recipe for disaster...

Here's the list. Guess what i'm making.

3x 625g tins of rice pudding
2x small tins sweetcorn
2x value treacle sponges (in tins)
2x tins chopped tomatoes
1x can value grapfruit segments
(pic to follow)
No, its not a weird dessert for 15 people. It's my (Elliot's really, he'll be paying for it in the long run) jet engine.

Basically, sheet metal is a bitch to buy and form into tubes considering the closest I have to a (arc) welding kit is rusted solid and erratic enough to either not melt the stick or to melt through 3mm of metal at first contact, leaving a decent sized hole complete with flying chunks of molten metal. Welding anything as thin as the 1mm sheet steel I'd be using would be like trying to cut paper neatly with a schitzophrenic chainsaw.

My solution is to rivet and crimp and hose/jubilee clip (you know, the metal version of cable ties you do up with a screwdriver) the preformed cylinders into something vaguely resembling the pulse jet design I mentioned earlier. Like this. (pic to follow) The choice of cans was based on size and whether they would stack properly. And on whether I'd actually eat the contents; so much for my diet. i'll get some eating in and hopefully you'll see something kinda like a jet engine by this time on tuesday next week.

Beyond the problem of materials is getting a vapourised/nebulised/gaseous propellant into the engine. I'm either going to use BBQ/camping bottled gas as it comes with loads of safety features already fitted, or R/C car petrol which is badassly flammable and easily dispersed using a spraypaint gun. The ignition is one of those long kitchen lighters which will simply be wedged into the chamber, or a spark plug, whichever is cheaper/easier.

My lunch is over now, so anyone whose lunch isn't over (or is really bloody bored) go look up how to X-ref in autocad LT 2007 without it f***ing the f***ing hell up. And then tell me! Or just provide me with a bucket of patience and one of those stress relief squidgy shapes.

Peas out!