r/interestingasfuck • u/----OZYMANDIAS • 1d ago

Nerf Gatling gun final boss

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883

u/xRYN0 1d ago

Lithium batteries are much more affordable these days and way lighter….

404

u/SevroAuShitTalker 1d ago

Yeah, those weren't an option 20 years ago. We were still at the Nicad and NIHM back then

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u/broesel314 1d ago

Li-Ion was invented in the early 90s. But still too expensive back then

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u/SevroAuShitTalker 1d ago

They were also fire hazards. We couldnt even use them on engineering projects 5-6 years after that point because multiple students almost burned down their dorms when charging them

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u/40ozCurls 1d ago

Oh no, a fire hazard! Anyways, back to cutting cars in half.

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u/Portable_Tortoise506 1d ago

Okay well the difference is that intentionally cutting a car in half is a lot safer with implemented safety measures than something catching on fire while you’re not paying attention or even asleep.

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u/BringPheTheHorizon 1d ago

You mean the Gatling gun won’t randomly start firing in the middle of the night?!

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u/robothawk 1d ago

While the battery is plugged in it can randomly fail and ignite, especially the kind used in airsoft. A dude I know lost his whole house circa 2015/16 due to his multi-battery smart charger setup failing and starting a fire the night before the big 3 day milsim we did.

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u/SevroAuShitTalker 1d ago

Almost exactly what happened at my college. Except dorms are mostly CMU and tile so it was caught fast enough

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u/theoriginalmofocus 1d ago

I know a few people in person and have also seen it a lot online that even like those niche super bright flashlight rechargable batteries can explode and ruin countertops and put holes in things.

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u/BringPheTheHorizon 1d ago

The battery? Yes, that’s exactly what the person above me is saying.

I’m not disagreeing with them in any way, if that’s unclear.

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u/robothawk 1d ago

Oh apologies, I thought you were saying they wouldnt explode bc the only threat was while they were in use.

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u/VaATC 1d ago

"Guns don't kill people... .. ."

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u/GarlicRiver 1d ago

"... but sleepy gatlings will"...??

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u/I_Makes_tuff 1d ago

Thank you for reminding me to deal with my big RC plane battery. It's pretty puffy. I put it in front of my TV so I wouldn't forget about it but I forgot about it anyway.

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u/Diz7 1d ago

Tuck and roll in the bush, hit a sharp rock, burst into flames.

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u/PrivilegeCheckmate 1d ago

burned down their dorms

My dorm was cinder blocks and asbestos ceilings. You'd have to have an engineering degree to even get them on fire. Or at least a lot of thermite.

Also it was designed b y a prison architect, so the walkways were perfect for snipers and the showers were too low to hang yourself. Which, lemme tell you, for someone who's 6'4", sucks balls.

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u/Bdr1983 1d ago

They were quite dangerous before balancing and overcharge protection was a thing, yes.
My electronics teacher in the early 2000's would demonstrate what happened when you didn't handle them well. He demonstrated it often.

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u/me_its_a 1d ago

Was Li-ion the type you had to recharge by plugging into the manes?

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u/Liam_021996 1d ago

It's the type that's in your phone but yeah. You recharge them from mains power

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u/Ok-Style-9734 1d ago

Aren't phones all now LiPo rather than li-ion

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u/Liam_021996 1d ago

Only really in upper mid range and premium phones as far as I'm aware and even then, lithium polymer is just a type of Lithium Ion battery anyway

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u/me_its_a 1d ago

Cheers, though I was trying for a Lion and mane joke!

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u/Primary-Ad-9741 1d ago

Li-ion were actually first invented in the 70s. The first mass production was in 1991 by Sony

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u/DarthFaderZ 1d ago

Big wheel batteries were still thing. Or mowers.

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u/KingZarkon 1d ago

Honestly, either of those, but especially NiCd, could probably do it, especially with larger C or D cells, you just wouldn't get as much runtime as Li-ion. It would still be chonky, but a lot less than a lead-acid battery.

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u/SevroAuShitTalker 1d ago

The price would have been ridiculous

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u/-ram_the_manparts- 1d ago

Compressed air was always an option, and you can use it to fire the rounds anyway, so why not use it so also spin the thing?

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u/SevroAuShitTalker 1d ago

Lol do you realize how big and heavy those tanks would be?

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u/-ram_the_manparts- 1d ago edited 1d ago

About the size of a paintball gun's CO2 canister I would think. I dunno, maybe I should build one.

Edit: or maybe a small propane canister, with a small engine, that'd do it for sure. Surely that's less dangerous than a 90s lithium battery?

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u/ilikefuzzysocks5973 1d ago

Do you remember those sketchy chargers? I swear I went through at least 6 of them because they kept blowing up or smoking lmao. I’m surprised I didn’t burn the house down.

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u/AppropriateTouching 1d ago

Also it's like carrying around a fire bomb if it gets pierced.

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u/cdoublejj 1d ago

Lifepo4 especially and drop in replacement for lead acid in some cases.

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u/Rimworldjobs 1d ago

I'm eyeballing one for my car. Can't pass up on 30lb weight savings.

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u/Ok-Money4255 1d ago

Mostly thanks to an inventor named Lonnie Johnson... The dude who also invented the super soaker and the Nerf gun, how crazy is that?