Its RPG shaped because it looks better than a square ended tube. (click to enlarge)
Essentially it's a pipe sealed at one end and inside it is another pipe sealed at the opposite end.
The internal pipe is a reuseable hybrid chamber and projectile. The forward end is sealed and the rear end is semi-sealed with a burst disk. It is charged before use with valves in the nose under the "rpg" tip.
To fire it there are two metal bands around the inner tube, these make contact with two low voltage power supply sprung contacts in the outer tube walls. When the contacts are made, a circuit is made and a bulb lights up to confirm electrical contact.
Actual firing is made by pressing two switches. The first disconnects the low voltage power supply and the bulb. It also connects up a high voltage circuit to the metal bands.
The second switch switches on the high voltage circuit which electrifies the metal bands and two metal electrodes which go from the bands into the chamber and arc to ignite the mix.
The burst disk at the rear of the inner pipe ruptures and with all the trapped gas behind it, the inner tube is blasted out.
Bonuses of this design are:
Quickfire ammo. You just slide a charged shell into the launcher and pull the trigger.
A really impressive looking design that betrays nothing of how it works externally if constructed properly.
A VERY big projectile that needs less stabilising from a barrel because it is in fact quite like a rocket - all the gas is being released from inside it even after exiting the launch tube.
It won't really be for destructive messing about because each projectile will be rather more expensive than usual. They are however reuseable after resealing with a new burst disk and recharging with gas and air.
I might or might not make it but I felt like sharing it anyway.
thats if you make it rite. any way looks perty sweet on paper.
