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Ballistic Technologies of Antiquity

Scorpion II


The Scorpion's sting is a wicked one, and this version of the scorpion is the most wicked yet! It's a new advance in catapult technologies, based on the the power of bungee cords!

The Scorpion II main fulcrum is attached to an aluminum linkage for smooth action and a dynamic arm tip movement. Double bungee and double pulleys give this machine super power to hurl golf balls as far as 300 feet.

The Scorpion II was designed from the start to hurl golf balls and tennis balls, but you can try it out on just about anything small and round. In our tests, golf balls shoot about 280 to 300 feet, and tennis balls about half that far (due mostly to aerodynamic drag from the fuzz).

This model kit is fully functional, easy to build, and a whole lot of fun to shoot. The completed model is 18 inches long and 9 inches wide. The arm is 28 inches long.

The kit is hand crafted from high quality hardwood and includes custom made pulleys, heavy-duty bungee cord, aluminum linkages and steel axles. This powerful machine also has a super-easy to pull trigger that is as smooth as glass. The first time you fire it, you'll probably be shocked at how efficient it is, so be careful!

The detailed instructions are complete with diagrams, photos, and tuning tips. All parts are pre-cut, pre-drilled and can be assembled to a working model in one evening.

We've put a lot of time and effort into making this kit as easy, complete and as realistic as possible. It's a fun way to learn about physics and engineering!

    Price: $69.00
    Minimum age: 14
    Availability: out of stock

    Item code: 10700


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Definitions

Catapult

A catapult is any kind of device that shoots or launches a projectile by mechanical means. In England, a catapult is what we call a slingshot in the US. A catapult is also the part of an aircraft carrier that launches airplanes off the deck.

But for our purposes, a catapult is any of the ancient types of artillery, including Onagers, Scorpions, Trebuchets, Ballistae, Springalds, Coullards, Bricoles Perriers and more.

But most people tend to think of a catapult as the one-armed torsion machine used by the Romans. This is also known as the Onager or Mangonel.

Mangonel

The word Mangonel derives from the ancient Greek word "Manganon", literally meaning "engine of war". The Romans called it a Manganum. In pre-medieval French the word Manganum was changed to Manganeau, and the English changed that to Mangonel in the 1300s.

The history gets a little sketchy in the middle ages, but some historians believe that "mangonel" was shortened to the word "gonnel" about the same time that cannons were being developed, and later still, "gonnel" was shortened to "gun." And still today, in the military a "gun" is strictly a piece of big artillery.

Onager

Onager is originally the name for the wild Asian donkey. This donkey bucks like a bronco if anyone gets too close to it, and it is known to kick stones at people and predators too. So when the Romans needed a name for their one-armed torsion catapult, they called it the Onager!

The Onager (catapult) has a single arm that is powered by a large skein of twisted ropes. The ropes were usually made from hair or sinew for their elastic properties.

Trebuchet

The word "Trebuchet" is originally French, and meant something like "to fall over or rotate about the middle" as in a see-saw rotating on its axle. It also seems to have meant a big, heavy beam. Today a Trebuchet is any kind of catapult that is powered by a massive counterweight on one end of an arm, and a sling on the other end. This includes Perriers, or "traction" trebuchets which are powered by a mass of people pulling one end of the arm with ropes.

Ballista

This is a two-armed torsion device invented by the Greeks. It works similar to a crossbow, but instead of a flexible bow, it uses two stiff arms powered by twisted rope skeins like an Onager. The ballista predates the Onager by several centuries and was used to hurl stones (lithobolos style ballista) and also bolts or darts.

Obviously, this is where we get the word "ballistic".