1. Deciding on the Scale: I thing I have to figure out right away is the size of the trebuchet I want to make. This is first important step before I could start acquiring materials and decide on the design.
2. Achieving the Aesthetic: The Aesthetic I am looking to achieve is a trebuchet that looks like it has been in numerous battles. Although I have a few ideas of how to achieve this, I don’t have a concrete solution I can bank on. Even though I have experience with wood working, this is a whole new idea of which I have no experience.
3. Materials: Of course wood would be the primary material. But what about the other parts like the sling rope, projectile holder, hinges and the projectile itself. These are some questions I need to answer myself before I can start building my siege weapon.
4. The Design and Build: Designing and building a trebuchet is easier said than done. However, making a good design and building it to the specifications and making it work as expected is not going to be easy. One problem I need to look out for is the design of the sling and the projectile holder. If the holder doesn’t release the projectile at the correct time, the projectile would shoot right into the ground. Prototyping lot would be a good way to overcome this problem.
5. Time & Budget Constraints: These constraints apply for any project and looking at the deadline for the project, I am sure I really have to get my gears grinding. Also, staying within a moderate budget will be a challenge.
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I think a modern take on the trebuchet could be pretty exciting. Then again, the raw medieval look would also speak for itself. As for the design of the sling, I think modifying a preexisting dog ball launcher could help in saving time and allowing you to focus on the aesthetic. This might look funny if you’re trying to achieve the medieval aesthetic, however you could paint it so the sling looks like its a metal launcher.
Your constraints are really well thought out for this project and I am glad you are really moving forward with your ideas. I am most interested in your sling and projectile holder design of which I am looking forward to seeing the prototypes!
This is a really cool project! I’ve always enjoyed learning about medieval weapons and devices because they were designed before we had modern electronics and sophisticated materials. Therefore, the mechanical design had to be extra ingenious in order to accommodate for the material and control constraints. It sounds like your number one constraint, the scale, will be the most important factor in deciding how big of a scope this project will be. After all, if your trebuchet launches things 100 yards, I could see a lot of difficulty in the testing phase. Would you be designing your own from the ground up, or would you look to use an existing design already available?
Also for the battle-worn aesthetic look, you might try using a torch to give certain areas a burnt look to simulate aging. There are many products to give it a stained look that could add to the appearance (such as lacquer). I look forward to seeing the final product!
That’s a really nice project! How do you plan to control your budget for the design? Do you plan to conserve funds through selecting alternative materials where they can be used? What kind of projectile do you plan to use and how do you think it’ll affect your design?
I really like this throwback to medieval weaponry, it’ll be interesting to see what kind of aesthetics you go with. You could always go through conventional route and make it look from archaic times, but you could also eask ‘swing’ (pun intended) to modern design.