Scrapheap Challenge s07e02 Episode Script
Dam Buster
(GRUNTS) Ooh.
Oh, goodness.
(GRUNTS) Ooh, good grief.
(BOTH GRUNT) I say, darling.
Does my bomb look big in this? No, not at all.
Welcome to Scrapheap Challenge, where, once again, our two teams strive to shape superstructures from our sizeable selection of scrap.
We're asking them to devise dam-busting devices that will pitch projectiles from this bank, bounce across the briny and then smash our scrapheap dam to smithereens.
ROBERT: The original bouncing bombs were invented by Barnes Wallace and used during the daring dam-buster raids of World War II.
Critical to the success of the mission was making the bombs rotate as they hit the water as well as determining the correct speed at which they were released.
Running away to join the scrapheap circus this week are team Maximus.
Ringmaster Paul and team mates Trickett and Dennis are a rabble of rickshaw riders from Bath.
LISA: And brewing up a storm are their opponents, Irn Cru.
Captain Ben and Scottish scavengers Robin and Drew comprise a clan of brave-hearted boffins from the Glasgow Science Centre.
Maximus.
ALL: Yes! Irn Cru.
ALL: Yes! Your mission today, should you choose to accept it, is to build missile launchers that can barrage our dams with scrap.
But that's not all.
Your missiles don't just have to hit their target, they have to bounce to it across water.
LISA: Yes, teams.
We want you to be our very own Barnes Wallaces and build us scrapheap versions of his bouncing bomb.
OK, teams, you have just 10 hours to manufacture your missile launchers.
On the clong of the gong, get ready to rumble.
Maximus, are you ready to pedal like fury? ALL: Yes! Irn Cru, are you ready to steel yourselves for action? ALL: Yes! Wait for it, wait for it.
(GONG!) BOTH: Go! LISA: The difficulty isn't in hitting the dam, it's bouncing their missiles to it.
And the scoring will reflect this.
Making merry with Maximus is expert Mike Bretton who manufactures specialist sports equipment.
Alright, boys, let's get on with this project.
The main thing to do is keep it simple.
You know when we go to a lake and get a stone and you skim it across the water? Yeah.
That's what we want to come up with.
I thought, what we could do is have an arm, pivoted there, and a string coming off here.
It's going to be like a clay pigeon launcher, isn't it? Huge one, yeah.
We've got an arm with a trough in it.
A large spring.
It's a very simple thing.
Yeah.
And load it in.
We know the missile's this sort of size.
And just fire the thing like that.
LISA: Maximus are going for a design based on a clay pigeon shooting trap.
It'll consist of a massive spring and a jib arm almost 3m long.
They plan to stretch the spring to maximum and then release it, launching their missile.
But if they can't find a strong enough spring, it could be a load of clap trap.
And hoping to help Irn Cru winch their way to victory is Mike Groves who makes high-speed pulleys for gliders.
OK, guys, so we gotta build this bouncing bomb.
What's your ideas? (LAUGHS) One of the Lancasters.
Any thoughts? (LAUGHS) Um, well, the original one was a cylinder Yeah.
Yeah.
A spinning cylinder.
Yeah.
So we're thinking about doing that.
The question is how we gonna get power? Grab the Like, store the energy on something elastic Uh-huh.
Unless we can do something motorised.
That is running the thing forward and then letting go of it.
ROBIN: It's thrown, right.
If we use, say, a car - plenty of cars out there - and put a drum on the side of the wheel, we could then run a cable out.
LISA: The Irn Cru are planning a winch-based device.
They want to find a big engine with plenty of pulling power and attach a third wheel to the axle.
They will wind wire or rope around this to make a winch.
This'll be attached to a chassis on wheels on which they'll mount their bomb.
Like the infamous Barnes Wallace device, they'll set their bomb on rollers to give it backspin.
But they'll have to stop it suddenly or they could find themselves winches away from disaster.
The first sort of impact or tension to stop it would be quite sharp, but then, the final bit So we save the trolley or the chassis as a survivable accident, if you like.
Yeah.
Even though we're not on it, I hope.
OK, for our shopping list, we need Reasonably beefy car.
Bearings.
Something to make a trolley out of.
Springs, missiles, box section.
Cable.
Go! Go! LISA: It's minus 10 hours and counting for our teams as they set out on mission implausible.
Irn Cru plan to make a winch which will pull a bomb-bearing trolley to launch their missile, and they found a 2CV which could be perfect trolley material, as long as they can bag it before Maximus do.
ROBERT: But Maximus are distracted by an enormous lump of metal which they can use for the base of their giant clay pigeon trap.
Phwoar.
Morning, Maximus.
BOTH: Morning.
(LAUGHS) I haven't a clue what you're doing.
This will be the base where we build.
Right, so are you gonna just fling something or spin something or A big arm with a spring on it and fling it out.
Yeah, we're not dambusters styling.
Right.
'Cause when you chuck a stone, I'm thinking, you tend to give it a spin.
Yeah.
I'm quite good at that, actually.
I'm quite good at bouncing.
Come on.
15 bounces.
I think I've got 17.
Ooph.
DENNIS: Wow.
Yeah.
Captain Paul and team mates Trickett and Dennis all work at Cycles Maximus, a rickshaw manufacturing firm in Bath.
But for them, rickshaw riding isn't just a job, it's a way of life.
Or near-death, depending on who's bagged the electric rickshaw.
Just one of the many strange vehicles they own, including a backwards bikes and the mini-cycle.
Captain Paul is also a circus performer in his spare time.
And he and team mate Trickett are also neighbours on the river.
Trickett, he's, ah he's not all there, I'm sure of it.
But he's good fun.
ROBERT: While Dennis is also a qualified forklift driver.
Dennis is a bit of a practical joker who enjoys clamping you to the bench when you're not looking or welding your shoes together, you know, things like that.
ROBERT: This happy-go-lucky team have a carefree attitude to life, but these charming charioteers have got a will to win.
ALL: We're Maximus and we're going to crank it up! ROBERT: The next item on their shopping list is a good strong bearing on which their arm will pivot.
It'll have to be in good nick to withstand some huge forces.
That has got the potential of working really, really well.
Yep.
Those bearings are a bit loose.
Should we get one of those barrels? ROBERT: So one that's a bit loose probably isn't ideal.
Nonetheless, that's what they plump for and soon Dennis is on his way back to base.
LISA: Meanwhile, Irn Cru are still trying to dislodge their first scrap pickings from the heap.
Irn Cru, are you pleased you got a bouncing bomb at challenge day Yeah.
Delighted.
or were you hoping for something different? No.
No.
It's very unusual.
Have you got confidence in your expert? Do you think he knows what he's talking about? Absolutely.
I think so.
You're not saying much today, are you? You're quite quiet and contained.
(LAUGHS) Is that because you want to get on, tow this back up to the build area? Kind of.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Alright, well, look, very best of luck today.
And I'll come and see how you're getting on later.
Great.
Take it easy.
Irn Cru comprises Captain Ben and team mates Drew, Robin and Robin's eyebrow.
And you'll find them round and about in the famous Glasgow Science Centre.
It's Drew and Robin's job to run the school trip gauntlet, checking and fixing all the exhibits.
Drew is the mechanic of the team and had an early start in fabrication.
I first had a go at welding when I was about 12.
LISA: Whereas Robin's the quiet type.
I trained as a sculptor but I've had various guises in my career.
LISA: But it's Ben who's the self-proclaimed egghead of the team.
And he'll be a great leader if he can only understand what his team mates are saying.
BEN: What would I do without Robin or Drew? I learn from their wisdom each day.
But my poor little brain would be under less strain if I could just understand what they say.
These sons of the Clyde speak their language with pride, each syllable's ethnically pure.
They replace every vowel with a guttural growl that makes meaning completely obscure.
So here's my advice, say, "How lovely.
That's nice," and smile sweetly whatever they say.
Though your face will go red if it turns out they said that their aunty has just passed away.
LISA: Back in our own car graveyard, that 2CV is stuck in the mud.
But all it takes is a little Scottish hospitality and it's soon free.
But they've no sooner delivered one set of wheels when they're dispatched out to find another.
This time with a beefier engine.
Automatic.
Yeah.
Big, powerful, something with an auto box.
ROBIN: Right.
Yeah, let's get a crowbar, get all the cords and stuff out and LISA: Leaving Irn Cru captain Ben who isn't so much stripping the 2CV down as gently undressing it.
But over-eager expert Mike wastes no time in laying it bare.
Ooh, easy, tiger.
ROBERT: On the heap, eagle-eyed Dennis has spotted some springs to give the Maximus machine a little extra horsepower.
DENNIS: I've seen some springs.
Have you? Yeah.
Some tailgate ones in a horsebox down there.
Sorry? Tailgate springs in a horsebox.
Oh, yes.
That's what we could do with.
Ah, yes.
So we'll get this out and go and get those off.
Yeah.
ROBERT: And back in their build area, Captain Paul gets on with the daily grind.
That bearing's going to form the crucial pivot in their machine, so if it's loose, they could find themselves in the Bearing Straits.
Meanwhile, Trickett goes to investigate the horsebox which team mate Dennis spotted as a source of springs.
And it hasn't got any big springs on it either.
OK.
There's no springs on the horsebox so we can't use those.
ROBERT: This leaves them with a vital component missing and Trickett's determined to leave no scrap unturned.
LISA: But back in Irn Cru's build area, as Captain Ben continues to tease the car out of its bodywork, expert Mike strips it quicker than you can say 'naked chassis'.
Mike, Ben.
OK, now, we're asking you to make something that can bounce bombs into a dam, and you've scavenged a 2CV.
How on earth is that going to work? Well, the idea is we'll get rid of nearly all of this, so we've just got a trolley, really, four wheels and a chassis.
And this whole thing is going to be pulled along by a cable which is going to be wound up by the wheels of another stationary car.
OK, so it's going to come along at about 50mph, and is it going to, what, smack into the other car or? Well, the cable is going to come out in front of this, around the pulley which will be fixed to the ground, and then back to the other vehicle which will be over here.
So this will get pulled up towards that pulley and we've also got to have some device that's gonna suddenly stop this, or reasonably stop it, so that the bomb pops off the front and starts bouncing away to the target.
I'll come and see how you're getting on later.
Alright.
Thanks.
'Bye.
LISA: Well, Captain Ben certainly knows what he wants.
But do his big ideas sit well with expert Mike's? Or could there be a battle of wills in the offing? So we need bombs.
MIKE: Oh, we need some bombs, yeah.
Have we got bombs? Bombs and springs.
You're on the bombs mission then, Dennis? ROBERT: It's bombs away.
Both teams are doing their best to steal every bit of missile-shaped metal on the heap, as they have to invent their own scrap projectiles.
Their shape will determine how well they spin and bounce, so it's vital they get it right.
LISA: In World War II, the MÃhne and Eder dams in Germany were strategic targets which were protected by giant torpedo nets.
Barnes Wallace came up with the idea for a bomb that could bounce over the nets and hit the vulnerable dam bases.
But not everyone shared his enthusiasm.
Hello? What would be the effect of dropping a spherical bomb from 10,000 feet? (LAUGHS) Why, Mr Wallace, it would bounce like a football and have no accuracy at all.
Splendid.
LISA: Despite establishment derision, Wallace eventually got the go-ahead to build his giant bombs.
Incredibly, the dangerous mission succeeded, delivering a serious blow to the enemy war effort and marking the name of Wallace and Squadron 617 in history forever.
Back at the heap, spring has well and truly sprung as Trickett tracks down the last but most important item on the Maximus shopping list.
Look at that.
Isn't that the business? PAUL: Brilliant.
MIKE: Yeah.
Splendid.
Good work.
Stroke of luck.
You reckon that'll be alright? Beautiful.
Lovely colour.
It's nice, isn't it? Yeah.
Pretty.
ROBERT: Captain Paul and expert Mike are now fully prepared to spring into action and whip up a whopping great bomb flinger.
Good morning, chaps.
Morning.
This is all a bit alarming.
Normally I come here this time of the day, there's absolutely nothing here.
Yeah, we're cracking on.
'Cause what I understand you're making is like a giant clay pigeon shooting machine.
Yeah.
That's correct.
A trap.
We call it traps, yeah.
So it's an arm that swings.
Phwt! Will it just chuck it or does it spin it? Will it spin? This is the arm eventually.
Right.
And it's going to roll down the face of that.
Right.
And then fly off the end.
Oh, and as it rolls down that starts it spinning? It starts spinning up the arm.
Yeah.
But we're trying to get a speed of maybe 40, 50 mile an hour.
Wow.
That's the idea, but I'll come and see it when it's finished in about 15 minutes.
No, make it 20.
20? OK.
See you later on.
LISA: Maximus may have everything on their shopping list, but Scot scavengers Drew and Robin are a long way from the checkout.
The only thing that works on that American jeep are the windscreen wipers, so Irn Cru opt for an English answer to their problems which may lie in communications.
(SPEAKS WITH HEAVY SCOTTISH ACCENT) What? Do it.
Can't hear you.
(SPEAKS WITH HEAVY SCOTTISH ACCENT) Right.
LISA: So, to translate from the Glaswegian, this one doesn't work either.
ROBERT: But in the Maximus arena, it's all go, go, go.
Their base plate and pivot are already in position and they're ready to start work on their flinging arm.
(BLOWS RASPBERRY) Incoming message, chaps.
You have seven hours remaining.
(ALL GROAN) Seven hours remaining, chaps.
Thank you.
MIKE: Got an axle in the bucket.
LISA: It's crunch time for Irn Cru.
They don't have a winch, cable or the big engine they need.
All they've got is a 2CV and even that's on fire.
But apart from that, everything's bouncing along quite nicely.
Was there something else out there? Something with a big engine, automatic? Jag but There's a Jag but it's It's not looking good.
Have you tried it? Mm-hm.
We can try it again for you if you want.
There's gotta be something out there with a big engine that we can do the job with.
Well, that's the Jag.
Nothing out there - big automatic? We've got the jeep, that's four-wheel drive.
Yeah.
And we've got the Jag.
Yeah.
That's three-wheel drive.
We've gotta get one of those going.
Right.
OK, then.
Right.
Maybe have a go with the Jag.
Right.
Could you give us a hand LISA: So, in conclusion, they still need a big engine.
And to explain why, our judge this week is international man of mystery, Arthur Kearse, a ballistics expert from deep in the belly of defence research agency Qinetiq.
We could tell you exactly what he does, but then we'd have to kill you.
Ugh! Oh, there you are, Arthur.
I've been looking for you all over.
How do you do? Very nice to meet you.
Thanks for coming.
It's my pleasure.
So, there are some sort of very obvious parallels between the challenge we're doing this week and the famous Barnes Wallace bouncing bomb.
Presumably, they had a little bit longer than 10 hours to develop that weapon.
Yes, they did.
But they had to put together a whole squadron plus all the weapons from nothing.
I mean, because, presumably, there's some things that, you know, just growing up and watching the films and my dad flew Lancaster bombers in the war, and all that sort of stuff, and, I mean, one key thing I remember about it was that the bomb was spinning as it was dropped.
Yep.
The spin's absolutely key in terms of what Wallace wanted to achieve.
Right.
If it wasn't spinning, it simply wouldn't do any of those things.
So if he just dropped it as a cylinder, it wouldn't work.
Right, so it might bounce once but it would sort of splash Yeah, it could just pierce through that water and go straight under with a huge, huge splash.
And if you think about skimming stones, as a child Yeah.
choose the right stone and throw it fast enough and spin it fast enough It'll keep flipping.
you'll get lots of bounces.
So, have you decided, you know, which particular design you prefer the most? I know there's not much to see yet, but the theory of the design.
Yeah, I think team Maximus have probably got the most promising idea in terms of what they can actually do in the 10 hours that they've got.
The other side of the coin is the Irn Cru one could potentially be very tunable, but they've actually got to build at least three elements.
So, I mean, it could well be that I'm entirely wrong Yeah.
(LAUGHS) and Maximus's machine will spectacularly self-destruct the first time it's used.
While Irn Cru sails hundreds of missiles exactly to target.
Yes.
Yes.
Yeah.
That's part of the fun, though, isn't it? Yeah.
Absolutely.
LISA: Well, at the moment, Irn Cru are sailing rather close to the wind - that engine won't run and without it they have no winch.
TRICKETT: If I've got two, then I can ROBERT: And Maximus have realised that they need to make missiles, and mathematically minded Trickett's come up with a larger-rhythmic solution to their problem.
TRICKETT: If we cut the top side of that weld, we've got two discs Yeah.
which, you know, put them both together - sandwich two of them together like so.
Do you want to try one and? It smells of beer already Yeah.
What a lovely smell.
We're doing that.
ROBERT: Cutting both ends off these kegs and welding them together should give them just the right size of discus for the machines to fire.
Sometimes the answer really does lie at the bottom of a barrel.
Maximus - frightening team - they're nearly done.
LISA: No? No team ever has ever been this far advanced.
I mean, look, they'll be done just after lunch, I think.
That's extraordinary.
It's great, isn't it, to say that? 'Cause you know that they haven't got a hope - suddenly it'll all go wrong.
But they've got so far ahead.
Their scavengers are brilliant scavengers.
They're a good-looking team, though.
They're a marvellous team with excellent A whole variety of hair.
They've got the full gamut of male hair, from not much, in the case of Dennis, to rather a lot, in the case of Paul.
I do think that that kind of eccentricity always goes down well on Scrapheap.
Yeah, they're a good eccentric, scrappy team, aren't they? They're very good.
There's a certain eccentricity with the Irn Cru, very dour Scotsmen.
Are they? Proper They're all Scotsmen? At the moment, monosyllabic.
(LAUGHS) Hi, guys, it's Ben.
How are you getting on? ROBIN: Yeah, we're OK.
(ROBERT LAUGHS) So you're making a, you know a bouncing bomb machine.
Have you done that before? "No.
" (LAUGHS) OK, so you're looking forward to the challenge? "Yes.
" (LAUGHS) On the other hand, their team captain, Ben, is more lucid, got a lot more to say for himself.
But, then, he's not actually Scottish.
So, they've got a 2CV in there which, obviously, when I first saw it I was slightly worried about, but it turns out that's just gonna be a chassis and the wheels just for trolley, and the actual power's coming from a separate vehicle.
So it's quite complicated.
Wow, it does sound complicated.
So, they're gonna pull the trolley in at about 40-50 miles an hour Right.
it'll have a controlled crash.
When you say 'controlled' Yeah.
(LAUGHS) what you mean is (IMITATES EXPLOSION) Set it off and run for cover.
Yeah.
That's about the size of it.
Never mind controlled, there won't be a crash at all if Irn Cru can't find an engine and get it to work soon.
(FLAPPING SOUND) There's something turning.
ROBERT: And will pressurised Maximus captain Paul be able to keep his cool and his team mate under control? It's a bit rubbish, innit? (LAUGHS) Yeah, he's being bossy when, you know, it's quite obvious that I am the captain.
ROBERT: Maximus's plan is to make a giant clay pigeon firer to fire beer-barrel discuses.
They've been working with military precision and are already ahead of the clock.
LISA: But Irn Cru have had more problems than Dear Deidre.
They plan to make a winch but so far they've got a 2CV which, like their plans, went up in smoke.
They still can't get that Jaguar purring and Captain Ben is suffering from tool trauma.
Is this the first time you've kind of had serious hands-on experience or have you I think Robin and Drew are very kind to me in the workshop and teach me welding and stuff like that.
Basically, is you Robin and Drew, you're the guys that do the actual sort of Mm-hm.
But is he quite clever, though? Extremely.
Extremely.
Extremely? His kids call him the boff.
Do they? They'll never forgive you for that.
(OTHERS LAUGH) My kids would never call me that.
I can't tell you what they do call me but they definitely don't call me that.
Irn Cru are going to have to work fast to catch up with this lot.
Maximus have half fabricated their pinging arm and have already fashioned a test missile to try for size.
And in case Trickett has any pretensions to the Maximus throne, Captain Paul administers a scalding rebuke.
Oww! It's spittin' on my shirt.
(LAUGHS) It's taken off some of my ginger fluff.
It looks to me like you're quite far ahead with the build.
Oh, we're surprising ourselves with this.
(LAUGHS) Really.
Paul, you were a circus performer.
Yeah.
What sort of Can you do me circus tricks? Of course I can.
Ohh! (OTHERS LAUGH) And in a word, no.
It's mid afternoon and Irn Cru finally get their Jag running.
(ENGINE SPUTTERS AND REVS) But their celebrations are short-lived as they discover that it's stuck fast with four flat tyres.
Eventually, Irn Cru resort to shaking their car booty to free the Jaguar from captivity.
But it's almost evening and they've barely started their build.
ROBERT: Unlike Maximus who, working under Captain Trickett sorry, Captain Paul's authority, have finished fabricating their arm and are ready to attach it to their base.
We need a couple of G-clamps.
ROBERT: Although it definitely seems to be Trickett giving the orders and Captain Paul who's taking them.
Alright, so I've done that now.
We marked it on the centre and it's OK.
Yup.
ROBERT: Now that it's in one piece, they're beginning to wonder if it really will be strong enough and if that dodgy bearing will take its weight.
That's really flexi.
Yeah.
We'll have to reinforce that.
I reckon we need a doodah on it.
Yeah.
LISA: Trickett may need a doodah, but Irn Cru need a whole new doodah day - they're badly behind and running out of time.
But they've at least tracked down some cable and Drew's had an idea for Mike's complicated barrel-spinning thing, if they can agree on which way it'll go.
Have that driving the drum and direct, and the other bearing.
BEN: Yeah, but it's going the wrong way again, isn't it? Is it? No.
The wheels go that way, so this wheel goes that way, so the drum goes that way.
Precisely what we want.
Yeah, two axles.
LISA: Drew's plan is for direct drive.
He'll add a third wheel to the 2CV axle which will turn the barrel itself as the trolley moves.
Thanks to Wallace, they know it's essential to give the barrel backspin as this will increase the air pressure underneath it, giving it extra lift.
(GROWLS) LISA: But they're not off the hook.
There's still a lot of hard grafting to do.
And for Captain Ben, unused to wielding power tools, it's an exhausting and thankless baptism of fire.
Boffin Ben is cold, wet and tired.
Things with this expert are tense and his energy and his enthusiasm have taken a dive.
BEN: Is there anything useful I can do? I just have to stop grinding for a bit.
(WISTFUL MUSIC) (LOUD WHIRRING) Manic expert Mike, on the other hand, has too much energy for his own good.
He's trying to use his own body weight to break the bonnet hinges of the Jag.
But if he succeeds, he's going to fall flat on his face.
Luckily, his 9-stone frame isn't enough to break the brute and he resorts to electricity.
ROBERT: Which is exactly what Maximus expert Mike is doing next door.
He's come up with a plan for a mechanised release system for their machine so they can launch it from a safe distance.
This little like a maybe a car wind wiper or maybe electric windows on the car.
Yeah.
So this motor will come on, keep pushing the arm, pushing the arm till it goes over the top, sits in there, and once it's over the top, sits in there, it's gone.
And we're right back 50m away.
Yeah.
LISA: Every inch Maximus pull their springs apart adds 160 pounds of force into their firing arm.
At full stretch, that arm will produce almost as much energy as a charging rhinoceros.
Understandably, they won't want to go anywhere near it once it's armed, so they're devising a clever remote-release mechanism which they can set off from a safe distance.
ROBERT: Clearly not wanting to go head to head with a charging rhino, Dennis wastes no time in tracking down a scooter engine to make their release.
But he better get back to the build area fast.
It's getting dark and that's the most dangerous time on the heap because that's when panic sets in.
Irn Cru.
We'll just take the centre out, we're still left with a load of strength.
Hello.
How's it going? I just look at your That face said it all.
You've certainly come a lot further than when I was here last.
(CHUCKLES) Yeah.
You've got a massive great Jaguar in the build area.
What's that going to be doing? That's going to be our winch.
OK.
How are you going to keep the trolley straight? Well, use the force.
(LAUGHS) It's 'Star Wars'.
OK.
We're hoping to find some sort of track or rail to run it on.
So you're going to actually build some rails at the test site Yeah.
to run the trolley on? Robin, you've been very quiet so far.
How do you feel about the tracks idea? I don't know.
(BEN CHUCKLES) I really don't know.
I'm worried.
You are worried.
I can see it in your eyes, actually.
I am.
You've got the look of Worry.
Perhaps.
(BEN LAUGHS) The look of worry.
Have you thought about what you're going to crash it into? Yeah.
Yeah.
The current idea is to have some bits of wood across the ground.
Mm-hm.
And we've got this thing down here, just gonna hit those pieces of wood.
And by smashing them one after the other, it's gonna slow it down.
So, that's going to be interesting as well.
We have a backup plan for that as well in case it goes horribly wrong.
And what's the backup plan? Well, it's my backup plan, no-one else agrees with it.
(DREW LAUGHS) Is to have a slight cable on the back with a great weight.
So that's another possibility, but we're going with this one first of all.
Irn Cru, this is quite possibly the most complicated answer to a challenge we have ever had.
(LAUGHS) Why do it easy when you can make it hard? (LAUGHS) Flight control to ground crews, flight control to ground crews, you have three hours remaining, chaps.
Three hours construction time remaining.
Thank you.
LISA: It's taken time but Captain Ben has finally found his scrapheap feet.
He's managing advanced double-handed spannering with aplomb and it's time everyone realised who's the boff sorry, boss.
MIKE: We know you guys have found some Armco down there.
Mm-hm.
So we're on this, on an arm.
Like that.
'Cause we haven't sorted out the towing of this yet.
But we're on this, on an arm, like that, and then we haven't got this issue of will these ride out, will they climb out, which is, you know, a good point.
I'm having issue will that climb out.
Yeah, but we'll be pulling it in, won't we? (EXHALES DEEPLY) If the steering is loose and we just pull this towards a fixed point DREW: Yeah, car's direction.
then the automatic centring action of the wheels ought to keep the thing straight.
Yeah, the only trouble is if it goes off line we're going to miss our deceleration zone.
Mm-hm.
Well, yeah, in that case I start talking about bits, lumps of metal on the ends of cables, you see.
LISA: Expert Mike wants to run tracks made out of motorway crash barrier to the edge of the water to keep the bomb chariot in a straight line.
A metal rod on the trolley will break through several pieces of wood, bringing the trolley to a halt.
Ben thinks it's more likely to destroy the trolley and wants to use an arrester cable on a spring attached to a giant anchor which will slow the trolley more gradually and hopefully stop it from ending up in the drink.
ROBERT: But next door, Maximus, almost as unstoppable as Irn Cru's trolley, have even finished their posh release mechanism.
Maximus - maximum speed, maximum efficiency, maximum team bonding, maximum dreadlocks in some cases, have made an extraordinary machine that actually looks like it might work.
It's fatal, isn't it? There's no wood to touch.
(BOTH LAUGH) It's all a bit too perfect.
Yeah.
The wheels are gonna come off, metaphorically, at some point.
Yeah, 'cause that's the thing - no wheels.
(LAUGHS) No wheels, no engine to go wrong.
No engine to go wrong, no drive chain to break.
Nothing.
Something will go wrong.
That arm will crumple.
The arm will crumple, the springs will po-toing off.
Po-toing! The little thing will fly off before it can be fired and go backwards And knock one of them out.
Knock Well, no, because they've got a remote firing system.
Oh.
Oh.
Oh.
Sorry.
Please.
Sorry.
Oh, yeah.
Danger, no.
They have to load it up by hand somehow, but they can probably pull a rope from a safe distance.
And they've got a little electric pushy fella that goes (MAKES WHIZZING NOISE) and just pushes it really slowly till it goes past the point of no return, then it suddenly goes po-toing and it fires.
(LAUGHS) As far as the Irn Cru is concerned, the question more is will they actually get the machine built.
Yeah, there's so many different parts that aren't really joined together with anything other than string, really, effectively, are they? They use the word 'cable'.
Yeah.
We can call it cable.
But evidently it's string.
I think it's string.
I think string's better.
I wonder if they have bitten off a far larger lump of scrap than they can chew.
Mike's very keen to get his ideas, um You know, to get us to take his ideas on board.
And I've no particular problem with that 'cause there's lots of good ideas he comes up with.
Um, but yeah, at the beginning, I think I think maybe he had a big plan in his head and he's taken a little bit of levering to get away from certain aspects of that plan.
MIKE: A bit more length.
LISA: But Ben's decided that if anyone's going to be doing some levering, it's him.
We just had a rethink about the stopping thing.
Mm-hm.
Because we've all got well, some of us have got worries about the way the track's gonna work, keeping it straight, and I think it's worth thinking about the other way to stop it, which would be to imagine this is the trolley and it's going that way.
We have a cable on it, which is slack, and then there's a weight here.
When the trolley gets to about here, the cable goes tight, and then this weight is connected to the trolley and it slows it down.
And that way it doesn't matter if the trolley's off line 'cause we're not trying to aim for anything.
And it ought to be quicker to build than tracks and stuff like that.
I think it's worth thinking about anyway.
Alright.
ROBERT: So Mike's tracks are consigned to the bin, while next door, Maximus are still making discuses and are ready to test that release mechanism.
We got it.
Evening, Maximus.
How's it going? OTHERS: Hello.
What are you up to? Oh, we're just finalising our electric release.
If you want to have a go.
Have you not actually tried it before? No, no.
This is OK, so, what? Are we just grounding it? Go on.
Here we go.
Look at that.
Oh! It pulls away.
Move out of the way.
Off it goes.
Brilliant.
And that So it just needs a gentle shove.
That's what it needs, yeah.
I'm very impressed.
We've not had one of these on Scrapheap before.
Normally it's a block of wood someone tries to kick out of the way.
So that's very impressive.
And there's your loaded arm.
TRICKETT: So, that's the sort of start position.
Yeah.
And then, as it goes round, this will spin along here and accelerate massively.
Yeah.
Until, you know, that gets all the way around there and then it's off.
Well done so far, and we'll see how it does tomorrow.
The proof of the pudding is in the flinging of the bombs.
See you later.
Take care.
Alright.
Bye-bye.
I need the welder in a bit, Paul.
So do these guys.
PAUL: Alright.
ROBERT: With time still on their side, Maximus are making the last part of their dambusting jigsaw.
They need to manufacture guide rails to keep their missiles in place as they spin along the arm.
LISA: Time is getting extremely tight for the Irn Cru.
They still haven't finished their barrel-spinning trolley or tested their winch.
ROBERT: Whereas, with their machine almost finished, the only thing Maximus are worried about is their grammar.
Did you find the helmet? No, I didn't find the helmet.
Well, there was two.
There were were two.
What's that? BOTH: Welding helmets.
ROBERT: And showing some support for their beleaguered opponents.
(ENGINE REVS) Oh, yeah.
Come on! MIKE: OK.
PAUL: Yes.
Great.
LISA: Unfortunately, any celebrations for a working winch and engine are short-lived.
To add insult to injury, the unlucky Scots have got a wonky wheel.
ROBERT: So, I think you've been consistently voting for the Maximus team all day.
Yeah.
Are you gonna change your mind? Are you gonna hop over that fence? No.
I think I'll stay on that side of the fence.
I may have been seduced by the beauty of their machine and so forth and so on but I think it's got the best chance of coming out on top.
Maximus have been very lucky today.
I've got my doubts, though, about that.
Oh, God! PAUL: Trickett.
LISA: So, while Maximus finish off their guide rails, poor old Irn Cru are still scavenging.
They've yet to make the anchor for Ben's arrester cable which will comprise a steel door and two oil barrels which are filled with water.
And despite Ben's objections, Mike wants to take some Armco for tracks just in case.
ROBERT: It's a Scrapheap first.
Maximus appear to have finished before the final hooter is gone.
While their opponents sweat, they're relaxing with a nice cup of tea, admiring their handiwork and relentlessly taking the micky.
Should we go and give them a hand? I think we ought to.
They obviously need it.
(BOTH LAUGH) Or we could just stand back and give lightly critical remarks.
(LAUGHS) You missed a bit.
Yeah.
(LAUGHS) LISA: When Irn Cru realise the opposition have finished, they move into overdrive.
They've only minutes left.
Expert Mike is at it again.
He's not a big man, but can he actually defy gravity? Next door, it's more tea's up than time's up as Maximus take a load off and wait for the bell.
(SIREN BLARES) OK, teams exercises are over.
And come the morning, it will be zero hour for Operation Scrapheap.
LISA: And tomorrow we'll see whether Irn Cru will have a barrel of laughs ROBERT: Wa-hey.
LISA: Or if Maximus will be on a voyage of discovery.
ROBERT: Oh, yes.
Yeah.
Thank you.
Well done, teams.
Well done, teams.
Brilliantly well done.
Whoo! Well done.
And if they want to take the plunge and bounce through to the second round, they'll have to take into account speed, spin and angle of dangle.
Oh, and if they don't make a splash, it'll be a damn shame.
(LAUGHS) Dam shame.
Our dam lies 35m from the water's edge and each team will have four attempts to hit it.
They'll receive three points for every bounce on the water and 10 points for every barrel knocked over.
But if their projectiles hit the dam without bouncing at all, they get no points whatsoever.
ROBERT: We've given each team their customary hour of tinkering time.
Not that Maximus really need it.
Morning, Maximus.
Oh, morning.
Good morning.
How are you all doing? It's something to throw bombs and you've painted it like a hippy joss stick.
(ALL LAUGH) Are you gonna pack the bombs full of patchouli oil? (LAUGHS) Oh, yes.
You know, you are into peace and love and kind of being nice to everybody, but do you really want to win this? Oh, yeah.
(LAUGHS) "Oh, yeah.
" What, like a rat out of a drain pipe, "No, I don't.
" "Yeah, we want to win.
" ROBERT: Irn Cru have their winch, pulley and anchor in position, and they're ready to try and bust some dams.
(BANG!) Now, Robin, you've drawn the short straw, I think, perhaps, of being the person responsible for running the engine.
Are you happy with that? It's a I'm moderately nervous.
(OTHERS LAUGH) Apprehensive.
So, slightly scared, really.
Right that.
Very scared.
(LAUGHS) The rest of us should probably get out of the way to somewhere safer.
Good luck, Robin.
I'll see you after the test.
Come with me, guys.
It's round one for Irn Cru.
Time to put their wobbly winch and their backspinning barrel to the test.
Irn Cru, are you ready to show us your mettle? On the sound of the horn, bombs away.
(HOOTER BLARES) ROBIN: Go! ROBERT: It's moving.
It's spinning.
Oh, my God! LISA: Oh, go on! MAN: Oh! ROBERT: Yes! (LAUGHS) (CONTINUES LAUGHING) LISA: It bounced.
It definitely bounced.
We got at least two bounces on ours.
It's a damn good effort, I've got to say.
I was really impressed.
That's really impressive.
Rogers to Llewellyn, do you read me? Over.
Reading you loud and clear, Rogers.
Now, we're very concerned to know what's happening.
There are some concerns about the front end of the trolley.
But they're looking into that now.
Over.
But it looks like they're confident to have another go, though.
Let's hope so.
I think it remains to be seen.
That epic 50m sprint not only bust up their trolley but it almost took their anchor with them.
Their arrester cable spring has well and truly sprung.
And poor old Irn Cru retire licking their wounds to try and weld up the damage to their trolley.
They did at least manage two bounces, giving them six points.
Next, it's Maximus to step up to the water's edge.
It's a tense moment for them.
No-one's really sure what direction the machine will fire in or how far it'll go.
It's Trickett on the button, behind a very heavy-duty safety net.
Maximus, on the sound of the horn, let loose your disc of disc-struction.
(HOOTER BLARES) Go on, Trickett.
One Ooh! (OTHERS LAUGH) It's taken out some branches.
LISA: The disc did hit some greenery but lands in the water, giving them a total of two bounces and six points.
Round two for Maximus.
They've adjusted their position and put their discus slightly further down the swinging arm.
I sort of feel less scared of the machine now.
I think, you know, we know what it does.
It was terrifying to stand anywhere near it with those huge springs.
But I think now we know.
Yes.
It looks actually fairly gentle.
Yeah.
I'm sure it would hurt if you were standing in the way.
I've got no intention of standing anywhere near it, actually.
Maximus, set your machine to maximum.
(HOOTER BLARES) ROBERT: It's creeping.
It's creeping.
LISA: Oh! One, two.
Ohh! OTHERS: Ohh! Oh, that was so close.
How do you count that as bounces? 'Cause it's either 400 or one.
Yeah.
LISA: In fact, our Scrapheap marshals judged it as three distinct bounces, giving Maximus another nine points and bringing their total to 15.
(WHIRRING NOISE) ROBERT: And while Irn Cru continue to mend their machine, Maximus prepare for round three.
Unfortunately, that bearing wasn't as hardy as they hoped and it's beginning to make their arm droop.
They've had to enlist a piece of scaffold pole to keep it up.
And it feels like it's starting to give a bit.
Maximus, time to go full tilt.
(HOOTER BLARES) Here we go.
PAUL: Here we go.
MIKE: Come on.
LISA: Oh! Whoa! (ALL CHEER) Yes! (LAUGHS) Oh.
LISA: It was an incredible throw and they've proved they can reach the dam.
Unfortunately, however, it failed to dislodge any barrels.
And their discus bounced once, giving them just three points.
ROBERT: Maximus think that the scaffold pole might be impeding their mechanism as it launches, so before they fire their final missile, they've asked our Scrapheap marshal just to nudge it out of the way and Oops! LISA: Oh! MIKE: What? (THUD) MAXIMUS: Yay! (LAUGHS) ROBERT: That definitely wasn't supposed to happen.
Great.
(LAUGHS) Very good.
Two barrels off.
Two.
Trouble is no bounces.
But no bounces.
LISA: Sadly for Maximus, that misfire by the marshal will be disallowed.
But they will be allowed one last chance to take their fourth-round go, if that bearing will hold up to one more firing.
PAUL: Go on.
Go! Ohh.
LISA: Ohh! Oh, mis-aimed but well done.
TRICKETT: One more bounce.
Got one more bounce.
Exactly.
That'll add to the points tally.
ROBERT: So near and yet so far.
Maximus finish with a grand total of 24 points.
We'll see now how well the Irn Cru do, who are lurking behind you.
Go on, lads, go and sort out your Good luck.
your team.
Best of luck, you lot.
Well done.
LISA: As the world's largest clay pigeon trap meets an unceremonious end, Irn Cru have fettled their metal and they're ready for a comeback.
They already have six points from their round one go.
So if they've sorted out the bomb-release mechanism, they need only six bounces over their three remaining rounds to equal Maximus's score.
It's not over until that rather large female has a warble.
Indeed.
(LAUGHS) Or indeed the final whistle blows.
(LAUGHS) 'Cause it is a game of two halves.
Quite.
(LAUGHS) LISA: This machine, the Jaguar joined to the 2CV, is a triumph of Anglo, French and, um Scottish engineering.
Irn Cru, it's time for some derring-do.
(HOOTER BLARES) (ENGINE REVS) ROBERT: Yeah, look at that! (LAUGHS) Oh, phenomenal splashing.
ARTHUR: Phenomenal splash.
(OTHERS CHEER AND APPLAUD) ARTHUR: What a splash.
Look.
Backup.
LISA: The Irn Cru bomb trolley has actually lodged itself in a tree.
It turns out the reason it ended up so far into the bushes was because they forgot to attach it to the arrester cable.
This means that yet again the bomb didn't release cleanly.
Llewellyn, are you there? It's Rogers.
Over.
I am, Rogers.
What's going on over there? Is that machine salvageable in any way? They seem to think it is.
A little bit of hammering and it should be good to go again.
There is, however, a question mark over the engine in the Jaguar 'cause that rattling isn't a good thing.
Luckily for Irn Cru, it's bent but not broken.
And this time, they're determined nothing will go wrong.
They've even built it a small ramp to increase their angle of trajectory.
It's springing but it's actually not wobbling too badly.
Irn Cru, get ready to roll out the barrel.
(HOOTER BLARES) Come on.
(ENGINE REVS) (ALL SHOUT EXCITEDLY) ALL: Ohh! (BANG!) Go on, go on.
Go on! (ALL CHEER) (ROBERT CHUCKLES) What a machine.
(LAUGHS) What a machine.
LISA: Spectacular.
Irn Cru did manage to achieve three bounces but it was at the expense of their poor, battered trolley.
Could've been three bounces that could've been.
Somersaulted, didn't it? What's this? Why is it facing the wrong way? Look, so it is! MIKE: What's that? It's facing backwards.
Hey! LISA: And that engine rattle isn't the only thing wrong with the car.
The force of the collision was so extreme, the back axle of the Jag has snapped in two and their winch has dug itself right into the ground.
I think we better let the others know.
I think we're gonna call it a day.
I think we've bowed out gracefully, I think.
We missed one run.
We got some bounces.
It was good fun.
LISA: Even if they didn't get many bounces, it's definitely 10 out of 10 for artistic impression in the Irn Cru camp.
(DUCKS QUACK) I mean, you've gone off your trolleys, you've lost your bearings and you have well and truly bounced your bombs.
But the winners are Maximus! (ALL CHEER) So, well done, Maximus! Excellent.
ROBERT: There you go.
LISA: Well done, both teams, you both gave us a brilliant challenge.
Well done.
Here we go.
Go for cover.
Way! Wa-hey! (LAUGHTER) Well done.
(LAUGHS)
Oh, goodness.
(GRUNTS) Ooh, good grief.
(BOTH GRUNT) I say, darling.
Does my bomb look big in this? No, not at all.
Welcome to Scrapheap Challenge, where, once again, our two teams strive to shape superstructures from our sizeable selection of scrap.
We're asking them to devise dam-busting devices that will pitch projectiles from this bank, bounce across the briny and then smash our scrapheap dam to smithereens.
ROBERT: The original bouncing bombs were invented by Barnes Wallace and used during the daring dam-buster raids of World War II.
Critical to the success of the mission was making the bombs rotate as they hit the water as well as determining the correct speed at which they were released.
Running away to join the scrapheap circus this week are team Maximus.
Ringmaster Paul and team mates Trickett and Dennis are a rabble of rickshaw riders from Bath.
LISA: And brewing up a storm are their opponents, Irn Cru.
Captain Ben and Scottish scavengers Robin and Drew comprise a clan of brave-hearted boffins from the Glasgow Science Centre.
Maximus.
ALL: Yes! Irn Cru.
ALL: Yes! Your mission today, should you choose to accept it, is to build missile launchers that can barrage our dams with scrap.
But that's not all.
Your missiles don't just have to hit their target, they have to bounce to it across water.
LISA: Yes, teams.
We want you to be our very own Barnes Wallaces and build us scrapheap versions of his bouncing bomb.
OK, teams, you have just 10 hours to manufacture your missile launchers.
On the clong of the gong, get ready to rumble.
Maximus, are you ready to pedal like fury? ALL: Yes! Irn Cru, are you ready to steel yourselves for action? ALL: Yes! Wait for it, wait for it.
(GONG!) BOTH: Go! LISA: The difficulty isn't in hitting the dam, it's bouncing their missiles to it.
And the scoring will reflect this.
Making merry with Maximus is expert Mike Bretton who manufactures specialist sports equipment.
Alright, boys, let's get on with this project.
The main thing to do is keep it simple.
You know when we go to a lake and get a stone and you skim it across the water? Yeah.
That's what we want to come up with.
I thought, what we could do is have an arm, pivoted there, and a string coming off here.
It's going to be like a clay pigeon launcher, isn't it? Huge one, yeah.
We've got an arm with a trough in it.
A large spring.
It's a very simple thing.
Yeah.
And load it in.
We know the missile's this sort of size.
And just fire the thing like that.
LISA: Maximus are going for a design based on a clay pigeon shooting trap.
It'll consist of a massive spring and a jib arm almost 3m long.
They plan to stretch the spring to maximum and then release it, launching their missile.
But if they can't find a strong enough spring, it could be a load of clap trap.
And hoping to help Irn Cru winch their way to victory is Mike Groves who makes high-speed pulleys for gliders.
OK, guys, so we gotta build this bouncing bomb.
What's your ideas? (LAUGHS) One of the Lancasters.
Any thoughts? (LAUGHS) Um, well, the original one was a cylinder Yeah.
Yeah.
A spinning cylinder.
Yeah.
So we're thinking about doing that.
The question is how we gonna get power? Grab the Like, store the energy on something elastic Uh-huh.
Unless we can do something motorised.
That is running the thing forward and then letting go of it.
ROBIN: It's thrown, right.
If we use, say, a car - plenty of cars out there - and put a drum on the side of the wheel, we could then run a cable out.
LISA: The Irn Cru are planning a winch-based device.
They want to find a big engine with plenty of pulling power and attach a third wheel to the axle.
They will wind wire or rope around this to make a winch.
This'll be attached to a chassis on wheels on which they'll mount their bomb.
Like the infamous Barnes Wallace device, they'll set their bomb on rollers to give it backspin.
But they'll have to stop it suddenly or they could find themselves winches away from disaster.
The first sort of impact or tension to stop it would be quite sharp, but then, the final bit So we save the trolley or the chassis as a survivable accident, if you like.
Yeah.
Even though we're not on it, I hope.
OK, for our shopping list, we need Reasonably beefy car.
Bearings.
Something to make a trolley out of.
Springs, missiles, box section.
Cable.
Go! Go! LISA: It's minus 10 hours and counting for our teams as they set out on mission implausible.
Irn Cru plan to make a winch which will pull a bomb-bearing trolley to launch their missile, and they found a 2CV which could be perfect trolley material, as long as they can bag it before Maximus do.
ROBERT: But Maximus are distracted by an enormous lump of metal which they can use for the base of their giant clay pigeon trap.
Phwoar.
Morning, Maximus.
BOTH: Morning.
(LAUGHS) I haven't a clue what you're doing.
This will be the base where we build.
Right, so are you gonna just fling something or spin something or A big arm with a spring on it and fling it out.
Yeah, we're not dambusters styling.
Right.
'Cause when you chuck a stone, I'm thinking, you tend to give it a spin.
Yeah.
I'm quite good at that, actually.
I'm quite good at bouncing.
Come on.
15 bounces.
I think I've got 17.
Ooph.
DENNIS: Wow.
Yeah.
Captain Paul and team mates Trickett and Dennis all work at Cycles Maximus, a rickshaw manufacturing firm in Bath.
But for them, rickshaw riding isn't just a job, it's a way of life.
Or near-death, depending on who's bagged the electric rickshaw.
Just one of the many strange vehicles they own, including a backwards bikes and the mini-cycle.
Captain Paul is also a circus performer in his spare time.
And he and team mate Trickett are also neighbours on the river.
Trickett, he's, ah he's not all there, I'm sure of it.
But he's good fun.
ROBERT: While Dennis is also a qualified forklift driver.
Dennis is a bit of a practical joker who enjoys clamping you to the bench when you're not looking or welding your shoes together, you know, things like that.
ROBERT: This happy-go-lucky team have a carefree attitude to life, but these charming charioteers have got a will to win.
ALL: We're Maximus and we're going to crank it up! ROBERT: The next item on their shopping list is a good strong bearing on which their arm will pivot.
It'll have to be in good nick to withstand some huge forces.
That has got the potential of working really, really well.
Yep.
Those bearings are a bit loose.
Should we get one of those barrels? ROBERT: So one that's a bit loose probably isn't ideal.
Nonetheless, that's what they plump for and soon Dennis is on his way back to base.
LISA: Meanwhile, Irn Cru are still trying to dislodge their first scrap pickings from the heap.
Irn Cru, are you pleased you got a bouncing bomb at challenge day Yeah.
Delighted.
or were you hoping for something different? No.
No.
It's very unusual.
Have you got confidence in your expert? Do you think he knows what he's talking about? Absolutely.
I think so.
You're not saying much today, are you? You're quite quiet and contained.
(LAUGHS) Is that because you want to get on, tow this back up to the build area? Kind of.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Alright, well, look, very best of luck today.
And I'll come and see how you're getting on later.
Great.
Take it easy.
Irn Cru comprises Captain Ben and team mates Drew, Robin and Robin's eyebrow.
And you'll find them round and about in the famous Glasgow Science Centre.
It's Drew and Robin's job to run the school trip gauntlet, checking and fixing all the exhibits.
Drew is the mechanic of the team and had an early start in fabrication.
I first had a go at welding when I was about 12.
LISA: Whereas Robin's the quiet type.
I trained as a sculptor but I've had various guises in my career.
LISA: But it's Ben who's the self-proclaimed egghead of the team.
And he'll be a great leader if he can only understand what his team mates are saying.
BEN: What would I do without Robin or Drew? I learn from their wisdom each day.
But my poor little brain would be under less strain if I could just understand what they say.
These sons of the Clyde speak their language with pride, each syllable's ethnically pure.
They replace every vowel with a guttural growl that makes meaning completely obscure.
So here's my advice, say, "How lovely.
That's nice," and smile sweetly whatever they say.
Though your face will go red if it turns out they said that their aunty has just passed away.
LISA: Back in our own car graveyard, that 2CV is stuck in the mud.
But all it takes is a little Scottish hospitality and it's soon free.
But they've no sooner delivered one set of wheels when they're dispatched out to find another.
This time with a beefier engine.
Automatic.
Yeah.
Big, powerful, something with an auto box.
ROBIN: Right.
Yeah, let's get a crowbar, get all the cords and stuff out and LISA: Leaving Irn Cru captain Ben who isn't so much stripping the 2CV down as gently undressing it.
But over-eager expert Mike wastes no time in laying it bare.
Ooh, easy, tiger.
ROBERT: On the heap, eagle-eyed Dennis has spotted some springs to give the Maximus machine a little extra horsepower.
DENNIS: I've seen some springs.
Have you? Yeah.
Some tailgate ones in a horsebox down there.
Sorry? Tailgate springs in a horsebox.
Oh, yes.
That's what we could do with.
Ah, yes.
So we'll get this out and go and get those off.
Yeah.
ROBERT: And back in their build area, Captain Paul gets on with the daily grind.
That bearing's going to form the crucial pivot in their machine, so if it's loose, they could find themselves in the Bearing Straits.
Meanwhile, Trickett goes to investigate the horsebox which team mate Dennis spotted as a source of springs.
And it hasn't got any big springs on it either.
OK.
There's no springs on the horsebox so we can't use those.
ROBERT: This leaves them with a vital component missing and Trickett's determined to leave no scrap unturned.
LISA: But back in Irn Cru's build area, as Captain Ben continues to tease the car out of its bodywork, expert Mike strips it quicker than you can say 'naked chassis'.
Mike, Ben.
OK, now, we're asking you to make something that can bounce bombs into a dam, and you've scavenged a 2CV.
How on earth is that going to work? Well, the idea is we'll get rid of nearly all of this, so we've just got a trolley, really, four wheels and a chassis.
And this whole thing is going to be pulled along by a cable which is going to be wound up by the wheels of another stationary car.
OK, so it's going to come along at about 50mph, and is it going to, what, smack into the other car or? Well, the cable is going to come out in front of this, around the pulley which will be fixed to the ground, and then back to the other vehicle which will be over here.
So this will get pulled up towards that pulley and we've also got to have some device that's gonna suddenly stop this, or reasonably stop it, so that the bomb pops off the front and starts bouncing away to the target.
I'll come and see how you're getting on later.
Alright.
Thanks.
'Bye.
LISA: Well, Captain Ben certainly knows what he wants.
But do his big ideas sit well with expert Mike's? Or could there be a battle of wills in the offing? So we need bombs.
MIKE: Oh, we need some bombs, yeah.
Have we got bombs? Bombs and springs.
You're on the bombs mission then, Dennis? ROBERT: It's bombs away.
Both teams are doing their best to steal every bit of missile-shaped metal on the heap, as they have to invent their own scrap projectiles.
Their shape will determine how well they spin and bounce, so it's vital they get it right.
LISA: In World War II, the MÃhne and Eder dams in Germany were strategic targets which were protected by giant torpedo nets.
Barnes Wallace came up with the idea for a bomb that could bounce over the nets and hit the vulnerable dam bases.
But not everyone shared his enthusiasm.
Hello? What would be the effect of dropping a spherical bomb from 10,000 feet? (LAUGHS) Why, Mr Wallace, it would bounce like a football and have no accuracy at all.
Splendid.
LISA: Despite establishment derision, Wallace eventually got the go-ahead to build his giant bombs.
Incredibly, the dangerous mission succeeded, delivering a serious blow to the enemy war effort and marking the name of Wallace and Squadron 617 in history forever.
Back at the heap, spring has well and truly sprung as Trickett tracks down the last but most important item on the Maximus shopping list.
Look at that.
Isn't that the business? PAUL: Brilliant.
MIKE: Yeah.
Splendid.
Good work.
Stroke of luck.
You reckon that'll be alright? Beautiful.
Lovely colour.
It's nice, isn't it? Yeah.
Pretty.
ROBERT: Captain Paul and expert Mike are now fully prepared to spring into action and whip up a whopping great bomb flinger.
Good morning, chaps.
Morning.
This is all a bit alarming.
Normally I come here this time of the day, there's absolutely nothing here.
Yeah, we're cracking on.
'Cause what I understand you're making is like a giant clay pigeon shooting machine.
Yeah.
That's correct.
A trap.
We call it traps, yeah.
So it's an arm that swings.
Phwt! Will it just chuck it or does it spin it? Will it spin? This is the arm eventually.
Right.
And it's going to roll down the face of that.
Right.
And then fly off the end.
Oh, and as it rolls down that starts it spinning? It starts spinning up the arm.
Yeah.
But we're trying to get a speed of maybe 40, 50 mile an hour.
Wow.
That's the idea, but I'll come and see it when it's finished in about 15 minutes.
No, make it 20.
20? OK.
See you later on.
LISA: Maximus may have everything on their shopping list, but Scot scavengers Drew and Robin are a long way from the checkout.
The only thing that works on that American jeep are the windscreen wipers, so Irn Cru opt for an English answer to their problems which may lie in communications.
(SPEAKS WITH HEAVY SCOTTISH ACCENT) What? Do it.
Can't hear you.
(SPEAKS WITH HEAVY SCOTTISH ACCENT) Right.
LISA: So, to translate from the Glaswegian, this one doesn't work either.
ROBERT: But in the Maximus arena, it's all go, go, go.
Their base plate and pivot are already in position and they're ready to start work on their flinging arm.
(BLOWS RASPBERRY) Incoming message, chaps.
You have seven hours remaining.
(ALL GROAN) Seven hours remaining, chaps.
Thank you.
MIKE: Got an axle in the bucket.
LISA: It's crunch time for Irn Cru.
They don't have a winch, cable or the big engine they need.
All they've got is a 2CV and even that's on fire.
But apart from that, everything's bouncing along quite nicely.
Was there something else out there? Something with a big engine, automatic? Jag but There's a Jag but it's It's not looking good.
Have you tried it? Mm-hm.
We can try it again for you if you want.
There's gotta be something out there with a big engine that we can do the job with.
Well, that's the Jag.
Nothing out there - big automatic? We've got the jeep, that's four-wheel drive.
Yeah.
And we've got the Jag.
Yeah.
That's three-wheel drive.
We've gotta get one of those going.
Right.
OK, then.
Right.
Maybe have a go with the Jag.
Right.
Could you give us a hand LISA: So, in conclusion, they still need a big engine.
And to explain why, our judge this week is international man of mystery, Arthur Kearse, a ballistics expert from deep in the belly of defence research agency Qinetiq.
We could tell you exactly what he does, but then we'd have to kill you.
Ugh! Oh, there you are, Arthur.
I've been looking for you all over.
How do you do? Very nice to meet you.
Thanks for coming.
It's my pleasure.
So, there are some sort of very obvious parallels between the challenge we're doing this week and the famous Barnes Wallace bouncing bomb.
Presumably, they had a little bit longer than 10 hours to develop that weapon.
Yes, they did.
But they had to put together a whole squadron plus all the weapons from nothing.
I mean, because, presumably, there's some things that, you know, just growing up and watching the films and my dad flew Lancaster bombers in the war, and all that sort of stuff, and, I mean, one key thing I remember about it was that the bomb was spinning as it was dropped.
Yep.
The spin's absolutely key in terms of what Wallace wanted to achieve.
Right.
If it wasn't spinning, it simply wouldn't do any of those things.
So if he just dropped it as a cylinder, it wouldn't work.
Right, so it might bounce once but it would sort of splash Yeah, it could just pierce through that water and go straight under with a huge, huge splash.
And if you think about skimming stones, as a child Yeah.
choose the right stone and throw it fast enough and spin it fast enough It'll keep flipping.
you'll get lots of bounces.
So, have you decided, you know, which particular design you prefer the most? I know there's not much to see yet, but the theory of the design.
Yeah, I think team Maximus have probably got the most promising idea in terms of what they can actually do in the 10 hours that they've got.
The other side of the coin is the Irn Cru one could potentially be very tunable, but they've actually got to build at least three elements.
So, I mean, it could well be that I'm entirely wrong Yeah.
(LAUGHS) and Maximus's machine will spectacularly self-destruct the first time it's used.
While Irn Cru sails hundreds of missiles exactly to target.
Yes.
Yes.
Yeah.
That's part of the fun, though, isn't it? Yeah.
Absolutely.
LISA: Well, at the moment, Irn Cru are sailing rather close to the wind - that engine won't run and without it they have no winch.
TRICKETT: If I've got two, then I can ROBERT: And Maximus have realised that they need to make missiles, and mathematically minded Trickett's come up with a larger-rhythmic solution to their problem.
TRICKETT: If we cut the top side of that weld, we've got two discs Yeah.
which, you know, put them both together - sandwich two of them together like so.
Do you want to try one and? It smells of beer already Yeah.
What a lovely smell.
We're doing that.
ROBERT: Cutting both ends off these kegs and welding them together should give them just the right size of discus for the machines to fire.
Sometimes the answer really does lie at the bottom of a barrel.
Maximus - frightening team - they're nearly done.
LISA: No? No team ever has ever been this far advanced.
I mean, look, they'll be done just after lunch, I think.
That's extraordinary.
It's great, isn't it, to say that? 'Cause you know that they haven't got a hope - suddenly it'll all go wrong.
But they've got so far ahead.
Their scavengers are brilliant scavengers.
They're a good-looking team, though.
They're a marvellous team with excellent A whole variety of hair.
They've got the full gamut of male hair, from not much, in the case of Dennis, to rather a lot, in the case of Paul.
I do think that that kind of eccentricity always goes down well on Scrapheap.
Yeah, they're a good eccentric, scrappy team, aren't they? They're very good.
There's a certain eccentricity with the Irn Cru, very dour Scotsmen.
Are they? Proper They're all Scotsmen? At the moment, monosyllabic.
(LAUGHS) Hi, guys, it's Ben.
How are you getting on? ROBIN: Yeah, we're OK.
(ROBERT LAUGHS) So you're making a, you know a bouncing bomb machine.
Have you done that before? "No.
" (LAUGHS) OK, so you're looking forward to the challenge? "Yes.
" (LAUGHS) On the other hand, their team captain, Ben, is more lucid, got a lot more to say for himself.
But, then, he's not actually Scottish.
So, they've got a 2CV in there which, obviously, when I first saw it I was slightly worried about, but it turns out that's just gonna be a chassis and the wheels just for trolley, and the actual power's coming from a separate vehicle.
So it's quite complicated.
Wow, it does sound complicated.
So, they're gonna pull the trolley in at about 40-50 miles an hour Right.
it'll have a controlled crash.
When you say 'controlled' Yeah.
(LAUGHS) what you mean is (IMITATES EXPLOSION) Set it off and run for cover.
Yeah.
That's about the size of it.
Never mind controlled, there won't be a crash at all if Irn Cru can't find an engine and get it to work soon.
(FLAPPING SOUND) There's something turning.
ROBERT: And will pressurised Maximus captain Paul be able to keep his cool and his team mate under control? It's a bit rubbish, innit? (LAUGHS) Yeah, he's being bossy when, you know, it's quite obvious that I am the captain.
ROBERT: Maximus's plan is to make a giant clay pigeon firer to fire beer-barrel discuses.
They've been working with military precision and are already ahead of the clock.
LISA: But Irn Cru have had more problems than Dear Deidre.
They plan to make a winch but so far they've got a 2CV which, like their plans, went up in smoke.
They still can't get that Jaguar purring and Captain Ben is suffering from tool trauma.
Is this the first time you've kind of had serious hands-on experience or have you I think Robin and Drew are very kind to me in the workshop and teach me welding and stuff like that.
Basically, is you Robin and Drew, you're the guys that do the actual sort of Mm-hm.
But is he quite clever, though? Extremely.
Extremely.
Extremely? His kids call him the boff.
Do they? They'll never forgive you for that.
(OTHERS LAUGH) My kids would never call me that.
I can't tell you what they do call me but they definitely don't call me that.
Irn Cru are going to have to work fast to catch up with this lot.
Maximus have half fabricated their pinging arm and have already fashioned a test missile to try for size.
And in case Trickett has any pretensions to the Maximus throne, Captain Paul administers a scalding rebuke.
Oww! It's spittin' on my shirt.
(LAUGHS) It's taken off some of my ginger fluff.
It looks to me like you're quite far ahead with the build.
Oh, we're surprising ourselves with this.
(LAUGHS) Really.
Paul, you were a circus performer.
Yeah.
What sort of Can you do me circus tricks? Of course I can.
Ohh! (OTHERS LAUGH) And in a word, no.
It's mid afternoon and Irn Cru finally get their Jag running.
(ENGINE SPUTTERS AND REVS) But their celebrations are short-lived as they discover that it's stuck fast with four flat tyres.
Eventually, Irn Cru resort to shaking their car booty to free the Jaguar from captivity.
But it's almost evening and they've barely started their build.
ROBERT: Unlike Maximus who, working under Captain Trickett sorry, Captain Paul's authority, have finished fabricating their arm and are ready to attach it to their base.
We need a couple of G-clamps.
ROBERT: Although it definitely seems to be Trickett giving the orders and Captain Paul who's taking them.
Alright, so I've done that now.
We marked it on the centre and it's OK.
Yup.
ROBERT: Now that it's in one piece, they're beginning to wonder if it really will be strong enough and if that dodgy bearing will take its weight.
That's really flexi.
Yeah.
We'll have to reinforce that.
I reckon we need a doodah on it.
Yeah.
LISA: Trickett may need a doodah, but Irn Cru need a whole new doodah day - they're badly behind and running out of time.
But they've at least tracked down some cable and Drew's had an idea for Mike's complicated barrel-spinning thing, if they can agree on which way it'll go.
Have that driving the drum and direct, and the other bearing.
BEN: Yeah, but it's going the wrong way again, isn't it? Is it? No.
The wheels go that way, so this wheel goes that way, so the drum goes that way.
Precisely what we want.
Yeah, two axles.
LISA: Drew's plan is for direct drive.
He'll add a third wheel to the 2CV axle which will turn the barrel itself as the trolley moves.
Thanks to Wallace, they know it's essential to give the barrel backspin as this will increase the air pressure underneath it, giving it extra lift.
(GROWLS) LISA: But they're not off the hook.
There's still a lot of hard grafting to do.
And for Captain Ben, unused to wielding power tools, it's an exhausting and thankless baptism of fire.
Boffin Ben is cold, wet and tired.
Things with this expert are tense and his energy and his enthusiasm have taken a dive.
BEN: Is there anything useful I can do? I just have to stop grinding for a bit.
(WISTFUL MUSIC) (LOUD WHIRRING) Manic expert Mike, on the other hand, has too much energy for his own good.
He's trying to use his own body weight to break the bonnet hinges of the Jag.
But if he succeeds, he's going to fall flat on his face.
Luckily, his 9-stone frame isn't enough to break the brute and he resorts to electricity.
ROBERT: Which is exactly what Maximus expert Mike is doing next door.
He's come up with a plan for a mechanised release system for their machine so they can launch it from a safe distance.
This little like a maybe a car wind wiper or maybe electric windows on the car.
Yeah.
So this motor will come on, keep pushing the arm, pushing the arm till it goes over the top, sits in there, and once it's over the top, sits in there, it's gone.
And we're right back 50m away.
Yeah.
LISA: Every inch Maximus pull their springs apart adds 160 pounds of force into their firing arm.
At full stretch, that arm will produce almost as much energy as a charging rhinoceros.
Understandably, they won't want to go anywhere near it once it's armed, so they're devising a clever remote-release mechanism which they can set off from a safe distance.
ROBERT: Clearly not wanting to go head to head with a charging rhino, Dennis wastes no time in tracking down a scooter engine to make their release.
But he better get back to the build area fast.
It's getting dark and that's the most dangerous time on the heap because that's when panic sets in.
Irn Cru.
We'll just take the centre out, we're still left with a load of strength.
Hello.
How's it going? I just look at your That face said it all.
You've certainly come a lot further than when I was here last.
(CHUCKLES) Yeah.
You've got a massive great Jaguar in the build area.
What's that going to be doing? That's going to be our winch.
OK.
How are you going to keep the trolley straight? Well, use the force.
(LAUGHS) It's 'Star Wars'.
OK.
We're hoping to find some sort of track or rail to run it on.
So you're going to actually build some rails at the test site Yeah.
to run the trolley on? Robin, you've been very quiet so far.
How do you feel about the tracks idea? I don't know.
(BEN CHUCKLES) I really don't know.
I'm worried.
You are worried.
I can see it in your eyes, actually.
I am.
You've got the look of Worry.
Perhaps.
(BEN LAUGHS) The look of worry.
Have you thought about what you're going to crash it into? Yeah.
Yeah.
The current idea is to have some bits of wood across the ground.
Mm-hm.
And we've got this thing down here, just gonna hit those pieces of wood.
And by smashing them one after the other, it's gonna slow it down.
So, that's going to be interesting as well.
We have a backup plan for that as well in case it goes horribly wrong.
And what's the backup plan? Well, it's my backup plan, no-one else agrees with it.
(DREW LAUGHS) Is to have a slight cable on the back with a great weight.
So that's another possibility, but we're going with this one first of all.
Irn Cru, this is quite possibly the most complicated answer to a challenge we have ever had.
(LAUGHS) Why do it easy when you can make it hard? (LAUGHS) Flight control to ground crews, flight control to ground crews, you have three hours remaining, chaps.
Three hours construction time remaining.
Thank you.
LISA: It's taken time but Captain Ben has finally found his scrapheap feet.
He's managing advanced double-handed spannering with aplomb and it's time everyone realised who's the boff sorry, boss.
MIKE: We know you guys have found some Armco down there.
Mm-hm.
So we're on this, on an arm.
Like that.
'Cause we haven't sorted out the towing of this yet.
But we're on this, on an arm, like that, and then we haven't got this issue of will these ride out, will they climb out, which is, you know, a good point.
I'm having issue will that climb out.
Yeah, but we'll be pulling it in, won't we? (EXHALES DEEPLY) If the steering is loose and we just pull this towards a fixed point DREW: Yeah, car's direction.
then the automatic centring action of the wheels ought to keep the thing straight.
Yeah, the only trouble is if it goes off line we're going to miss our deceleration zone.
Mm-hm.
Well, yeah, in that case I start talking about bits, lumps of metal on the ends of cables, you see.
LISA: Expert Mike wants to run tracks made out of motorway crash barrier to the edge of the water to keep the bomb chariot in a straight line.
A metal rod on the trolley will break through several pieces of wood, bringing the trolley to a halt.
Ben thinks it's more likely to destroy the trolley and wants to use an arrester cable on a spring attached to a giant anchor which will slow the trolley more gradually and hopefully stop it from ending up in the drink.
ROBERT: But next door, Maximus, almost as unstoppable as Irn Cru's trolley, have even finished their posh release mechanism.
Maximus - maximum speed, maximum efficiency, maximum team bonding, maximum dreadlocks in some cases, have made an extraordinary machine that actually looks like it might work.
It's fatal, isn't it? There's no wood to touch.
(BOTH LAUGH) It's all a bit too perfect.
Yeah.
The wheels are gonna come off, metaphorically, at some point.
Yeah, 'cause that's the thing - no wheels.
(LAUGHS) No wheels, no engine to go wrong.
No engine to go wrong, no drive chain to break.
Nothing.
Something will go wrong.
That arm will crumple.
The arm will crumple, the springs will po-toing off.
Po-toing! The little thing will fly off before it can be fired and go backwards And knock one of them out.
Knock Well, no, because they've got a remote firing system.
Oh.
Oh.
Oh.
Sorry.
Please.
Sorry.
Oh, yeah.
Danger, no.
They have to load it up by hand somehow, but they can probably pull a rope from a safe distance.
And they've got a little electric pushy fella that goes (MAKES WHIZZING NOISE) and just pushes it really slowly till it goes past the point of no return, then it suddenly goes po-toing and it fires.
(LAUGHS) As far as the Irn Cru is concerned, the question more is will they actually get the machine built.
Yeah, there's so many different parts that aren't really joined together with anything other than string, really, effectively, are they? They use the word 'cable'.
Yeah.
We can call it cable.
But evidently it's string.
I think it's string.
I think string's better.
I wonder if they have bitten off a far larger lump of scrap than they can chew.
Mike's very keen to get his ideas, um You know, to get us to take his ideas on board.
And I've no particular problem with that 'cause there's lots of good ideas he comes up with.
Um, but yeah, at the beginning, I think I think maybe he had a big plan in his head and he's taken a little bit of levering to get away from certain aspects of that plan.
MIKE: A bit more length.
LISA: But Ben's decided that if anyone's going to be doing some levering, it's him.
We just had a rethink about the stopping thing.
Mm-hm.
Because we've all got well, some of us have got worries about the way the track's gonna work, keeping it straight, and I think it's worth thinking about the other way to stop it, which would be to imagine this is the trolley and it's going that way.
We have a cable on it, which is slack, and then there's a weight here.
When the trolley gets to about here, the cable goes tight, and then this weight is connected to the trolley and it slows it down.
And that way it doesn't matter if the trolley's off line 'cause we're not trying to aim for anything.
And it ought to be quicker to build than tracks and stuff like that.
I think it's worth thinking about anyway.
Alright.
ROBERT: So Mike's tracks are consigned to the bin, while next door, Maximus are still making discuses and are ready to test that release mechanism.
We got it.
Evening, Maximus.
How's it going? OTHERS: Hello.
What are you up to? Oh, we're just finalising our electric release.
If you want to have a go.
Have you not actually tried it before? No, no.
This is OK, so, what? Are we just grounding it? Go on.
Here we go.
Look at that.
Oh! It pulls away.
Move out of the way.
Off it goes.
Brilliant.
And that So it just needs a gentle shove.
That's what it needs, yeah.
I'm very impressed.
We've not had one of these on Scrapheap before.
Normally it's a block of wood someone tries to kick out of the way.
So that's very impressive.
And there's your loaded arm.
TRICKETT: So, that's the sort of start position.
Yeah.
And then, as it goes round, this will spin along here and accelerate massively.
Yeah.
Until, you know, that gets all the way around there and then it's off.
Well done so far, and we'll see how it does tomorrow.
The proof of the pudding is in the flinging of the bombs.
See you later.
Take care.
Alright.
Bye-bye.
I need the welder in a bit, Paul.
So do these guys.
PAUL: Alright.
ROBERT: With time still on their side, Maximus are making the last part of their dambusting jigsaw.
They need to manufacture guide rails to keep their missiles in place as they spin along the arm.
LISA: Time is getting extremely tight for the Irn Cru.
They still haven't finished their barrel-spinning trolley or tested their winch.
ROBERT: Whereas, with their machine almost finished, the only thing Maximus are worried about is their grammar.
Did you find the helmet? No, I didn't find the helmet.
Well, there was two.
There were were two.
What's that? BOTH: Welding helmets.
ROBERT: And showing some support for their beleaguered opponents.
(ENGINE REVS) Oh, yeah.
Come on! MIKE: OK.
PAUL: Yes.
Great.
LISA: Unfortunately, any celebrations for a working winch and engine are short-lived.
To add insult to injury, the unlucky Scots have got a wonky wheel.
ROBERT: So, I think you've been consistently voting for the Maximus team all day.
Yeah.
Are you gonna change your mind? Are you gonna hop over that fence? No.
I think I'll stay on that side of the fence.
I may have been seduced by the beauty of their machine and so forth and so on but I think it's got the best chance of coming out on top.
Maximus have been very lucky today.
I've got my doubts, though, about that.
Oh, God! PAUL: Trickett.
LISA: So, while Maximus finish off their guide rails, poor old Irn Cru are still scavenging.
They've yet to make the anchor for Ben's arrester cable which will comprise a steel door and two oil barrels which are filled with water.
And despite Ben's objections, Mike wants to take some Armco for tracks just in case.
ROBERT: It's a Scrapheap first.
Maximus appear to have finished before the final hooter is gone.
While their opponents sweat, they're relaxing with a nice cup of tea, admiring their handiwork and relentlessly taking the micky.
Should we go and give them a hand? I think we ought to.
They obviously need it.
(BOTH LAUGH) Or we could just stand back and give lightly critical remarks.
(LAUGHS) You missed a bit.
Yeah.
(LAUGHS) LISA: When Irn Cru realise the opposition have finished, they move into overdrive.
They've only minutes left.
Expert Mike is at it again.
He's not a big man, but can he actually defy gravity? Next door, it's more tea's up than time's up as Maximus take a load off and wait for the bell.
(SIREN BLARES) OK, teams exercises are over.
And come the morning, it will be zero hour for Operation Scrapheap.
LISA: And tomorrow we'll see whether Irn Cru will have a barrel of laughs ROBERT: Wa-hey.
LISA: Or if Maximus will be on a voyage of discovery.
ROBERT: Oh, yes.
Yeah.
Thank you.
Well done, teams.
Well done, teams.
Brilliantly well done.
Whoo! Well done.
And if they want to take the plunge and bounce through to the second round, they'll have to take into account speed, spin and angle of dangle.
Oh, and if they don't make a splash, it'll be a damn shame.
(LAUGHS) Dam shame.
Our dam lies 35m from the water's edge and each team will have four attempts to hit it.
They'll receive three points for every bounce on the water and 10 points for every barrel knocked over.
But if their projectiles hit the dam without bouncing at all, they get no points whatsoever.
ROBERT: We've given each team their customary hour of tinkering time.
Not that Maximus really need it.
Morning, Maximus.
Oh, morning.
Good morning.
How are you all doing? It's something to throw bombs and you've painted it like a hippy joss stick.
(ALL LAUGH) Are you gonna pack the bombs full of patchouli oil? (LAUGHS) Oh, yes.
You know, you are into peace and love and kind of being nice to everybody, but do you really want to win this? Oh, yeah.
(LAUGHS) "Oh, yeah.
" What, like a rat out of a drain pipe, "No, I don't.
" "Yeah, we want to win.
" ROBERT: Irn Cru have their winch, pulley and anchor in position, and they're ready to try and bust some dams.
(BANG!) Now, Robin, you've drawn the short straw, I think, perhaps, of being the person responsible for running the engine.
Are you happy with that? It's a I'm moderately nervous.
(OTHERS LAUGH) Apprehensive.
So, slightly scared, really.
Right that.
Very scared.
(LAUGHS) The rest of us should probably get out of the way to somewhere safer.
Good luck, Robin.
I'll see you after the test.
Come with me, guys.
It's round one for Irn Cru.
Time to put their wobbly winch and their backspinning barrel to the test.
Irn Cru, are you ready to show us your mettle? On the sound of the horn, bombs away.
(HOOTER BLARES) ROBIN: Go! ROBERT: It's moving.
It's spinning.
Oh, my God! LISA: Oh, go on! MAN: Oh! ROBERT: Yes! (LAUGHS) (CONTINUES LAUGHING) LISA: It bounced.
It definitely bounced.
We got at least two bounces on ours.
It's a damn good effort, I've got to say.
I was really impressed.
That's really impressive.
Rogers to Llewellyn, do you read me? Over.
Reading you loud and clear, Rogers.
Now, we're very concerned to know what's happening.
There are some concerns about the front end of the trolley.
But they're looking into that now.
Over.
But it looks like they're confident to have another go, though.
Let's hope so.
I think it remains to be seen.
That epic 50m sprint not only bust up their trolley but it almost took their anchor with them.
Their arrester cable spring has well and truly sprung.
And poor old Irn Cru retire licking their wounds to try and weld up the damage to their trolley.
They did at least manage two bounces, giving them six points.
Next, it's Maximus to step up to the water's edge.
It's a tense moment for them.
No-one's really sure what direction the machine will fire in or how far it'll go.
It's Trickett on the button, behind a very heavy-duty safety net.
Maximus, on the sound of the horn, let loose your disc of disc-struction.
(HOOTER BLARES) Go on, Trickett.
One Ooh! (OTHERS LAUGH) It's taken out some branches.
LISA: The disc did hit some greenery but lands in the water, giving them a total of two bounces and six points.
Round two for Maximus.
They've adjusted their position and put their discus slightly further down the swinging arm.
I sort of feel less scared of the machine now.
I think, you know, we know what it does.
It was terrifying to stand anywhere near it with those huge springs.
But I think now we know.
Yes.
It looks actually fairly gentle.
Yeah.
I'm sure it would hurt if you were standing in the way.
I've got no intention of standing anywhere near it, actually.
Maximus, set your machine to maximum.
(HOOTER BLARES) ROBERT: It's creeping.
It's creeping.
LISA: Oh! One, two.
Ohh! OTHERS: Ohh! Oh, that was so close.
How do you count that as bounces? 'Cause it's either 400 or one.
Yeah.
LISA: In fact, our Scrapheap marshals judged it as three distinct bounces, giving Maximus another nine points and bringing their total to 15.
(WHIRRING NOISE) ROBERT: And while Irn Cru continue to mend their machine, Maximus prepare for round three.
Unfortunately, that bearing wasn't as hardy as they hoped and it's beginning to make their arm droop.
They've had to enlist a piece of scaffold pole to keep it up.
And it feels like it's starting to give a bit.
Maximus, time to go full tilt.
(HOOTER BLARES) Here we go.
PAUL: Here we go.
MIKE: Come on.
LISA: Oh! Whoa! (ALL CHEER) Yes! (LAUGHS) Oh.
LISA: It was an incredible throw and they've proved they can reach the dam.
Unfortunately, however, it failed to dislodge any barrels.
And their discus bounced once, giving them just three points.
ROBERT: Maximus think that the scaffold pole might be impeding their mechanism as it launches, so before they fire their final missile, they've asked our Scrapheap marshal just to nudge it out of the way and Oops! LISA: Oh! MIKE: What? (THUD) MAXIMUS: Yay! (LAUGHS) ROBERT: That definitely wasn't supposed to happen.
Great.
(LAUGHS) Very good.
Two barrels off.
Two.
Trouble is no bounces.
But no bounces.
LISA: Sadly for Maximus, that misfire by the marshal will be disallowed.
But they will be allowed one last chance to take their fourth-round go, if that bearing will hold up to one more firing.
PAUL: Go on.
Go! Ohh.
LISA: Ohh! Oh, mis-aimed but well done.
TRICKETT: One more bounce.
Got one more bounce.
Exactly.
That'll add to the points tally.
ROBERT: So near and yet so far.
Maximus finish with a grand total of 24 points.
We'll see now how well the Irn Cru do, who are lurking behind you.
Go on, lads, go and sort out your Good luck.
your team.
Best of luck, you lot.
Well done.
LISA: As the world's largest clay pigeon trap meets an unceremonious end, Irn Cru have fettled their metal and they're ready for a comeback.
They already have six points from their round one go.
So if they've sorted out the bomb-release mechanism, they need only six bounces over their three remaining rounds to equal Maximus's score.
It's not over until that rather large female has a warble.
Indeed.
(LAUGHS) Or indeed the final whistle blows.
(LAUGHS) 'Cause it is a game of two halves.
Quite.
(LAUGHS) LISA: This machine, the Jaguar joined to the 2CV, is a triumph of Anglo, French and, um Scottish engineering.
Irn Cru, it's time for some derring-do.
(HOOTER BLARES) (ENGINE REVS) ROBERT: Yeah, look at that! (LAUGHS) Oh, phenomenal splashing.
ARTHUR: Phenomenal splash.
(OTHERS CHEER AND APPLAUD) ARTHUR: What a splash.
Look.
Backup.
LISA: The Irn Cru bomb trolley has actually lodged itself in a tree.
It turns out the reason it ended up so far into the bushes was because they forgot to attach it to the arrester cable.
This means that yet again the bomb didn't release cleanly.
Llewellyn, are you there? It's Rogers.
Over.
I am, Rogers.
What's going on over there? Is that machine salvageable in any way? They seem to think it is.
A little bit of hammering and it should be good to go again.
There is, however, a question mark over the engine in the Jaguar 'cause that rattling isn't a good thing.
Luckily for Irn Cru, it's bent but not broken.
And this time, they're determined nothing will go wrong.
They've even built it a small ramp to increase their angle of trajectory.
It's springing but it's actually not wobbling too badly.
Irn Cru, get ready to roll out the barrel.
(HOOTER BLARES) Come on.
(ENGINE REVS) (ALL SHOUT EXCITEDLY) ALL: Ohh! (BANG!) Go on, go on.
Go on! (ALL CHEER) (ROBERT CHUCKLES) What a machine.
(LAUGHS) What a machine.
LISA: Spectacular.
Irn Cru did manage to achieve three bounces but it was at the expense of their poor, battered trolley.
Could've been three bounces that could've been.
Somersaulted, didn't it? What's this? Why is it facing the wrong way? Look, so it is! MIKE: What's that? It's facing backwards.
Hey! LISA: And that engine rattle isn't the only thing wrong with the car.
The force of the collision was so extreme, the back axle of the Jag has snapped in two and their winch has dug itself right into the ground.
I think we better let the others know.
I think we're gonna call it a day.
I think we've bowed out gracefully, I think.
We missed one run.
We got some bounces.
It was good fun.
LISA: Even if they didn't get many bounces, it's definitely 10 out of 10 for artistic impression in the Irn Cru camp.
(DUCKS QUACK) I mean, you've gone off your trolleys, you've lost your bearings and you have well and truly bounced your bombs.
But the winners are Maximus! (ALL CHEER) So, well done, Maximus! Excellent.
ROBERT: There you go.
LISA: Well done, both teams, you both gave us a brilliant challenge.
Well done.
Here we go.
Go for cover.
Way! Wa-hey! (LAUGHTER) Well done.
(LAUGHS)