The Jailhouse

[philozarton]

Popsicle Sticks

Remember those? You can buy big boxes- 500 and 1,000 of them in the small or large size at any craft store. Which is a good thing, because at 5:15pm I was running to Hobby Lobby to get some so Will could make a boat for a project that is due, yes, tomorrow. To his credit, he had tried to make it before and it just didn't work. He was near 'bout in tears.....i told him that when I make a cake I use fresh ingredients, that when you play hockey you wear the right equipment, and when you build a boat you need the right materials. After a brief discussion of available material, including a review of previously tried and unsuitable materials, we settled on popsicle pops. Thus, my shopping expedition.

Meanwhile back at the ranch, Ben was sentenced to solitary confinement and David was restricted from tv for a week.

I don't know if I want to build something really exciting,like this ROCKET CAR[/B]; Here is the link if any of you other Jailbirds want to build one too!!! Or a Mouse maze at the bottom of this page. What do you think I should make Matt? You know what they say, Idle hands and then some other thing.
http://collections.ic.gc.ca/science/english/eng/projects/car.html

To understand the concepts behind building a life-size rocket car by building a smaller version with popsicle stick frames and film canister cap wheels. These little rocket cars are equipped with a small CO2 cartridge for an engine and are guided along a fishing line as they reach speeds up to 70 km/h.


For years the need for speed has intrigued humankind. A new record for speed was set on October 15, 1997 when a car travelled faster than the speed of sound for the first time. The rocket powered car Thrust SSC reached 763 miles per hour in Nevada's Black Rock Desert.

This futuristic car needed a sleek aerodynamic body and a scoop-shaped fin to prevent it from leaving the ground. At high speeds, a low pressure zone (fast air) can be created at the top of a car coupled with a high pressure zone (slow air) under the body of a car causing the car to take flight. This phenomenon is better known as Bernoulli's Principle.

Any rocket car trying to break the sound barrier has to be carefully engineered to reduce all friction. Friction is the force opposing the movement of a body by something from the outside environment. In a rocket car, friction can be found within the bearings of its wheels and axle, at the contact point between the tires and the ground, and upon the body of the car caused by air resistance.

Building the Cars

1 wooden shish cabob skewer
4 film canister caps
2 large straws
1/4 bottle of white glue
one 7 x 15 cm piece of paper
1 CO2 cartridge, 19 mm diameter
popsicle sticks


The CO2 cartridge holder: Lay out the strip of paper.
Spread glue on half of the paper. Using the CO2 cartridge, roll the paper into a tube, starting at the end with no glue. Keep the paper tight and make sure it does not stick to the CO2 cartridge.

Place a small bead of glue along the final seam to ensure it is completely sealed. Pinch the paper tight over the rounded end of the CO2 cartridge and glue down the pinched end. Remove the CO2 cartridge.

The wheel assembly: Cut the wooden skewer and one of the straws into halves.
Glue each straw half to 2 separate popsicle sticks and allow to dry.
Using the sharp end of the skewer poke holes in the centre of the four film canister caps.
Push the skewer piece through the hole in one of the film canister caps. Thread the free end of the skewer through one of the glued straws. Put the other film canister cap on the free end of the skewer and you will then have two sets of wheels for your car.
It is important for launching that the centre of the CO2 cartridge be 3 cm from the ground. This is easily done by attaching the paper CO2 cartridge holder to the popsicle stick on the wheel assembly.

The body and the frame: Next you should design a frame of popsicle sticks abiding by the following constraints:
the car must be less than 15 cm wide
the CO2 cartridge must be the piece the farthest to the back of the car
the CO2 cartridge holder must be tightly secured (encased in popsicle sticks)
The final straw must be used as a runner for the guide wire and secured to the underbody of the car as low to the ground as possible

The figure below is an example of a simple frame to build.

Building the launcher

The starter
Materials listed correspond to their number and are found in the figures below.
two 2" x 4", 35 cm long
two 1" angle irons 7 cm long

two 3/4" diameter steel bars 6 cm long

one 1" x 4", 35 cm long

one 3/4" steel bar 12 cm long

two 1" angle irons 15 cm long

one 1" steel bar 6 cm long

one 1" steel bar 9 cm long

one 1" angle iron 28 cm long
two 3/4" bar 38 cm long

two 1" angle irons 7 cm long

one 2" x 4", 35 cm long
two large eyelet screws with bolts
one small spring cut to desired tension
one 1/4" diameter steel bar 38 cm long

two 1/8" diameter steel nail sharpened
two small springs to cover 1/4" of each nail
two small wires for nail cotter pins
twenty-two 3/4" wood screws
two small washers for release mechanism
four 2" wood screws
two small cotter pins

The finish
two wood pieces 1" by 2" cut 90 cm long
two 2" x 4" cut 35 cm long
two 1" x 4" cut 45 cm long
twelve 2" wood screws
200' of 40 pound test fishing line


Put together the launcher as shown in Figure 2 & 3. Parts 7, 8, 9, and 15 are all welded to each other. The angle iron used for part number 9 should strike both nails simultaneously to allow for an equal start in each lane. The eyelet screws are used to attach the fishing line and for fine adjustments in the tension. The spring should be tight to allow the arm to strike the nails at a large enough speed to puncture the CO2 cartridge. Parts 5 and 7 combine to create a starting lever for when the hammer is cocked and the spring is stretched. The steel bars (part 8) are mounted on the back of the starter so that it can be fastened under a door to remain stable. The finish also needs to be weighted down to keep the guide line taut.

Extra Info:
keep some sandpaper handy to sharpen the nails between rounds
the person launching the cars should hold on to the CO2 canister when the launch is taking place to ensure that a large enough hole is punctured
keep the guide line tight to prevent cars from crossing tracks
before launch the straw used for a guide wire will need to be sliced down the middle in order to allow the guide wire to slide in; once the wire is in, tape the straw shut for safety
safety goggles should be worn by the launcher
caution posters should be laid along the track to avoid tripping over the guide wires


Newton's Third Law of Motion explains why the rocket cars move forward. Newton's Third Law says that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. In this case, the force of the compressed CO2 escaping backwards out of the cartridge exerts an equal force on the cartridge, but in the opposite direction. The car, which is attached to the cartridge, thus moves forward.

You can see the effects of Newton's Third Law all around you. For one thing, it explains the motion of rockets; the hot gas coming down out of the rocket exerts an equal but opposite force on the rocket, propelling it upward. But Newton's Third Law also explains more everyday events. When you lean against a wall, the reason you don't fall over has to do with Newton's Third Law. Your body pushes sideways against the wall. According to Newton's Third Law, the wall pushes back with a force equal and opposite. This force from the wall is what holds you up.

MOUSE MAZE

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Things you will need:
1. Tic Tac Container
2. Popsicle Sticks
3. Scissors
4. White Paint
5. White Paper
6. "Mouse-Colored" Chenille Stem (Pipe Cleaner)
7. Small piece of yellow craft foam
8. Glue

* If you don't have something listed above, try substituting
something close


Directions:
1. Peel the labels off of the Tic Tac container. DO NOT soak them off. (If you do,
there will be a "shadow" left behind.)
*. If you would like to use a pattern, go to step "A" below.
2. Cut the popsicle sticks into small pieces. (These are the walls.)
3. Paint the pieces of popsicle sticks white.
4. Cut the piece of paper to fit the bottom of the Tic Tac container.
5. Glue the sticks onto the paper in a maze shape.
6. Put a drop of glue on the maze, and cut bits of the chenille onto it. This is your mouse.
7. Glue the foam into the end of the maze. (This is the cheese.)
8. Let all of the glue dry, then slide the maze into place, and glue it there.
9. Cut off most of the part of the lid that fits into the container. Glue the lid in place.

To use the pattern:
A. Print out the page here..
B. Cut the round ends off of 10 popsicle sticks.
C. Place the flat ends of the sticks against the top red line.
D. Cut one (1) stick at each line without a number.
E. Cut the number of sticks indicated at the length of lines with a number.
F. Cut the maze to fit the container.
G. Glue the sticks onto the lines.
H. Go to step "6" above.

* Optional "extra" ideas: Make a tail for your mouse, put 2 mice in the maze, or draw
fake tunnels on some of the walls!