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Backyard Ballistics: Build Potato Cannons, Paper Match Rockets, Cincinnati Fire Kites, Tennis Ball Mortars and More Dynamite Devices (Paperback)

by William Gurstelle (Author) "When you were a child, people told you not to play with matches for a good reason-they can be dangerous! ..." (more)

4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)

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101 Incredible Experiments for the Shed Scientist

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This item: Backyard Ballistics: Build Potato Cannons, Paper Match Rockets, Cincinnati Fire Kites, Tennis Ball Mortars and More Dynamite Devices by William Gurstelle
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101 Incredible Experiments for the Shed Scientist by Rob Beattie
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Wholly Irresponsible Experiments by Sean Connolly
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Product details

Paperback: 192 pages
Publisher: A Cappella Books; illustrated edition edition (1 Jul 2001)
Language English
ISBN-10: 1556523750
ISBN-13: 978-1556523755
Product Dimensions: 24.8 x 17.4 x 1.6 cm

Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)

Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 10,409 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Popular in these categories:

#1 in	Books > Science & Nature > Chemistry > Laboratory Techniques & Experiments
#1 in	Books > Science & Nature > Engineering & Technology > Mechanical & Materials Engineering > Solids Mecahanics
#5 in	Books > Scientific, Technical & Medical > Engineering > Mechanical & Material Engineering

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Product Description

Chicago Tribune

"Would-be rocketeers, take note: Engineer William Gurstelle has written a book for you."

The Plain Dealer

"To inspire kids to spend more time exploring science"

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Inside This Book (Learn More)

First Sentence
"When you were a child, people told you not to play with matches for a good reason-they can be dangerous!" Read the first page

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	78% buy the item featured on this page: Backyard Ballistics: Build Potato Cannons, Paper Match Rockets, Cincinnati Fire Kites, Tennis Ball Mortars and More Dynamite Devices 4.5 out of 5 stars (4) �8.56
	7% buy Wholly Irresponsible Experiments 4.4 out of 5 stars (8) �4.78
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	4% buy Absinthe & Flamethrowers: Projects and Ruminations on the Art of Living Dangerously �10.15

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Customer Reviews

4 Reviews

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

Average Customer Review

4.5 out of 5 stars (4 customer reviews)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

53 of 55 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Step-by-step mad stuff to make, or, toys for the boys., 7 Nov 2001

By	red_monkey - See all my reviews

A handbook for bored, thirty-something children (like myself) on how to make potato cannons, tennis ball mortars, catapults and the like from the comfort of their garden shed.
Twelve projects from the ridiculously easy to the fairly time consuming, packed into 169 pages of juvenile playhem. Good instructions, clear pictures and photos, and all done with the emphasis on safety.
There is also a fair amount of explanation concerning the actual physics behind the projects and a look at historical figures such as Newton and Archimedes.

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12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Unbelievably mad, incredibaly fun, 19 Jan 2005

By A Customer

Unlike most books like it this is a manual is genuinely full of easy to do projects. If you looking for something special in coimbination with this I reccommend "Home Workshop Explosives" by Uncle Fester. This combination is not for the faint of heart! Overall an excellent addition to my collection.

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16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wow., 30 Jul 2004

By A Customer

A superb, but sadly probably marginally legal in my jurisdiction, introduction to the destructive delights of the hairspray powered potato gun amongst many, beautifully detailed little projects.

For all of us who watch "junkyard wars", or as we have it "Scrapheap Challenge", this book is a rallying call to visit the plumbers supply house and detonate some spuds.

The book is strong on details, suggestions for further "research" and lots of pertinent history.

Highly recommended.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Take cover
This is a really fascinating read.
Strong emphasis is placed on safety and is ideal for Parental supervision of all the projects. Read more

Published on 16 Mar 2006

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