Slomo of the slingshot shotgun at release

I have done some slomos to see how the pellets leave the pouch.

Interesting, the Kydex pouch flies high after the fork has been passed, while the shot pellets continue straight on.

The pellets are in a nice tight group, just perfect if you ask me.

Then, the pouch returns downwards. I have no explanation for the strange post-fork flight of the pouch, maybe it is because of the hollow container halfs. Well, I don't care as long as it works.

Introducing the Dankung "Cougar" Slingshot

Even though I gave them the design for free, I am very proud.

Here is the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zLnudI-ArHg

Regards

Jörg

Video Review: Express Bands from Bill Herriman

Bill Herriman (aka "Texshooter") is one of the greatest slingshot expert of the world. He has many years of experience and won some very prestigious titles in tournaments.

He does offer various slingshot products, like his band sets. These sets are available in several versions, each one made from natural latex. He tapers the bands, for additional speed.

This is a review about his "express" bands, the strongest he sells. They have been attached to the "Cougar", a slingshot that can take any kind of bands on the market.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z4j-weKRqRY

The results are impressive! A .38 cal. steel ball (9,5mm) flew with 80 meters per second (262 feet/sec), quite impressive.

The bands have a very nice, smooth draw, and the preformed pouch is simply excellent.

Bill Herriman can be reached at nherriman@sts.rr.com.

Frameless finger shooter: The Video

Here is the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_k_-v1ZnKM


Jörg

Kydex pouch for lead shot

Got the 1mm Kydex today and made a pouch.

This works fantastic! I designed the pouch in a way that it can not fully open, just enough to let the 19mm lead ball out. This leads to very tight groups when I use lead shot! Even from 10 meters, several balls hit the air rifle target (which is small). At 5 meters, all of them are in the air rifle target.

I smashed an apple from 5 meters! No tissue bags whatsoever.

But it also shoots very good with lead balls.

The only issue: You either have to wear a glove or shoot it flipstyle. The pouch is not heavier than leather, but much harder, so a handslap might cause cuts, would hurt very much for sure.

No frame at all!

Someone from another forum challenged me to make a slingshot that has NO fork, just finger attachments.

Made one today! Cut it from leather, laced it up and watered it, so it takes on the form of my fingers.

This works. Can't use my strongest bands, but Thera Gold, 3cm x 2 cm, no problem. It is fun!

Failures! Failures!

A friend of mine asked me if I ever experienced failures. Yes, sir, failures galore! For every successful design, I have one that doesn't work.

He said that just showing off the successes is wrong, and asked me to present at least the more spectacular failures as well. OK, here are two of those.

The first one is an attempt to make a slingcat with draw length extension. The idea: A spring loaded mechanism would automatically raise a roller when you draw out, and then when you release it would snap back in, making room for the ball.

Problem is that it did not work. What happened is that the ball hits the roller. Obviously the roller did not get down fast enough. A dangerous slingshot. For the trash.

The next one was my attempt to make a target slingshot. I wanted adjustable fork width and height, self centering grip, a spirit level to avoid canting and adjustable sights.

In general it works, but it is way to heavy. I can make about ten shots, and then my arm begins to ache and to tremble. Plus, the adjustable fork height and width is unnecessary really. The only thing that is worth preserving is the sight+spirit level.



Regards, Jörg

Jörg Sprave "Cougar" now available!

Hello,

this is to let you know that the video introduction of the first Jörg Sprave Dankung will come out this coming weekend.

The Chinese already put the product up on their website, here:

http://www.dankung.com/emart/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=78&products_id=322

The Chinese made a stainless steel casting mould for the design! It took a long time to optimize everything, but it came out very nice.

Every slingshot is engraved with my signature and marked "Special Edition" or even "Limited edition" (the latter won't be available from Dankung, but sold by selected European and US dealers only).

The design allows "Over The Top" flat band attachment (works for all kinds of flat bands, including Hunterbands, Bill Herriman's and Flatband's fine products). But it also allows the classical "pretzel" tubular band attachment.

The product is polished to a high sheen, not chrome plated like some of the less elaborate models.

The product will be available right after the introduction.

To make that point clear, I am not financially involved in this. I gave the design to Dankung for free, and I sure hope they will sell a ton of slingshots. These guys are eager, reliable and committed.

Watch out for the video!

Here is the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oK-sThQTk7w

Hello,

I have rummaged through my slingshot leftover pile and found a few pieces of Arizona desert ironwood. Not enough to cut a complete slingshot, but too beautiful to let go to waste.

So I turned a steel skeleton from a massive one inch stainless steel rod and attached the round leftover wood to it.

It actually came out nice. A light shooter, this time with a higher fork and plain, modest over the top band attachment.

I like this slingshot. It is very solid, 8 mm steel up to the tips of the wood.

Desert Ironwood Gloveshot

After a whole day of filing, sanding and polishing, the frame of my first desert ironwood slingshot is done.

There are indeed fine cracks, but they are in an uncritical part, plus I have stablized the frame with 8 mm steel rods. Those rods can hold the force even without the wood. This glovehsot has a heart of stainless steel!

I used another part of my croc belt for the hand brace.

The shine of the wood is just phenomenal. No epoxy, no stainer, no wax, just natural. Fantastic!

It is a tough material, and the dust is not pleasant. But the work is worth it!

Monster Slingshot!

As you know, I like Thera Band.

Especially the thinner variants (blue or black) have lots of power, very fast rubber. BUT you always have to layer it, fold it, whatever.

I wanted to make a slingshot that can take a full width (138 mm) Thera Band without any folding or layering. This of course means that it has to be freakin wide! A monster slingshot.

Of course I like low forks, so the angle between the fork arms had to be very very low.

And the clamp-on method is the only one that works. I made the clamp from a 10mm steel rod, and put Thera Tube yellow over it to increase the friction. This holds 100%, and band change is really easy.

The slingshot really shoots well. Best feature is that the bands never tangle, reloading is very very quick.

Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=thaKGKJm-j0

How to make the Gloveshot at home

Smitty's challenge made me re-evaluating my earlier decision not to develop the gloveshot design any further. I talked to my lawyer, and he thinks there is no legal problem, as the brace does not touch the arm, therefore it is not an arm brace. Only arm braces are banned in Germany.

Anyway, I made a tutorial video about how to build a gloveshot from wood, with common tools, and I also uploaded a pdf with the cutout outline for the side parts.

Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DYJETqNQdeE


The gloveshot is really a cool design! I encourage you to give it a try.

Jörg

Review: 12 shot lead ball mould

Bells Of Hythe sent me a sample of their "New Forest 12 Shot 16mm Mould" product. I reviewed it and made a video about it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZCJ3Mmqw9c

A great product!

WARNING: Casting your own bullets is addictive. The Slingshot Channel will not pay for any rehab costs! :-)

"Compass" design on steroids

Hello,

I have attached rollers to the compass slingshot design.

But this time, I went all the way - I attached rollers at the top AND the bottom of the frame, adding more than 30 cm (12") of rubber! This is so much that you have to pull out a bit in order to move the pouch over the top of the forks... but the result is worth the efforts, a ton of power in a small frame.

I even made the bottom rollers detachable, so if you need a compact slingshot, then you can simply shoot it without the draw length increase.

I used tiny ball bearings (inside dia 8mm, outside dia 12mm) for the pulleys, those are from RC cars... They work really well.

I am pleased with the way it came out!

And here is the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DO_Meq0Hiac

Unidentical twins: Carbon and Steel

Carbon fiber fascinates me. The stability and the low weight, plus the cool look, is just amazing.

But so far my carbon fiber models have been rather small, even tiny. Small slingshots are lightweight no matter what they are made from, so the advantage of the carbon fiber is not so great for small frames.

So I decided to design a larger frame model, based on my "compass" design. But I used 16 mm tubes in addition to pieces of the 5 mm board.

The "heart" of the design is formed by the board, which extends into the tubes a bit. This means that the glue does not "carry the load", the slingshot shoots with no glue at all. The glue just prevents shifting. You can see the construction by looking at my "blueprint", the outlined parts are made from carbon fiber boards.

In order to compare it with steel, I made a similar one from 16 mm steel tube. The steel one ain't heavy at all, just 340 gramms, not too bad for such a big frame. But the carbon fiber one is 60 gramms only!

Both slingshots are strong enough for my toughest bands. Of course they have a low fork and 10 cm effective fork width (measured from the middle of the bands).

The attachment method works well, too! Clean, smooth over the top style.

Here is the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mrYxetJ6o6U

Smallest slingshot: The video

Here it is:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EdE4hJ07WSA

5th gen "W": Lightweight, Powerful and Deadly

After the idea to use a steel ring as the basis for a self centering "W" slingshot proofed functional, I decided to reduce the weight. For this, I used an aluminum ring that I found on ebay (cheaply), originally a loudspeaker assembly spare part.

This design does not need welding gear, just standard tools. The grip is a 12mm threaded bolt, with the usual ball bearings and aluminum tube as the outer parts. The self centering works really well and avoid fork hits 100%.

It is a powerful slingshot, as powerful as the steel version, but at half the weight (400 gramms).

Since people love to see destruction, I shot at some pieces of fruit and recorded the impact at 1200 frames per second. Impressive!

Here is the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xOLW3HPzcU

Comments on youtube

The number of comments people leave for a youtube video is a fairly good indication how popular a channel is.

My last count: People left 2,968 comments for a total of 70 videos. That comes down to 42 comments per video on average. Not bad at all, for a channel that is just 13 months old!

People left 188 comments for "Slingshot vs. Ballistic Gelatine", that is number one.

Thoughts about a "race gun" target slingshot

I am planning to make a target slingshot. So I spent some time thinking about what kind of features I want.

- Fork width: Freely adjustable between 40mm and 120mm
- Fork height: Freely adjustable between 20mm and 80mm
- Sights: Adjustable in vertical and horizontal direction
- Spirit level for perfect horizontal alignment
- Grip: Self centering, with ball bearings
- Weight: 1000 gramms or heavier (heavy = steady)
- Bands: Flat bands (easy pull = higher accuracy)
- Pouch: With center hole
- Ammo: .60" (15mm) steel balls

The slingshot that I have in mind will of course be strong enough for my most powerful bands, but in target mode, I will use much lighter setups.

Will be interesting!

Micro Carbon Slingshot

Meet my newest piece, Mr. Mini Carbon.

5cm x 3,5cm x0,5cm.

Weighs 2 gramms w/o bands, 8 gramms with bands and pouch!

Don't underestimate it, it shoots 9,5 mm steel balls with 55 m/s. The way how you shoot it (the ball of the thumb in the middle of the fork), you always automatically "flip" it so there is no danger to hit your thumb.

3 new vids: Fish "Ergo2", next gen "W" + Carbon Fiber slingshot

Hello,

three new videos today.

A review of the new Fish "Ergo2", in my opinion the best commercially available slingshot today.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OrwPrdvZvrY

Next, the new "W", smaller than the previous models due to the circular frame:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SN9hGS903XE

Last not least, the first Carbon Fiber slingshot ever:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=562EtayIk4w

Enjoy!

500,000 views on youtube!

The 500 k milestone was reached at the 6th of March, 2010, just 13 months after the first slingshot video was uploaded, and only three months after 250,000 views had been recorded.

1,383 subscribers by now! The Slingshot Channel is proud. Thanks to all subscribers, supporters and viewers - it's a wonderful little success.

The Sling of the Ring

I have further worked on the "W" design with the ball bearing equipped rotating handle.

In order to make it more compact, I bought a 12 cm inner dia steel ring, cut off the top part and welded two rings to the ends. Then I added the rotating handle as normal.

This is very nice! Shoots great, looks great, and is very small, much less bulky than the the previous "W" models.

Carbon Fibre Slingshot

Carbon Fiber is a truly exciting high tech material. It is extremely durable, tough and lightweight. It also looks stunning, absolutely beautiful.

This slingshot is made from that material, a 5 mm boardcut. Very hard to cut and also the dust is nasty (pure coal dust). The result is certainly worth the effort: Extremely thin, weighs less than half a chocolate bar ready for shooting (50 gramms, 800 grain, 0.11 lbs).

It is strong enough for monster bands!

The design is an "ergo" type, because of the thinness of the frame. It is held with the thumb and index finger on the fork, so there is no need for a "hammer" grip around the handle.

A spectacular slingshot, truly!

"Knuckle Duster" Slingshot: Video

Here is the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P6ff4IM9DUs

All new wireframe design

In order to make a slingshot for target shooting, I wanted a frame that is always held exactly the same.

So I played with some 8mm steel rod and got an idea. What if the slingshot has three finger rings that slide all the way up? This way, nothing can change.

I had to attach the fork in an angle to make the geometry right, but it works. Will shoot it tomorrow!
♦

New video: Homemade "bonecrusher" ammo

Hello,

instead of always shooting lead and steel balls, I have followed the tip from a fellow slingshooter and made my own, very heavy bullets from nuts, bolts and washers.

It works! The effect is quite spectacular.

The new "compass" slingshot is used to compare the impact of different balls and the new, oddly shaped projectiles against a stack of styrofoam boards.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L28hnM5yyx8

Enjoy!

Contest winner!

Spudfiles.org just crowned the winner of the 2009/10 ghetto challenge.

The condoms+broomstick slingshot, presented by The Slingshot Channel, won the prestigeous award!

I am immensely proud of this first genuine trophy. I will open a bottle of bubbly to celebrate the day!

New video: Slingbow, collapsible arrows, razor broadheads

Many friends of the outdoors like the idea to have a simple hunting weapon with them when they're backpacking. A bow and some arrows would be ideal, but then again that would be bulky and heavy. This video shows my home made outdoor slingbow/slingshot survival bag. It contains

- A slingbow (arrow shooting slingshot)
- Three collapsible arrows
- Three razor sharp broadhead tips
- A Hunter Catapult slingshot
- Ten steel balls
- Spare bands and string
- A small multi tool for changing bands in the field

The whole bag weighs less than 3 pounds (about 1200 gramms). It is very small, about 12" x 6" x 3".

The slingbow shown in this video is built around a so-called "whisker biscuit", the core of a popular arrow rest for bows. It does the job very well, but it had to be reinforced with steel in order to make it strong enough.

Here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rfB0yRtGhC0

Regards


Jörg

Gothic slingshot: The video

Here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5_yl4xg3as