# Tapered or straight



## Hermit (Feb 7, 2014)

Is there really that much difference between tapered bands and non-tapered bands? This tapered thing is rather confusing to me. How does one determine how much of a taper? Is the taper determined by the ball size? Thickness of the band? Is there a go-to taper to use for target shooting?

Thanks,

Rich


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## Harry Knuckles (Sep 28, 2020)

Taper cutting bands will increase speed while reducing draw weight. The downside is tapered bands do not last as long as a straight cut. I don't have any actual numbers of how much longer they will last.

From my understanding, finding the right taper is it's all about personal preference of draw weight and ammo speed. Factors of draw length, ammo weight, and band life all play into someone finding the right taper.

Snipersling did a detailed video showing the speed differences of tapered and non-tapered bands.


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## Grandpa Grumpy (Apr 21, 2013)

Tapered bands will be faster, less draw weight and the bands will almost always break at the pouch keeping you from getting a nasty slap in the face.

It is just a matter of trying different tapers to you find one that meets your needs. Every shooter has his own favorite taper for different thickness bands.

You don't need to taper if you don't want. Bands will probably last longer but they can break any place on the band. Check your bands often and replace when you see a tear or hole.


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## Quercusuber (Nov 10, 2011)

Advantages of tapered bands are as cited above: a dramatic increase on speed, reduced pull force without loosing power and (very important) tapered bands will definitely play a safety role while slingshooting, as they will break at the pouch in almost 99% of times.

Until this day (and I've shot slingshots rather continuously for the past decade) I'm still experimenting with tapers. For my Theraband Gold sets I use a less pronounced taper. My goal is to have a balance between band life and speed. But these have always room to evolve, depending on various factors. So, grab yourself a load of rubber and make some 4-5 different bandsets to choose from.

Cheers ...Q


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## KawKan (May 11, 2013)

I like to think about tapers in terms of ratios.

2:1 for high performance bands.

3:2 or 4:3 for longer lasting bands.

On the wide end, I start with 2 times the ammo diameter for steel (1/2-inch steel times 2 - 1-inch band).

Start at 1.5 times the ammo diameter for glass (1/2-inch glass - 3/4-inch band).

Start with 3 times the ammo diameter for lead (1/2-inch lead - 1.5-inch band or 2 3/4-inch bands per side).

Narrow end for 1/2-inch steel is 1/2-inch (2:1), 5/8-inch (3:2), or 3/4-inch (4:3).

Math works the same for the other ammo materials.

I usually cut high performance bands 1/5 of my draw length. Longer lasting bands are cut 1/4 of my draw length.


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## Tremoside (Jul 17, 2013)

KawKan said:


> I like to think about tapers in terms of ratios.
> 
> 2:1 for high performance bands.
> 
> ...


Awesome summary! Like and use ratios myself, this is the best wrap up answer I have seen for years! Cheers, Mark


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## Harry Knuckles (Sep 28, 2020)

KawKan said:


> I like to think about tapers in terms of ratios.
> 
> 2:1 for high performance bands.
> 
> ...


Has anyone made a chart with this type of information on it? I think it would be super useful to have pinned up over my workbench.


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## AppalachianFlipShooter (May 9, 2020)

What draw is that best suited for @KawKan? We talking butterfly or short draw?

Sent from my SM-N986U using Tapatalk


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## Harry Knuckles (Sep 28, 2020)

KawKan said:


> I like to think about tapers in terms of ratios.
> 
> 2:1 for high performance bands.
> 
> ...


I made a chart for the taper ratio in your description. Does this look correct?


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## Reed Lukens (Aug 16, 2020)

Personally speaking, depending on the brand, making the pouch bands under 3/8" is asking for a fast break. BSB .4, if cut 3/8 can pull apart in your hand. I ended up going up to 5/8" on that brand. I pulled, it broke - I grabbed at the break, pulled again, it broke up to 5/8"... Could have been bad rubber, but not all brands work well under 1/2".


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## KawKan (May 11, 2013)

I think this works pretty well with a draw between 28-36 inches. For draws closer to 60 inches I'd reduce the wide end of the taper 35 to 50 percent.



AppalachianFlipShooter said:


> What draw is that best suited for @KawKan? We talking butterfly or short draw?
> 
> Sent from my SM-N986U using Tapatalk


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## eaglerockdude (Dec 27, 2020)

Excellent. KawKan what would you recommend for clay balls(3/8" 9-10mm)...thats mostly what i should as I haven't made a catcher yet and they are easy.



KawKan said:


> I like to think about tapers in terms of ratios.
> 
> 2:1 for high performance bands.
> 
> ...


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## KawKan (May 11, 2013)

I think you can use the sizes listed for glass for clay too. They are very similar in density.



eaglerockdude said:


> Excellent. KawKan what would you recommend for clay balls(3/8" 9-10mm)...thats mostly what i should as I haven't made a catcher yet and they are easy.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


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