>> Bill I don't mean to...
>> Just ask him.
>> Bill are you holding...
>> It's a human head, isn't it?
>> What, no, that's just ridiculous, no.
>> It's very head shaped.
We're going to get the channel shut down for this.
[laughter]
[upbeat music]
>> ROBOTIC VOICE: Improving the potato cannon
and a waging war still burns.
>> All right, we're here with Bill Doran
from punishedprops.com
>> An intergalactic arms dealer,
and I hear, best friend to Adam Savage.
As you keep telling us, over and over again.
>> We've had a couple of moments.
>> But did Adam Savage make a tank?
>> No. >> Did he improvise a tank?
>> Actually...
>> He probably did, yeah.
Mythbusters did it.
[laughing]
>> Tell us about how ours was better.
>> It was top notch.
>> Go on.
>> The glitter, it was more pink.
>> But for what we had, I thought we did pretty good.
We built a potato cannon,
we strapped it to a jeep,
thought we destroyed that changeling,
and then it comes back looking like you!
>> I will not stand for this! I will not stand for this.
Who's side are you on Bill?
[laughing] >> It was so much fun!
You got a life cast out of you.
We created another Jason head.
>> BILL: We made the nerf version.
>> BRIAN: Yep.
>> BILL: We made the gelatinous version, the ballistics gel.
>> BRIAN: Yeah, that's right.
Complete with a fiberglass skull on the inside.
I couldn't believe that I ate the gelatin.
[laughing]
>> I could >> I believe it a little bit
>> I could totally believe that.
>> The ballistics gel,
it only has skin like properties at certain temperatures.
Which is why it has to be on ice.
>> Right, if it gets too hot
it will get more jelly like and start to melt.
>> Now we just need to see
if we can get the most power off our potato gun.
>> Yeah, this is the part where we tip our hats
to the commenters who all had, shall we say,
constructive criticism.
>> JASON: Yes.
>> About our techniques.
Let's give it a try.
>> Yeah, let's do it.
>> So the first criticism we got is very valid.
People were saying we had to clean it out,
and we found out when we got here,
we couldn't open this,
because all of the hairspray had gathered
right down in the bottom in there.
>> JASON: Well think about how sticky hairspray is
and now you got this residue collecting
and it just seals it shut.
>> I didn't even think about the fact
that once we were done shooting it
we just set it on a shelf, and so of course
all of that ooze gathered down at the bottom.
>> It's probably on the ends of your zapper there.
>> Yeah, that's another one people said,
is make sure to clean the contacts
so that it always fires that spark.
Is hairspray water soluble?
>> Yeah, yeah.
You should be able to use damp cloth, wipe it down.
>> All right hold on.
Here, give that a go. >> A lot of it in there.
>> If you want to get aggressive
you could use a solvent like acetone or something,
but this should be fine.
>> Man, it was so stuck though.
>> It's not even getting in there very well.
We're going to need like --
>> What about your knife?
Can you scrape it out?
>> Just scrape it out, yeah.
>> You're the prop mas...
don't trust me with the knife,
you kidding me.
>> Oh here, Jesus.
[laughing]
>> Murphy's going to be a lot better
[laughing]
>> Oh down in the threads. >> Yeah.
>> You guys really shouldn't...
You should've washed this before you put it away.
>> Thanks dad.
>> That's not coming out.
>> No? >> No.
>> Wait, you told me it was water soluble.
So thank you commenters, you were very much correct.
>> Yeah.
Instead we just left it stuffed full of hairspray
and potato residue,
and just put it on the shelf. >> I still have not
cleaned my car since then.
It's covered in potato dust. >> Oh my god.
>> It's coming out.
>> Okay good.
>> It just had to soften to like a jelly.
>> All right, while he's doing that,
the other criticism we got was on our tamping stick.
>> Right.
>> Not only were we not pushing the potato
all the way down to the chamber,
but also, we had no padding on it,
so we're just crushing the potatoes.
>> Yeah we kept lacerating it
and when you're breaking up your potato,
if air is getting through between here and your potato
then it's going to screw with your pressure that's building.
>> Plus we weakened the ordinance,
so when it did fire it just flopped.
French fries came out basically.
>> We did have a lot of french fries, yeah.
One of the things that people were talking about
was putting the spray in
and then tamping it down to build up pressure.
>> Yeah, that one makes me nervous
but I guess we'll give it a try.
Because the way we did it,
we had the potato here,
and we had the chamber, a fuel air mixture,
exactly this size.
But if you put the potato in the front,
then fill it with the fuel air mixture,
you have this much, you tamp it down.
Now it's not only a fuel air mixture,
but it's compressed which makes it a lot more powerful.
Makes me a lot more scared
[laughing]
>> It's pressurized.
I don't think we're going to have
any sort of ruptured PVC or anything like that.
I say that until we're in the ER.
>> Oh and it's true,
there are fuel mixtures that are way more powerful
than PVC can handle.
>> Oh yeah, give it a shot.
>> It looks better, question mark.
Come on baby, come on Charlotte.
>> All the way?
>> All the way.
>> Good!
>> Good job Bill Doran!
>> Woo!
>> Yay!
>> Okay, and hopefully as we re-thread all this it'll...
Oh it's certainly soluble to itself,
we should have sprayed hairspray in there.
>> I mean, whatever.
[laughing]
>> I'll tell you what let's just do a test fire.
>> Let's just do a test right now.
>> Okay, with potato?
Or dry fire? >> With potato and hairspray.
>> Okay, all right.
Oh that's going to push it right into the chamber.
Look at these potatoes.
>> Those are big potatoes.
>> Not only are they big potatoes,
but they are shockingly bullet shaped.
Every single one of these
looks like they are meant to be fired from this thing.
>> Yeah, the other ones we had were closer to spheres,
and that was problematic.
>> So, here, you want it to go this far.
>> Yeah, Bill.
[laughing]
>> All right, here.
You load it in the front and tamp it down.
>> All right.
>> Did you have a [laughs]
>> Well, uh, this will not --
>> We may need your knife, Bill.
>> Okay.
>> This is going to work so much better.
>> Bullet carver Bill.
That's what they call me.
>> Back in the russet wars.
Bullet carver bill.
[laughing]
Return the tides. >> Back in the russet wars!
>> He returned the tide on many battles.
>> [laughs] the Ken Burns documentary.
Hello, do I write you from the potato fronts of Idaho,
my heart does wish for some meats.
[laughing]
>> My dearest Clara.
>> Four years of art school
and I'm carving a [bleep] shaped potato.
[laughing]
>> Well, that just means you're a modern rogue Bill.
>> So while he's doing that.
One of the other things that we need to try
is we were just going nuts spraying it on there
our fuel air mixture...
Stoichiometry everyone! >> Stoichiometry.
>> Shouting at us. >> Yeah.
>> Apparently less is more.
Just a little bitty spritz.
>> Uh, yeah, and they were also saying
spray it in there and sometimes the blow in after it
to make sure it gets mixed around
and you have the right oxygen fuel mixture.
>> Yeah, let's give that a try.
So we're tamping the potato.
Nice, Nice!
>> It looks good.
>> Is it firing?
>> Yeah it's firing every time.
So if it's wrong, it's because the fuel air mixtures wrong.
>> You're going to shoot it in an arc like that?
>> I just want to see it go far.
I'm going to do the tiniest spray >> Okay.
>> so that it's mostly air in there.
Ready?
That's super tiny.
>> Yeah, we were doing like two seconds.
>> Yeah.
[clicking]
>> I think maybe that was a little --
>> Yeah, all right so >> A little too cautious.
>> Maybe, should we do
the blowing trick that everyone was suggesting?
>> Yeah
>> So we'll do a generous and then
[blowing]
>> There we go.
>> So we know there's fuel in there and we know there's air.
>> Potato's already in there, go for it.
>> Here we go.
[clicking]
>> Man stoichiometry is bullshit.
[laughing]
>> I will say, when you sprayed it,
it looked like a lot of it came out the end.
>> Okay, let's clear it all the way out.
[blowing]
>> Okay.
>> And then we'll give it just a --
>> Like a one second?
>> Yeah, just --
>> Like a solid.
>> That wasn't enough
>> No, but...
I don't know, I think it might have been enough. [clicking]
[blowing]
>> You can smell it.
>> Yeah.
It's all out. All right, so a full second?
>> Yeah.
>> One Mississippi.
>> Here we go.
[all laughing and shouting]
>> It just doubled dogged over it.
See if you can find it, go Murphy go!
>> Not expecting it to work,
totally wasn't ready.
[laughing]
>> And it really did look like a double dog,
ruff, ruff, ruff, ruff.
>> That was an astonishing amount of kick.
[laughing]
How did it feel?
That was the first try too.
>> Yeah.
>> So the right thing seems to be...
So let's clear this.
>> You got it?
[all cheering]
>> Let's double check
and make sure it keeps working each time, because --
>> Do another try just like that?
>> The one Mississippi, yeah.
>> Okay.
>> We're hoping to replicate
the exact same results this time.
>> Okay.
>> Okay, ready and one Mississippi.
>> Are we going to arc it up again?
>> Yes.
>> Okay, so it was about a 45 degree angle.
>> Yeah, okay.
>> There we go.
>> And here we go.
[laughing]
>> I would...
I think we cracked it.
I think number one they're right,
we were...
And there was a breeze
I think it went into the wind this time.
>> It was almost as far.
It looks really close. >> All right, let's try it.
If we get three for three
I say we declare the fuel air mixture issue solved, right.
>> Okay.
>> One Mississippi.
All right. >> There we go.
And 3, 2, 1, firing.
[laughing]
>> That is 100% success.
Right?
>> A little bit farther.
>> Three for three!
>> Nicely done!
>> Three for three.
[laughing]
>> Well done, sir.
>> Okay so now let's try the spraying then the tamping.
>> That was our farthest one so far by a few feet.
>> Yeah, absolutely.
>> One Mississippi.
>> So we're going to have more...
I guess more oxygen.
>> I wonder if that will make it more volatile.
>> Tamping, and I will do this.
3, 2, 1.
[shouting]
That was I think the farthest.
I think it almost got to that wooden spool.
>> It hit the ridge.
>> Yeah, all right I'll put another potato in.
>> So we definitely solved
the stoichiometry problem with the hairspray,
but the other suggestion we got
was using starting fluid.
>> That seemed to be the common suggestion
that people said was really going to kick it up a notch.
>> Yeah it says here 50% ether.
The one thing I read online is like
you got to be really light touch on this
because it's so much more potent.
>> Yeah, okay.
>> So just a tiny little spritz.
>> Yeah. Here, you can be the spritz master MC.
>> All right, cool.
>> We already have a potato loaded and tamped.
>> Whoa, wow.
>> That seemed, uh...
>> Yeah, that comes out forcefully.
>> Okay, everyone move back a bit.
[laughing]
>> All right, 3, 2, 1.
[click]
Going to just keep hitting it.
[clicking]
All right,
I have a hunch that the wind took a lot of that out.
>> It seemed to billow back out as I sprayed it.
[spraying]
[clicking]
>> Do you feel your whole body flinching when he counts down?
[clicking]
>> No dice.
>> Huh.
>> It's got to be just that
this particular stuff has a different percentage mixture.
>> I don't think we got a full second on there,
if you want to call out --
>> A little bit longer?
>> Yeah, actually say one Mississippi really fast.
>> Oh!
I just breathed that in.
That was gross.
>> You okay?
[laughing]
>> One Mississippi.
>> Oh boy.
>> Yeah.
>> It's wet.
>> Dripping out, yeah.
>> 3, 2, 1.
[clicking]
[disappointed grunt]
All right.
I think we could spend all day
trying to figure this one out.
>> Yeah, let's just say that starter fluid probably works
but it's definitely trickier than hairspray.
I would say it's more important
that we find a consistent method to get it to fire, right?
>> Yeah.
And we're like the best at hairspray.
[laughing]
>> Now it's time for the big show.
All right, let's do this.
Are we loaded?
>> There is a potato in the barrel.
>> All right here, get the tamping stick out of the way.
One Mississippi.
>> Ready.
[thud]
[laughing]
>> It didn't blow it off!
>> He's fine!
>> He's immortal!
[laughing]
[thud]
>> Where'd the potato go?
>> It went that way
>> It went flying off to the side!
>> It didn't shatter at all though. I mean where did you --
>> Oh yeah, it fractured the fiberglass.
>> Oh, I didn't see that!
>> Oh did it?
>> Yeah!
>> Maybe it's not point blank enough.
Let's get him just nose in the barrel.
>> All right.
Do you want to --
>> I think we already had success, same game.
>> Same thing.
>> Closer, closer!
There it is!
[laughs]
>> Ready.
>> One Mississippi.
That was a slow one Mississippi.
I'm afraid I might have over done it.
>> Here we go, clear.
>> Ready.
>> Ready!
[thud]
[laughing]
>> It was raining potato all around us!
That was amazing!
[thud]
[laughing]
[thud]
[laughing]
[thud]
[laughing]
>> How did the potato end up looking?
>> [laughing] I don't think there's anything left.
>> I don't know where it went.
>> I mean, well, we already had two big chunks right.
>> You know what I think the real take away here is?
Your tank would have been better
if you had a three man crew.
>> Yeah.
>> Well there was a lot of struggling.
>> We were under alien mind control at the time,
you'll have to understand.
>> All right, so is it time? >> It's time to get the head.
>> Okay.
All right, so how's it feel Bill?
>> This is uh --
>> No, no, how's it feel?
>> Oh. [laughs] >> Feel.
Does it feel flesh like?
>> Oh, softer Bill.
>> Caress it.
>> I can feel it whenever you touch it.
>> Is it still nice and solid?
It's a bit warm out here.
>> Yeah it is, it is very firm.
It's starting to sweat a little bit, but...
But it feels pretty solid.
>> This is hard enough that I feel like
since it wasn't enough to crush the fiberglass,
I think since the skull is fiberglass as well --
>> It'll survive.
>> I think it's going to blast off part of the face.
>> I think it's going to take the nose off.
>> Yeah, that nose is gone.
>> so do we want to lower it to get all the gelatinous stuff,
or do you just want to... >> I think center mask.
>> Just center mask right there.
>> Yeah.
>> Eye socket.
>> I don't think it's going to do the damaged that we'd hoped.
>> Yeah, I think the head remains on.
I think if we're lucky it looks like the T1000,
it just sort of turns to you menacingly.
>> All right.
>> Ready and one Mississippi.
>> Right on the nose.
>> Ready?
>> Ready.
>> Yeah!
[clicking]
[disappointed grunt]
I screwed it up!
Old one Mississippi screwed it up.
>> Okay, that's okay.
[blowing]
>> So I'll try a faster Mississippi.
One Mississippi.
>> Ready?
>> Ready.
[thud]
>> Oh man!
That thing went flying back at us!
[laughing]
And it took off the head!
[laughing]
Oh my god!
>> He's blind.
>> He's blind, he bashed in his eye.
That dude's got nothing!
>> Did it damage the skull at all?
I don't think so.
>> Oh my god, it totally fractured the skull!
[laughing]
It destroyed...
This dude is dead!
>> Oh.
>> Holy shit this is deadly!
[laughing]
>> BRIAN: Oh man!
[thud]
>> Holy shit.
>> BILL: It went back, the potato went back this way.
>> BRIAN: Yeah, it's right...
I saw it on the ground.
[thud]
>> BILL: Oh whoa!
That was a torpedo right in the eyeball.
[thud]
the smooth face, >> Yeah.
>> BILL: glanced away,
that thing took the full amount of force.
Because it stopped and rebounded.
>> BRIAN: Yeah, well that's why it all fractured.
>> BILL: Yeah.
>> I just pulled potato out of the skull.
>> His eyes are totally gone.
He's got nothing but potato in there.
Hey guys, I'm beginning to think potato cannons are no joke.
>> Yeah, no kidding.
Old potato out here with degree.
>> Oh my god.
>> Oh man.
>> I can't believe that.
>> Oh my goodness,
look it goes all the way across his forehead.
>> I mean you're --
>> And look, all the way back here.
>> Oh wow!
>> I poked holes to get the gelatin all through there.
It did weaken it a little bit,
but still that's pretty legit right there.
>> This was a victory for the resistance.
[laughing]
>> Yeah, unfortunately the changeling still lives
but man, potato guns will kill a man.
>> Oh yeah.
>> There's a reason in Texas,
it's legit considered a firearm.
>> All right Bill,
where can people find more about you?
>> Everything that we do is over at punishedprops.com.
Prop and costume making, molding and casting,
videos, tutorials, and --
>> Showing up over at tested.com
>> Yeah, and I'm doing some really cool stuff with the crew
Adam Savage and Norm over at tested.
>> And me, I'll be at the chuckle hut on Tuesday.
[laughing]
I'll be wearing an eye patch.
And wearing a brace around my neck.
>> You think they'll let me take this on the plane?
_ I think you should send it to Adam Savage.
As a warning.
[laughing]