Shooting Flechettes (short arrows)
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Joerg, If I remember correctly the Combow Slingshot could be used to fire short arrows of the type you are talking about. It had a rather wide metal wrist brace that probably offered some protection. I had thought that I might make a version of your Wristshot to shoot short arrows with a deck of some type to protect the back of the hand but I never seem to get around to it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kCZz0L8QLF0
Here's an example from a war torn East Timor where guns are banned and the Slingshot is the weapon of choice they make their "hook darts" from pieces of rebar. They use these darts/bolts for hunting and killing other humans. Medical reports exist and here is a video if I can attach it I hope, that shows Australian troops demonstrating these impressive weapons which are a real threat.
You wont see the slingshots till about 2:55 of the video and a demonstration from the non trained hands of the soldiers.
Here's some pictures of an old slingshot made for this and some of the bolts they use.
They also use traditional form of slingshots to shoot stones at people and animals..
![Plant Wood Branch Snake Twig]()
![Hand Wood Twig Finger Thumb]()
![Wood Insect Finger Thumb Nail]()
I hope this helps and I can find some medical and police reports of what has been done with these..
Hi Joerg
Here's an example from a war torn East Timor where guns are banned and the Slingshot is the weapon of choice they make their "hook darts" from pieces of rebar. They use these darts/bolts for hunting and killing other humans. Medical reports exist and here is a video if I can attach it I hope, that shows Australian troops demonstrating these impressive weapons which are a real threat.
You wont see the slingshots till about 2:55 of the video and a demonstration from the non trained hands of the soldiers.
Here's some pictures of an old slingshot made for this and some of the bolts they use.
They also use traditional form of slingshots to shoot stones at people and animals..
I hope this helps and I can find some medical and police reports of what has been done with these..
Attachments
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I have been working on and off on a custom slingshot. Basically it is a form fitting pistol grip off of a 1200 dollar air pistol that has a barrel that extends out 11 inches. Then it has a cross piece that has rotating posts to allow the band to disapate its energy without tearing the tubes. I have a single piece of spectra string {250 #} where the pouch should be. The posts are about 8 inches apart from each other. Also there is a solid stainless steel tube that is attached to the bottom of the pistol grip that can be adjusted left and right. this tube has a form fitting, forearm shaped circular collar that holds everything solid . This collar is about 8 inches behind the pistol grip. The barrel has the ability to be adjusted up or down as this is necessary to balance the force of the bands in such a way that allows the slingshot to push back into the web of the hand similar tyo the way a recurve bow feels. This allows the wrist to stay stationary while the bands are in flight and the design of the pistol grip itself lends a great deal of support to the wrist by forcing the shooting force to travel back through the wrist in a straight line as the bands are drawn back. I also purchased a hydraulic release that automatically releases the bands after 4 seconds or more or less . It is timing adsjustable. I chose this release after discovering that latex tubes start relaxing as soon as they are drawn back , so it is necessary to duplicate the holding time of the shot to make the amount of thrust consistent, Also the pistol grip has a wrap around shelf that covers part of the web of the hand with wood and this wood acts as a shield in case of an unexpected result.
So to get to the point , I am designing this weapon to shoot a dart very similar to a arrow complete with vanes annd broadhead. { As a youth I competed in olympic style archery at the international llevel} . This dart has been designed to be 3 to 4 inches long with a welded steel ring at the rear which allows the release to be securely attached. I have a pretty good idea what Im looking for as far as the shape of the dart but I still have some unknowns to deal with. The most important is the balance point of the dart. I imagine that having as much weight as possible in the point of the dart will force the vanes to stabilise the dart to fly horizontally. Also I am using vanes that have the little kickers on the vane curve that increases the rotation rate signifigantly. This should create enough drag to keep everything level as well as minimise wobble of the dart. Ill try to get a photo of my setup as soon as I can figure out how to accomplish that.
As I mentioned I have been working on this off and on for 3 years . I am to the point of test firing but I still have some designing to address. One is how can I get the dart released without having the bands buffet the dart as it passes the rotating posts. As I am trying to exagerate the accelaretion fase of the dart by extending the draw length I sure could use some high speed photography to test some ideas to eliminate this buffeting without shortening the draw length. . Any sug.gestions here are more than welcome.
Another question I have is how heaavy a tube or band do I need to accelerate a 500 grain dart to 200 feet per second using 24 inches of band travel? How can I exagerate even further the acceleration phase of the dart without adjusting the way I hold the dart in relation to my face?? Would a roller design similar to those on the Slingshot Channel videos help speed things up? Any findings on bands or tubes with respect to speed or durability would be appreciated. Also what is a good ratio of band length to stretch as far as durability is concerned?
Does overstretching latex to the point of a very short lifespan increase speed any? Is there any way to get the tubes to pass one over ther otherAs they pass between the rotating posts {thus minimizing buffeting of the dart}? Thanks
So to get to the point , I am designing this weapon to shoot a dart very similar to a arrow complete with vanes annd broadhead. { As a youth I competed in olympic style archery at the international llevel} . This dart has been designed to be 3 to 4 inches long with a welded steel ring at the rear which allows the release to be securely attached. I have a pretty good idea what Im looking for as far as the shape of the dart but I still have some unknowns to deal with. The most important is the balance point of the dart. I imagine that having as much weight as possible in the point of the dart will force the vanes to stabilise the dart to fly horizontally. Also I am using vanes that have the little kickers on the vane curve that increases the rotation rate signifigantly. This should create enough drag to keep everything level as well as minimise wobble of the dart. Ill try to get a photo of my setup as soon as I can figure out how to accomplish that.
As I mentioned I have been working on this off and on for 3 years . I am to the point of test firing but I still have some designing to address. One is how can I get the dart released without having the bands buffet the dart as it passes the rotating posts. As I am trying to exagerate the accelaretion fase of the dart by extending the draw length I sure could use some high speed photography to test some ideas to eliminate this buffeting without shortening the draw length. . Any sug.gestions here are more than welcome.
Another question I have is how heaavy a tube or band do I need to accelerate a 500 grain dart to 200 feet per second using 24 inches of band travel? How can I exagerate even further the acceleration phase of the dart without adjusting the way I hold the dart in relation to my face?? Would a roller design similar to those on the Slingshot Channel videos help speed things up? Any findings on bands or tubes with respect to speed or durability would be appreciated. Also what is a good ratio of band length to stretch as far as durability is concerned?
Does overstretching latex to the point of a very short lifespan increase speed any? Is there any way to get the tubes to pass one over ther otherAs they pass between the rotating posts {thus minimizing buffeting of the dart}? Thanks
Jörg, I think shooting flechettes is a really good idea. Maybe you could use something along the lines of this :-
http://slingshotforum.com/topic/3591-i-wish-i-was-a-kid-again/page__pid__36557#entry36557
I could see this design being adapted quite easily and I think it could work. Especially with your ingenuity!
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PandaMan
http://slingshotforum.com/topic/3591-i-wish-i-was-a-kid-again/page__pid__36557#entry36557
I could see this design being adapted quite easily and I think it could work. Especially with your ingenuity!
PandaMan
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Hi,
i have made some arrows similar to the ones shown in the videosome years ago.
I´ve used long nails from a hardwarestore (approx 20cm long, 6 to 8mm in diam.).
I sharpend the point with a file and with a hacksaw i cut a kind of hook in to the shaft of the nail. (aprox. 3cm from the tip, halfway to the shaft and with a angel of aprox 45° pointing to the tip).
After that i painted them black with car paint and added some yellow ducttape (german army "panzertape") to the rear as a fletching.
The head of the nail makes it very easy to hold it and pull it.
I also modified the slingshot for shooting these.
I removed the pouch from the tubes and added a V-shaped piece of stainless steel welding wire to hook the arrows in.
Another way i tested of making these arrows is:
I took some cheap arrows for a pistol crossbow, they are made out of plastik with a diameter of approx. 6mm.
3 cm from the end i drilled a small hole ( ~ 2mm diam) thru the shaft in an angle of approx 45° pointing to the tip. after that i cut a short ( ~1,5cm) piece of stainless steel welding wire (diam. fits the hole snuggly) and inserted that in to the hole and glued it in place.
Now it looks a little bit like an fishing arrow. The wirehook of the arrow is than hooked to the V-shaped wire of the slingshot.
due to the fact, that these plastic arrows are very lightweight and there is no proper way to grab them you can only use them in low to med. power slingshots and the overall power is not to much, but they fly quite well.
I came up with the design several years ago when i was looking at a survival knife by the company aitor.
Their survival knifes include a "slingshot" fixed to the sheat and included in the knife was a second blade with a "hook" to hook to the slingshot as an "arrow".
i have made some arrows similar to the ones shown in the videosome years ago.
I´ve used long nails from a hardwarestore (approx 20cm long, 6 to 8mm in diam.).
I sharpend the point with a file and with a hacksaw i cut a kind of hook in to the shaft of the nail. (aprox. 3cm from the tip, halfway to the shaft and with a angel of aprox 45° pointing to the tip).
After that i painted them black with car paint and added some yellow ducttape (german army "panzertape") to the rear as a fletching.
The head of the nail makes it very easy to hold it and pull it.
I also modified the slingshot for shooting these.
I removed the pouch from the tubes and added a V-shaped piece of stainless steel welding wire to hook the arrows in.
Another way i tested of making these arrows is:
I took some cheap arrows for a pistol crossbow, they are made out of plastik with a diameter of approx. 6mm.
3 cm from the end i drilled a small hole ( ~ 2mm diam) thru the shaft in an angle of approx 45° pointing to the tip. after that i cut a short ( ~1,5cm) piece of stainless steel welding wire (diam. fits the hole snuggly) and inserted that in to the hole and glued it in place.
Now it looks a little bit like an fishing arrow. The wirehook of the arrow is than hooked to the V-shaped wire of the slingshot.
due to the fact, that these plastic arrows are very lightweight and there is no proper way to grab them you can only use them in low to med. power slingshots and the overall power is not to much, but they fly quite well.
I came up with the design several years ago when i was looking at a survival knife by the company aitor.
Their survival knifes include a "slingshot" fixed to the sheat and included in the knife was a second blade with a "hook" to hook to the slingshot as an "arrow".
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I think using nails this large as flechettes should be quite powerful, isn't it?
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I think it is, but i did not tested them to much, but i chrashed several thing in my cellar while "testing" them.
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mh...that seems to be too much of a risk to intensely try it out. The image of a 20cm sharpened nail heading towards my face is intimidating...maybe I can come up with an idea to prevent the arrow getting tangled.
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Please don't shoot small darts like these straight from the pouch as you would with a slingbow. Due to the lack of an arrow rest, the thing would randomly travel through the air and you would eventually get hurt severely.
You have to pull the dart at the tail and it has to be hooked to the pouch (or band or whatever construction) in the front, so you can create enough forward momentum to send it on a straight line.
The only downside HOE mentioned could be the dart getting tangled in the pouch and using that straight line against you in a "momma, I'm coming home" manner. That would be devestating. Experimenting with these should be done very carefully, I guess.
You have to pull the dart at the tail and it has to be hooked to the pouch (or band or whatever construction) in the front, so you can create enough forward momentum to send it on a straight line.
The only downside HOE mentioned could be the dart getting tangled in the pouch and using that straight line against you in a "momma, I'm coming home" manner. That would be devestating. Experimenting with these should be done very carefully, I guess.
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i´m not to much worried about shooting an arrow the way i described it.
a short arrow that rests in the pouch, MAYBE could get tangled, but if it is hooked to a smooth wire with a cleanly grindet barb, i dont really think it will get tangled.
the second way i described it (with the wire trough the arrow) so that the slingshotwire does not hook IN to the arrow but UNDER the arrow should reduce this risk even more.
The only thing i would maybe do is, i would go with an arrowtype fletching with two "feathers" 90° offset to the hook, i think using a bundle of rope as a tail as shown in the pictures and videos could increase the risk of getting tangled.
in the video they say its penetrating flak vests, i´m not sure if a sharpened rebar will be able to do so, but i think if you take a kind of shaft, lets say 8 to 10mm an add a point of 3mm (or less) strong wire (spring or welding wire should do) approx 5cm long, fired from a strong cattie i think it will do the trick.
a short arrow that rests in the pouch, MAYBE could get tangled, but if it is hooked to a smooth wire with a cleanly grindet barb, i dont really think it will get tangled.
the second way i described it (with the wire trough the arrow) so that the slingshotwire does not hook IN to the arrow but UNDER the arrow should reduce this risk even more.
The only thing i would maybe do is, i would go with an arrowtype fletching with two "feathers" 90° offset to the hook, i think using a bundle of rope as a tail as shown in the pictures and videos could increase the risk of getting tangled.
in the video they say its penetrating flak vests, i´m not sure if a sharpened rebar will be able to do so, but i think if you take a kind of shaft, lets say 8 to 10mm an add a point of 3mm (or less) strong wire (spring or welding wire should do) approx 5cm long, fired from a strong cattie i think it will do the trick.
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what if i do not shoot an short arrow straight, but if i rest it "vertical" in the pouch with the tip facing upwards. would this be practical? will the dart turn itself tip forward after leaving the pouch?
Im thinking of that, because a schoolmate of mine once told me, that they were shooting featherd bolts like they are available for BB guns from slingshots, and he said it worked quite well. If i would manufacture a bolt like these just bigger, lets say 2 to 3cm long, does someone thinks it could work?
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If I get this right, in my opinion the arrow would fly backside first. After accelerating the rear part, the tip should tilt towards the shooter. But I'm not a physicist. Anyway the tip magically dropping forward seems illogically to me.
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what if i do not shoot an short arrow straight, but if i rest it "vertical" in the pouch with the tip facing upwards. would this be practical? will the dart turn itself tip forward after leaving the pouch?
Im thinking of that, because a schoolmate of mine once told me, that they were shooting featherd bolts like they are available for BB guns from slingshots, and he said it worked quite well. If i would manufacture a bolt like these just bigger, lets say 2 to 3cm long, does someone thinks it could work?
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Do you mean something like this? I've tried it and it doesn't go point first, I only shoot at 5 metres, maybe it could work at longer distance.
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