Post 4: Reflection and Recommendations

Post 1:
Our trebuchet was never shooting accurately before the challenge so we had no idea how it was going to shoot on performance day. It shot a lot better than we thought it would. We were fourth closest in our class at 0.69 meters from the target spot. We got three throws and 0.69 meters was the closest one.
To improve our trebuchet I would have used a sturdier bar to hold the arm. The one that we had couldn't handle the weight on it and sagged in the middle causing some problems. I would have also used a straighter piece of wood for the arm so it would shoot straighter- ours that we used was a little bit warped.
If I could have built a totally new trebuchet, I would have made it higher and not as long so the weight could have picked up more speed. I might've experimented with different pouches and string lengths.I think though that the use of wood for the trebuchet was a good idea- it was easy to build and supported the weight really well.

Post 2:
There were lots of things that went well on our trebuchet. The use of wood as the building material was a smart choice as well as an easy one. It made the building a lot easier but still supported the weight with ease. Our whole design worked really well. Other trebuches rocked a lot when they shot but ours stayed fairly solid on the ground. Our pouch and string length worked perfectly. We never had any trouble with the ball not staying in the pouch or not coming out of the pouch.
Recommendations for future trebuchet builders would be to make your trebuchet out of a material that is accessible and easy to work with for you. Don't make it harder than it needs to be. Also, don't be afraid to ask for help from someone who knows how to build with your material- it makes it way easier. For your pouch, try different styles and figure out what works best, same with the string length. Try not to get too frustrated if it doesn't work- troubles are bound to come up. Focus on working through it and getting it to shoot as good as you can. The biggest thing is if your trebuchet is shooting well and meeting requirements, don't change anything! Sometimes if you change one thing, it can throw everything off.