PIRA: 1F20.40

Materials: Dowel, 2 small nails in the end of dowels, 2 coffee cans, 2 wine glasses, and something to break the dowel

Light, thin nails or pins are driven into each end of a 4', 1/4" hardwood dowel and the heads of the nails or pins are removed. The dowel is placed between two wine glasses so that the pins rest on the rims of the glasses. The wine glasses are placed on the shock-absorbing, coffee can contraptions pictured above. These coffee cans are placed on top of chairs or table tops with plenty of clearance below. The dowel is broken in the center with a sharp blow from a rod, without moving the wine glasses much. This works because of the inertia of the dowel, and the low friction between the pins and the glasses.