How to Make a "Country Boy" Style Slingshot

This slingshot is patterned after the ones my grandfather and father made. It requires a "Y" shaped stick, some rubber bands or rubber cut from old inner tube, small diameter string or dental floss,and some old shoe leather or suitable material to make a small pouch to hold projectile. You will also need a sharp pocket knife and a hand saw capable of making a smooth cut in wood.

Step 1: Find an Appropriate "Y" Shaped Handle

The hardest part of making the slingshot is finding a good handle. You need to walk through woods looking up into the tree branches looking for a suitable "Y" shaped fork. In the Southeast U.S. the Maple Tree is commonly used because it has a lot of forked limbs and the wood is lightweight and strong.

Step 2: Cut and Prepare the Handle

The slingshot needs to be about eight inches long from the bottom of the handle to the top of the forks. The forks need to be about four inches long. It is best to use a saw to insure a smooth cut, I used a hacksaw.
Peel the bark off the handle by using the knife to separate the bark from the wood. this is easily done while the wood is still green.
Next use the knife to trim and smooth the knots and bumps on the handle, and trim the rough edges on the ends of the handle.
You then cut small grooves on the ends of the forks about 1/4 inch down from the top. The grooves keep the strings holding the rubber bands in place.

Step 3: Attach Rubber Bands to Handle

The rubber bands I used are size 64, 3 1/2 inches by 1/4 inch. I bought them at Office Depot for about 2 dollars. You can use a bigger rubber band if you can find one. If you are feeling resourceful it is easy to cut the bands out an old bicycle inner tube.
I attached the rubber bands to the slingshot with the inner strings pulled from the inside of some parachute cord. You can use any suitable sized string you have or dental floss works well to attach the bands to the slingshot.
Cut the rubber bands and place over the ends of the forks on the handle. Take the strings and wrap around tightly around the bands, being sure to the string stays inside the grooves.

Step 4: Making and Attaching the Pouch

I used a piece of leather from the tongue of an old soccer shoe for the pouch. Any suitable leather-like material is acceptable. Cut the leather into an elongated oblong shaped little football. I like to draw a rough shape on the leather with a pen. It is hard to see, but it helps in cutting out a more uniform shape. It is easier to use scissors to cut the pouch. Next poke 2 holes in the pouch to run the strings through. The pouch will then be attached to the ends of the rubber bands that are attached the forks of the handle.

Comments

[Camisado]

This is SUPER awesome and SUPER cool. Nice job. 5 stars! P.S: This is a very good I'ble and all, but why is it featured? I mean no offense, I've seen better ones but how come THEY'RE not featured?

[Lazarus0]

Maybe the number of comments?

[meddler]

My dad and his brothers made slingshots like this and used tire innertube rubber. I think It was more pure rubber then, anyway my gramps made it through the depression, and had a good job, but they were still pretty poor, my pop and his brothers took a number of rabbits with their slingshots for the cook pot. Gramps loved rabbits.

[Lazarus0]

"Shhh, be bewy, bewy quiet... I'm hunting wabbits!"

[junminlee2004]

......

[junminlee2004]

..

[Khykemp]

i made it yay

[SierraM1]

how do you do this

[16kuokhc1]

where do I get the wood (legally in HK)

[braviscows]

you can use a board from the store... just cut it out with jigsaw

[suesieQ79]

does anyone know how to make a rubberband gun made out of a simple stick, like the sling shot above, my grandfather use to make them, but all I can find is those made out of wood, popsickle sticks, etc. The ones he did out of simple sticks were much more unique and craftier then the ones I found made out of wood. They had a cool country look to them, that I cannot find anywhere on the internet, also he made them from sticks, and used clothes pins to hole the rubberband. All I can remember is a slit on the front to keep the "bullet"-rubberband in placed while you pulled the rubberband back to have the clothes pin hold it, then released it the same way(the clothes pin.) These were really cool looking guns, but I'm afraid I can't remember the stick design, etc. If anyone knows, I would much appreciate it, Thanks

[cacj131]

Sorry bro, (btw your grandfather souns like a cool guy) but I dont know about anything like that. I might know, so i'll think. Kerp looking! And God bless!

[mromopop]

im gonna make one but make a slit in the end so its easier

[rogerrabbit321]

Is the thickness of my index finger an appropriate size for the fork? It seems a little thin to me, but i have skinny fingers

[Eddie_T]

http://www.fieldandstream.com/articles/hunting/2010/10/how-make-handmade-slingshot#

[weaponscollector94]

nice Barlow knife!

[lilrocker90]

Has the wood ever cracked? i am going to make this. thx

[lesrebnav]

hello, let's view two of mine

slingshot 1

The Y was made from a Gaïc wood (very hard wood common of my country: the New Caledonia island in the south pacific ocean) and the rubber was from sub-marine gun sandow cut in the length way with a razor blade. On the base of the Y I carve with a knife a spiral .

slingshot 2

on the second one the Y was made from Banian wood (another tree of my country).
on the two ones the rubber was bind arround the Y with rubber band made frome inner tube.

Have a nice day and be carreful of your neighbour windows

Thÿ

[mbudde]

I want to go to New Caledonia. Is it nice there? I hadn't heard of it until about 4 years ago when I got my crested gecko. They said that crested geckos are native to New Caledonia. But, mine was born in a pet store. I think. But it wasn't pulled out of the wild.

[prankster43709]

I have a crested gecko too! Those things are pretty cool lol