Ancient Weapon, Modern Version - George R. Leaich
The David Sling has been around since the Bronze Age or before, no one seems to know for sure, but it was definitely one of the first personal engineered weapons and a deadly one at that. Simple in construction, extremely portable, and quite efficient in practiced hands, but that is all a matter of history, as is well documented by other contributors to this site.
I have used the David Sling since building my first as a young child, a zillion years ago. As I have grown, so have the materials available to construct the sling and the projectiles for it, which is precisely what this is all about. Some have elaborate and decorative designs, but rather labor intensive and some rather inefficient when it comes to propelling a projectile to a given point or target. Hopefully, this contribution will simplify construction and use and bring the sling into the 21st century, encouraging others to build and use it in less time with better results.
The materials you will need are about six to eight feet of 3/8th inch braided nylon, available from your local hardware or department store, and about two feet of ordinary nylon automobile seat belt material 2 inches in width and available from the local automobile salvage or junk yard. You will also need a stout sewing needle and some 20 pound braided Dacron fishing line for sewing the necessary points of stress and binding for your sling.
The first step is to cut two strips of the seat belting to 10 inches length. Place these side by side along the long side and use a pen or marker to draw a line bisecting the length at 5 inches. Using the fishing line, sew the two strips together along one inch at the centerline to bind the two strips together at their edges and prevent separation during use.
Now comes the important part. Grasp the ends of the two strips at one end of your sling pouch and bring the two outside corners of the belting together by lapping one strip over the other to a point where the two outside corners are lined up with each other at the centerline formed by the two strips. Put a drop of glue between the two strips half to three quarters of an inch below the point formed to hold them together while sewing along the two outer edges to bind them firmly and permanently together. Sew along both sides of the strips where they overlap and cut off the triangular tab along the overlapped part of the strips, and you have completed one end of your pouch. Repeat this on the other end and you should have completed a sling pouch that forms a natural pocket for your projectiles. The pouch will be broad and pocketed at the middle and flat and pointed at each end.
When open the pocket formed naturally will be deep and well suited to self-centering a projectile. When closed up, as it will be when holding the sling by the cords with a projectile in the pocket, the pocket will be shallow but still maintain a slight pocket to retain the projectile and keep it centered in the pocket while twirling it about, using centrifical force to hold it in.
Lastly, but very importantly, singe the cut edges carefully with a lighter or soldering iron where you made your cuts in the nylon belting to insure they are bonded and will not fray or unravel. Be careful not to over do it and melt too much material, as all you need is a seal on the edge where cuts were made. This is not for bonding anything together, but merely a means of preventing the material from fraying.
To affix the cords to your sling, cut your cord in half and place about one to one and a half inches of the nylon cord on the backside of one end and sew firmly in place, being liberal with stitches to insure a secure fit to the pocket or patch. Sew a cord to the other end and your sling is complete, except for fitting the length of the cords to a suitable length for you to efficiently and conveniently use it. This measure of course will vary for each individual. Before sewing, singe the ends of the cord to melt a seal that will prevent unraveling of the nylon. Be sure to place the cords on the backside or outside of the pouch to prevent even a minor disturbance in the release of the projectile from the pouch or pocket.
You have now completed a David Sling, in an hour or so of work, that has a beautiful pocket that is deep when open, allowing easy loading of projectiles, and shallow but still pocketed to allow self-centering of the projectile and preventing loss of it in the circular buildup of power, and improving accuracy overall. Your investment in this sling should only be a few dollars for material that is readily available and most durable, easy to use, and quite efficient due to its pliability yet firm enough and slick to prevent any rubbing or hang-ups on release, when using the David Sling.
Good luck and happy hunting.
George, Illinois, USA