My sling preference is always a split pouch, but I mainly throw inconsistent ammo so I need the ability to switch from stone to stone.

For me it’s never really a problem holding ammo unless it’s clearly too small or big, a solid pouch might solve to too small problem but not the too big. Another issue is polished spheres you are limited to a more specific size, in general I think both designs work and neither is better than the others it’s all preference and practice.

As a result of some experimentation, I have recently become quite fond of what I call a 'double-split pouch'. For thin slings where a normal split pouch isn't preferable, it provides good stone retention while still providing a clean release. It also can accept a good variety of stone sizes.

Eudave wrote on Sep 28^th, 2020 at 2:39pm:


can you upload a picture ? I'm curious
it sounds like some kind of bucket pouch sling

To me; a split pouch is mainly made for the reason that they are a lot quicker and easier to make than cupped pouches if we’re talking about just making slings from fiber, they certainly work and are a good choice for a rugged shepherd or a speedy skirmisher. But if somebody had leather or something laying around they would probably go for a solid pouch as that would make sling production even faster. I prefer cupped pouches as I tend to sling a certain size anyway. I remember CA posted something about split pouches and his experiences with them being a bit unpredictable, and unfortunately my personal experiences are similarly bad enough to where I’d rather spend the extra time and make a solid one.

I have a sling with a fairly deep pouch.  As Eudave described, I also once had a misfire with this sling.  There wasn't any injury, but it tweaked my arm a little bit when the projectile didn't release.  I have since stopped using this sling.

It seemed to be fine with large projectiles, so the pouch couldn't form around it.  But with smaller projectiles, no good at all.

I'll get it fixed at some point in the near future.  I'm just going to cut the pouch off and put on a new one that's more flat.

I kinda settled in the middle.

For me, too much cupping and the stone tends to touch the rim of the pouch as it releases. That contact basically deflects your shot.
   That being said, too thin of a split pouch does seem to let the stones fall out.
I settled on a "semi-split" pouch modeled after an old member's(Pikaru) design.

It's flat so there's no rim for the stone to catch on but the slit does allow the stone to sink into the pouch a bit.

So perhaps my question is: If you had to vouch, how much couch do you like in your pouch?   

One of the questions in my mind is what the relative timing is during the release process.  This will have a major impact on how you design your sling.  If the ammo leaves the sling before the release cord is out of the way, then the ammo must exit to one side of the release cord, possibly pushing the cord out of the way and interfering with the shot.

If the release cord opens up faster than the ammo rolls out, then the ammo can exit straight out of the open pouch without interference. 

If the ammo rolls off to one side of the cord, your sling pouch geometry matters a lot.  The more the ammo moves to the side, the more it impacts your accuracy.  You can adjust your aim to compensate, of course, but if you change the pouch shape, you also have to change your aim compensation. 

If, on the other hand, the pouch and cord both move out of the way first, then the shape of the pouch does not matter as much, and you could throw exactly the same way with different sling designs. 

It's possible that both situations occur at different times, depending on how fast you are throwing, how heavy the ammo is, how much friction there is between the ammo and the pouch, and air resistance on the release cord... but then again, it's also possible that the ammo always releases to the side?  The straight rib along the Cordailot sling suggests that the release cord moves out of the way, but we've all had situations where the cord hangs up and throws off a shot too.

This is yet another one of those investigations I haven't had time to really investigate... and yet another question that a robo-slinger could help to answer... some day.