Enthusiasm, experimentation, talent, I encourage me very much :wave:

 

Suggestion #1 = Keep your health insurance bills paid and your coverage current.

Suggestion #2 = Always wear the best safety glasses that money can buy when you're shooting slingshots made out of pieces of discarded crutches.

As for the posts of that ex-member being "funny"... Many here might disagree with that evaluation, most especially the admin and mods. As you noted, the person in question is an ex-member, which is a status he didn't attain by chance or without reason.

 

:bowdown: :bowdown: :bowdown:

 

Hi Lacumo
Thanks for your advice.
I am wondering about what you said re crutches. Are they a bad material for this project?
Aluminium does buckle under pressure. Or is it the handles you are weary of?
Or it could be the diy element that adds uncertainty.
I am wondering should I call off asking for the crutch collection and rethink this?

 

There are more than enough threads already here with lots of thoughts about the concept of slingshots made from discarded crutches parts. Use the search function and you'll find lots of information. I'm not going to repeat what's already been said here. If making slingshots out of discarded crutches parts was such a really good and safe idea, the Homemade Slingshots forum would be dominated by threads from the numerous slingshot hobbyists who'd be devoted to this approach. The fact that the forum isn't filled with threads about and pix of slingshots made of discarded crutch parts speaks volumes about the crutch parts concept. That idea had a very brief moment in the sun, but that moment (much like a bad case of hives) has passed.

Make yourself a nice natural or go DIY on a thick HDPE kitchen cutting board. There are lots of materials that are far safer and more sensible than discarded crutch parts. Good luck with whatever you choose to do.

 

Wow!!!

 

Lacumo.thanks again for your advice . I feel a bit deflated. The call for crutches has already gone out. I'll see what arrives and carefully consider what to do with them.
In the mean time, I'll look for alternatives to make the extended sling shot.

 

Aluminum crutches can be used to make a perfectly safe and usable starship type slingshot, even if it will never be a beauty queen...

It was Shockly's mistake in thinking the people on this site would pay ridiculous amounts of money for his frankly quite fugly brain babies, and his callous reactions to any and all criticism and suggestions, that made him a persona non grata on this forum.

Had he made his Frankenstein-esque creations purely for personal use he might have gotten some quiet chuckles and some constructive criticism but without the outrageous hunger for profit and the bad attitude he would have never been banned.

By all means, make yourself some crutch star ships and enjoy shooting them. As long as you employ some common sense in the construction, you should be quite safe.

As for adequate eye protection, that's highly advisable in all forms of slingshot shooting, no matter how the frame was constructed.

Welcome to the forum.

 

I got my first shipment of crutches. I fell over carrying the bloody things though. Not a good omen.
Now they are in my boot . waiting for my wife to sleep before I smuggle them into the house.post pictures when she is in bed.

 

My crutches hidden in the frosty jag about to come out.
Ohh the tension

 

The crippled eagle has landed

 

Lol well should you be so unlucky as to hurt yourself falling over at least you have the crutches handy already????

Sorry, couldn't resist????

 

Hey F.I.Duck... Those Lofstrand crutches (a/k/a forearm crutches) in your picture above are actually very good crutches. I've spent several periods of several months each on crutches and those things are the best. It's a shame seeing them get junked. The cheap regular crutches that hospitals give away are definitely ready to be scrapped, but it'd be good to see if the Lofstrands could go to somebody who could use them (and toss the junky freebies they're presently using). Thus endeth today's sermon.....

Other than that, good luck with your SS-making efforts. Do be careful of how you join the SS forks to the main starship body, though. I'm paranoid about joints like that possibly failing and causing injury. Be safe!

 

I wonder if the crutches subconsciously remind people of injuries. All good advice so far which should apply to ALL slingshots. Be careful with any home made contraption and test fully before use.

 

Error post

 

Hi Lacumo
I have attached the manufacture's details.
For this set of crutches its a bit too late as I have dismantled them.
Where the arm support was is now going to be where the sling is attached.
Not sure if I should keep the angled metal or saw it off and have a strieght tube.

 

I got these bits to make the business end of the sling shot

 

Lol down here in Euroland, those ARE the cheapo crutches. Who knew... I actually have a pair standing in a corner somewhere from when I busted my ankle a couple of years back. Figured I just hang on to them in case I ever need them again. Crutches can be used more than once and the healthcare system is wasting quite enough tax and insurance money already...

I'm quite curious what you're going to come up with Duckman, also whether it'll score a little better on the beauty scale than Shockly's creations did.

 

I need to figure out how to best create the joint between the aluminium tube and the elastic holder.
The end of the tube is squared off already.

I am thinking of using one crutch for the extended SS
And the other for a sling shot rifle.

 

A crutch is just another source of good ole strong aluminum tubing and aluminum tubing has been made into star ships with much success.

Since crutches are adjustable one could assume that a partially collapsible or adjustable draw starship could be fabricated with fair ease. And yes the handle that comes with a crutch and arm pad could also serve well.

Making a metallic sling rifle, not a starship...by far longer.. occupied my time also, it is dead accurate but let's face it, I don't shoot it much for all the time I put into a steel lock mechanism blabla... but it's fun anyway and it was fun to make. Yes there are lots of threads on this already but look how many threads there are on ordinary ping pong paddle frames or clones of other's designs here. It's a slingshot forum, right? (Ducking behind a rock to avoid crony fire, LOL).

I might add that since a crutch is designed to hold the weight of a fat arsed lard butt burger and fry belching 'merican glug, it can surely be used for a darn slingshot.

A glug often weighs 250 lbs, dry weight, cholesterol plugged veins included, sometimes more. Half of that is 125 lbs and a crutch holds him in an upright position at the cashier at a McBurger joint.

 

Chuck that is brilliant

 

I would call it disgusting but hey potayto potahto.... ????

How are the crippleships coming along duckman?

 

Hey F.I.Duck... Those Lofstrand crutches (a/k/a forearm crutches) in your picture above are actually very good crutches. I've spent several periods of several months each on crutches and those things are the best. It's a shame seeing them get junked. The cheap regular crutches that hospitals give away are definitely ready to be scrapped, but it'd be good to see if the Lofstrands could go to somebody who could use them (and toss the junky freebies they're presently using). Thus endeth today's sermon.....

Other than that, good luck with your SS-making efforts. Do be careful of how you join the SS forks to the main starship body, though. I'm paranoid about joints like that possibly failing and causing injury. Be safe!

So you are basically saying that joints make you paranoid? Got it!

 

Lol down here in Euroland, those ARE the cheapo crutches......

Just out of curiosity, I looked them up and I found some of them for ~$40. That was a surprise, because I paid ~$150 for mine--in the 1980's! When I looked further, I found that the the "orthopedic quality" ones (I think for long-term disabled users) are still quite expensive. So... I guess the ones you have are appropriate for recycling.

On another note.... SF-- I definitely am very wary of any joints in slingshot forks. The pictures I've seen posted of busted forks and injuries over the last couple years keep me that way. That's one of the reasons I stick with 1" thick commercial HDPE board. Those boards are formed under such high pressures that I know they'll never fail.

 

Chuck that is brilliant

Kiss me