Seems like such an advance in this ancient technology. It would be really cool to see it applied in interesting ways.

I really wonder just how effective this could be as a defense system .. the mind wanders with every update Tom makes .. I imagine an aiming/targetting system would make this an effective, easily replenished, low-resource weapon system for some applications. Attacking feral animals, perhaps?

How could an auto-loader work for this .. I'm sure there's a means.

Another thing that I keep thinking about, is whether this would be an effective way to launch seed-bombs, or deal with avalanche conditions on a mountain without requiring fire-arms training.

A truly fascinating bit of engineering. I hope to see it evolve into an effective delivery mechanism.

Also (mentioned by Tom), this elastic-powered supersonic trebuchet is an excellent video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gdXOS-B0Bus

How do you responsibly test something like this? The payload isn't going to follow a ballistic trajectory, it's going to follow an aerodynamic one. You'd probably have to design something special to load into it to aim the damned thing.

Which is a road trip to some place very empty in something like a 180º arc. Maybe 225º.

Projects like this are inspiring. Love it.

I should build something this weekend…

This guy absolutely amazing to watch. He also has a 2nd channel that I only found out a few weeks ago: https://www.youtube.com/@TimStation