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What Materials Do I Use? (Read 3328 times)
Ravenkeep
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What Materials Do I Use?
Dec 16th, 2020 at 6:31pm
 
I have a braiding disk. So, naturally I bought the book Sling Braiding. My question is what materials are good choices for a rock sling, and what materials are not? A lot of the slings in the book use yarn. Really? Yarn? I would think yarn would be too delicate for a sling. Am I wrong?  Undecided
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IronGoober
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Re: What Materials Do I Use?
Reply #1 - Dec 16th, 2020 at 6:37pm
 
Really, any type of cord/string can work to make a sling. But some have more benefits than others. Lots of people here have made some very beautiful slings using yarn, though.

To start, if you are going to be braiding, I'd say use Jute, sisal, hemp, or cotton.   Paracord is another option.  It really depends on what you have available, but just about anything will work.

Jute, cotton are very soft and easy to work with, but slings made with them will tend to wear down faster. Something like paracord/sisal will wear much slower and feasibly last longer. But really, it depends on how often you throw, and what you throw. If you use tennis balls/baseballs. Anything will work. But if you throw jagged rocks, paracord/sisal/nylon/HDPE are better choices.
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Morphy
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Re: What Materials Do I Use?
Reply #2 - Dec 16th, 2020 at 6:45pm
 
So long as you are slinging smooth ammo yarn can be quite durable. With rough ammo like concrete it will get chewed up pretty bad.  Wool was a very common sling making material though so it definitely works.

I prefer non-stretchy cordage. So far my favorite natural cordage is Irish shoemakers linen but it's quite expensive. It's durable, soft and strong. Also no stretch.

A good alternative is paracord.

For braiding you have many options. If made right everything from embroidery floss to yarn of different types and any of the plant fibers or synthetic cordage can work. Cord diameter is important when braiding as are things like luster and vibrancy of colors. This is a big topic. You can find more questions and answers on my thread called something like "Questions on Braiding".
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NooneOfConsequence
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Re: What Materials Do I Use?
Reply #3 - Dec 16th, 2020 at 11:20pm
 
A lot of slings have a leather covering to protect the cordage in the places the sling is most likely to wear from abrasion.
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“My final hour is at hand. We face an enemy more numerous and cunning than the world has yet seen. Remember your training, and do not fear the hordes of Judas. I, without sin, shall cast the first stone. That will be your sign to attack! But you shall not fight this unholy enemy with stones. No! RAZOR GLANDES!  Aim for the eyes! May the Lord have mercy, for we shall show none!“  -Jesus the Noodler
 
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Re: What Materials Do I Use?
Reply #4 - Dec 16th, 2020 at 11:28pm
 
I’m a big fan of dyneema!!!
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Re: What Materials Do I Use?
Reply #5 - Dec 17th, 2020 at 6:28am
 
It seems using a braiding disc and buying that book are somewhat jumping in at the deep end. A normal braided sling is actually very easy to make, just use a simple 3 or 5 strand flat braid. You don't have to go crazy with complex 16 strand round braids and patterns.

Materials wise you have a lot of choice. You can make non-braided slings using paracord or similar cord with a leather pouch attached but if you want to braid you will ideally want low stretch twine or thin cord (or work with the raw fibre if you are so inclined). Common natural materials are jute, hemp, cotton, linen/flax, sisal, wool, and common synthetics are nylon, polypropylene, polyester, acrylic wool and dyneema. To start with I'd recommend jute or hemp as they are easy to work with and make quality braided slings. They are also easier to taper and splice than synthetics which are a bit slippy.
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AncientCraftwork
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Re: What Materials Do I Use?
Reply #6 - Dec 17th, 2020 at 7:54am
 
Ive never gone beyond a 5 strand braid, I just never found the need to.
I prefer not having to use any hand tools or braiding disks in my sling construction, I prefer free hand braiding.
Loose plant fibers make it much easier than having these long strands of pre-twined cordage to work with.

Just keep on experimenting until you find a design you like and that fits your throwing style. There are a ton of different ways to make a sling out there. It's always good to know multiple ways to tie a sling using different materials.
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Re: What Materials Do I Use?
Reply #7 - Dec 17th, 2020 at 7:54am
 
I've never understood braiding paracord. It seems like a bit overkill given paracord's qualities. I've made, or at least own, slings of almost every material you can make a sling out of. Everything from paracord to cotton to jute to nettle fibre to wool to even plastic bread bags. That's one thing I really love about slings, they're that simple of a device you can make them out of basically anything. Even a heavy scarf could be a sling.

I think I took a pretty common route through the different materials:
1. paracord and leather
2. cotton string
3. jute string
4. sisal string
5. nettle fibre
6. sisal fibre (I really need to finish that sling off...)

I think this is a good trajectory to understand slings and gain the skills needed to make nice slings and you can stop at any point along that route and have decent slings. Of course the next things would be the complex braids which usually come from wool.
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Re: What Materials Do I Use?
Reply #8 - Dec 17th, 2020 at 1:13pm
 
I bought 1000’ of good quality jute, and the slings look awesome but they don’t hold up for very long.
I really like the paracord/leather combo myself, and I am particularly a fan of the smaller/rounder 425 paracord instead of type 550.

@Kick, the only time I’ve ever braided paracord was to make a bullwhip... for that, paracord braids are great. A Balearic is basically two snakewhips and a split pouch in between, so I could see why you might want to do braided paracord if you want it to give a big loud crack every time you throw. I’ve put whip crackers on the end of 425, but you have to throw pretty hard to get a good sound out of it.
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“My final hour is at hand. We face an enemy more numerous and cunning than the world has yet seen. Remember your training, and do not fear the hordes of Judas. I, without sin, shall cast the first stone. That will be your sign to attack! But you shall not fight this unholy enemy with stones. No! RAZOR GLANDES!  Aim for the eyes! May the Lord have mercy, for we shall show none!“  -Jesus the Noodler
 
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Ravenkeep
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Re: What Materials Do I Use?
Reply #9 - Jan 22nd, 2021 at 4:31pm
 
Morphy,

Where can I find Irish shoemakers linen? A Google search turned up nothing.  Undecided

You all have done a great job at answering my question, my next question is what length should the cord/twine/rope etc be for a standard length rock sling?
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« Last Edit: Jan 22nd, 2021 at 7:57pm by Ravenkeep »  
 
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Ravenkeep
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Re: What Materials Do I Use?
Reply #10 - Jan 22nd, 2021 at 4:49pm
 
Uhhh, I should specify. What length cord should I start out with, to create a standard size rock sling? My previous post could have been misinterpreted.
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Re: What Materials Do I Use?
Reply #11 - Jan 22nd, 2021 at 5:41pm
 
Man kann Materialien auch kombinieren. Wolle lässt sich sehr gut mit Hanf oder leinen kombinieren. Ich empfehle ein 16 enden geflecht. Englischer Fischgräd. Es ist sehr einfach. Man lernt es sehr schnell. Ein sehr gutes Material ist seide. Sehr langlebig und leicht.

You can also combine materials.  Wool can be combined very well with hemp or linen.  I recommend a 16 end braid.  English Fishgräd.  It's very easy.  You learn it very quickly.  A very good material is silk.  Very durable and light.
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Re: What Materials Do I Use?
Reply #12 - Jan 22nd, 2021 at 5:45pm
 
Wink
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Re: What Materials Do I Use?
Reply #13 - Jan 22nd, 2021 at 5:46pm
 
Seide Shocked
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Re: What Materials Do I Use?
Reply #14 - Jan 22nd, 2021 at 5:57pm
 
Ravenkeep wrote on Jan 22nd, 2021 at 4:49pm:
Uhhh, I should specify. What length cord should I start out with, to create a standard size rock sling? My previous post could have been misinterpreted.

If you have a sling length, I think 70-75 centimeters, 30 inches, can be called the standard length. Anything less is short for me, and what is longer than this is long, in addition, there are different ways to measure length, including those that use your height. Thirty inches in my opinion is the average optimal length.
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