you can turn a mousetrap like this into
a fun little handgun that will shoot
projectiles with power and precision in
this video we’ll be converting these
traps into affordable little firearms
[Music]
you
[Music]
I picked up this 2-pack of traps for
only 98 cents these are the Tomcat brand
and I chose them because of this yellow
bait pad that I’ll be using later I got
a piece of two by two and cut it to the
height of four fingers and that’s going
to be my handle to modify these traps
we’ll get them out of the packaging and
start by removing the bait pad from this
heavy-duty support staple and setting it
to the side using some needlenose pliers
we can remove the staple from the base
and grab a marker we’re going to need to
place some dots over the cat’s
heel bone the elbow and one where the
ear meets the eye a drill in an eighth
inch bit will help turn those dots into
holes that should end up looking like
this I’ve got two screws from a door
hinge that will work well for fastening
the trap onto the top of the wood handle
the back overhangs about quarter-inch
and when the screws are set the trap is
secure now the locking pin will need to
be shortened so holding it over the
spring and looking down from the top a
mark is made so that it lines up just
past the remaining hole the snips and my
pliers will cut that to size and I’m
double-checking that the length is good
by holding it next to the hole it’s
pretty much flush with the edge so I’ll
finish it off by bending the tip back
just a touch so it angles up at about 45
degrees the other trap still has a
locking pin that can be easily removed
and used to help form the trigger for
the pistol this hole is just large
enough to allow the trigger to pivot
freely on the top side I’ll cut the pin
flush with the spring and then bend it
over forming a hook shape this will
prevent it from slipping back through
the hole there’s only one thing left to
do and that’s to add this launching pad
so with the hooks facing up it gets
clipped onto the trap hammer and slid
all the way to the right side then we
simply lift the hammer up and tuck the
pad inward so it lays down flat on the
platform this mousetrap handgun is
finished and ready for testing setting
the firing mechanism works about the
same as setting the trap only this time
we push the trigger up from the bottoms
the hook slides over the locking pin
catching it in place it’s a three-step
process to pull the hammer back set the
pin and secure it with the trigger hook
by squeezing the trigger gently you can
watch the catch slide off the pin
causing the gun to fire
it’s time to add some ammo and these
airsoft BB’s hold perfectly in the
center groove a quick test proves a fire
straight ahead so I’ve made a little
target for practice these things are
pretty fast and I’m a little surprised
the pellets aren’t penetrating the paper
even when shot at close range to address
that problem I’m putting pellets on
every hole to attempt a shotgun approach
that’s a lot more dramatic and the
spread is about 70 degrees so it’s
obviously more effective closer up with
a bit of practice it’s pretty easy to
set but if you’re feeling lazy you could
just hold the hammer back with your
thumb and release when you feel like it
this also opens up an option for a
rapid-fire approach make sure you stay
well back when firing because there’s a
real danger of losing an eye when the
locking pin snaps back and hits you all
right for a little variety I placed a
penny on the launch pad and it’s a
powerful shot back at my makeshift
target range I’m interested to see if
the penny does any better than the
airsoft BB’s and that’s a definite yes
the gun shoots straight ahead by moving
the ammo forward on the pad because the
targets are lower and this is
essentially a handheld mini catapult
it’s obvious that the coins get the job
done and are surprisingly consistent by
sliding the penny further back the
launch angle is shifted upward and
targets higher up can be hit even when
the gun is held level I experimented
with other sources of ammunition like
this metal washer a glass pebble a
bracelet bead bottle cap and found that
pretty much anything small and dense
like a little stone gave satisfying
results I made some more guns and
painted this one black because I like
how that contrasted against the yellow
launch pad well now you know how to make
a powerful handheld mousetrap gun or
maybe two if you’re feeling ambitious
that’s it for this project if you
enjoyed this video please like comment
and share with your friends I appreciate
your support thanks for watching
[Music]
a fun little handgun that will shoot
projectiles with power and precision in
this video we’ll be converting these
traps into affordable little firearms
[Music]
you
[Music]
I picked up this 2-pack of traps for
only 98 cents these are the Tomcat brand
and I chose them because of this yellow
bait pad that I’ll be using later I got
a piece of two by two and cut it to the
height of four fingers and that’s going
to be my handle to modify these traps
we’ll get them out of the packaging and
start by removing the bait pad from this
heavy-duty support staple and setting it
to the side using some needlenose pliers
we can remove the staple from the base
and grab a marker we’re going to need to
place some dots over the cat’s
heel bone the elbow and one where the
ear meets the eye a drill in an eighth
inch bit will help turn those dots into
holes that should end up looking like
this I’ve got two screws from a door
hinge that will work well for fastening
the trap onto the top of the wood handle
the back overhangs about quarter-inch
and when the screws are set the trap is
secure now the locking pin will need to
be shortened so holding it over the
spring and looking down from the top a
mark is made so that it lines up just
past the remaining hole the snips and my
pliers will cut that to size and I’m
double-checking that the length is good
by holding it next to the hole it’s
pretty much flush with the edge so I’ll
finish it off by bending the tip back
just a touch so it angles up at about 45
degrees the other trap still has a
locking pin that can be easily removed
and used to help form the trigger for
the pistol this hole is just large
enough to allow the trigger to pivot
freely on the top side I’ll cut the pin
flush with the spring and then bend it
over forming a hook shape this will
prevent it from slipping back through
the hole there’s only one thing left to
do and that’s to add this launching pad
so with the hooks facing up it gets
clipped onto the trap hammer and slid
all the way to the right side then we
simply lift the hammer up and tuck the
pad inward so it lays down flat on the
platform this mousetrap handgun is
finished and ready for testing setting
the firing mechanism works about the
same as setting the trap only this time
we push the trigger up from the bottoms
the hook slides over the locking pin
catching it in place it’s a three-step
process to pull the hammer back set the
pin and secure it with the trigger hook
by squeezing the trigger gently you can
watch the catch slide off the pin
causing the gun to fire
it’s time to add some ammo and these
airsoft BB’s hold perfectly in the
center groove a quick test proves a fire
straight ahead so I’ve made a little
target for practice these things are
pretty fast and I’m a little surprised
the pellets aren’t penetrating the paper
even when shot at close range to address
that problem I’m putting pellets on
every hole to attempt a shotgun approach
that’s a lot more dramatic and the
spread is about 70 degrees so it’s
obviously more effective closer up with
a bit of practice it’s pretty easy to
set but if you’re feeling lazy you could
just hold the hammer back with your
thumb and release when you feel like it
this also opens up an option for a
rapid-fire approach make sure you stay
well back when firing because there’s a
real danger of losing an eye when the
locking pin snaps back and hits you all
right for a little variety I placed a
penny on the launch pad and it’s a
powerful shot back at my makeshift
target range I’m interested to see if
the penny does any better than the
airsoft BB’s and that’s a definite yes
the gun shoots straight ahead by moving
the ammo forward on the pad because the
targets are lower and this is
essentially a handheld mini catapult
it’s obvious that the coins get the job
done and are surprisingly consistent by
sliding the penny further back the
launch angle is shifted upward and
targets higher up can be hit even when
the gun is held level I experimented
with other sources of ammunition like
this metal washer a glass pebble a
bracelet bead bottle cap and found that
pretty much anything small and dense
like a little stone gave satisfying
results I made some more guns and
painted this one black because I like
how that contrasted against the yellow
launch pad well now you know how to make
a powerful handheld mousetrap gun or
maybe two if you’re feeling ambitious
that’s it for this project if you
enjoyed this video please like comment
and share with your friends I appreciate
your support thanks for watching
[Music]
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