When the red tapered Trumark bands tighten on the pouch, the pouch curls, and some, including Jack Koehler in his book "Slingshot Shooting",
believe that is potentially dangerous.
I had such curling, and my first solution was to simply snip off the offending ends of the bands, and reattach them with twine. However, that of course shortened the tubes, making them more difficult to pull.
My second solution applies to new tubes, the ends of which have not yet tightened on the pouch. Basically, I "choked" them from tightening by tying them, this time with the rolled bottom of a latex exam glove (improvise-adapt-overcome-MacGiver it).
Hope you find this useful.
View attachment 4279
Mike
I like your second solution. Wish I would have thought of it.
Jack
[/quote]
Thanks, Jack. Now that I'm thinking about it, my 2nd solution reminds me of my former career, putting handcuffs on the wrists of criminals. The worst the attitude, the tighter the cuffs became - magically. Sometimes we need to get "tough" with offending tubular bands, I guess.
Two questions for you, please:
Will the next version of your book have a better spine binding? My book's pages are falling out.
On page 51, you've written "It would be easy to attach the bands to the forks using metal bolts, screws, or clamps. These attachment techniques must be avoided because of safety concerns. It must always be asssumed
that the attachment apparatus will, at some time in the future, break off and snap back into the shooter's face". Please explain the about-face
on this serious caveat, concerning the construction of your BIG CAT
slingshot.
With great respect,
Mike
[/quote]
Mike,
Sorry about the binding problem on the book, if I ever have to reprint I will use a different printer. If you (or anyone else) want a replacement copy, send me your address. I can't promise that the replacement copy will be any better because they were all printed by the same co.
About the attachment technique: All I can say is that we live-and-learn. Even at 74 I find this to be true. When I wrote that statement I was thinking about some of the ways I use to attach bands when I was a kid. I do feel confident that the clamp-on technique used on the King Cat is perfectly safe.
Jack
[/quote]
Well the BIG CAT certainly appears strongly constructed, and Joerg is probably right that you could possibly ask for and receive more than $88 for each.
So, now that you've "rethunk" your caveat at age 74, and you have my permission to include my curly-pouch solution (with a little, itsy-bitsy credit-nod in my direction
), and you've probably thought about a few more things you would have liked to see in the book since it was printed (about 6 years ago), can those of us who consider your book to be the slingshooter's bible look forward to a revision of the book in the near future (with a better binding)????
How about it, guys? Don't we want to hear more jewels of accumulated slingshot wisdom from one of our most respected gurus/mentors/forum members/contributors, in a collectible book form ?
Best2u,
Mike