Ram pumps - myth or real

So.. I read lots about ram pumps over the years. The theory is that water hammer ( that bang when you turn off a tap quickly) can pump water.

For many years the two main sources of commercial ram pumps were the US and Australia. The one an only AU commercial provider has according to our email discussion given up... parts are hard to find and the demand is low.. I understand when its simple to just plug in a $300 ebay pump why bother with anything else....

Having a creek, a lack of grid connect power and a need for water has driven my interest to the point where I built my own. :-)

I've followed a couple of tried and tested designs and a simple test with a hose shows promise - the real test is in place in the creek - which once the water level goes down to a point where I can lay the drive pipe I will report back. Theory is that with a 5m fall I can pump up 50 - 100 m with no power, 24 x7 x 365 . More to follow.