Sophomore Stories Part V "The Potato Gun"

When you first move into a dorm with a bunch of strangers, undoubtedly the best way to get to know your new hallmates is to unveil your homemade firearm. This certainly was the case for Grant and Brian. Grant and Brian are identical twins and they're both the type of guys who could engineer an erector set to change your oil filter or something...anyway, these twins were smart and creative and a little introverted, so brandishing a bazooka-like shoulder cannon was really the best thing they could do to break the ice.
The potato gun they made was constructed from white, 2-inch PVC pipe with an ignition switch about 3/4 of the way down. The way it worked was you unscrewed the cap on the short end, which exposed the back end of the ignition switch, and inserted 'fuel' (heretofore known as Right Guard aerosol deodorant with a warning label that read HIGHLY FLAMMABLE) then screwed the cap on quickly so no 'fuel' escaped.
Then a large potato was stuffed into the long end down toward the ignition switch in the same manner that a Civil War soldier would ram his ammunition inside the barrel of his rifle.
When the spud had sufficiently made its way in, you simply aimed and fired.
If you were able to trap enough 'fuel' the potato would often travel in excess of 100 ft. We took turns aiming for the backboards on the basketball court behind our dorm. Some shot from the hip, others fired with the gun on their shoulder as we slapped them on top of their head.
We made it through about a dozen potatoes before we ran out of ammo, then we took turns holding it and imagining what else we could stuff in there.
For some unknown reason, that was the last we ever saw of the potato gun, but like a lot of things that year, it was great fun while it lasted.