Mista Balista - A Modern, Steel And Compoisite, Full Sized, Anc

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Catapult Ballista Siege Engines Weapons Toss Punkin Chunkin Nerd Nerds Tormentum Trebuchet Onager
rjnerd
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    rjnerd
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  • Updated: 08-Oct-07
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  • Added: 11-Oct-07

Mista Ballista is a modern adaptation of a 4,500 year old Greek war machine. Resembling a giant crossbow, the arms of the bow are 30 feet (10 m) tip to tip. With a winch, the bowstring is pulled back 20 feet (6m) with a strength of 3.5 tons. A hydraulic system raises the machine to best firing angle, and the ammo is loosed.

In 60X time lapse, you will see it transformed from 4 tons of steel, folded flat, packed for travel on its integral trailer, to in battery, ready to fire. Then, in real time, see it take out a wall of pallets at 80 yds (75m). with a single 17lb (8kg) stone.

The machine was built from 99.98% (by weight) post consumer recycled materials (aka: scrap steel), fired, and rebuilt by Team Tormentum. It can be seen in action, live at the annual world champion "Punkin Chunkin" event, held in the US state of Deleware.

Background music is a concert recording of a 17th century battle piece "L'homme Arme" (the armed man), arranged for consort of viols and lute, and performed by the Boston based El Dorado Ensemble - Its full of martial calls, battle noises, and assorted heroics.

  1. Categories: Entertainment, Science & Tech
  2. Related Link: Siege-Engine.com The Online Home Of Team Tormentum
Comments on

Mista Balista - A Modern, Steel And Compoisite, Full Sized, Anc

3 Comments | Add Comment
  • wtf

    you're not even going to fire it? You should warn people before they sit through that lengthy time lapse nonsense.

    By ntegrty71 1192211988 Reply Spam [-2] Moderate Up Moderate Down
    • Did you watch to the end?

      The shot wasn't from the same session, but I did include some video of us taking a shot. We fired a stone about the size of a child's head. We even set up, and took out the wooden pallet target.

      The actual shot is 3:20 into the sequence. We even have Hunter Thomson (Survivor, several History Channel series) pulling the lanyard.

      By rjnerd 1192213471 Reply Spam Moderate Up Moderate Down
    • Whoops

      Make that Hunter Ellis pulling the lanyard. The machine was getting filmed for his old series "Man Moment Machine"

      By Fred239 1192302582 Reply Spam Moderate Up Moderate Down
3 Comments | Add Comment