Trebuchet equations, anyone?

Question

I'm looking into building a trebuchet of my own; I'm not sure about the size or anything, so I'd like to be able to toy with equations that would show me how much stress certain parts of it could handle, best arm length, etc.

Or, failing that, does anyone know of some good sites that might help me? I could do without the equations if I could find a good explanation of how to build it. Most sites I've come across are pretty vague and not much help. Thanks in advance!

Answer 1

You're asking in the physics topic. That's relevant to the issues of leverage, force, mass, and acceleration. The stress properties of materials is more an architecture or civil engineering issue. Try asking in engineering.