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Just a little project Im working on with my sons.

Materials

Tapering the end of the tube with a sander cuts the skin right off the zuchinni

Gluing parts together

Assembling the handle

ignition system.

Loading the zuchinni

Still dialing it in but best trials indicate you can feed the fish from 40 or more yards away.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJsa390tywo

Your NUTS I used potatoes in mine

I found that lemons and limes work best, especially the more rounded limes.
They are more malleable than most fruits and veggies and fit tightly without having to be "barrel trimmed" like potatoes and zukes.
Their oily coating also aids in loading and lubes the barrel. We bring a small piece of PVC to the market so we can buy the most appropriately sized citrus.
The ballistic characteristics of citrus also translates into better accuracy and greater distance. I won't tell how far we have shot limes, out of fear that no one would believe me. Suffice to say, there is no way to describe the distance without using expletives.
Additionally, repeated firing of citrus results in a pleasant aroma lingering over your firing position.

Lemons!great idea!I was thinking corn,lots of corn around here.
It did embed a yukon gold in the archery target!
Still figuring it out some blasts are just pops,a few bang like an m80
What did you guys use as propellant?Im using starter fluid.A coworker said he had best results with propane from the bbq tank.

We experimented with many different propellants, including a concoction created for us by an amused engineer.
I believe hair spray was one of the top contenders if not the winner.

Oxygen is critical, after each shot you want to purge the chamber of the combusted gases so it replenishes the oxygen. That should cut down on the "pops" and give you more law enforcement attention.

Lemons are real good, but a nice round lime is the best we found. The ballistic profile of a tight fitting lime will give you the best distance and the undisputed best accuracy...along with a summer fresh aroma.

Aint it way more easy to just throw the dam thing in the pond with your arm

Vinny, there is a long tradition of veggie chucking here in the USA. Until you've fired a potato cannon, you won't get it. I know a guy that had a propane powered potato cannon made of steel pipe. He could shoot a tater all the way across the corn field.

One of these day I'm going to the Pumpkin Chuck'n championships.

I though this was about feeding the fish. my bad. We used to put M 80's in a metal pipe and shoot golf balls out of it

Cruelsun and I have been musing for more than a decade about entering the competition. Long before we even knew about the competition, we were disusing the construction of a trebuchet. Hurling things (especially produce) with great bias (and medieval siege engines) is a passion we both share. The first time Cruelsun saw my backyard, I believe his exact words were..."We could build a trebuchet in a backyard like this".

Judging by how well we designed and constructed my fishroom, I have little doubt we could build one heck of a trebuchet. I have even less doubt that someone would certainly wind up in the hospital with severe injuries and we would both end up with legal difficulties stemming from trajectory deviations.

A trebuchet!Cool.I have a few bowling balls I got free a few years ago with a trbuchet or catapult in mind.You know to teach the kids advanced math and physics!