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Testing Your Toothpick Bridge
Testing your completed bridge is very exciting! By slowly adding weight to the bridge, you determine how much weight it will support before actually breaking. Of course, you don’t need to break your bridge. However, how will you know what the true strength is unless you break the bridge?
Build weight system – Using a soda can or water bottle, cut off the top and attach a small section of string.
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Next, tie a piece of string to a pencil to form a loop. The string should slide easily off the end of the pencil |
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Next, bend a large paperclip into a hook shape. |
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Assemble the final test weight system as in the photo to the right. |
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Attach the weight test pieces to the bridge. Remove on of the string ends from the pencil, slide the pencil through the center of the bridge and attach the string to the other end. Allow the can and paperclip to hang through the hole in the cardboard. Using objects to raise the bridge, make sure there is plenty of space below the can to allow for the stretching of the string and bending of the can. |
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Add weight and test – In our test, we used BB’s to fill the can. You may use anything that has enough weight to test the bridge. In our example, we filled the can with BBs but it did not break! As we added some metal spoons to the clip and that did it!
Final weight it supported – 52 ounces |
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Final strength – Take your final weight to break the bridge and divide it by the weight of the bridge. That is your factor for the strength of the bridge. |
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