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I haven't enjoyed slinging as much until recently (Read 1426 times)
AncientCraftwork
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I haven't enjoyed slinging as much until recently
Apr 14th, 2019 at 12:53pm
 
I always wanted to sling more. I love slinging. But lack of location and proper disposable ammo just resulted in very little of it.

Where I live in the Netherlands, there is virtually no natural rock, no pebble beaches within a reasonable distance.

But there is one thing I have completely overlooked, and its everywhere.

CLAY.

Considering the part where I live was below sea level not many thousand of years ago, the soil a few meters below is all clay. Unlimited, free, all around me. All I need to do is find any spot where they are digging, and there's plenty of that nearby. Why didn't I think of this sooner  Shocked  Lips Sealed

So I've been making clay ammo. A lot of it. And all the clay ammo I throw is one time use. And naturally it throws fantastic. My accuracy is so, so much better. I have one good location where I can throw it against a wall, and seeing that cloud of smoke after impact gives a very good feeling. In a good week I can now throw around 250 times. And making your own ammo is fun and gives satisfaction. This is my new default.

I use a short sling, about the same length and throwing style Mr Livermore uses. Split leather Aussie pouch with two simple cords, not too thick, not to thin. I discovered I can get much more accuracy out of a sling this size. And I can throw fast, as this pouch type holds this ammo so well. A few days ago I was throwing at 100 meters on a deserted road. I was using spherical clay balls. 2 out of 5 throws landed in a tight group, 100 meters away from me, on the small width of the road, and gave a nice puff of smoke. And that after no consistent slinging in a long time.

So consistency in ammo has greatly increases my confidence in the sling as a weapon and a tool. Jagged rocks are completely useless for any sort of accuracy, and just cause frustration.
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TheJackinati
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Re: I haven't enjoyed slinging as much until recently
Reply #1 - Apr 14th, 2019 at 1:01pm
 
Clay projectiles are pretty much second only to lead when it comes to slinging performance, in my opinion. Lead of course, would probably be second only to Depleted Uranium or Iridium/Osmium projectiles

I have noticed exactly the same thing concerning accuracy. The accuracy of clay slingstones are far superior to most rocks, and the fact that you can have good control over their shape when forming them means that you can have aerodynamically superior projectiles.

Edit: And, If you ever get the chance to do so, give lead a try. You'll amaze yourself a second time. Trust me.
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Kick
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Re: I haven't enjoyed slinging as much until recently
Reply #2 - Apr 14th, 2019 at 1:49pm
 
It seems Finland has the opposite problem, lots of rounded stones perfect for slinging (thanks to the ancient glaciers that bulldozed through the whole area) but not a scrap of clay anywhere. I would love to try it out but I have no storage space or workspace really for clay and I'm not all that happy at buying clay that I'm almost certaintly going to lose most of.
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Sarosh
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Re: I haven't enjoyed slinging as much until recently
Reply #3 - Apr 14th, 2019 at 2:27pm
 
I haven't enjoyed slinging as much recently. I sling at a place where rain floods it making landscape changes.

once it widened the place in such a way that i could sling up to 50meters. but that didn't last long, rain created an incline on my backstop and i can't make accuracy groupings anymore. other than that it rains every time it's slinging time, the past months it's 1 slinging session /week that's bad for the arm, skill and morale. also I had made small flat areas in all that mess of rocks so i can sling with consistent footing, now they are washed of by rain... I've spent countless hours in google maps just searching for a better and safe place to sling. Undecided

I'm thinking of making my own ammo too. Although i can't see anything fun in making hundreds of projectiles just to lose and destroy them, maybe that will bring me to the next stage of my slinging development.
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AncientCraftwork
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Re: I haven't enjoyed slinging as much until recently
Reply #4 - Apr 14th, 2019 at 2:40pm
 
Sarosh wrote on Apr 14th, 2019 at 2:27pm:
I haven't enjoyed slinging as much recently. I sling at a place where rain floods it making landscape changes.

once it widened the place in such a way that i could sling up to 50meters. but that didn't last long, rain created an incline on my backstop and i can't make accuracy groupings anymore. other than that it rains every time it's slinging time, the past months it's 1 slinging session /week that's bad for the arm, skill and morale. also I had made small flat areas in all that mess of rocks so i can sling with consistent footing, now they are washed of by rain... I've spent countless hours in google maps just searching for a better and safe place to sling. Undecided

I'm thinking of making my own ammo too. Although i can't see anything fun in making hundreds of projectiles just to lose and destroy them, maybe that will bring me to the next stage of my slinging development.


As long as the clay is free, and I can make more than what I feel like slinging, I have no problem with destroying my clay glandes and balls. I can make about 100 projectiles in a day before I get too bored of it. I might sling 50 in a session. Seeing them explode is a huge part of the fun.
If I had to pay for the clay, I wouldn't want to destroy them however.
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AncientCraftwork
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Re: I haven't enjoyed slinging as much until recently
Reply #5 - Apr 15th, 2019 at 2:43pm
 
TheJackinati wrote on Apr 14th, 2019 at 1:01pm:
Clay projectiles are pretty much second only to lead when it comes to slinging performance, in my opinion. Lead of course, would probably be second only to Depleted Uranium or Iridium/Osmium projectiles

I have noticed exactly the same thing concerning accuracy. The accuracy of clay slingstones are far superior to most rocks, and the fact that you can have good control over their shape when forming them means that you can have aerodynamically superior projectiles.

Edit: And, If you ever get the chance to do so, give lead a try. You'll amaze yourself a second time. Trust me.


I can totally see myself slinging lead at the long distances that history teaches us. With regular stones, not so much. I don't think I've thrown further than 200 meters with regular stones, with the wind on my side. But then again I don't use long slings and I am not a tall person either.

Bad ammo can really give a wrong impression of the power, distance and accuracy that a well trained slinger is capable of.
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« Last Edit: Apr 16th, 2019 at 5:55am by AncientCraftwork »  

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Rat Man
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Re: I haven't enjoyed slinging as much until recently
Reply #6 - Apr 19th, 2019 at 8:20pm
 
   The southern half of New Jersey, where I live, is also alluvial. A lot of it was under water when the glaciers melted at the end of the last Ice Age.  So there is lots of clay around.  It isn't difficult to find at all.  I've experimented with it a little but we also have an abundance of smooth, white, oval shaped river stones all over the place.  Good ammo is everywhere here.  I am blessed.
   If you want ammo that really files try golf balls.  As long as you can get a perfect backspin on them so they don't "slice" your golf ball projectiles will fly over the hills and far away.
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Eudave
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Re: I haven't enjoyed slinging as much until recently
Reply #7 - Apr 21st, 2019 at 4:38pm
 
I am a new Slinger and use a 50 year old spoils heap from the local basements .All ups and downs but totally empty of people .it runs about 2 acres maybe more .A few small trees grow on it perfect for targets . it has a lot of rounded rocks on it about two to three ounces I find that the first 20 minutes I can hit the trees from about 75 feet away ,but as soon as I put to much thought into it I cannot hit worth a darn.
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Eudave
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Re: I haven't enjoyed slinging as much until recently
Reply #8 - Apr 21st, 2019 at 4:39pm
 
I am a new Slinger and use a 50 year old spoils heap from the local basements .All ups and downs but totally empty of people .it runs about 2 acres maybe more .A few small trees grow on it perfect for targets . it has a lot of rounded rocks on it about two to three ounces I find that the first 20 minutes I can hit the trees from about 75 feet away ,but as soon as I put to much thought into it I cannot hit worth a darn.
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AncientCraftwork
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Re: I haven't enjoyed slinging as much until recently
Reply #9 - Apr 22nd, 2019 at 5:01am
 
Rat Man wrote on Apr 19th, 2019 at 8:20pm:
   The southern half of New Jersey, where I live, is also alluvial. A lot of it was under water when the glaciers melted at the end of the last Ice Age.  So there is lots of clay around.  It isn't difficult to find at all.  I've experimented with it a little but we also have an abundance of smooth, white, oval shaped river stones all over the place.  Good ammo is everywhere here.  I am blessed.
   If you want ammo that really files try golf balls.  As long as you can get a perfect backspin on them so they don't "slice" your golf ball projectiles will fly over the hills and far away.



Im really starting to like spherical clay balls. Without a mold, glandes are hard to make properly. Glandes, being a more complicated shape, require more from their construction. Otherwise they'll start spinning weirdly or getting aerodynamic lift and go places you didn't want them to go. Spheres on the other hand don't get lift, and are easy to make in larger quantities by hand. Perfect for general use. Properly made glandes would make more sense for warfare and hunting, though.
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