part A) is now all in one piece. Glue or tape the pages together so that
when you cut out (A), it will not fall apart. You probably should use a ruler to make sure the top edge of your barrel (the barrel of the gun, which is
(A) ) is straight.
3.
Cut out the six templates on the blueprint – the body (A), the trigger (C), the pinwheel (D), the triggerstop (E), the gripspacer (F), and the
barrelspacer (G). You don't need to cut out the straw dowel shape because that's just to help you cut your straw to the right length. Only cut on the
blue lines – and some of the blue lines don't need to be cut, like the inner circles and the dotted lines. It's pretty simple: just cut out the six big
shapes. The black lines are just for the dimensions (which, again, are just there in case you're curious).
4.
On your cardboard, trace 6 bodies (A), 3 triggers (C), 3 pinwheels (D), * 4* triggerstops (E), three gripspacers (F), three barrelspacers (G), and cut
them out. Now you should have 22 different pieces of cardboard. Try not to bend the barrels or handles of your (A) pieces too much – I found that
using an exacto knife worked well for those parts after I got the hang of it. A scissors works fine too, and in some places it's a lot easier than an
exacto knife. I only used the knife in the places that I would need to bend the cardboard to use the scissors. But you can do it all with a scissors –
bent cardboard isn't the end of the world (I have made launcher with just a scissors, and it worked great).
5.
Wherever you see a circle on the blueprints, poke a hole in the cardboard. This is where the axles go. I had good luck with just setting the pieces
on a piece of scrap cardboard and then stabbing them with a scissors and twisting. Don't be too worried about how big the holes are. If you can,
make the holes on the body a little on the small side, and the holes on the trigger and pinwheel a little on the big side. Make sure the holes line up
(If you put the three triggers together, you can see through the hole).
6.
Stack the three triggers on top of each other and tape them together with a little tape at the edges (masking tape works well). Do the same for the
pinwheels, the triggerstops, the gripspacers, and the barrelspacers. For the two moving parts (the trigger and the pinwheel), less tape is best,
since it slides better once you sandwich them inside. Don't tape all 6 bodies together. Split the six bodies into two groups of three – these will be
the two outer sides of the gun. Tape those two groups together so you have two three-layer-thick bodies (you don't need to tape all around – the
main thing is to keep them together. You might want to tape the handle edges though, since it's more comfortable). So now you should have one
three-layer-thick trigger, one thick pinwheel, one thick triggerstop (4 layers), one thick gripspacer, one thick barrelspacer, and two thick bodies.
7.
Tape the triggerstop to the one of the bodies (doesn't matter which). Look on the template to see where it goes. This part is what keeps the gun
from firing until you pull the trigger, so it bears the force of the rubber-band. Make sure it's taped well, but don't go overboard – just a few pieces of
tape should do it. It might help to just permanently tape the template to the body, and then put the triggerstop right on top of the template. That
way, you'll know it's in the right place.
8.
Tape the gripspacer and the barrelspacer to one of the bodies (again, doesn't matter which). These don't need to be as strong as the triggerstop.
Look on the blueprints to see where they go.
9.
Take a straw and cut two small pieces off. Both pieces should be the same length as (B) on the blueprint. Cut the straws down the middle so they
can be rolled up to get thinner (that's the next step).
10. Take one of your two straw pieces, and put a little tape (not too much) along the place where you cut it down the middle, as if you were going to
tape it right back together again. But instead of taping both sides, only tape one side. Roll the other side like you would roll a rug and make it
pretty thin – as you roll, eventually you will get to the tape – just keep rolling, and the tape will hold it all together. You can use a different method if
you want – the basic idea is to make the straws into thinner, stronger rods. You could probably use a toothpick instead – just cut off the sharp ends
and make sure its long enough.
11. Stick the dowels (straws) into the two holes into the body with the triggerstop. They should be a little snug – you can wrap some tape on the
dowels to make them thicker if you need to. They don't need to be super snug; you just don't want them slipping out.
12. Put the trigger on the correct dowel (I bet you can figure it out). The most pointy part of the trigger is the actual part your finger pulls. The long
stubby part of the trigger is for hitting the triggerstop. You might want to put a paperclip on the dowel before you put the trigger on, and then put a
second paperclip on the dowel on top of the trigger, too. That way you will have a paperclip on either side of the trigger, with the dowel going
through the paperclips and the trigger. The paperclips will work like washers: they will help the trigger move better when it's sandwiched inside.
13. Take a small rubber-band and hook it to the long stubby end of the trigger (the part of the trigger that is right next to the triggerstop). Then pull the
other end of the rubber band over to the other side of the launcher (so your hand will move up and over the triggerstop) and hook it on the stick-out
part of near dowel (the dowel the trigger is on). You might need to push your dowel through a bit more. This isn't a terribly critical step – you can
leave it out if you want.
14. Put the pinwheel on the remaining dowel. The notched end of the pinwheel should rest on the back tip of the trigger. When you pull up the trigger,
the pinwheel should fall (if you are holding the gun upright as if you were shooting it). You may want to add two paperclips (one on either side of
the pinwheel) just like you did with the trigger, since they help the parts move smoothly. Attach the other body piece, sandwiching the inner
workings. You're done! Rubber-band the body together: one on the barrel, one on the grip.
15. To make a bullet: Most rubber-bands are not long enough – add a string of paperclips to make your rubber-band longer, or if you don't want
paperclips, tie two rubber-bands together. Paperclips definitely make the gun shoot further and harder, but they can hurt a little if you hit someone,
especially if you shoot them when they are right next to you. There is a cool trick for tying rubber bands together: stick rubber-band A through
rubber-band B and hold both ends of rubber-band A, so rubber-band B is hanging by itself, supported by rubber-band A. Bring your hands
together, so the ends of rubber-band A are close to each-other. Pass one end of rubber-band A through the other end of rubber-band A, and then
pull on the end you passed through and on rubber-band B. Done!
16. Awesome!! Thanks for building this! Send me a picture ( [email protected]) and let me know how it worked! To shoot it, make sure the
pinwheel is rotated so that it's resting on the back of the trigger. Attach the rubber-band you're going to shoot to the back pointy end of the
pinwheel. If you have a paperclip, attach the paperclip to the pinwheel – it picks up a lot more momentum that way). Be careful when you are
loading – you don't want to shoot your fingernail! Stretch the other side of the rubber-band to the tip of the barrel. To shoot, as you may have
guessed, you pull the trigger.
By Ryan Schroeder (YouTube gloves1212). This work is licensed under a Creative Commons
Attribution 3.0 Unported License. (means you can use it for whatever - but please don't hurt people with it =)