[ZDP-189]

Does anyone know if any particular kind of slingshot ammo is illegal in any particular jurisdiction?

Not crazy stuff like exploding ammo or depleted uranium, but conventional ammunition.

The reason I ask is, I can give slingshot ammo interesting flight characteristics.

If I can consistently determine which part of the ammo hits first, it wouldn't be hard to make expanders or tumblers.

Fin-stabilised 20gr sinker at 5' with theraband silver.

I won't pretend it's more accurate, but maybe I can advance the German sport of backyard Pudding Plinking.

I bet an expander would stop in a tub of jelly.

At the very least it would give Joerg a couple of minutes of fun.

 

[shot in the foot]

The lead weight would go better without the dart flite in it, that would slow it down, jeff

 

[ZDP-189]

It's not about the speed, but getting the tip to impact consistently. It'd be hard to make expanding ammo if it could impact at any angle. Shot bags and balls of shot mixed in substrates like wax are exceptions, but they have their own issues.

I have to borrow the chrono again, but the dart-balls I made tonight seem to fly as fast and without hinderance. The flights are aerodynamically efficient once straight and level, offering little drag compared to the sinker. The only purpose is to make it travel with the tip forward.

I made better versions years ago when I was experimenting with spinning shot, but this served for a demo of the concept that I can make odd shapes hit end-on. Smaller flights are better. As are small flights on shafts (thought you have to glue the flights on). I just couldn't be bothered to make them myself to demonstrate the concept and the idea for hollowpoints hit me when I was in a sporting store by the dart section.

I don't want to actually make expanding ammunition unless I am fairly sure I'd not be breaking the law by doing so.

 

[Sarge]

Interesting concept. They wouldn't be illegal here, but would you get enough velocity to cause expansion? I know with sub sonic hollow point .22 ammo, the hollow point cavity has to be quite big to get any expansion at sub sonic velocities.

 

[ZDP-189]

Yes, there would be a critical velocity. Joerg was having trouble getting rounds to stop in his gel block. Expansion or tumbling are ways to preserve most of the ballistic efficiency in flight but deliver it on impact. The idea is find a way to make it efficient in the air but inefficient in the medium. Bullets are a bit different to catapult shot. The advantage is bullets fly straight from a rifled barrel. OTOH, you can be more creative in the design of catapult ammo. I have shot odd shapes like screws and lead figurines, which would never work in a rifled barrel. A catapult expanding round could be made with a flared head and a weak base. As long as it is stable in the air and not too inaccurate, it would do the job at short ranges. The art is in optimising all these criteria.

 

[ARB]

Would a hollow lead ball expand? Jeff Tanner in the UK makes hollow ball moulds - however it may be the case that they are only available in large sizes.

 

[fish]

in all honesty a solid .44 lead shot will kill all small game outright if using a suitably powerfull set of bands. i and a number of my customers have had shots penetrate rabbits and fowl.

 

[JoergS]

For hunting, I concur with Fish. a .44 or .45 lead ball is perfect. Good energy and penetration.

For self defense, use a bigger lead ball, like my preferred .75" (19mm). It simply delivers more energy, even though penetration won't be as good as using .44 lead. But the pain the .75" lead ball inflicts is just massive, will instantly stop an aggressor.

Jörg

 

[dgui]

For hunting, I concur with Fish. a .44 or .45 lead ball is perfect. Good energy and penetration.

For self defense, use a bigger lead ball, like my preferred .75" (19mm). It simply delivers more energy, even though penetration won't be as good as using .44 lead. But the pain the .75" lead ball inflicts is just massive, will instantly stop an aggressor.

Jörg

Yes exactly. The same reason (stopping power) not penetration is why the us army retired the .30 cal. piston and took up the .45 cal. Girth and weight equals massive impact. Like the difference between Jorge (a massive force) and all other regular sized men possessing ordinary like strength, (no match).

 

[dgui]

Does anyone know if any particular kind of slingshot ammo is illegal in any particular jurisdiction?

Not crazy stuff like exploding ammo or depleted uranium, but conventional ammunition.

The reason I ask is, I can give slingshot ammo interesting flight characteristics.

If I can consistently determine which part of the ammo hits first, it wouldn't be hard to make expanders or tumblers.

Fin-stabilised 20gr sinker at 5' with theraband silver.

I won't pretend it's more accurate, but maybe I can advance the German sport of backyard Pudding Plinking.

http://www.youtube.c...h?v=gT7Yxgtzteo

I bet an expander would stop in a tub of jelly.

At the very least it would give Joerg a couple of minutes of fun.

Most impressed by Saunders Bands performance with plenty of energy force to get through the gelatin plus a little left over.

 

[fish]

For hunting, I concur with Fish. a .44 or .45 lead ball is perfect. Good energy and penetration.

For self defense, use a bigger lead ball, like my preferred .75" (19mm). It simply delivers more energy, even though penetration won't be as good as using .44 lead. But the pain the .75" lead ball inflicts is just massive, will instantly stop an aggressor.

Jörg

jeez becarefull jorg youll kill some bugger? has anyone used a slingshot legally for self defence?

 

[stelug]

I couldnt follow well the wole thread but about the impact point I can tell You that if You visit any ancient museum here in Europe You will find out that ancient roman slingshot bulletts (I intend the slingshot made by two string and a pouch, the one David used against Goliath) where never round. The shape was at losange (trapezium) because the stabilizing effect after few meters flyng. The air pression on the belly (fat) center part will make one point flayng straight forward and the other pointing back. The same concept applied to catapults darts wich, unlike the bow's darts, did not had any kind of feathers because to flight straight thei only relay on the fused shape.

Hope was enaught clear

 

[Bugar]

OK- about ammo doing the job on a agressor, What i carry when I am in a ROUGH area- muggers- toughnecks- the whole mess of badasses, I do metal detecting at these parks, have been approached a few times, and they backed off when the saw my HUGE dagger I use for digging.
ALSO, I have and have never had to use it my ERGO, with healthy flatbands, and some 3/8 hex nuts filled with lead, they weigh 200 grains, and will penetrate 2 pieces of 1/4 plywood.
And I also practice snap shooting, like spinning around and shooting milk cartons randomly placed, I figure if i got just a FEW seconds ONE of my lead filled nuts in the face or eye of a mugger might change his mind. And I would not Hesitate. These muggers kill people. Have been practicing and am now up to 20 shots in 60 seconds, with 15 of the 20 hitting a 9 inch paper plate at 20 yards.
A friend that goes with me occasionally, will not go without his 44 magnum to these places, I still go, and carry a few Nuts, a bayonet and my shooter.
I do not own any guns anymore as 4 yr in the Marine Corps messed my body up somewhat, and I really don't care much for guns anymore.
and that's my story-Taaa-Daaaa

 

[Flatband]

Hoorah Lloyd! I know what you mean about the Metal Detecting. As you know ,I do it too and with those **** earphones on ,you really can't hear anyone coming. I'm always looking around and checking. Flatband

 

[Thwupp-p-p]

...and that's my story...

Great post, Bugar! Very interesting!

...Although I will never be able to execute 20 shots with that kind of accuracy in one minute -- still you've made me think about the feasibility of carrying a catty for self-defense while running late at night. I've ran with pepper spray and a Delica knife for many, many years, but the upside to the slingshot is that it could be more of a deterrent from a distance?! I mean with spray or a knife, it's already come up to mano a mano at that point anyway, right?

And it's just MHO, but I'll bet that -- if push came to shove -- a bleeding-heart court might go a leetle bit more leniently on an old geezer like me that used a natural tree-fork slingy to defend himself while jogging rather than whuppin' out a shiv or a pistola to confront those gangbangin' azzhats that hassle you while out and about?! I am going to really think about this!!!

 

[keeco]

how many beers have you guys had ?

 

[stelug]

I can speack for direct experience. When I was teen with my crew we had the hobby of collecting car's stems (fiat, alfa, lancia, morris). Collecting means that we where patrolling our quartier with a screwdrivers in the pockets ready to steal those little piece of art from cars. I know was not smarth idea but we wher young. matter is that after few days most people where rearly hangry and started a sort of man hunting against us wich was going to end rearly bad in a no exit road. I had been lucky enaught to stop the first aggressor with a shoot in a leg with my natural fork slingshot with square rubbersand a perfect round river stone. I have seen this man walking rearly bad for more than two week after.
BTW. I am not proud of that bat is very far

 

[Bugar]

Here's a correction on the post, my distance was 20 feet ---NOT YARDS= sorry bout that

BUT today i used my Dankung and marbles, shooting against a stopwatch, and witnessed by my wife 11 good hits out of 11 shots at the paper plate at 7 yards==21 feet in 62 seconds, but in doing so blew away my shooting pouch, I think it went just a few shots before i stopped, i had been shooting a while, for about 150 shots before i tried the timing, now I gotta get a new pouch, tried to make one but my leather was no good, works, but poorley

OK- about ammo doing the job on a agressor, What i carry when I am in a ROUGH area- muggers- toughnecks- the whole mess of badasses, I do metal detecting at these parks, have been approached a few times, and they backed off when the saw my HUGE dagger I use for digging.
ALSO, I have and have never had to use it my ERGO, with healthy flatbands, and some 3/8 hex nuts filled with lead, they weigh 200 grains, and will penetrate 2 pieces of 1/4 plywood.
And I also practice snap shooting, like spinning around and shooting milk cartons randomly placed, I figure if i got just a FEW seconds ONE of my lead filled nuts in the face or eye of a mugger might change his mind. And I would not Hesitate. These muggers kill people. Have been practicing and am now up to 20 shots in 60 seconds, with 15 of the 20 hitting a 9 inch paper plate at 20 yards.
A friend that goes with me occasionally, will not go without his 44 magnum to these places, I still go, and carry a few Nuts, a bayonet and my shooter.
I do not own any guns anymore as 4 yr in the Marine Corps messed my body up somewhat, and I really don't care much for guns anymore.
and that's my story-Taaa-Daaaa

 

[Thwupp-p-p]

Here's a correction on the post, my distance was 20 feet ---NOT YARDS= sorry bout that

...

Trust me -- it's just as amazing! You're still the

 

[Jedi]

Just an observation on the ammo area, if you are shooting in a an area where ricochets might be dangerous then clay pellets are a good idea. If you miss your target then the clay just smashes rather than bouncing around and coming back at you (or breaking something valuable).

I've often thought you could bake shot into your pellet and then aim short , creating a spray effect in plane with the ground as the pellet breaks up.

Just my $0.02.