WBL

[the oncoming storm]

I am almost done with my CPH and think i would like to build a Lancher next. unfortenitly no guilds exist on the subject any help would be usfull

[HBWW]

I'd like to refer you to a Douchenator thread, first of all things. http://www.waterwar.net/site_wwn/board/topic5390.html

The majority of our WBL's are pretty simple in concept. You have an air chamber that you have to pressurize, most commonly by bike pump or air compressor. Regulated air is also another option. Once pressurized, a valve opens to blast air into the barrel which launches the balloon by pushing on the sabot which pushes the balloon out. Therefore, be aware that it will take a long time to prepare a shot, maybe 30 seconds to a minute for a trained crew of two. You can stack balloons in the barrel to fire many at a time in a scattered blast.

Configurations and design styles vary somewhat widely. The simplest is the Douchenator where the air chamber and barrel are all in one line, while others prefer to have the pressure chamber under the barrel to save space. Launchers can have small pressure chambers and barrels, or large ones. The length of a barrel and pressure chamber should match (i.e. PC should be about 1/4th to 1/2 the length of the barrel, but is open to experimentation, and this assumes the pipe diameters are the same).

DX's approach is to make simple launchers that are easy to build and shoot. (The Douchenator launchers.) They are all inline and feature swappable barrels and PC's by threading and unthreading. For longer launchers (i.e. 1-2ft PC and 3ft barrel) I would go for the over-under design. To load, a loose-fitting sabot (such as a trimmed down Pringles can) is simply dropped down the barrel. The idea is not to seal too tightly so that gravity can let the load drop down the barrel (kind of like a mortar) which loads more quickly. A ball valve for releasing the air is used since you don't really have to do any work, just buy a metal valve. In any case, DX can speak for his approach better than I can, so I'll let him do that.

My approach in the past has been different. I built a launcher inspired by one I saw earlier that had two pressure chambers and a breech-loaded barrel. This lets you use tight-fitting sabots for a better seal while maintaining fast reload times, along with a small pressure chamber that gets about 1 PSI for every pump. I also use a modified sprinkler valve, which are kind of expensive but give better air release and aren't difficult to modify. The original plans for this specific launcher was bolt action with a hopper, but I gave up on that and changed the plan.

The world of WBL's however, is constantly under experimentation and new discoveries are being made all the time. For those new to building, I would recommend staying away from features such as breeches or rear loading to keep the job simple. If you want those features though, don't be shy to try them out and ask about ways to do it.

Anyway, read around and let us know your specific questions. Or just straight up post a list of what you want to know right here.

When I have time, I will have to put together a guide for the wiki. Unfortunately, its difficult to get pictures since I don't have the parts set out right now.