The
first year had 6 shows, with the same two "house" teams participating.
Again, the teams were assembled by the production company (again, with
the idea of some conflict within the team). They were identified
only by color (yellow and orange). Robert (alone) was the presenter
(host). The show was called "Scrapheap" (no challenge)
Shows (in what I think was the UK showing order)
Siege engines. Challenge was to construct machines that could fling vegetation (turnips and cabbages) at cardboard "castles" 50 meters away.
Power Pullers. The teams each built a pulling tractor, and the machines were chained together for a pulloff. This show has been shown in the US.
Diving rigs. A box "puzzle" was placed at the bottom of the London Aquarium, and the teams had to produce some sort of "diving helmet" to provide air to the divers for the estimated five minutes it would take to open the thing.
Powerboats. The two teams had to construct a boat that could retrieve the rest of the team, one person driving, one passenger (so they had to make 3 trips).
Off-road vehicles. Teams had to build 3 wheeled machines, which were raced on a closed course. All 4 team members had to drive for a full lap. (they were specifically told they couldn't use the quadbikes as a parts source.)
Rockets.
Using supplied high power packaged engines, they were to construct the
airframe. The machine had to carry an altitude telemetering system,
to judge highest altitude.
Cannon. Using the teams choice of black powder or cordite, goal was a target 150 meters distant. If teams had equal accuracy, the winner would be decided on muzzle velocity. "The Chemical Brothers" built a straightforward black powder cannon, using round ammo (from some decorative cast iron work). "The Brothers in Arms" built a cordite charged long barreled cannon, with a complex floating breech recoilless mechanism. Unfortunately their cylindrical projectiles tended to stick in the barrel, and they lost to the amateurs.
Land Yachts. 4 person sailing vehicles for land. Some real groaners from the "expert". The Megalomaniacs found a large piece of sail fabric, and despite trying hard to burn up their advantage, built a machine with a single large sail. Team "Driller Thrillers" (power tool designers), built a two masted machine. Unfortunately they didn't use sloop rigging so the sails tended to interfere with each other, and the meglomaniacs advanced to the semi-final. (not yet shown in the US)
Amphibians.
4 person machines that had to navigate on both land and water. The
team from the navy built a wheeled airboat. Bowsers Bodgers took
a land rover, stripped the body, added floatation and connected a water
propellor to the rear propellor shaft. The Navy Blues machine was
essentially uncontrollable, and lost by a significant margin.
Underwater Salvage. Each team had a (somewhat stripped) mini sitting 50 meters from shore in a fairly deep lake. (tho the vehicle itself was close to the surface). The first to lift it, (no dragging allowed) and convey it to a parking spot on the dock, won. The Chemical brothers built a "lift bag" system, the megalomaniacs, an enormous barge with jib crane. Unfortunately, the Chemical Brothers only had a hand pump to fill the cans, and that combined with some attachment "issues" meant that the Megs advanced to the final.
Final:
Walking
Machines. Navigate a non-straight course on the same tank testing grounds
used by the amphibian trial. One complication, no wheels allowed.
Bowsers team built a rather elegant "table" that used hydraulics to move
itself along. Inside mounted parallelograms could be toggled into
squares, lifting the "table". Separate hydraulic cylinders would
slide the table forward. The Megs welded a crank to each wheel of a small
4wd truck, and installed "feet". Steering was by a castered pad that
was against the ground when the feet were near TDC. This event was
unique, in that both teams broke. Some last minute welding of safety
covers managed to ruin the ignition system of the Bodgers machine (blown
condensor), and thus the engine barely ran, making them very slow.
The Megs thumped off briskly, but close to the finish, one of the feet
broke, rendering forward motion impossible. Prohibited from getting
off the machine to affect repairs, Nosher used his belt to lash the two
halves together, and they just barely made it over the finish line.
(Bowsers machine had been gaining while they pounded on their broken "foot",
but it didn't gain enough).
| Heat | Semi Final | Final |
| Brainy Bunch vs | ||
| In A Spin | In A Spin vs | |
| Navy Blues vs | Bowsers Bodgers | Bowsers Bodgers vs |
| Bowsers Bodgers | ||
| The Chemical Brothers vs | ||
| The Brothers in Arms | Chemical Brothers vs | Megalomaniacs |
| Driller Thrillers vs | Megalomaniacs | |
| Meglomaniacs |
The Challenges:
Starting off with a BANG, was Demolition, The Chaos Crews hydraulic cruncher vs. The Beach Boys battering ram. Next, The Mothers of Invention took on Three Revs a Minute, to see who could build the better bomber. Then its our turn -- An underwater chariot, competing against designers of undersea drilling gear, the Dipsticks. The following week, Techno Teachers build a windmill, and try it against the one built by the Manic Mechanics.
The Beach Boys having battered faster than Chaos chomped, build a launcher of missles, and
The quarter finals completed, it was time for the semi final rounds. The teams have each already won a round or two, so the teams should know their way around the pile. For the first semi, The Nerds took out The Beach Boys. We drew a wonderful subject, steam cars and passed on to the final. The second semi saw Techno Teachers and their opponents The Brothers in Arms building giant mowing machines, with the Brothers the victors. Then the final, we take on the Strawbridge boys, for the cup, and a run at the Megalomaniacs. A fireboat. Two challenges in one, both teams will have to build both pumps and boats in the same 10 hours.
The
grand final. Will we get a shot at Nosher? I can't say, but the topic
is one that is clearly on the Meg's home turf, a dragster.
| Heat | Quarter Final | Semi final | Final | Grand Final |
| Manic Mechanics
vs
Techno Teachers |
||||
| The Mothers of Invention vs Three Revs a Minute | The Mothers of Invention vs Brothers in Arms | Techno Teachers vs Brothers in Arms | ||
| Brothers in Arms
vs
The NERDS |
Season Champ vs
The Megalomaniacs |
|||
| Chaos Crew vs
The Beach Boys |
The Beach Boys vs Filth | The Beach Boys
vs
The NERDS |
||
| The Dipsticks
vs
The NERDS |
| Heat | Semi Final | Final | |
| Rusted Juveniles | |||
| Young Guns | winner vs | ||
| Damage vs | winner | Winner vs | |
| The Long Brothers | Season Champ | ||
| chicaGo Fire vs | |||
| Scrap Daddies | winner vs | Winner | |
| Art Attack vs. | winner | ||
| Metal Medics |