plans

Journal – Photos – Drawings

THE TESTOSTERONE TRAP

Trebuchet

www.RealTrebuchetPlans.com 
 index
Overview
Trebuchet terminology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

drawings & Photos

Base . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Frame detail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-6
Outrigger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-8
Counterweight box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-10
Throwing arm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Trigger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Sling pin and sling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Sling pouch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Trebuchet setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Axle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Other important stuff

Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-18
Bill of materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

copyright
Limited use . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Disclaimer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

©2008 Pete Blews – www.RealTrebuchetPlans.com 

 terminology

©2008 Pete Blews – www.RealTrebuchetPlans.com 

We got most of our materials from the local
Base
lumber yard. We used 16d nails (3.5” or 8.9cm) to
assemble the base.

Notice that the trigger base is horizontal, it allows

for pad eyes to be bolted through the 2x4.

©2008 Pete Blews – www.RealTrebuchetPlans.com 

We laid the three frame pieces (vertical and
FRAME
2 diagonals), out on the ground, then glued
and fastened the plywood gusset and braces
in place.

#10 x 2 1/2” (5mm x 64mm) screws for the

frames or 12d common nails (89mm)

#10 x 1 1/4” (5mm x 32mm) screws for the

gusset

The 1” offset in the frames allows the stabilizer

block to be fastened to the base under the
diagonal. See photo on page 6.

Our axles are 1 3/4” steel rod. I drilled a 1 7/8”

clearance hole through the frame at the top.

We joked about the phrase ‘catastrophic

disassembly’ that we found in an engineering
manual, however we took the message
seriously and used a lot of glue.

I use carpenters wood glue (the yellowish

glue, not the white) because it has some
plastic resins in it and is more resistant to
moisture.

©2008 Pete Blews – www.RealTrebuchetPlans.com 

This drawing shows the two frames in their relative
FRAME
positions.

Notice both diagonal braces and plywood gussets

are on the outside of the frames in the drawings.
This is an easier way to build than the system
shown in the photo.

The stabilizer block is shown below. This ‘L’

shaped piece is glued to the base, not to the frame.

©2008 Pete Blews – www.RealTrebuchetPlans.com 

 outrigger
We used #10 x 1 1/4” (5mm x 32mm) screws to
fasten the gusset in place.

©2008 Pete Blews – www.RealTrebuchetPlans.com 

Here you see the main frame pieces assembled.
outrigger
1. We start by leveling base frame
2. Bolt frames to base 6 - 3/8” by 4” (10mm x 102mm) carriage
bolts
3. Bolt outrigger bases to base 4 - 3/8” x 5 1/2 (10mm x
140mm) carriage bolts
4. Screw removable braces to outrigger and frame #10 2 1/2”
(5mm) screws

Removable braces were attached securely. We found ourselves

climbing on them for various reasons.

©2008 Pete Blews – www.RealTrebuchetPlans.com 

 counterweight box
Our design calls for a low waste/scrap factor.
We managed to layout all the parts for the
counterweight box on 1 sheet of plywood.

#10 x 1 1/4” (5mm x 32mm) screws

and glue

©2008 Pete Blews – www.RealTrebuchetPlans.com 

I want the counterweight box and its load to
counterweight box
total about 400 lbs.
We thought about using dirt from the
trebuchet firing site, and making our own
sand bags, but ended up using 8 – 10 bags
of garden soil from your garden center.

©2008 Pete Blews – www.RealTrebuchetPlans.com 10

 throwing arm
The throwing arm is made from 2 – 2x10s. The 10’ piece is cut into two 5’ pieces. The sling end of the throwing arm is tapered and the
counterweight box end is doubled and heavier. 16d (3 1/2” or 89mm) common nails and #10 x 1 1/4” (5mm x 32mm) screws on the tapered
pieces and glue.

©2008 Pete Blews – www.RealTrebuchetPlans.com 11

The release mechanism, or trigger, is simply 2 - ‘U
trigger
bolts’ installed side by side (top and left photos).
An ‘eye-bolt’ is inserted through the u-bolts and
the ring that is attached to the end of the throwing
arm.

We fired the treb by pulling out this eye-bolt

‘trigger’ (left photo).

(The double blocks are cool, but not really

necessary)

©2008 Pete Blews – www.RealTrebuchetPlans.com 12

The sling pin allows the sling to release the
sling pin and sling
projectile at just the right moment. We lashed ours As the sling pouch moves beyond horizontal, the
to the throwing arm. ring on the end of the sling will begin to slide up
the sling pin. When it slips off the end, the pouch
One end of the sling is fastened to the throwing
opens and the projectile flies free.
arm. You can see it tied to the sling pin at the right.
We adjusted the angle of the sling pin to get the
The other end is attached to a ring that is slipped
release point just right for maximum range.
over the sling pin (not shown here).

The sling is 8 feet (2.44m) in length. You can see

the lines leading back to the sling pouch in the
bottom photo.

The schematic to the right I found in a fascinating

book by Donald B Siano. It shows the angles and
forces involved at the end of the throwing arm as
the trebuchet fires. Cool, huh?

©2008 Pete Blews – www.RealTrebuchetPlans.com 13

Our sling pouches tend to break up after using
sling pouch
them for a while. The load on this component is
huge and the weight of the hurled object plays a
big part.

Here’s a couple different approaches to the pouch.

Net Pouch

This was fabricated from basketball nets. Notice the

carbiners that hold the ends together.

Traditional pouch

Has heavy canvas or leather body and grommets to

reinforce the pouch where the sling attaches.

©2008 Pete Blews – www.RealTrebuchetPlans.com 14

We set up the base and frame level and plumb (at
trebuchet set up
right).

Then installed the throwing arm by holding it in

position and sliding the main axle into position.

We held the throwing arm in a vertical position

while moving the counterweight box into position
(bottom).

©2008 Pete Blews – www.RealTrebuchetPlans.com 15

 axles
To hold the parts in place (we didn’t want any side to side movement, we
used pipe sleeves a slightly larger diameter than the axle, drilled holes and
threaded them for a set screw.

Next time I’ll try circular clamps like the ones shown here.

Let me know if you build a trebuchet! Send some pictures to

pete@realtrebuchetplans.com

©2008 Pete Blews – www.RealTrebuchetPlans.com 16

 notes

©2008 Pete Blews – www.RealTrebuchetPlans.com 17

 notes

©2008 Pete Blews – www.RealTrebuchetPlans.com 18

 bill of materials

Qty. size material Use

14 2 x 4 x 8’ Pine Frames, outrigger removable braces, base cross pieces
2 2 x 4 x 12’ Pine Outrigger bases
2 2 x 4 x 16’ Pine Base

1 4’ x 8’ x 3/4 Plywood sheet- 3/4” Counterweight box

1 2 x 10 x 10’ Pine Throwing arm

1 2 x 10 x 12’ Pine Throwing arm
1 1 x 12 x 8’ Pine Projectile ramp

1 1-3/4” x 32” steel - solid rod Main axle

1 1-3/4” x 21-1/2” steel - solid rod Counterweight axle

©2008 Pete Blews – www.RealTrebuchetPlans.com 19

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©2008 Pete Blews – www.RealTrebuchetPlans.com 20