How low can the fork be above your hand?

Several people have expressed concern about hitting your hand if the fork is too low.

I now use just 2.5 cm fork height above the hand in my "W" designs. This results to extremely low strain on the wrist, making the slingshot much more controllable.

I tested the setup with lots of super slowmotion stuff (1200 fps recording speed). The ball does not even come close to hit my hand.

But in order to confirm the field tests, I have started to calculate the setup.

It comes down to the research of Sir Isaac Newton.

He came up with so-called gravity laws.

The earth acceleration is 9,81 m/sec*sec.

Let us assume you have a draw length of 1,20 m (that is quite long). And let us further assume that the ball (15mm diameter, .60") flies with 65 m/sec at the end of the acceleration (V0 = 65 m/s, at the fork). That would mean that the average speed is 32,5 m/sec between pouch and fork.

In this case the ball would need 0,037 seconds (37 milliseconds) to reach your hand.

In this time frame, it would drop 0.5*981 cm * 0,037 * 0,037 = 0,67 cm (under 7mm).

The 15 mm ball passes the fork with its lower rim 1,05 cm over the top of the grip (= your hand).

The shot would have to fly as slow as 40 m/sec (at the end of the acceleration, so V0=40m/s) to make the ball just graze the tip of the grip. That would be a very weak shot.

This calculation does not even assume that the pouch moves towards the fork tips and counterbalances the gravity (a slight upwards vector is applied to the ball). So in reality, the drop is even less substantial.

But of course it would be easy to add another safety margin by making the fork ends higher. It would spoil the effectiveness of the design, though. And then of course the ball may still fall out of your pouch and then hit your foot. Ouch!

So I think it is fair to say that my design is well thought through, supported by the laws of physics and proven by field tests using professional equipment.

Bill Herriman pointed out to me that there is enhanced danger if you do wing shooting (= trying to hit a flying target). That is certainly true, as you may move the slingshot upwards during the shot. This would ruin the safety margin and I do not think that my "W" would be a safe design for wing shooting.

New "W"-Slingshot, 90% wood, made with common tools

The self centering "W" slingshot (original idea by Bill Herriman) is my preferred design right now. And many people love it, too, they want to have one... but as you know, I do not sell my slingshots.

So I have been thinking about a "How to" video. Problem is that for the stainless steel "W", you need welding gear and other rather expensive and unusual tools. People don't have these tools at home, so I had to come up with a wooden "W".

It turned out rather well, no metalworks at all. It is more bulky (10% lighter, though), but it shoots just as good. I am very pleased with the stability - no wonder, 1" wooden rods can take some strain.

Here is the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fQr8U34ugH8

New Slingshot forum, uncensored!

My dream just came true, a respected member of the community just opened a great slingshot forum, and he promises freedom of speech. That is fantastic!

You can find this forum here:

http://www.slingshotforum.com

I encourage you to sign on, it's free, and the forum software Aaron (the site owner and admin) chose does allow picture attachments and even animated Avatars!

I will post very frequently on his forum and will answer questions as good as I can.

Winners! Winners!

Hello,

the time has come... the winners have been drawn. I have emailed each individual winner already, but here is the list:

Troy Boylan
Pitbull
Zolik
SaulG
John MacMillan
wiiplayer888
bdt
Blake Smith
jjh
Gustavo Tavares
Darby Dixon
Andrew
Yuri
hare basher
GearGuy92

All the winners have to do is to answer my email with the shipping address. I will take care of all the shipping cost, too, no matter where the winners live.

Soon, each winner will be the proud owner of a Baby Hook slingshot, designed and hand made by myself!

Thanks to all. 215 followers! That is quite a success.

"The Ring" - video online

Here it is:

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

Small and powerful

Wanted to make a small, but powerful slingshot today.

So I took a 10mm stainless steel rod and formed a "U". Then I attached (welded) a steel ring to the fork, as the sole grip! I put black tube over the fork for a more pleasant grip.

Thera Band Black, 20cm long, 14x9cm wide - really fast!

Regards


Jörg

"Ghetto Challenge" Contest at Spudfiles

The "SHTF" condom slingshot is now an official contestant at the Ghetto Challenge. Here:

http://www.spudfiles.com/forums/09-10-ghetto-contest-entry-thread-t19831.html

This means that proof is needed to show that the construction lasts at least five shots. So The Slingshot Channel did another video about some shooting with the "SHTF" slingshot. Not only did it last five shots, it also cracked a coconut!

Here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kkej-peqQDY

Emergency slingshot made from condoms and a broomstick

Hello,

as an active member of several "survivalists" forums, I am constantly asked for advice about how to make a slingshot with standard supplies. So no fancy Thera Band or Linatex. No power tools. Maybe not even a nice natural fork.

I spent some time thinking about it. The most obvious question is where to find good rubber. Inner tubes and so on are, as we all know, usually not appropriate, and the few types that work are hard to find. Then I found the solution: Condoms. Those are made from natural latex and are of pretty good quality. Of course you need a bunch of them for a good slingshot.

Next, how to make a fork when you have nothing that looks like a fork? Mels page had the answer, the "African" way. Simply cut two 20 cm pieces from a broomstick, carve a wedge from the same wood and fix everything in place with duct tape. It works, and it is very solid and surprisingly comfortable to hold.

The result is a truly ugly, even disgusting slingshot - but one that works really well.

I made a video about it, here!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GW_RWRKU93o

200 followers complete - more prices!

OK, we just hit the 200th follower of this blog. Fantastic! This means that on the 15th, the drawing will result in 15 winners! Each one will win a hand made "Baby Hook" EDC slingshot, complete with bands and ready for action.

Stay tuned for the drawing - your chances are quite good.

"V" Enhancement: Done!

I finished the job, had to make a small adaption to the construction (the rod needed some bending).

Here is the video:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9a5SV-tGf3Y

Enjoy!

Further improving the "V" slingshot

The "V" slingshot still is one of my most popular designs. The one-piece rubber, the pulley based draw entension and the self-centering truly are clear advantages over other designs.

But there are drawbacks. Especially the ergonomics are a problem. I had 50 units made about a year ago, and sold them at cost to fellow enthusiasts. Many of them liked it (and by now own a valuable collector's item), but several people expressed justified critizism regarding the ergonomics.

My big, meaty hands have a natural "padding" so for me it is not hard to hold the V, but I can see how others don't like it as much as I do.

Also, several people reported fork hits, not uncommon when you shoot slingshots with narrow forks. Just a little canting, to subtle for the shooter's eye to see, and bang! A precious pulley is dead, the metal permanently deformed.

I solved the nasty fork hit issue with the rotating handle of the "W", another advanced design that I like very much. The round, smooth and self centering of the "W" makes it my favorite slingshot right now. But of course the "W" has no draw length increase and also no one-piece, self centering rubber.

So the idea is to combine both designs. I have been thinking hard about that and I feel I have a viable idea. Why not attach the rotating steel handle to the "V"?

But of course the "V" has to be out of the way of the shooter's fist. So you have to attach it out front, in order to allow free rotation. Problem is that the fork tips have to be level with the shooter's hand, or else the slingshot would inevitably rotate TOWARDS the shooter.

The solution is to attach the "V" with an angle. This way the laws of physics work!

Can't wait for the weekend to test this idea. Stay tuned for another video.

Win a slingshot !

When you read this, you probably wnat to participate in the drawing. That's right, on Dec. 15, 2009, I will select (on a random basis) 10 of my blog subscribers. It does not matter if you have signed up before (just three people had).

I will give away 10 "Baby Hook" slingshots, ready for action with a complete set of bands.

An I will go to 15 slingshots should we see more than 200 subscribers in the 15th!

Thanks, and I promise to entertain you with new slingshots and slingshot news in the future.

BTW: In order to sign up, you must click on "Verfolgen" in the upper right part of the screen.

If you already have a google account, then it is very easy to do that. Sorry for the German GUI, but I could not make the blogspot software coming up in English.

250.000 views!

Just passed the quarter million view mark. Fantastic! Three more months to go before my first video will be online for a full year. Let's see how long it will take to get to 500.000!

"W"-Slingshots: Enhanced, new video

The "W" is a very promising design concept. It has been further enhanced and is now in its thirsd generation. The modifications allow very quick band change, also between flat and tubular rubber, plus a laser can be attached within seconds, too.

Here:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6BcHJMgzhHk

Two slingshots made by famous shooters

Hello,

a few months ago, Baumstamm (a fellow slingshooter from Germany) sent me a huge parcel with lots of stuff, including a beautiul wooden slingshot made out of multiplex wood. I put on the thinnest flat band on the market, Thera Band Tan, with 8 layers per side.

Last week, I got a parcel from Jaybird, a well known US shooter. He made a wonderful wooden slingshot (ergo shooter) just for my hands, and it turned out great.

I made a video about both slingshots, here:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ePBqzm_Gao

Greetings, Jörg
__________________

Youtube views

Of course, like most film makers, I do follow my view counts often and eagerly.

Here is the latest "fever curve"... I am quite happy.

100% stainless steel, self centering, 80 Joules Power!

Made another slingshot today (of course), further enhancing the "W" design once given to me by Bill Herriman.

Slightly smaller, nicer joints, stainless steel rotating handle, and flat bands made out of Thera Band Blue!

Great material. I hit 67 meters per second with the .75 lead ball, that is almost 81 Joules!

The two-pivot-design allow very flat forks, just flat enough to let the pouch pass. Hits on the hand are not possible with this design, because of the self centering.

Here is a video:

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

Are thinner bands more powerful?

As you may know. my slingshots are much, much more powerful than the ones (most of us) used as a kid.

The main reason is the far better rubber we can use today, no longer are we limited to inner tubes and surgical tubing.

I have used the Thera Band Gold flat bands so far, which is the thickest (but still thin) stuff you can get.

Recently, a fellow slingshooter in a German forum posted that multiple layers of thin flat bands are faster than the same amount of rubber in thicker material.

The eternal hunt for power goes on! A great new frontier.

I have bought Thera Band Black, which is a lot thinner than Thera Band Gold. The manufacturer says the draw force is 0.43 in comparison with Thera Band Gold.

So I converted my favorite Gold setup (9cm * 6 cm * 20 cm) to 21 cm * 7 cm * 20 cm of Black. Have to use two layers as the roll is only 14 cm wide. It is true, same resistance.

Compared to the Thera Tube Black, the flat band has the same draw force in 14 cm width, so compared to Thera Tube Black my band set is 1.25 times harder to draw out. That works.

OK here is the result.

.75 l = 19 mm lead ball, 36 gramms, 576 grains
.60 s = 15 mm steel ball, 12 gramms, 192 grains
.38 s = 9.5 mm steel ball, 4 gramms, 64 grains

TBG = Thera Band gold, 9 x 6 x 20 cm
TBS = Thera Band black, 21 x 7 x 20 cm


TBG .38 s 78 m/s, 255 fps
TBG .60 s 73 m/s, 239 fps
TBG .75 l 54 m/s, 177 fps

TBS .38 s 90 m/s, 295 fps
TBS .60 s 79 m/s, 259 fps
TBS .75 l 63 m/s, 206 fps

Max. Energy TBG = 52 Joule = 38 fpe
Max. Energy TBS = 71 Joule = 52 fpe

The black bands did not tear throughout the tests.

Temperature was 14 degrees celsius, 57 degrees Fahrenheit.

The theory works! Now let's see what will happen if my thiiiiin Thera Band Tan band arrives. This is the thinnest material you can get. I guess to get to the same force, I will have to use ten layers per side.


Jörg

Video Review: Two commercial slingshots tested

Hello,

The Slingshot Channel has tested two commercial slingshots.

----------------------------------

It is one of the most beautiful slingshots that money can buy: The "Lucky Seven", made by Bellsofhythe from England.

It is truly gorgeous and well worth the money (costs about 100 UK pounds, altogether).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lnaCg-IF13o[/url]

-------------------------------------

There has been a lot of hype around the Chinese made "Dankung" slingshots lately. The Slingshot Channel has received one of their larger, more expensive models, the "Warrior", and duly tested it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wrlam2C7GmQ

Laser equipped "Sniper" Slingshot

A friend of mine (Eric from Boulder/Colorado) challenged me a while ago. He said "Make a precise slingshot instead of a powerful one!"

Well, I did. Here is the result:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YS_m-NJSK2I

Enjoy!

Halloween Special Online!

Here it is:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nd8TUnYQBzo

Halloween Special: Anti Zombie Slingshot

I have been active on the great zombiehunters.org forum. The crazy folks that populate the forum (myself included) talk about the "what ifs" of an apocalytical Romero (Dawn of The Dead) like scenario.

So I was thinking about how to build an efficient Zombie killing slingshot.

I know that a strong slingshot has enough energy to crack a human skull (remember my coconut experiment?), but that is not good enough.

The slingshot I want to make won't be firing a bullet, it will be a close range termination tool.

Zombies attack you in a fearless way, wanting to bite you as fast as possible. So first, you want to keep their teeth away from your flesh. Then, you need to destroy the brain. This is the only way to kill a "Romero" zombie.

My idea is to make a short fork from steel rods. The fork would be put against the zombie throat, much like a collar. A spike or spear, with a steel point, will be attached in a way that it is about 25 cm above the "collar", right where the forehead of the monster would be. The spear is gliding back and forth in a steel tube, that works like a barrel. The rubber is attached to the spear grip, a T-like handle at the back end of the spear.

All you need to do is to push the fork against the throat of the Z, then draw back the spear and release.

I have ordered a zombie halloween mask and a styrofoam head with throat. Will replace the forehead part with a coconut, to simulate the Z skull.

Should make a very good halloween video! Of course some people will again hate my guts, but who cares.

The 500th subscriber!

Just a few days before 200.000 youtube views will be reached, The Slingshot Channel got the subscriber no. 500!

Daniel, the gentleman who was lucky enough to be no. 500, will get a free Jörg Sprave slingshot, handmade and ready for shooting.

Daniel would like to introduce himself with a few words. Here they are:

-----------------------

Hello everyone, my name is Daniel, I'm Joerg's 500th subscriber.
I might be your average guy, might not.

Not a spiritually religious man, but Love is my God and Loyalty is my religion.
I live for my family. Not much else matters to me in this world aside from them.

I have an artistic side of my own; i make knives and walking staves, canes, hiking sticks, etc. and I'm anxiously looking forward to receiving Joerg's shipment of my first slingshot, to help me learn a more sporting, skillful way of hunting.

I recently became interested in slingshots and so decided to look around Youtube to find general information on the subject. This led me to Joerg's channel, and i must say I'm pertty impressed with what I've seen.

Joerg's seem to be the "Desert Eagles" of the slingshot world, very well done; simple, yet still powerful and effective. Well done. I loved the video of the pig-leg damage, very indicative of the power these things have.

Thank you for your consideration, Joerg.

Have A Great Day, Everyone.

Video: Every 20 seconds a new slingshot

I decided that it was time to rearrange my collection. Then, I made a video, presenting my best pieces! 14 slingshots in 284 seconds, very fast paced.

It hit the "magic 300" views within an hour! That is my personal record. After a video hits 300 views, youtube won't update the viewcounter for at least 8 hours or so, I guess to shake off bots or other cheaters.

I think that this is the kind of video people want to see on youtube. Not much talking, a lot of action.

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

Back to the roots!

This new slingshot is made out of polished bronze and stainless steel. Very basic, but beautiful!

I had to bend the 10 mm steel rod after it was fixed to the bronze grip, otherwise it would not fit through the 10mm hole I drilled into the bronze.

One of the highlights of my collection!

The first fan video!

Yesterday, someone uploaded a video to youtube. Cool music, and lots of snippets from my videos! Turns out the gentleman is from Prague, obviously a very nice guy. I am really proud and happy about this! What an honor.

Here it is:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e7XraX5AGM0

The fastest slingshot ever!

Made another slingshot today, the first one with a true magazine loading repetitive mechanism!

It accelerates the bullet differently, by kicking it out of a short barrel with a heavy dowel. It works!

Here is the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hB8z1iH2tQ0

Self defense slingshot: Enhanced

A strong slingshot.

Two automatic knifes.

Tear gas spray.

A tactical light that blinds attackers and illuminates the defense zone.

And a stun gun.

Finished it! Works great. And all the tools are still inside of the frame, very compact.

Here is the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1L4U9yNGP4A

Vertical slingshot: New, sleeker model

The vertical slingshot works fine, as shown in the video. But it is just a prototype, made from some leftover steel tubes. Ugly as heck!

So I made a nicer one today, with brass handle and stainless steel frame.

Needs some more polishing, but sure is nice!

The Butterfly Technique

The chrony spare parts did not arrive so far. So I have done a video that shows my latest slingshot, the one with the brass handle, and I also explain the Butterfly style.

Here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b7VBtkw5WT0