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It may not look like it, but we're professionals.

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Do us a favor.

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Don't try this at home! Whoa!

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On this episode of Mythbusters,

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Adam and Jamie come out all guns blazing.

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It's still hot!

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As they find out if a freakish three-way ricochet

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Get this one. Shotgun.

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could result in the shooter shooting himself.

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And I see a hole in me.

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Then Tori granted Jesse turn lumberjack.

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Maybe we should have yelled timber.

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Testing the myth that a codifer can be used as a living catapult.

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The Mythbusters!

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There are only hope.

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To fling an infected corpse up and over a castle wall.

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Whoa!

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Who are the Mythbusters?

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Adam Savage.

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Here comes chaos.

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And Jamie Heineman.

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We're gonna have an adventure.

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Between them more than 30 years of special effects experience.

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Joining them.

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Carrie Byron.

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Right to the job.

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Tori Belleggi.

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Okay, you wanna play a rough little golfer?

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Grant Imahara.

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Good to go.

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And featuring Jesse Cones.

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That was awesome!

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They don't just tell the Myths,

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they put them to the test.

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To kick start the first Myth, Adam decides on a field trip.

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They told me you were over here doing research.

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Looks to me like you're playing pool.

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I'm doing both.

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I've got our next story.

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It's a shooting myth from our gun toting fans and allow me to demonstrate.

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Let's say this red ball represents our shooter.

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Let's say the cue ball here represents the bullet from his gun.

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The myth is that our shooter can fire a bullet and can bounce off one, two, three surfaces

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and come back and kill the shooter.

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That would ruin your day.

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I know.

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Let's test it.

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Okay.

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The myth takes place in a half-built skyscraper.

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It's a pin-up parable for poetic justice.

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One angry shot at just the wrong angle, misses the target,

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ricochets off three steel beams,

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and returns to the shooter in less than a heartbeat.

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So how do you want to start this one?

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Well, I figure we need to start with some kind of a controlled situation.

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You know, a bench test.

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Well, to my mind, that just means we set up three adjustable steel plates,

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probably in our bunker, fire a gun into them and see if it ricochets off all three plates and kills its shooter.

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Works for me.

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All right.

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You ready to let all hell break loose in here?

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Yep.

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From bare bunker to ballistic death trap, the transformation is fast and efficient.

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Three steel plates and three vices and one 45-caliber pistol.

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And what we've got here is pretty much the bench test setting up the circumstances of this myth,

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in which this pistol will release its bullet, firing it into plate number one,

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where it will reflect off, in theory, at least, at a 90-degree angle into plate number two,

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doing the same to plate number three, and hopefully coming all the way back around to where it started,

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potentially killing its shooter.

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Now, to make sure that everything's set up nice and Jake, I'm going to use some mirrors and a laser.

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With the help of predictive technology, they're doing Pythagoras proud.

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The final angle won't quite make a perfect diamond,

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but there's method behind this deliberate mis-deflection.

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Yeah, it brings the path of the bullet back here so that we hopefully don't hit the gun.

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Okay.

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I don't want to hurt it.

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Adam has no such concerns about punching a hole in his partner in crime.

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I brought some motivation for our gun.

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I brought a shooter.

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That looked badass.

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Yeah, I figured we put him right here, and if there's any meat on the bones of this,

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he's going to end up with a bullet hole on him.

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Okay.

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So what we've got set up inside the bunker right now is a really idealized situation.

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In actuality, I'm not so sure it's going to make it perfectly all the way through.

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I don't know, I've seen a lot about bullets when they hit metal objects,

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and I'm expecting some spatter.

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Adam puts paper to steel to help mark the points of impact.

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When he's done, Jamie carefully loads the weapon.

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Bunker's hot.

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And they're ready to shoot with intent to kill dirty Jamie.

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This is ricocheting bullet.

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Ideal scenario.

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And three, two, one.

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I only see one player with a mark on it.

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Second plate doesn't have anything.

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Well, that's interesting, isn't it?

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On closer inspection, that turns out to be an understatement.

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I can already see what's going on here.

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Look at the back wall.

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Yeah, all right along here.

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It's spread out almost four feet.

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So much for, like, dang, dang, dang it just went shotgun.

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It looks like the lead bullet shattered,

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and the high-speed replay confirms their consternation.

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Well, that didn't work.

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There's your problem.

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That bullet came in and it just kind of laid flat right along the plate.

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It did. It was so beautiful.

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Followed the line just perfectly.

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The fire behind it was gorgeous.

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Yeah, there's got to be a bullet that holds together better than that.

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Yeah, I think so.

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Time to dip into Jamie's private stash.

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Well, lead didn't do it.

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So this time around, we're going to use full-metal, jacketed bullets.

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That means they're covered with copper everywhere except for the bottom.

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I think the fact that this thing is encased in metal,

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but it's not just raw lead,

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means that we are going to see a better bounce from this.

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It might not be the bounce that we were hoping in the beginning,

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but it's got to be better than just raw lead.

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With the paper replaced and the gun locked and loaded...

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And three, two, one.

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Same thing.

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The full-metal jacket fared marginally better than lead,

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but they still couldn't get a single ricochet.

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Alright, there it goes.

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On the down line...

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...batters again.

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It might as well be a paintball.

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It didn't even get anywhere close to that second plate.

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Well, dude, that was a full-metal jacket.

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I don't know where we're going to go from there.

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But Jamie's brought along the FMJ's bigger and tougher brother.

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Will the total metal jacket do better than the full-metal jacket?

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Well, this one is completely covered with copper, so it should do better.

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There's only one way to find out.

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And three, two, one.

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Still no hit on the second plate.

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It's time to get innovative.

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Not only is it not hitting the second or the third plate,

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but it's hitting the first plate at 45 degrees and leaving it like 5 degrees.

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That's not a ricochet. That's like a splatter.

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Look at this. This looks like a piece of fruit that you ran over.

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Are you paying attention?

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We've got to come up with something better than a bullet now.

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Come on.

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Bullets are out.

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We need something to bounce around like a ball,

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so I figure why not use a ball, specifically a hardened steel ball bearing?

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These puppies aren't going to be splattering when they hit a steel plate.

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With any luck, we'll see one return to center.

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The boys will return to bouncing bullets,

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but for now, they'll try their luck with something rounder and harder.

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The ball bearing we're now firing into these steel plates is hardened crumb steel,

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and it is actually much harder than these steel plates.

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Hopefully with these, we're going to see the bouncing ricocheting action

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that we're hoping for on all three plates right back to our shooter.

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To enable the gun to shoot the bearing,

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Jamie fits it inside a sleeve called a sabote.

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Let's do this thing. I'm feeling good about it.

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We've got to get something better than what we've gotten so far.

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All right.

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Ball bearings.

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In three, two, one, boom.

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Ha!

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I see a mark on the second plate.

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Oh, and I see a hole in me.

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Hey!

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Look at that!

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Well, let's get in there and see.

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It looks like the ball bearing has indeed returned with a vengeance.

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Plate number one has a mark, plate number two has a mark, plate number three has a mark,

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and you're dead, sucker.

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To get the full picture, the boys settle down to peruse the high speed.

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It's going...

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Oh, look at it slow down.

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That is a lot of energy lost each time it heads.

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At high speed, it's almost like it's slowing to a crawl.

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Well, I want to actually take some measurements and do the math

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how fast it's actually going after that third plate.

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We need to know if that's lethal.

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Yes.

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Confirming the myth means killing the shooter.

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And let's acknowledge that less than 10% of the real Jamie is actually made from cardboard.

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Dude, it's not lethal.

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Really?

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Yeah.

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I come up with 106 feet per second or 72 miles per hour.

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It would f**k you off, but it wouldn't kill you.

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Ha!

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I can throw a baseball faster than that.

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I'll bet you can't.

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But the challenge is out there to find a hard surface that might bounce some bullets.

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You're going to keep that?

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Are you kidding?

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This is how I'm riding in the high occupancy vehicle lane.

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Good luck with that.

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After the break, Jesse, Grant, Tori and Buster bend over backwards to launch a legend.

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All right, here we go!

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Now to test out an infectious treetail.

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All right, so the story goes that during the medieval castle sieges, attacking armies would use nearby pine trees.

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They would bend them back, load them up with bodies that had died from smallpox or the plague, launch them over the wall into the enemy's castle.

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And at that point, people inside the castle would contract some lethal disease and ultimately be defeated.

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Wow, so like the first biological warfare.

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Exactly.

208
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It's been a cartoon classic for generations, but how will it work in real life?

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They'll have to somehow attach a body to the top of a tree, pull back the tree without snapping it off, and then launch the cadet far and high enough to clear a castle wall.

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Body hits a dead body.

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Wall of bleeding nails.

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That's the dead end reason.

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Okay, so right off the bat, I think this is going to be kind of difficult.

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Why?

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Well, think about it.

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For us to be able to fling a disease infected body up and over some castle walls, we have to bend a tree back like this.

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And that's a significant distance.

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It could either break right at the trunk or even possibly completely uproot.

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So it sounds like we need to find the elastic limit of a tree.

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Let's go to a tree plantation, find a nice tall, straight tree, and bend it back until it breaks.

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All right, once we've done that, let's take another similar sized tree, bend it back just before it breaks, then we'll load up Buster, release the tree, and see if it has enough energy to send him over the castle wall.

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Now, we can't just skip out to any old forest and start twanging trees.

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Jim Curry from Loggers Unlimited has 22 acres of mixed woodland already destined for shipping.

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All right, we're trying to fling some disease corpses over a castle wall and we need some trees.

225
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Oh, you come to the right place.

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Hmm, didn't so much as bat an eyelid.

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Minutes later, Jesse tracks down a suitable specimen.

228
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Guys, I found the perfect tree!

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According to Jim, it's a California gray pine.

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That fits the build perfectly because this myth specifically calls for a conifer.

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Let's say you were the head of an invading army and you came up with this crazy idea to use trees to fling disease bodies over castle walls.

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Which type of tree would you use?

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The deciduous one with all the curvy branches and the curvy trunk or the long, tall, straight coniferous one.

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That's right, we're going with the coniferous one too.

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Why am I climbing it?

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Well, I need to get up here and tie a line so that way we can bend our tree down to the ground.

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We're going to have a force meter attached to the line so that way we'll be able to read how many pounds of force it takes to get this tree down.

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Remember, this first test is designed to gather one vital statistic to see how far the tree bends before it breaks.

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The other end of that line is a giant come along. Hopefully it's strong enough to actually break the tree.

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Finally, we have a force gauge to tell us how many pounds of force that tree will take before it breaks.

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It's time to get cranking.

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Who's first on come along duty? You are! Dang it!

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In keeping with the myth's rustic nature, they're using a handwinch.

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Grant's the first to bend his arm and make a prediction.

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As far as the amount of force it'll take?

246
00:14:02,000 --> 00:14:03,000
I don't know.

247
00:14:03,000 --> 00:14:05,000
Maybe a thousand pounds?

248
00:14:05,000 --> 00:14:07,000
I'm not an arborist.

249
00:14:07,000 --> 00:14:11,000
Slowly but surely the pine starts to bend.

250
00:14:12,000 --> 00:14:19,000
Incredibly, this full grown tree arches 45 degrees and it's groaning under the pressure.

251
00:14:19,000 --> 00:14:22,000
Wow, look at how far bent over it is.

252
00:14:23,000 --> 00:14:25,000
Creeping up on 1500.

253
00:14:25,000 --> 00:14:28,000
It's bending. It's not breaking yet.

254
00:14:29,000 --> 00:14:33,000
The rope still strains but the gauge stalls at 2000.

255
00:14:33,000 --> 00:14:37,000
That just might mean that this conifer is ready to crack.

256
00:14:41,000 --> 00:14:43,000
Yeah!

257
00:14:44,000 --> 00:14:46,000
That was dramatic.

258
00:14:46,000 --> 00:14:50,000
It snapped like a twig so they've now got the number they needed.

259
00:14:50,000 --> 00:14:55,000
2000 pounds of force should crack a medium sized gray pine.

260
00:14:59,000 --> 00:15:03,000
With that data in mind, they're now ready to see if a man can fly.

261
00:15:03,000 --> 00:15:04,000
A dead man.

262
00:15:04,000 --> 00:15:07,000
Alright, for our second tree we found a very similar tree.

263
00:15:07,000 --> 00:15:11,000
So it's time to bring in the big guns and this thing has a 40,000 pound winch on it.

264
00:15:11,000 --> 00:15:14,000
Which is going to make our jobs a whole lot easier.

265
00:15:14,000 --> 00:15:20,000
In fact, with this near identical tree, it's technology to the rescue all around.

266
00:15:20,000 --> 00:15:23,000
Tori's tree climbing days are over.

267
00:15:23,000 --> 00:15:25,000
Alright, I hope he stays.

268
00:15:25,000 --> 00:15:26,000
Alright, let's go.

269
00:15:26,000 --> 00:15:27,000
Good luck buddy.

270
00:15:27,000 --> 00:15:30,000
Why are you wishing him luck? He's dead.

271
00:15:30,000 --> 00:15:35,000
Even in death, there's no dignity for your professional crash test dummy.

272
00:15:35,000 --> 00:15:39,000
Still, they all have their parts to play.

273
00:15:39,000 --> 00:15:41,000
Now Jesse is going to be operating that winch.

274
00:15:41,000 --> 00:15:43,000
Grant will be watching the force meter.

275
00:15:43,000 --> 00:15:48,000
As soon as we get to the right pounds of force, he'll let me know and then we'll release the rope.

276
00:15:48,000 --> 00:15:49,000
Launching buster.

277
00:15:49,000 --> 00:15:55,000
Now we could use a quick release, but we thought, since this is a medieval myth, why not cut the rope with a sword?

278
00:15:55,000 --> 00:15:56,000
I know, it's a samurai sword.

279
00:15:56,000 --> 00:15:58,000
At least we're making an effort.

280
00:16:02,000 --> 00:16:06,000
They're all hoping that buster will soar like a pox-ridden pigeon.

281
00:16:06,000 --> 00:16:12,000
But there's always the chance that our man will in fact be a tree hugger.

282
00:16:12,000 --> 00:16:14,000
This is tree bending.

283
00:16:14,000 --> 00:16:18,000
It's very unpredictable, so it's really hard to take a guess at what's really going to happen.

284
00:16:18,000 --> 00:16:25,000
The plan is to cut the rope when the gauge hits 2000.

285
00:16:25,000 --> 00:16:31,000
That was the maximum force inflicted on the last tree before we shivered its timbers.

286
00:16:31,000 --> 00:16:32,000
2000 pounds.

287
00:16:32,000 --> 00:16:37,000
The massive bent trunk looks like it could fling buster into the next county.

288
00:16:37,000 --> 00:16:42,000
The cast and crew backed off to what they hope is a safe distance.

289
00:16:42,000 --> 00:16:43,000
Tori cuts loose.

290
00:16:43,000 --> 00:16:44,000
Here we go.

291
00:16:44,000 --> 00:16:47,000
In three, two, one.

292
00:16:47,000 --> 00:16:58,000
It's a total failure.

293
00:16:58,000 --> 00:17:04,000
Falling is not flying, and busters more dislodged than discharged.

294
00:17:04,000 --> 00:17:07,000
Well, we've proved one thing.

295
00:17:07,000 --> 00:17:09,000
Gravity still works.

296
00:17:10,000 --> 00:17:18,000
Coming right up, Adam and Jamie work the angles for a fatal three-way ricochet.

297
00:17:18,000 --> 00:17:19,000
Test bullet trigger.

298
00:17:29,000 --> 00:17:34,000
Adam and Jamie are testing the myth that a bullet could ricochet three times off steel,

299
00:17:34,000 --> 00:17:37,000
returning to snuff out the shooter.

300
00:17:38,000 --> 00:17:43,000
Nice day for a ricochet, huh?

301
00:17:43,000 --> 00:17:50,000
Now they've decided for safety's sake to relocate to the wide open spaces.

302
00:17:50,000 --> 00:17:57,000
They've already done bench tests with solid steel plates, but the bullets all burst before bouncing.

303
00:17:57,000 --> 00:17:59,000
It just went shotgun.

304
00:17:59,000 --> 00:18:01,000
So where does that leave us?

305
00:18:01,000 --> 00:18:03,000
Well, we wondered if we were thinking about it all wrong.

306
00:18:03,000 --> 00:18:05,000
Maybe it's not the bullet's fault.

307
00:18:05,000 --> 00:18:08,000
Maybe we were asking it to bounce off something way too hard.

308
00:18:08,000 --> 00:18:12,000
Suppose we gave it some softer surfaces, maybe it would bounce better.

309
00:18:12,000 --> 00:18:14,000
And that's what we're just about to do.

310
00:18:14,000 --> 00:18:20,000
The first surface they'll test is much softer than steel and way heavier.

311
00:18:20,000 --> 00:18:26,000
You want to pop one of those out of there and into here and we'll clamp it in.

312
00:18:26,000 --> 00:18:29,000
So why are we using a lead target?

313
00:18:29,000 --> 00:18:33,000
Well, the bullets we're using are coated in copper, and copper is harder than lead.

314
00:18:33,000 --> 00:18:41,000
So I'm hoping that copper will hold the bullet together well enough to not splatter when it hits this and it can continue on its way.

315
00:18:41,000 --> 00:18:44,000
And will the speed be lethal?

316
00:18:44,000 --> 00:18:50,000
For these tests, they'll start by measuring the angle of deflection off just one surface.

317
00:18:50,000 --> 00:18:55,000
The bullet, if it bounces, should pass through the backboard.

318
00:18:59,000 --> 00:19:01,000
Range is high.

319
00:19:02,000 --> 00:19:07,000
The bullet they're using is the fully copper coated total metal jacket.

320
00:19:07,000 --> 00:19:10,000
Three, two, one.

321
00:19:12,000 --> 00:19:13,000
I can see the hole.

322
00:19:13,000 --> 00:19:14,000
Really?

323
00:19:14,000 --> 00:19:15,000
It's at a wonderful angle.

324
00:19:15,000 --> 00:19:16,000
Really?

325
00:19:16,000 --> 00:19:17,000
Yeah.

326
00:19:17,000 --> 00:19:24,000
Providing the bullet stayed more or less in one piece, this looks like a step in the right direction.

327
00:19:24,000 --> 00:19:29,000
Look, I can see what a 45 degree angle of reflection is and I think we're at like 42.

328
00:19:29,000 --> 00:19:31,000
That's far steeper than I thought we'd get.

329
00:19:31,000 --> 00:19:34,000
The only thing we need to know now is how fast it's going.

330
00:19:34,000 --> 00:19:37,000
Well, let's get to the high speed and do some math.

331
00:19:37,000 --> 00:19:42,000
But the ultra slow motion shows something they hadn't expected.

332
00:19:42,000 --> 00:19:47,000
A real tumbling piece of twisted metal at that point.

333
00:19:47,000 --> 00:19:49,000
Yeah, that surprises me.

334
00:19:49,000 --> 00:19:53,000
Now Adam determines the speed of that twisted lump of metal.

335
00:19:53,000 --> 00:19:57,000
Well, alright, here's the math.

336
00:19:57,000 --> 00:20:02,000
Bullet after it struck the lead plate, it was only going 171 feet per second.

337
00:20:02,000 --> 00:20:05,000
116 miles per hour when it went through the backboard.

338
00:20:05,000 --> 00:20:06,000
That's not lethal.

339
00:20:06,000 --> 00:20:09,000
Lost almost all its energy.

340
00:20:09,000 --> 00:20:10,000
Yeah.

341
00:20:10,000 --> 00:20:14,000
Time to change up to a surface that might make a difference.

342
00:20:15,000 --> 00:20:18,000
Next up is one of these cinder block pavers.

343
00:20:18,000 --> 00:20:19,000
Why a paver?

344
00:20:19,000 --> 00:20:24,000
Well, this material is soft enough that it will allow the bullet to dig into it

345
00:20:24,000 --> 00:20:28,000
and then have to climb out of the groove giving us the angle we want.

346
00:20:28,000 --> 00:20:29,000
Good to go.

347
00:20:29,000 --> 00:20:32,000
Alright, you got a prediction for the angle for the paver?

348
00:20:32,000 --> 00:20:33,000
No.

349
00:20:33,000 --> 00:20:34,000
No?

350
00:20:34,000 --> 00:20:35,000
No.

351
00:20:35,000 --> 00:20:37,000
If you were to have a prediction, you had any idea what it would be?

352
00:20:37,000 --> 00:20:38,000
I don't know.

353
00:20:40,000 --> 00:20:42,000
Just pull the trigger.

354
00:20:42,000 --> 00:20:44,000
Three, two, one.

355
00:20:45,000 --> 00:20:49,000
The bullet was squashed but not shattered.

356
00:20:51,000 --> 00:20:54,000
It's now up to Adam to check on the angle.

357
00:20:55,000 --> 00:20:56,000
Huh.

358
00:20:56,000 --> 00:21:01,000
It's exactly one half of 45 degrees, 22 and a half.

359
00:21:01,000 --> 00:21:03,000
That's pretty cool.

360
00:21:06,000 --> 00:21:09,000
And if the bullet is talking, then Adam is listening.

361
00:21:10,000 --> 00:21:13,000
So we're wondering, maybe we're making the bullets do too much work.

362
00:21:13,000 --> 00:21:17,000
Suppose we shoot them into their surface at a shallower angle of incidence.

363
00:21:17,000 --> 00:21:20,000
Maybe they'll store more of their energy for subsequent hits

364
00:21:20,000 --> 00:21:22,000
and eventually get all the way back around to the shooter.

365
00:21:22,000 --> 00:21:25,000
So we're going to take that 45 degree angle of incidence,

366
00:21:25,000 --> 00:21:30,000
split it in half and start shooting them into the stuff at 22 and a half degrees.

367
00:21:31,000 --> 00:21:38,000
22 and a half degrees into a paver in three, two, how one?

368
00:21:39,000 --> 00:21:40,000
I don't know.

369
00:21:46,000 --> 00:21:49,000
I just had this warm feeling about how much I like our job right now.

370
00:21:50,000 --> 00:21:55,000
With the new shallow angle, they're looking for speed and it seems like they found it.

371
00:21:55,000 --> 00:21:59,000
But they'll need to confirm if they're close to a kill shot.

372
00:22:00,000 --> 00:22:01,000
Here we go. High speed.

373
00:22:02,000 --> 00:22:04,000
High speed is the objective.

374
00:22:04,000 --> 00:22:09,000
The number they're chasing for terminal velocity is 300 feet per second.

375
00:22:10,000 --> 00:22:11,000
That's the best one yet.

376
00:22:11,000 --> 00:22:18,000
Coming off that paver, that bullet is going 488 feet per second, 332 miles an hour.

377
00:22:18,000 --> 00:22:20,000
Well that could be lethal, though.

378
00:22:20,000 --> 00:22:23,000
I think so. I think it's one of our most promising hits yet.

379
00:22:23,000 --> 00:22:25,000
That's awesome speed.

380
00:22:25,000 --> 00:22:27,000
So where to from here?

381
00:22:27,000 --> 00:22:30,000
In different tests, they got speed and direction.

382
00:22:30,000 --> 00:22:33,000
The trick is putting them together.

383
00:22:34,000 --> 00:22:37,000
At Adams, almost convinced he's got the answer.

384
00:22:38,000 --> 00:22:41,000
So Jamie's likeness is brought into play.

385
00:22:42,000 --> 00:22:43,000
Which is which.

386
00:22:45,000 --> 00:22:48,000
As are the two extra ricochet pavers.

387
00:22:48,000 --> 00:22:52,000
The first bullet hit occurs on this paving stone at 22 and a half degrees.

388
00:22:52,000 --> 00:22:55,000
Now we know from doing this a couple times before that it's going to bounce off this paving stone

389
00:22:55,000 --> 00:22:58,000
at about 12 degrees into this one.

390
00:22:58,000 --> 00:23:03,000
Now I have this one positioned so the bullet will hit this stone at actually about 30 degrees.

391
00:23:03,000 --> 00:23:05,000
This is a little bit sharper, but because the bullet's got less energy,

392
00:23:05,000 --> 00:23:09,000
I think it's going to dig less into this stone and perhaps have a higher angle of reflection.

393
00:23:09,000 --> 00:23:12,000
Now it's into this one where really it's anybody's guess.

394
00:23:12,000 --> 00:23:15,000
I'm positioning it roughly about there.

395
00:23:15,000 --> 00:23:19,000
And I'm hoping that's enough to get the bullet back to Jamie's cut out.

396
00:23:19,000 --> 00:23:23,000
One bullet, three paving stones and a cardboard hoosier

397
00:23:23,000 --> 00:23:27,000
and a cartridge and a pear tree for the gold.

398
00:23:27,000 --> 00:23:30,000
Three, two, one.

399
00:23:31,000 --> 00:23:35,000
The odds of success seem astronomically small,

400
00:23:35,000 --> 00:23:39,000
but it looks like the planets have almost aligned.

401
00:23:39,000 --> 00:23:44,000
I see one mark, I see two marks, I see three marks.

402
00:23:44,000 --> 00:23:46,000
Our stones got hit right.

403
00:23:46,000 --> 00:23:49,000
I see a mark right here in my chest.

404
00:23:49,000 --> 00:23:50,000
No!

405
00:23:50,000 --> 00:23:51,000
Where's the bullet?

406
00:23:51,000 --> 00:23:53,000
What's that?

407
00:23:53,000 --> 00:23:55,000
That's it.

408
00:23:55,000 --> 00:23:56,000
It's still hot.

409
00:23:56,000 --> 00:23:58,000
You ever feel that?

410
00:23:58,000 --> 00:24:00,000
Ow, yeah.

411
00:24:00,000 --> 00:24:02,000
That's it.

412
00:24:02,000 --> 00:24:08,000
Despite all those odd angles, they actually got the triple ricochet.

413
00:24:08,000 --> 00:24:10,000
The need now is for speed.

414
00:24:10,000 --> 00:24:13,000
Dead smack center that second. It's so pretty.

415
00:24:13,000 --> 00:24:15,000
Starting to slow down.

416
00:24:15,000 --> 00:24:16,000
Three.

417
00:24:16,000 --> 00:24:20,000
Oh, and now we're really slowed down.

418
00:24:20,000 --> 00:24:23,000
God, you can't die to me.

419
00:24:23,000 --> 00:24:27,000
I think I can, I think I can, I think I can.

420
00:24:27,000 --> 00:24:30,000
Kill! Here it comes!

421
00:24:30,000 --> 00:24:35,000
Even with cement slabs, they couldn't match up the speed with the angle.

422
00:24:35,000 --> 00:24:41,000
He hits a third paving stone at an angle of 60 degrees and left it at 60 degrees,

423
00:24:41,000 --> 00:24:44,000
just like a mirror eventually hitting Jamie in the chest.

424
00:24:44,000 --> 00:24:46,000
Unfortunately, by the time he hit Jamie in the chest,

425
00:24:46,000 --> 00:24:51,000
he was only going 200 feet per second or about 135 miles an hour.

426
00:24:51,000 --> 00:24:53,000
Not lethal!

427
00:24:53,000 --> 00:24:55,000
I'm through with you.

428
00:24:57,000 --> 00:25:00,000
But we all want to see a 180 kill shot.

429
00:25:00,000 --> 00:25:05,000
And I promise that this one's not over till the flat man screams.

430
00:25:05,000 --> 00:25:09,000
Up next, Minnie McBuster turns test pilot.

431
00:25:11,000 --> 00:25:14,000
As zapplings become slingshots.

432
00:25:20,000 --> 00:25:22,000
Don't try anything you see on the show at home.

433
00:25:22,000 --> 00:25:25,000
Wear what you call experts.

434
00:25:28,000 --> 00:25:30,000
Ow!

435
00:25:31,000 --> 00:25:39,000
Going straight to full scale proved unproductive for those bent on flexing a tree and flinging a corpse.

436
00:25:39,000 --> 00:25:42,000
Now it's time to regroup.

437
00:25:42,000 --> 00:25:44,000
Alright, so that was a complete failure.

438
00:25:44,000 --> 00:25:47,000
Buster didn't launch, he plummeted straight down to the ground.

439
00:25:47,000 --> 00:25:50,000
Yeah, I mean we probably could have thrown him farther than he went.

440
00:25:50,000 --> 00:25:53,000
Oh, don't give up hope. That was our first try.

441
00:25:53,000 --> 00:25:56,000
We just went in and did it. We could be a little bit more scientific about it.

442
00:25:56,000 --> 00:25:57,000
Go on.

443
00:25:57,000 --> 00:26:02,000
Well we could do some small scale tests where we vary the launch angle and see if trimming the tree makes any difference at all.

444
00:26:02,000 --> 00:26:05,000
And we can use different types of trees to see which one does the best job.

445
00:26:05,000 --> 00:26:07,000
Alright, sounds like we need to get some small scale trees.

446
00:26:07,000 --> 00:26:09,000
I know, they're called zapplings.

447
00:26:13,000 --> 00:26:19,000
So the team orders in a zappling selection to see which one has more spring in its stem.

448
00:26:20,000 --> 00:26:28,000
The first trial tree is a Douglas fir, which Tori secures by clamping a collar to the base of the trunk.

449
00:26:28,000 --> 00:26:33,000
The collar in turn is fixed tight to the factory floor.

450
00:26:33,000 --> 00:26:43,000
Jesse prepares an action do-dall called Mini McBuster at a custom made launch plate to facilitate flight by reducing the friction.

451
00:26:43,000 --> 00:26:53,000
We still need to give him a proper perch that when the tree actually hits its apex, the force will just continue to propel the buster as far as he can possibly fly.

452
00:26:53,000 --> 00:26:58,000
And assuming that all goes to plan, Grant lays a scale that will measure the distance.

453
00:26:58,000 --> 00:27:04,000
None of this guessing, we're going to get scientific about this.

454
00:27:04,000 --> 00:27:13,000
And they plan to pull each of the test trees starting with the Douglas fir back to exactly the same angle each and every time.

455
00:27:13,000 --> 00:27:16,000
Okay, so we're at a 45 degree deflection.

456
00:27:16,000 --> 00:27:20,000
Alright, we are at 160 pounds of force.

457
00:27:20,000 --> 00:27:22,000
That's a lot of oomph for that little tree, huh?

458
00:27:22,000 --> 00:27:23,000
Yup.

459
00:27:23,000 --> 00:27:25,000
Grant, you in position?

460
00:27:25,000 --> 00:27:26,000
Ready?

461
00:27:26,000 --> 00:27:30,000
Alright, launching in three, two, one.

462
00:27:31,000 --> 00:27:32,000
Nice!

463
00:27:32,000 --> 00:27:34,000
That's pretty far.

464
00:27:36,000 --> 00:27:38,000
Now that's a result.

465
00:27:38,000 --> 00:27:43,000
Mini McBuster has well and truly left the launch pad.

466
00:27:44,000 --> 00:27:56,000
Douglas fir number one was 160 pounds of force and a distance of 16 feet, 9 inches.

467
00:27:56,000 --> 00:27:58,000
Next up, Redwood.

468
00:28:01,000 --> 00:28:08,000
So the team slides in the next contestant, a baby version of the majestic Redwood.

469
00:28:08,000 --> 00:28:11,000
Alright, Redwood trees, fraction.

470
00:28:11,000 --> 00:28:15,000
Time to see if there's any benefit to be gained from a tree change.

471
00:28:15,000 --> 00:28:19,000
Launching in three, two, one.

472
00:28:21,000 --> 00:28:23,000
He went less than half the distance.

473
00:28:23,000 --> 00:28:26,000
Not even close.

474
00:28:26,000 --> 00:28:31,000
Our diseased doll made it only a third of the way to the castle wall.

475
00:28:34,000 --> 00:28:39,000
60 pound load and went a distance of six feet.

476
00:28:39,000 --> 00:28:41,000
Next up, Alaskan cedar.

477
00:28:43,000 --> 00:28:47,000
So now they've tried two of their three best bet conifers.

478
00:28:47,000 --> 00:28:50,000
Here's hoping the cedar can fling even farther.

479
00:28:51,000 --> 00:28:57,000
With the angle once more set to 45, the only key difference is the degree of resistance.

480
00:28:57,000 --> 00:29:03,000
The Douglas fir pulled 160 pounds and the Redwood just 60.

481
00:29:03,000 --> 00:29:06,000
The cedar is showing 100 pounds.

482
00:29:06,000 --> 00:29:09,000
Still, let's see if we have a new winner.

483
00:29:09,000 --> 00:29:10,000
Alright, here we go.

484
00:29:10,000 --> 00:29:15,000
Launching Mini Buster in three, two, one.

485
00:29:21,000 --> 00:29:26,000
The catapult cadaver flew just 15 times its own body length.

486
00:29:26,000 --> 00:29:28,000
10 feet on the dock.

487
00:29:29,000 --> 00:29:32,000
Alright, well before we pick a tree, why don't we look at the high speed

488
00:29:32,000 --> 00:29:34,000
and see if we can figure out why this is happening.

489
00:29:34,000 --> 00:29:36,000
Alright.

490
00:29:36,000 --> 00:29:42,000
The first fling they check is the last one they flung, the Alaskan cedar.

491
00:29:43,000 --> 00:29:44,000
The tree is released.

492
00:29:44,000 --> 00:29:46,000
He stays with the tree.

493
00:29:46,000 --> 00:29:49,000
As soon as it gets vertical, he's released.

494
00:29:49,000 --> 00:29:51,000
In that one, he was going...

495
00:29:51,000 --> 00:29:56,000
14.2 miles per hour, which is 20.83 feet per second.

496
00:29:57,000 --> 00:30:00,000
Now for the recalcitrant Redwood.

497
00:30:00,000 --> 00:30:03,000
There's a lot less energy in this tree.

498
00:30:03,000 --> 00:30:05,000
It seems less flexible actually.

499
00:30:05,000 --> 00:30:07,000
And he left the tree sooner.

500
00:30:09,000 --> 00:30:13,000
The last replay checked is the day's big winner, the Douglas fir.

501
00:30:13,000 --> 00:30:17,000
But watching the high speed gives Grant pause for thought.

502
00:30:18,000 --> 00:30:22,000
Now, I'm wondering if we chop some of these limbs off,

503
00:30:22,000 --> 00:30:24,000
do you think we can get more speed?

504
00:30:24,000 --> 00:30:29,000
Yeah, also if we cut off the limbs, it would cut down on the wind resistance as well.

505
00:30:29,000 --> 00:30:31,000
So, you know, we might get them to go farther.

506
00:30:31,000 --> 00:30:32,000
Well, let's try it.

507
00:30:32,000 --> 00:30:33,000
Alright.

508
00:30:35,000 --> 00:30:38,000
The jury agrees that the tree needs a haircut.

509
00:30:39,000 --> 00:30:41,000
And here's why it might work.

510
00:30:42,000 --> 00:30:46,000
One of the main jobs of branches is to balance the tree.

511
00:30:46,000 --> 00:30:50,000
When the wind blows, they wave and sway in every direction.

512
00:30:50,000 --> 00:30:55,000
So the opposite forces work in concert to keep the trunk stable.

513
00:30:55,000 --> 00:30:59,000
So to make a tree bend, it stands to reason we cut off the branches.

514
00:30:59,000 --> 00:31:03,000
That might be enough to turn this tree torpedo.

515
00:31:08,000 --> 00:31:09,000
Nice.

516
00:31:10,000 --> 00:31:12,000
That's the trim of the tree.

517
00:31:13,000 --> 00:31:16,000
So let's see if it's worth all the effort.

518
00:31:18,000 --> 00:31:22,000
Launching in three, two, one.

519
00:31:25,000 --> 00:31:29,000
The scaling is way too rough to draw real world conclusions.

520
00:31:30,000 --> 00:31:35,000
But they can fine tune the method to improve their chances back in the forest.

521
00:31:35,000 --> 00:31:39,000
His trajectory though is definitely on the downward path.

522
00:31:39,000 --> 00:31:41,000
Yeah, it sort of holds on to him.

523
00:31:41,000 --> 00:31:42,000
Past vertical.

524
00:31:42,000 --> 00:31:47,000
So maybe if we had a way to stop him before he reaches that point.

525
00:31:47,000 --> 00:31:49,000
Like, you know, like a catapult.

526
00:31:49,000 --> 00:31:50,000
Like a tether.

527
00:31:50,000 --> 00:31:51,000
Stopping tether.

528
00:31:51,000 --> 00:31:52,000
Alright, let's try that.

529
00:31:53,000 --> 00:31:56,000
They got the distance, but not quite the height.

530
00:31:56,000 --> 00:32:00,000
A tether should stop the momentum just short of vertical.

531
00:32:00,000 --> 00:32:04,000
So if all goes to plan, this will be their best shot yet.

532
00:32:05,000 --> 00:32:06,000
Ready.

533
00:32:06,000 --> 00:32:07,000
Alright.

534
00:32:07,000 --> 00:32:09,000
Three, two, one.

535
00:32:12,000 --> 00:32:17,000
Oh my God, he hit the back wall.

536
00:32:21,000 --> 00:32:26,000
The tether works wonders and our little guys fly when right off the scale.

537
00:32:28,000 --> 00:32:30,000
Alright, I know what you're saying.

538
00:32:30,000 --> 00:32:32,000
I can hear it through the TV.

539
00:32:32,000 --> 00:32:35,000
You're saying, but Grant, these trees are young trees.

540
00:32:35,000 --> 00:32:37,000
They're more flexible.

541
00:32:37,000 --> 00:32:40,000
They're not like the trees you find in the forest that we're going to use.

542
00:32:40,000 --> 00:32:41,000
I know.

543
00:32:41,000 --> 00:32:46,000
And that is where we're going to take all these ideas out to the forest and put them to the test.

544
00:32:52,000 --> 00:32:57,000
Straight ahead, Adam and Jamie bend the myth of the ricochet bullet way out of shape.

545
00:32:58,000 --> 00:33:00,000
The world's heaviest hula hoop.

546
00:33:10,000 --> 00:33:14,000
We all know that ricochets happen and they can be nasty.

547
00:33:14,000 --> 00:33:16,000
Have you gone mad?

548
00:33:17,000 --> 00:33:21,000
But can a bullet bounce three times to kill the shooter?

549
00:33:21,000 --> 00:33:23,000
Apparently not.

550
00:33:24,000 --> 00:33:27,000
But we've still got one left in the chamber.

551
00:33:28,000 --> 00:33:31,000
We are now going to try it using this piece of schedule 40 plumbing pipe.

552
00:33:31,000 --> 00:33:33,000
Oh no, not in this state.

553
00:33:33,000 --> 00:33:35,000
This is merely a raw material.

554
00:33:36,000 --> 00:33:38,000
We're going to bend it.

555
00:33:38,000 --> 00:33:39,000
Yeah!

556
00:33:40,000 --> 00:33:46,000
The triple ricochet myth is busted, but Jamie and Adam have hatched a plan to replicate the result.

557
00:33:46,000 --> 00:33:53,000
They aim to shoot through a curvy steel pipe and the bending machines a mechanical marvel.

558
00:33:53,000 --> 00:33:59,000
So the way I figure it, what if we shot the bullet into something that didn't actually involve an impact,

559
00:33:59,000 --> 00:34:02,000
like say a bent pipe?

560
00:34:02,000 --> 00:34:04,000
It does one thing.

561
00:34:04,000 --> 00:34:06,000
And it does it really well.

562
00:34:06,000 --> 00:34:07,000
I like that.

563
00:34:08,000 --> 00:34:09,000
There we go.

564
00:34:13,000 --> 00:34:16,000
Does this remind you of when you used to hunt mastodon?

565
00:34:16,000 --> 00:34:18,000
It's like a big macaroni.

566
00:34:21,000 --> 00:34:23,000
You really did hunt mastodon.

567
00:34:23,000 --> 00:34:26,000
All that remains is for Adam to mount and secure the pipe,

568
00:34:26,000 --> 00:34:32,000
while Jamie positions a fat slab of ballistics gel to hopefully catch the bullet.

569
00:34:33,000 --> 00:34:40,000
At this point you may be wondering, what is the curve of the bent pipe you're shooting into?

570
00:34:40,000 --> 00:34:41,000
Well, it's a good question.

571
00:34:41,000 --> 00:34:44,000
Right now this pipe has a radius of about 88 inches.

572
00:34:44,000 --> 00:34:48,000
That means if it was a complete circle, it would be about 15 feet across.

573
00:34:48,000 --> 00:34:51,000
Why haven't we bent it to come all the way back around to the gun?

574
00:34:51,000 --> 00:34:55,000
That's simply because we're not sure this is going to work at all.

575
00:34:55,000 --> 00:34:58,000
So we're going to incrementally sneak up on it.

576
00:34:58,000 --> 00:35:00,000
Why put all our eggs in one basket?

577
00:35:01,000 --> 00:35:03,000
Range is hot.

578
00:35:06,000 --> 00:35:10,000
Firing into an 88 inch radius tube.

579
00:35:10,000 --> 00:35:13,000
Three, two, one.

580
00:35:15,000 --> 00:35:16,000
Looks like it came out.

581
00:35:16,000 --> 00:35:18,000
And I can see where it hit.

582
00:35:18,000 --> 00:35:19,000
Uh-huh.

583
00:35:24,000 --> 00:35:28,000
Wow, I had no idea it would be so pristine.

584
00:35:28,000 --> 00:35:33,000
Look at that, it's a nice little flat on it where it slid around the pipe.

585
00:35:34,000 --> 00:35:39,000
So a bullet can at least slide around steel and return with a vengeance.

586
00:35:39,000 --> 00:35:44,000
It penetrated 14 and a half inches, which would cripple the shooter.

587
00:35:46,000 --> 00:35:51,000
Our first and shallowest bend on the pipe gave us 622 feet per second as an exit speed,

588
00:35:51,000 --> 00:35:53,000
which means it was fully lethal.

589
00:35:53,000 --> 00:35:57,000
Not only that, but if you look at how far it went in this ballistics gel,

590
00:35:57,000 --> 00:36:01,000
if it hit me this way, it would have gone clean through me.

591
00:36:06,000 --> 00:36:09,000
So now to ramp up to a fitting finale.

592
00:36:09,000 --> 00:36:14,000
The machines redeployed to give maximum curve for their bending butt.

593
00:36:14,000 --> 00:36:18,000
The plan is to wrestle the pipe almost back in a circle.

594
00:36:18,000 --> 00:36:22,000
23 inch radius.

595
00:36:22,000 --> 00:36:24,000
That's pretty tight.

596
00:36:24,000 --> 00:36:25,000
That's pretty tight.

597
00:36:26,000 --> 00:36:31,000
More friction decreases the chance of success, but they're both optimistic.

598
00:36:31,000 --> 00:36:33,000
Let's go see how it fits.

599
00:36:33,000 --> 00:36:34,000
I think it's going to work.

600
00:36:34,000 --> 00:36:36,000
I'm feeling so good about this.

601
00:36:37,000 --> 00:36:41,000
In fact, Adam's so fired up, he offers himself as the target.

602
00:36:41,000 --> 00:36:43,000
Well, kinda.

603
00:36:45,000 --> 00:36:46,000
Range is hot.

604
00:36:46,000 --> 00:36:52,000
46 inch diameter pipe coming all the way back around in three, two, one.

605
00:36:54,000 --> 00:36:55,000
Did it go through?

606
00:36:55,000 --> 00:36:57,000
You've got a hole in your chest there, buddy.

607
00:37:00,000 --> 00:37:06,000
If bad guy Adam actually had a heart, he now has a hole in it.

608
00:37:07,000 --> 00:37:09,000
We've still got 10 and a half inches.

609
00:37:09,000 --> 00:37:13,000
Alright, well, the final speed will be determined by the high-speed camera.

610
00:37:17,000 --> 00:37:23,000
We got a final exit speed, 338 feet per second.

611
00:37:23,000 --> 00:37:24,000
Yes.

612
00:37:24,000 --> 00:37:25,000
A kill shot.

613
00:37:25,000 --> 00:37:27,000
That would be a kill shot.

614
00:37:27,000 --> 00:37:29,000
Well, potentially lethal.

615
00:37:30,000 --> 00:37:31,000
Nice work.

616
00:37:32,000 --> 00:37:33,000
I'm all happy now.

617
00:37:35,000 --> 00:37:38,000
There's no doubt it's a stunning result.

618
00:37:39,000 --> 00:37:43,000
But we know that the myth has meandered somewhat from its ricochet roots.

619
00:37:44,000 --> 00:37:46,000
But what's the takeaway from this myth?

620
00:37:46,000 --> 00:37:49,000
Well, we know that people get killed by ricochets.

621
00:37:49,000 --> 00:37:50,000
That's not the point.

622
00:37:50,000 --> 00:37:54,000
The point is that a bullet bouncing off three surfaces, bing, bing, bing,

623
00:37:54,000 --> 00:37:57,000
and killing someone is totally busted.

624
00:37:58,000 --> 00:38:00,000
Maybe we should have yelled timber.

625
00:38:00,000 --> 00:38:06,000
And still to come, mankind's most spectacular descent from the trees in two million years.

626
00:38:14,000 --> 00:38:17,000
Back at the scene of their last public failure,

627
00:38:17,000 --> 00:38:23,000
our corpse catapulters are buoyed by the fact that they're now more tree-savvy.

628
00:38:23,000 --> 00:38:27,000
Now, the last time we were out in the forest, we used a California gray pine.

629
00:38:27,000 --> 00:38:30,000
Unfortunately, that test was completely unsuccessful.

630
00:38:32,000 --> 00:38:35,000
So we went back to the shop and we found using small-scale tests

631
00:38:35,000 --> 00:38:38,000
that a Douglas fir is going to be the perfect tree for this job.

632
00:38:44,000 --> 00:38:48,000
Well, guys, that right there is the perfect Douglas fir.

633
00:38:48,000 --> 00:38:50,000
And this layout is perfect.

634
00:38:50,000 --> 00:38:54,000
I mean, it gives us plenty of room to bend the tree back and plenty of room to throw buster.

635
00:38:54,000 --> 00:38:56,000
Let's just get them up there and start flinging them.

636
00:38:56,000 --> 00:38:58,000
Now hang on a minute. We need a castle.

637
00:38:58,000 --> 00:39:00,000
Oh, we got a castle.

638
00:39:00,000 --> 00:39:02,000
And I think you're going to love it.

639
00:39:04,000 --> 00:39:08,000
The castles inflated exactly 100 feet away from the tree.

640
00:39:08,000 --> 00:39:14,000
That's the minimum historical distance we could verify between a fortification and a forest.

641
00:39:16,000 --> 00:39:21,000
To mark off the height of the parapet, balloons are deployed on the end of a 40-foot string.

642
00:39:24,000 --> 00:39:28,000
Then the team pulls together to strip back the branches.

643
00:39:31,000 --> 00:39:33,000
Maybe we should have yelled Timber.

644
00:39:33,000 --> 00:39:35,000
Timber!

645
00:39:35,000 --> 00:39:37,000
Might be a little late now.

646
00:39:39,000 --> 00:39:41,000
We just cut off the crown.

647
00:39:41,000 --> 00:39:44,000
You can tell already how much more spring this tree has.

648
00:39:44,000 --> 00:39:46,000
This thing might go far.

649
00:39:47,000 --> 00:39:53,000
To help ensure buster's smooth release, Jesse's built him a man-sized metal backplate.

650
00:39:53,000 --> 00:39:55,000
All right, Jesse, what do you think?

651
00:39:55,000 --> 00:39:57,000
Think he's going to release out of that tree?

652
00:39:57,000 --> 00:40:00,000
According to all of our small-scale tests, absolutely.

653
00:40:00,000 --> 00:40:09,000
With the body secured, the ropes are attached in the hope that our man can go the distance.

654
00:40:12,000 --> 00:40:13,000
The Odey!

655
00:40:18,000 --> 00:40:21,000
Now as you can tell, there are two lines attached to this tree.

656
00:40:21,000 --> 00:40:23,000
We have the pool line and the tether line.

657
00:40:23,000 --> 00:40:29,000
Now we learned from our small-scale tests that the best launch we're going to get is if the tree stops just before birth.

658
00:40:29,000 --> 00:40:31,000
Good luck, buster!

659
00:40:31,000 --> 00:40:33,000
We're our only hope!

660
00:40:34,000 --> 00:40:37,000
Buster hangs 70 feet above the forest floor.

661
00:40:37,000 --> 00:40:41,000
The castle's a clear and distant 100 feet out in front.

662
00:40:41,000 --> 00:40:47,000
It's the biggest tree on the lot, so if this won't do it, nothing will.

663
00:40:48,000 --> 00:40:50,000
Okay, Jesse, the force meter's all set.

664
00:40:50,000 --> 00:40:52,000
You can go ahead and tension up.

665
00:40:53,000 --> 00:40:58,000
We're going to go to really low speeds so we don't jolt buster out of the tree before he's ready to jump.

666
00:40:59,000 --> 00:41:01,000
He's ready to be flung.

667
00:41:03,000 --> 00:41:06,000
Tori decides that the cord is best cut from up high.

668
00:41:08,000 --> 00:41:10,000
Okay, we're at 1,000 pounds.

669
00:41:11,000 --> 00:41:15,000
The tension mounts as the... well, as the tension mounts.

670
00:41:16,000 --> 00:41:18,000
We're at 2,400 pounds, that's it!

671
00:41:19,000 --> 00:41:23,000
So we have the tree bent back, we're at 2,400 pounds, and that's it, it's maxing out.

672
00:41:23,000 --> 00:41:26,000
We keep pulling the tree back and there's no more pounds of pressure.

673
00:41:26,000 --> 00:41:28,000
I think we're ready to launch this tree.

674
00:41:29,000 --> 00:41:31,000
So it's all down to this.

675
00:41:31,000 --> 00:41:35,000
And remember that so far, busters done no more than fall off his perch.

676
00:41:36,000 --> 00:41:40,000
Here we go, launching in three, two, one!

677
00:41:48,000 --> 00:41:52,000
Against all predictions, busters arrived at the castle gate.

678
00:41:53,000 --> 00:41:54,000
Yeah!

679
00:41:55,000 --> 00:41:59,000
But he's fallen just short of infecting the enemy.

680
00:42:00,000 --> 00:42:02,000
We applied everything we learned for the small scale.

681
00:42:02,000 --> 00:42:06,000
We cut off the limbs, we cut off the crown, we even tethered the tree.

682
00:42:06,000 --> 00:42:09,000
We cut the rope and buster flew.

683
00:42:09,000 --> 00:42:11,000
We turned a tree into a catapult.

684
00:42:12,000 --> 00:42:13,000
Tori's excited.

685
00:42:14,000 --> 00:42:17,000
Can he get over to the castle but he made it to the front door?

686
00:42:17,000 --> 00:42:20,000
But just how does one measure success?

687
00:42:20,000 --> 00:42:24,000
Sadly for him and us, we have set some benchmarks.

688
00:42:27,000 --> 00:42:29,000
Now let's look at this realistically though guys.

689
00:42:29,000 --> 00:42:32,000
I mean we gave this myth the best chance possible.

690
00:42:32,000 --> 00:42:36,000
We put a castle as close to the tree as we could find any historical reference for.

691
00:42:36,000 --> 00:42:38,000
And we cut off all the branches.

692
00:42:38,000 --> 00:42:42,000
Yeah, by the time we do that, they would have picked us off from the castle.

693
00:42:42,000 --> 00:42:46,000
And not only that, we pulled that tree back to 2,400 pounds as much as it could handle.

694
00:42:46,000 --> 00:42:49,000
How many ancient horses and troops would that have taken?

695
00:42:49,000 --> 00:42:52,000
Alright, but we did manage to turn a tree into a catapult.

696
00:42:52,000 --> 00:42:57,000
But as far as the myth goes, we weren't able to launch them 100 feet over a 40 foot castle wall.

697
00:42:57,000 --> 00:42:58,000
So this was busted.

698
00:42:59,000 --> 00:43:00,000
It's busted.

699
00:43:00,000 --> 00:43:01,000
Busted.

700
00:43:01,000 --> 00:43:02,000
We did get over the moat.

701
00:43:02,000 --> 00:43:03,000
Oh yeah.

702
00:43:03,000 --> 00:43:04,000
And we have a bouncy castle.

703
00:43:04,000 --> 00:43:05,000
Yeah!

704
00:43:05,000 --> 00:43:06,000
Woo hoo!

705
00:43:15,000 --> 00:43:16,000
You want more?

706
00:43:16,000 --> 00:43:17,000
We've got more!

707
00:43:17,000 --> 00:43:22,000
Log on to Discovery.com slash Mythbusters and jump in!