I spent a very hot afternoon slinging for a good few hours. I got a lot of footage which I've heavily edited down. For some reason I was kind of off my game. Not all that great slinging but a few good shots here and there. I also tried out the staff sling again which still needs a lot of work. The hook is just too hooked and sends the tennis balls directly into the ground. I adjusted it while I was out there but still needs work.

Slinging:
https://youtu.be/iJBt4WEnA6U

Staff sling:
https://youtu.be/NyVR1yigk6A

Nice!
You’re obviously more comfortable with a normal sling than a staff sling :)
What do you use for video editing?

Nice man! You definitely seem more consistent with fig-8 or at least that day you were lol

I like it!  It looks like you have a number of shots that bounce through the legs of the target without actually hitting it and knocking it down.  Is that happening, or is it just the way it looks to me in the video?

NooneOfConsequence wrote on Jun 13^th, 2019 at 12:57pm:

Nice! You’re obviously more comfortable with a normal sling than a staff sling :) What do you use for video editing?

Yeah I've done almost no practice with the staff sling and, like I say, it's not working quite right yet. I just use the video editing software that came with my computer. It's clunky and very limited but it all adds to the charm of the videos  ;)


Tomas wrote on Jun 13^th, 2019 at 4:34pm:

Nice man! You definitely seem more consistent with fig-8 or at least that day you were lol

It's weird because I started off slinging doing helicopter and Fig 8 was impossible. Now it's almost completely reversed. Does depend as well on the day.


joe_meadmaker wrote on Jun 13^th, 2019 at 6:20pm:

I like it!  It looks like you have a number of shots that bounce through the legs of the target without actually hitting it and knocking it down.  Is that happening, or is it just the way it looks to me in the video?

I was mostly aiming to go through the legs rather than hit it, but a few times I wanted to hit them just because it always looks cool to hit them :D Unfortunately, that means I have to go set them up up again so aiming through the legs means a little less walking back and forth :D

A great place to sling Tennis balls!

Kick;
   Your problem with the staff sling probably isn't with the hook.  It might be with the angle the pouch hangs at.  Try changing the length of either the release or retention cord to change the angle that the pouch hangs at when the staff is parallel to the ground.  Usually the easiest way to do this is to move the point at which the retention cord is attached to the staff.  There used to be a handy diagram here to illustrate this but unfortunately it was lost several years ago. 

Ah ok thanks! I think I need to dedicate a full day to testing and adjusting to get it right. I guess I should have expected it but it's really taking a lot of tuning to get it perfect.

timpa wrote on Jun 15^th, 2019 at 7:00pm:

A great place to sling Tennis balls!

It really is! There are occasionally people walking through or cycling but mostly I have the area to myself :D

   Once you get it right you'll love staff slings.  They're loads of fun to design and use.  Plus they allow you to launch some really big, heavy projectiles.

Just a tip on your Helicopter with your hand sling video to make it even better is that I would suggest moving your slinging arm further back. Generally; I’m currently taking notes from David Morningstar’s content, which essentially his general rule of thumb in how to engage the muscles is a movement that feels almost like driving the hand (and physically; obviously the rest of the arm behind it) straight towards the target and as a result; most of the throw’s power coming from what he describes as, “The sling whipping around the hand,” during your arm’s follow through.

Describing slinging in words is really weird haha.

Die meiste Kraft kommt aus der Hüfte.
Diese ist zuerst in der vorwärts Bewegung. Der Arm wird dann folgen.
Sie brauchen viel weniger Kraft und erreichen eine höhere Geschwindigkeit.

Funditor406 wrote on Jun 20^th, 2019 at 12:45am:

Just a tip on your Helicopter with your hand sling video to make it even better is that I would suggest moving your slinging arm further back. Generally; I’m currently taking notes from David Morningstar’s content, which essentially his general rule of thumb in how to engage the muscles is a movement that feels almost like driving the hand (and physically; obviously the rest of the arm behind it) straight towards the target and as a result; most of the throw’s power coming from what he describes as, “The sling whipping around the hand,” during your arm’s follow through. Describing slinging in words is really weird haha.

Yeah it's always difficult to explain slinging in words. It's weird because I used to be good with helicopter but I've completely lost it. Then again it seems to come back for a bit at other times so *shrug*. I think I basically just need more practice. I'll definitely try to use that though, throwing from further behind me.

Jaegoor wrote on Jun 20^th, 2019 at 2:51am:

Die meiste Kraft kommt aus der Hüfte. Diese ist zuerst in der vorwärts Bewegung. Der Arm wird dann folgen. Sie brauchen viel weniger Kraft und erreichen eine höhere Geschwindigkeit.

This is definitely something I'm bad at. When I was practicing martial arts, a constant problem was not moving my hips enough. I think I am just pretty stiff overall and it's something I'm always trying to work on.

Es ist nicht schwierig das slingen zu erklären.
Es gibt klar abgrenzbare Folgen von Bewegungen.
Wäre es Judo oder irgendein anderer Sport wäre es für alle klar. 😁
Aber bei unserem Sport ist jeder Experte der mal eine Schnur gebastelt hat.
Es wird immer und immer wieder über maximal Power diskutiert. Man diskutiert ebenso über alle möglichen Stile. Nur die Ergebnisse sind dem gegenüber recht sehr bescheiden und gering.
Zeigen sie mir einen erfolgreichen slinger und ich erkläre dir mit welchem System er Arbeit.
Es gibt nach meiner bescheidenen Meinung nur drei Grund Techniken. Unterhand, sidehand und overhand. Alles andere sind Variationen.
Variationen entstehen durch verschiedene dynamiken. Was ist ihr Ziel. Wo steht es. Wie ist dein eigener Stand. Bewegst du dich. bewegt sich dein Ziel. Dann fangen sie an grundtechniken zu variieren. Es ist nicht sehr schwer. In einer Woche mache ich dich zu einem durchschnittlichen slinger.
Voraussetzung. Du bist bereits ein durchschnittlicher Sportler. 😁

I definitely agree that it's all just variations of underhand sidearm and overhand. Sometimes I think we all, and I'm definitely guilty of this, get caught up too much in working out exactly which technique is being used. I much prefer broader categories.

Sie werden mit der Zeit automatisch einen eigenen Stil entwickeln. Dieser wird unverwechselbar sein. Man wird Sie an Ihren Stil erkennen.
Ich träumte einmal von einem großen Slinger Sport. Ähnlich wie andere Sportarten.

Big change from helicopter to figure-8!  I also struggle with hip movement. I almost can't do fig-8 without looking goofy. Yours is much better looking.

@ Kick

If you could find a wall to sling against, it would be better in many ways.
it would allow you to sling with more power without chasing all those balls afterwards, you could use 2-3 tennis balls instead of a bag since they would rebound back to you.

Sarosh wrote on Jun 21^st, 2019 at 2:38am:

@ Kick If you could find a wall to sling against, it would be better in many ways. it would allow you to sling with more power without chasing all those balls afterwards, you could use 2-3 tennis balls instead of a bag since they would rebound back to you.

I agree :D Sadly nowhere like that around here, or at least I haven't found it. At least all the walking to pick them up gives me some exercise.

Oder sie stellen ein Ziel auf denn hinweg und auf dem Rückweg auf. 😁

Thought I would tack this onto an old thread rather than start a new one. More testing of the improved staff sling. It's too long and I'm still working out the best hand placement. My reloading sucks as well :D More regular and staff sling videos coming.

https://youtu.be/H9CZBsKBTmE

@ Kick
probably one arm has to be on the end of the staff . the staff is not too long. for tennis ball weight you probably need narrower grip
have you tried sword style?

Nice video.what is the distance to the target

Great stuff Kick!  Although you needed to hang an egg in front of your target with a piece of tape and a string. ;)

Sarosh wrote on Mar 22^nd, 2020 at 4:05pm:

@ Kick probably one arm has to be on the end of the staff . the staff is not too long. for tennis ball weight you probably need narrower grip have you tried sword style?

I would say it is too long. Holding it by the very end is too unwieldy and puts it so far away from me that it's really difficult to judge the angle. It's too late now anyway as I just shortened it yesterday. :D I've only done some quick testing with sock balls inside but it already feels much better. Hopefully I'll get out and do some testing with tennis balls and then move on to rocks. I don't want to go straight to rocks with this because it's been so unpredictable. What'e really cool is that I haven't let the cut-off go to waste. That's no a mini staff sling or stick sling I guess and that seems to work REALLY well (with sock balls inside). It's also easier and quicker to load. I can really see it being a good option for hunting if that would ever be needed. Very quick flick of the wrist forward and it flies fast. Video for that coming soon.


Greenjay wrote on Mar 22^nd, 2020 at 5:02pm:

Nice video.what is the distance to the target

About 20 paces. I wasn't very exact but something around that.


joe_meadmaker wrote on Mar 22^nd, 2020 at 8:56pm:

Great stuff Kick!  Although you needed to hang an egg in front of your target with a piece of tape and a string. ;)

I did think about that, but, with everything happening, I couldn't really bring myself to waste food. I might have to go for one of the other challenges but that depends on whether staff slings are considered cheating :D

Been out today again with tennis balls. The staff sling is, I think, about as good as I can get it. Still working on the best hand position but I got two hits on the metal pan in a row. That says to me it doesn't need any more fiddling.

The stick sling was a different matter. I had a lot of trouble with it releasing early so had a go at slowly increasing the hook with my tiny little keychain penknife. It got better but was very inconsistent. Also it's really done a number on my wrist. When it was good, it was really good, but, when it slipped early or hooked straight into the ground, it was not fun. Once I got home, I took the round file and some sandpaper to it. I then went out for a walk with my girlfriend who has been cooped up inside all day and I had a go chucking some rocks with it. With those shots, it worked much better. I think adjusting the hook helped but I think also the heavier ammo had an effect. I think it's time for some rock tests.

I did some regular slinging too. I'm still the most accurate with Greek but I also went back to Fig 8 which I haven't done in a while and surprised myself. Got a few hits and very close shots. I've noticed generally my accuracy is getting much better. I'm sure it will all go downhill once I go back to rocks.

Oh yeah and here is a new general slinging video I filmed at the same time as the staff sling one:

https://youtu.be/z1h5D1H_Oag

I've done some more practice with the staff sling but this time with rocks. I still absolutely love it but the pouch isn't working out. Because it's a large leather Rockman style it has overlapping layers and on some of the shots the rock slips into the overlap and gets caught which then makes a horrible noise and slams directly into the ground. Every time I've thought the pouch or the paracord has ripped. It's done no noticeable damage, but I hate it so I've swapped out the pouch to another one that is just a flat piece that was wetted and cupped. It was on a regular hand sling, but it's large enough for a staff sling so I think it should work well. More testing. I'll be filming a video tomorrow (weather and time permitting) so I'll finally be able to show it off properly.

Nice video.
Very calm and satisfying. Especially when you hear the bonk. I can only imagine it must have been the same a thousandfold for you. The long sling wind up is very cool.

It's a shame you didn't get the one that got stuck in the handle on video. That must've been a one in a trillion.

Slyngorm wrote on Mar 31^st, 2020 at 4:38pm:

It's a shame you didn't get the one that got stuck in the handle on video. That must've been a one in a trillion.

I cannot express how annoying that was :D Because a lot of the tennis balls had bounced back, I was just walking up and throwing from where they had landed after stopping the recording. I doubt I'll ever manage it again but now I know it's possible :D