# Looped Through Flats



## M.J (Nov 1, 2010)

Today I finally got in my new stock of Theraband Gold and Black. First thing I did was cut some bands to try out an idea I've had stuck in my head. Let me be clear: I did not invent this concept and I don't claim to be breaking any new ground, it's just not something I'd previously done.

I wanted to try flatbands that loop through the pouch to form doubles rather than being made up of two strips per side. Tex's LB2000 bands are made this way as are Saunders bands and the (sadly out of production) ZDP-189 Fastbands. The difference is that these guys are pros and I'm an amateur at best so their bands are tapered in an hourglass fashion and mine are straight cut.

I made two strips of TBB 7/8" wide by 14.5" long. If I like these and decide to make more then next time they'll be 14" as I ended up shortening them up to an effective length of 6.75". They're looped through the pouch and located with a small strip of cotton medical tape. I used the tape because I wanted something that wouldn't heat up and potentially wear on the bands like strips of latex (theoretically) would and I have some kind of mental block when it comes to making constrictor knots out of cotton string.

My goal with this is a good balance of shootability, speed and longevity. So far the first two are there. These shoot 7/16" steel at about 190fps, which isn't earth-shaking but is plenty enough to target shoot out to 35 yards and they're money-in-the-bank accurate. We'll see about the longevity, I'll keep you posted.










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## treefork (Feb 1, 2010)

I used to do my double one inch TBG that way except a piece of tube sleeve was used instead of the tape.I would get about 700 shots per band set.


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## Charles (Aug 26, 2010)

I will be interested to see how long these perform for you. I have found that without pre-stretching, the bands tend to wear at the pouch because of the friction there from constantly stretching and relaxing against the leather. A lot depends on the particular leather, of course. Do keep us posted.

Cheers ..... Charles


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## M.J (Nov 1, 2010)

I did pre stretch them some. Maybe next time I'll use my jig and give them a bit more.


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## Hrawk (Oct 25, 2010)

It's pretty easy to cut the hourglass shape with just a ruler and roller cutter.

If interested, gimme a shout and I'll walk you through the process.


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## Hrawk (Oct 25, 2010)

Basically cut your bands at the full width and length.
Clean one side to remove all the anti binding agent.
Fold in half, giving a firm press to basically stick the two sides to together.
Cut from the folded end to the open end with a roller cutter and rule.
Un fold and look at that, hourglass bands.
Loop through pouch and tie
Attach to forks
Re apply some talc or cornflour to quiet them down a bit and stop them sticking again.
Profit

Make sure your roller cutter is nice and sharp.

Cut on a firm surface as you are going through two layers. Some cutting mats might be a bit soft to get a nice clean cut.


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## Hrawk (Oct 25, 2010)

In addition to the above, when tying at the pouch end, it doesn't need to be very tight at all.

Essentially all you are doing, is keeping the pouch in place and not having it jumping up and down the bands.

A small cuff of 2040 works well for the few sets I have made like this.

Performance is great as you are really cutting down on weight at the pouch end.


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## lightgeoduck (Apr 3, 2011)

Nice to see you using cotton tape MJ! When ever you try singles, let me know your thoughts of the cotton tape when attaching a simple fold over.... Cotton tape, as you may know, is all I use when making flats and your theory seems to fit

LGD


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## M.J (Nov 1, 2010)

Hrawk said:


> Basically cut your bands at the full width and length.
> Clean one side to remove all the anti binding agent.
> Fold in half, giving a firm press to basically stick the two sides to together.
> Cut from the folded end to the open end with a roller cutter and rule.
> ...


You're pretty much a genius.

It's so simple but I still didn't think of it.

Thanks!


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## lightgeoduck (Apr 3, 2011)

Hrawk said:


> Basically cut your bands at the full width and length.
> Clean one side to remove all the anti binding agent.
> Fold in half, giving a firm press to basically stick the two sides to together.
> Cut from the folded end to the open end with a roller cutter and rule.
> ...


Excellent write up. That's how I did it when I tried to mimic my saunders set. I just didn't pursue it any farther, because in my mind I didn't see the benefits in it... Of course i didn't have in mind squeezing that extra fps out . . One plus i do see is having a taper but still having enough rubber at the pouch attachment


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## Hrawk (Oct 25, 2010)

M_J said:


> You're pretty much a genius.
> 
> It's so simple but I still didn't think of it.
> 
> Thanks!


It's what us alcoholics like to refer to as 'a moment of clarity'


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## beaverman (Dec 20, 2012)

thats my favorite attachment method but with cuffs. one problem is that you cant retie them if the break at the pouch, doesnt matter to me though cuz i dont like to retie.


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## M.J (Nov 1, 2010)

I made a set of 1""x3/4" TBB "hourglass" flats like Hrawk illustrated above. I'm keeping track of shot count and will report when they break.


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## mr. green (Nov 3, 2012)

Great information. Thank you all for sharing.


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## Imperial (Feb 9, 2011)

M_J said:


> I made a set of 1""x3/4" TBB "hourglass" flats like Hrawk illustrated above. I'm keeping track of shot count and will report when they break.


sounds like a contest- " guess how many shots MJ will take before his hourglass tbg bands break. closest without going over wins an autographed picture and the set of bands that were used ! " im rather intrigued by this, the one thing i like is that when one snaps, you can probally just take one off the other side and use it as a single band shooter. only question i have is, will you only be shooting one kind of ammo ? weight ? or this just a general thing, and just leave the nit picking research to the slingshot laboratory scientist who reside on the SSF ?


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## M.J (Nov 1, 2010)

Thanks for mentioning it, Imp. I'm only going to shoot 7/16" steel with these bands.


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## All Buns Glazing (Apr 22, 2012)

coool. I might have to try this myself when I fail university because all I do is play with slingshots instead of study. Then I'll have more time to play with slingshots!.... I digress.

Keep us updated, MJ!


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## M.J (Nov 1, 2010)

Well, this isn't what I was hoping for...

First set of hourglass bands failed right in the middle where they go through the pouch at just shy of 300 shots. That's not going to work!

I'll make another set and give them some pre-stretch before tying them as tight as I would a normal set of doubles. That way they shouldn't chafe at the pouch quite so badly. I did switch from a cuff of 2040 to a tight-ish wrap with a very small strip of latex about halfway through the test. The cuff let the bands get bunched and twisted at the pouch.

I'll make one more set tonight and if they don't make it 500+ shots then I'll consider this a failed experiment.

They did shoot GREAT, though!


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## Hrawk (Oct 25, 2010)

What pouch material are you using ?

One of the secrets behind the ZDP Fastbands is the extremely soft, lightweight pouch.

I am still using my very first set of Fastbands on my hunting ergo.


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## M.J (Nov 1, 2010)

Performance Catapults pouch.


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## stej (Jan 16, 2013)

Found this by accident.. Did the prestretching work or fail?


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## M.J (Nov 1, 2010)

Prestretching helps quite a bit. Putting a small square of elastic between the pouch and the band helps, too. I'll post a picture of this later.


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