[Loch-Ruadh] On the subject of getting the ballista ready for war

[Padraig Ruad O'Maolagain]

Although I did indeed propose this some time ago, I have serious doubts
that we can now complete everything that needs to be done before War in
March.  While we could probably get the ballista itself repaired, the
purchase of materials and assembly into approved bolts is quite
time-consuming, and we have the further problem of getting people
authorized to crew the engine once it is ready.

I hate to be a wet blanket, especially since I made the proposal that we
try to take the ballista to War this year, but I think that maybe we need
to start planning and working now to take it next year.

However, if enough people think we can do all this before War and have the
ballista ready to go, I'm still willing to work on it.

Padraig
-- 
Nunc est bibendum.
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Politicians prefer unarmed peasants.

Bjorn wrote:

>Greetings all,
>A short time ago, Padraig put forth the idea that we
>should refurbish my ballista and take it to Gulf War
>this year.
>I spoke with Gwen at the bardic Friday night and she
>gave me an idea of what's still accounted for, and
>more importantly, what is missing.
>If we're going to do this, it's going to take one to
>three days of steady work at a well equipped shop
> (like Polydore's).
>Without actually looking at what's left of the
>ballista, this may not be completely accurate, but my
>best guess as to the work that is necessary is as
>follows:
>Build new support members for the base, the originals
>and the second set are missing.
>Replace the trigger/winch-slider attachment block.
>It's cracked and must be replaced.
>Replace the rope in the torsion springs.  Depending on
>the condition of the rope, we may only have to
>retension the springs.
>Add dowels to the hole-carrier block.  The top member
>of the block showed signs of starting to crack three
>years ago.  Strengthening is a must, otherwise we'll
>have to replace it.  Depending on the condition of the
>block, we may have to replace it anyway, and if we
>have to do that, we might as well just build an entire
>new ballista.
>Re-wax the slider/tiller.
>Replace the bowstring
>Inspect the bow arms, and if necessary, replace them.
>If not necessary, wrap them with cord and glue them to
>bring them up to current rules.
>Inspect all bolts, washers, and nuts.
>If the two bolts that attach the hole-carrier to the
>tiller are missing, they will have to be replaced.
> (this will involve grinding down the head of the bolt
>to accomodate the slider).
>Inspect and possibly replace the winch rope.
>And the big problem, ammunition.
>I honestly don't know if Elfsea still even has any
>bolts (the majorty of them were lost a few years ago).
> Even if they do, they're not up to current society
>standards, which state all siege ammo must be yellow
>over 100% of the shaft and head.
>If we have to build our own, we have the choice of
>going with the golf tube/tennis ball method that
>works, but the shafts tend to get damaged very easily.
> We also have the choice of going with siloflex.  a
>particular manufacturer of siloflex makes yellow
>colored siloflex and is approved by the society siege
>marshal.  Siloflex shafts may use tennis balls for
>heads, or they may use a "legal thrusting tip" which a
>mini nerf football qualifies as.
>We're going to need at least 30 bolts to be an
>effective weapon for a full battle, if not more.  For
>the castle battles, we'll probably need 50-70 bolts.
>An experienced team can fire off at least two to three
>bolts per minute.
>I cannot guarantee that I will be at Gulf Wars this
>year; however, I will help with the reconstruction of
>the ballista if there is still interest in doing so.
>-Bjorn