Dragon Repeating Crossbow Ring's Summer Evolution

In my quest to bring fruition to a creation that arguably adds little to no value to the advancement of mankind, I'm pleased to share the stages & the results of my Dragon Repeating Crossbow.

In stage one, version one worked occasionally.  However, repeatedly tinkering to get the arrows aligned for ejection was not the intended meaning of "Repeated" in the crossbow's title.  So, the chamber was expanded & polished and the trigger mechanism was completely reworked.  Initially, the two edges of the hinge that connected the arrow chamber (dragon head & neck portion) to the ring base would lift & release the rubber band which in turn propelled the arrow.  However, precision in construction was sacrificed in consideration for ease of assembly.  This in turn created wiggle room which allowed the two edges to release the rubber band out of sync. This created misfires and inconsistent propulsion power.

Upon determining the culprit for the sub par performance, I gleaned what the Chinese had done so only 2500 years ago.   I adopted their original push peg trigger solution and thus added another element of ancient tech to my dragon repeating crossbow.  This solution eliminates misfires and inconsistent propulsion power.  The initial decision to deviate from this simple yet solid trigger system was based on my design's structure.  At the scale I wanted to execute & the current configuration, certain sections would become too fragile to accommodate the inclusion of a push peg.  That fragility was also at a particularly stress laden section of the crossbow near the rear axle of the chamber.

Version 1 (on lt.)  Version 2 (on rt.) with push peg

So an extensive redesign was required to utilize the push peg trigger & retain a solid robust structure.  These images show version one & the redesign (Version Two) side by side.  Version two fired with power and consistency if the firing rate was very slow & controlled.  However, upon the elimination of one culprit, a masked culprit revealed its true self.  Part of the redesign of version one involved the addition of a rear chamber lip to prevent arrows from getting lodged & thus blocking the rubber band from reaching the rear notch.  It also included the deeper setting of said notch toward the rear of the crossbow.

Version 1 (on lt.) reps original trigger design w/o push peg.  Version 2 (on rt.) with push peg.

                    
  I imagined that these adjustments would resolve my issue with jumbled arrows within the chamber.  While the trigger fired fine, arrows were not settling into the firing groove at the base of the chamber.  I had hoped that gravity alone would align the arrows.  I also believed expanding the chamber would facilitate the settling of my arrows into the firing groove.  My thinking was not flawed, it just couldn't observe the second main culprit to disrupt my crossbow's function.



It turned out that this culprit was the additional vectors of energy from the rubber band.  As the rubber band traveled back into the notch before release and fire,  said rubber band was twirling.  As the rubber band has a squared cross section, these edges would collide & dislodge my arrows within its the firing groove.  This would sporadically impact my arrows during the cocking & firing motions.  On occasion the added vectors would flip or even expel my arrows out of the top of the chamber.  This would occur frequently during the firing motion disrupting the following shot.  In effect, one would experience a jam & have to remove & reload.

This was not acceptable, so plans to design a barrel clips & or banana clips to increase ammo capacity were painfully complicated by the solution.  Version three would in short require a tiny little finger within the chamber to hold the arrows in place & set them consistently within the firing groove.  This finger would in essence be a tiny pendulum approximately the size of my arrows but with twice to triple the mass.  It would sit on top my arrows and counter the rubber band's added vectors, & this pendulum would swing down on top of each arrow to settle it into the firing groove.

Version 2 (on lt.)  Version 3 (on rt.) with Pendulum atop of full chamber of arrows

Testing make shift pendulums with version two immediately eclipsed past performances & reintroduced long since abandoned lofty ambitions.  Consistency, speed & fun improved immensely & the journey to why seemed answered at least fleetingly so.  All these improvements, shifted the balance of functionality & aesthetics back toward function as I envisioned epic skirmishes of tiny arrowed finger warriors throwing down well just about anywhere.  I Increased the size of his horns to provide more finger traction during firing motion.  And to provide more finger traction during the cocking motion I modified the fluid symmetry of the spinal hair on the rear.

Enuff said time for video.

Get your Projectile Spitting Dragons here:

House of Dragons

Mix-tape Assassin & other Confiscated Goodies: Beginnings

I once had this cassette tape crossbow ( cassette - you know those rectangular modular music storage devices that proceeded the 8-track)  that launched tiny arrows made from q-tips wrapped in clear scotch tape for weighted heads and invisible tail fins.  Even when I was observed as the general source of the assaults, my inconspicuous cassette and invisible arrows left no compelling evidence of my truly sinister nature.  Ha ha ha ha ha ha, that's right Ms. Warner, you almost had me, & believe the statutes of limitation have run out.  Anyway, my repeating crossbow ring is similar in concept, however instead of hidden in plain sight, it will daze, confuse, & blind would-be party poopers with its sculpted facade.  The following are updated pics.  Absorb. (By the way that crossbow cassette played musical awesomeness of the Jackson 5)  Thanx Michael, R.I.P.

I desire a robust piece, so the rear axle diameter will double or triple, all elements that will be exposed to stress & fatigue will be re-enforced.  This ring now stands on its own, a feature that will be standardized on more future designs.

The spinal ridge hair not only facilitates standing, but ammo carriage as well.  I will consider added bolt carrying capacity.

Worked the texture & details.  Debating whether to add pupils or not.  I like the blind/all seeing look or non directional nature of the eyes though I'm not exactly sure as to why.  Much more surface attention is required & then after initial casting, the adjustments for live action mid class distraction satisfaction.

The two issues that irk me are the arrow flights & the arrow jostling in the chamber.  Both can attributed somehow to the elastic power source.  Squared rubber bands tend to twist during cocking and create added vectors in power which appear to alter arrow flight behavior & the occasional jumbling of how the arrows align within the chamber.  A rounded less powerful rubber band seems to have decreased such incidents, but the properties of the wax also impact behavior, so all of this mute until the results can be observed in the final medium of resin.

So now that I've weaved the illusion that I have sense & that this project will be available to the masses soon, may the teasing torture of want & unsolicited expectations reveal your heart's true desire.

UPDATE:2.14.2014.  This singular piece of functioning sculpture is available here:

Dragons Everywhere!

Dragon's Test Fire

Ok, so it's far from perfect, but it's getting there.  Footage is a week old so the following images reflect both functional and aesthetic adjustments.

As soon as I get her into resin, then I can be aggressive with functional adjustments.   Ha haaaa.  Peace.

Dragon Crossbow Version 2.0

So I realize that I trapped myself with a design solution so early on that it stone walled me into some undesirable results.  I wanted a portion of the dragon body to be both a beautiful extension of the dragon and a lever mechanism to cock and fire the tiny bolts.

Version 1.0  with Rear body as a lever

Version 1.0, Big & Bulky on any Finger.

I failed to be convincing and felt cumbersome.  I tried twists and turns, texture and even ripped arms.  Wasn't happening, so, I got rid of the lever mech all together.  I figure at this scale, the need for leverage is mute and the new shotgun cocking action is almost as sweet as air drumming/ guitaring to one's favorite jamz.

Version 2.0, No Body lever, tighter, & meaner

Version 2.0 Extended Arms gone, replaced with asymmetric coiling.

Then there was my dilemma with ammo/ bolt capacity.  If a repeater couldn't hold more than three bolts, well that's pretty lame.  This meant a taller body and more bulk.  Not likey, so I went diagonal, maybe got more two or three more bolts in the chamber, adding more angles and interest and concealment with minimal bulk.  Who knows maybe add-on clips will dramatically increase that capacity to harness the repeating crossbow's full potential in the future.

Version 2.0, Diagonal Bolt Chamber.

Speaking of bolts, how will I come by them suckers.  During my Jr. highschool crossbow making dayz, I discovered q-tips made excellent arrows, especially those plastic hollow tube types.  Cut them to fit the chamber and weight the front tip with wax, dirt, boogers whateva, and viola, clouds of boltz blotting out the heavens.  Now I believe the distinction btwn arrows and bolts are length and tail feathers to stabilize flight.  Boltz are less accurate and meant for shorter range incursions.

When considering propulsion, resin may not have the properties to behave like laminated wood, but even wood at this scale is ineffective.  A vitruvian design some 3000 years old utilized twisted twine for slinging inflexible arms to propel arrows.  Been there, done that, but no real power at size twice as big. So I kaiboshed the extended arms for asymmetric coils to accommodate the simple tried and true rubber band.

Version 2.0 Coils left and right will track a rubber band to the dragon's hands (anchors)

So, not including rubber band and boltz, there will be four pieces to this design.  Dragon head Chamber, Ring bottom, and the two rear axle piece (chain link-esque).  Here's hoping that the test firing phase won't disappoint.  Of course that won't happen until they're cast in resin.  Peace.
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Fingered and Dangerous

So I was thinking, how do I protect myself during a schoolyard skirmish, cubicle conflict, or a ninja ambush?  MacGuyvering an explosive devise then drawing your eyebrows on with mascara could work, however chance favors the prepared mind. But how to be locked, loaded, and ready to rumble while appearing meek and humble?

The answer lies in a piece of ancient technology.  I love ancient tech and the Chinese Repeating Crossbow is very high on that list.  However, it's simplicity, effectiveness, and beauty in design are all but neutralized by little consideration to its facade.  In short it's hella ugly.

Some shrinkage, a new housing, and viola, the world is reintroduced to history with my Repeating Crossbow Dragon Ring!  While the barrage of tiny projectiles won't bring down any large game, it sure will command respect on any impromptu battlefield.  Here's a sneak peek of my battlefield leveler.

Why isn't this on every finger right now?!?  I know, what a backward world we live in!  Well that's something in the pipeline that I will reveal.  Anything more would rupture your zombie minds.