pumpkin launcher?

Question

for school i need to build a mechanism that would launch a pumpkin

i really dont care how far it gets

i dont even care if its just a slingshot or an air cannon

any tutorials with detailed descriptions on how to make it.
and it needs to be very cheap.

Answer 1

In consideration of the specifications, one small pumpkin, one playground see-saw and one energetic fat boy should do the job for free (except the pumpkin and a gratuity to the boy).
So you could just build your own with a little 2x6 lumber.

Answer 2

If low effort is the key, I'd make a giant sling shot with lots of heavy gage rubber surgical tubing.

The hard part is finding sturdy enough fixed attachment points and making a suitable pouch to hold the pumpkin without it flipping out in mid launch.

Answer 3

An onager (I've also heard them called a mangonel) is easier to build and fire. It doesn't have the range of a trebuchet, but as you say, that's not important. Just scale this model up to about 6 or 8 feet high.

http://www.onager.com/

Answer 4

Try this http://www.trebuchet.com/ And their fun to build and fire too.