How to make a mini potato gun

Want something to do on a weekend? Costing only about $10, this is a great project to build. Using a Gatorade bottle as the combustion chamber and a BBQ lighter as the ignition source, spray this puppy up with your favorite deodorant, and watch the projectile fly! Want more information before you start building - Check out SpudgunPlans.

Step 1: Get Materials: Long nosed BBQ Lighter, Gatorade Bottle, Hot Glue Gun, and two nails. You can use any type of glue you want, including super glue, but I find that hot glue works best. You can also substitute a small water bottle in for a Gatorade bottle, even though a Gatorade bottle has thicker plastic.

Step 2: Take apart your BBQ lighter and keep the piezoelectric Sparker, Wire, and the nozzle (Barrel). Make sure to take out that little screw near the back of the lighter. You can break the casing of the lighter, just don't spill the butane as it is VERY flammable.

Step 3: Poke two holes in your gatorade bottle and stick a nail in each one. Also, you will need to hot glue the Piezoelectric sparker to one nail, and wrap the wire around the other one. Connect all the wires and reinforce it with glue and you should be done with the combustion chamber. After the glue dries, push the sparker and see if it sparks, if it doesn't, move the nails closer to each other and make sure that the wire is touching the nail. Some people use Pushpins instead of nails, but they are harder to wire and not as reliable.

Step 4: Melt or drill a hole in the cap of the bottle and push the barrel of the BBQ lighter through it. Reinforce it with hot glue. The Barrel has a pre-built stopper at the end of it, allowing a BB to roll down the barrel, but not into the combustion chamber. You can load like 8 BBs in the barrel and make it like a shotgun.

Spray about 1 second of your preferred aerosol in to the combustion chamber, screw on the lid and push the sparker. You should feel the bottle get warm, that is normal, and it eventually cools down. There isn't much kickback, so don't be afraid to shoot it. Also, don't stuff the gun too tight, or it might break or blow up in your hand.

Optional - You can use electrical tape or even electrical glue instead of hot glue

Mini spud guns are picky about how much fuel you put into them. Most generally, you put too much. If this happens, Unscrew your barrel and turn it upside down and back up quickly. Your gun should work properly now.

I am not responsible for your actions, as this gun is for educational uses only. Also, This is a firearm and can cause damage to property- in some states it is even illegal, but only a few.

If building a spud gun is not your thing, buy a pre-built plastic spud gun. You can get about 200 shots per potato. To shoot the gun, just squeeze the handle. Perfect for birthday gags. If you want something harder to build, buy the Backyard Ballistics book and satisfy your needs. With almost 200 pages, everything in the book is legal, and perfect for young kids who are into rocketry. Also, try the Mini Weapons of Mass Destruction book. With 265 Pages, there is 35 mini projects including catapults, slingshots, darts, and combustion shooters. PopularMechanics.com named this book one of The Best DIY and Home Improvement Books of 2009.