# My Companion



## dan ford (May 13, 2013)

Hi all :wave:

I've been wanting to make myself a rock solid every day shooter for a while now and after a few attempts for one reason or another none of them have really worked for me. Then i was asked by a customer to make a Companion with carbon fibre facings , i'd never worked with carbon fibre before so i said i'd look into it.Whilst doing some research i soon found out that carbon fibre is very rigid and strong but not very impact resistant so i looked for an alternative.Then i found it !!! The fabric i found was a carbon fibre \ twaron mix. Twaron is Aramids version of kevlar , this stuff among other things is used for body armour and ballistic panels used to bullet proof cars up ! :naughty: and to top things off it looked like carbon fibre but with a better 3D effect ! So i spoke to my customer and ordered some up.

Now as I said I'd never worked with anything like this before so I wanted to have a practise before i did the commission which was the perfect chance to make myself a nice bullet proof (quite literally ! ) shooter 

I started with one of my Companion 10mm cores and filed a slight ergo shape into the handle but not so much that i can't pull it out of my back pocket at a moments notice and shoot it either way round. Then the fun started.... cutting the Carbon\Twaron was a nigthmare ,first i tried some tailors shears which i had sharpened especially for the job and they didn't touch it ! so i tried my roller cutter which did nothing more than push the fabtic into my cutting mat :banghead: so in desperation i used my wife's brand new fiscars scissors (don't tell her !) and these worked ok but believe me this stuff is not easy to cut ! Next i wet laid 8 layers of the material onto each side of the core using a blend of epoxy which is less brittle than normal epoxy and left it to cure. The next job was to cut the composite back flush with the core which also wasn't easy ! but i got there in the end. Even drilling the holes for the tube inserts , lanyard insert and pin was a head ache. Be under no illusion this stuff is not for the faint hearted ! It doesn't like being cut ,filed .sanded or drilled ! I could have spent another hour getting the ca finish perfect but considering its it's gonna live in my back pocket i'm happy with it 

Its quite slim compared to the other Companions ive made at about 14mm which fits my hand perfectly and is very pocket friendly. The bands are looped 2040 cut so they are pretty much maxed out when i draw and of course are fitted with a fantastic 3\4 supersure superpouch.

Can,t wait to take the dogs for a walk in the morning so i can put her through her paces ! 

Anyway enough rambling here's some pics..................

























































Thanks for looking


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## BCLuxor (Aug 24, 2010)

Real nice there Dan, Great minds think alike I guess I am in progress with my "own" everyday shooter not quite so space age though! that material is awesome.


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## Lacumo (Aug 18, 2013)

Wow! This one should be well beyond merely durable!  It'll probably be discovered by archaeologists several centuries from now and then they'll be jabbering away about the "primitive weapons" that were still evidently in service during the early 21st century...


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## Mister Magpie (Apr 10, 2013)

I like that, even if it has a metal core! :rofl:


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## Bob Fionda (Apr 6, 2011)

Great slingshot indeed!!!


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## Beanflip (Sep 11, 2010)

All of them are great!


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## e~shot (Jun 3, 2010)

Awesome mate!


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## jld70 (Mar 27, 2013)

Love it!


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## Can-Opener (May 11, 2013)

That one is a looker! I like the space age materials. Very cool slingsbhot!


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## ash (Apr 23, 2013)

Nice work, Dan!

For that kind of application you might find it easier to buy pre-laminated sheet material and have it laser or water cut at the same time as your cores. One less nightmare cutting job and one less exposure to nasty carbon fibres in your skin or lungs.

Hobbyking.com is a good cheap source.


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## DougDynasty (Jul 8, 2013)

My goodness Dan that is absolutely stunning. Breathtaking and innovative . U sir are an extremely talented feller. Very inspiring . And u r very lucky to be able to call that your very own. I'm in awe. I hope someday to be half that talented. Doug


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## SmilingFury (Jul 2, 2013)

Nice treat for yourself! What a cool shooter! That's the kind of shooter batman would carry, just so you know...
Hahaha. Good job pushing your boundaries and doing new things, I love that.

Be well,
SF


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## GHT (Jan 22, 2013)

Superb Dan, that's one high class shooter bud.


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## Danny0663 (Mar 15, 2011)

Nice job Dan, the metal and carbon fiber looks awesome. I'm also currently working with carbon fiber on my next project ... should be interesting to work with. :hmm:


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## flipgun (Nov 14, 2012)

Lacumo said:


> Wow! This one should be well beyond merely durable! It'll probably be discovered by archaeologists several centuries from now and then they'll be jabbering away about the "primitive weapons" that were still evidently in service during the early 21st century...


 I was looking at this and thinking, "Wow! That looks like it will last forever!"

Very Nice!


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## rockslinger (Nov 16, 2010)

*That is so cool Dan! I can imagine how tough that material is being that it stops bullets!*


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## dan ford (May 13, 2013)

BCluxor said:


> Real nice there Dan, Great minds think alike I guess I am in progress with my "own" everyday shooter not quite so space age though! that material is awesome.


Thanks Ben ! it is an awesome material well worth the effort ! are you going down the metal core route ? cant wait to see what you come up with 



Lacumo said:


> Wow! This one should be well beyond merely durable! It'll probably be discovered by archaeologists several centuries from now and then they'll be jabbering away about the "primitive weapons" that were still evidently in service during the early 21st century...


Thanks Lacumo ! Durability is what this one is all about ! hopefully in a few hundred years time it will belong to my great,great,great,great,great,great grandson 



generic said:


> I like that, even if it has a metal core! :rofl:


Thanks Darren ! eeerm its not a metal core its a metal slingshot with composite scales ! 



Bob Fionda said:


> Great slingshot indeed!!!


Thanks very much Bob



Beanflip said:


> All of them are great!


Thank you Beanflip !



e~shot said:


> Awesome mate!


Thanks e~shot !



jld70 said:


> Love it!


Glad you like jld70 ! thanks



Can-Opener said:


> That one is a looker! I like the space age materials. Very cool slingsbhot!


Thanks Can-opener very kind of you mate



ash said:


> Nice work, Dan!
> 
> For that kind of application you might find it easier to buy pre-laminated sheet material and have it laser or water cut at the same time as your cores. One less nightmare cutting job and one less exposure to nasty carbon fibres in your skin or lungs.
> 
> Hobbyking.com is a good cheap source.


Thanks Ash. I did look at pre-lam boards but couldn't find any carbon/twaron off the shelf and getting it made up is expensive and also i used different mixes of resin throughout the stack which i wouldn't get with pre-lam. I think water jet cutting may be in order if these take off though !



FishDoug said:


> My goodness Dan that is absolutely stunning. Breathtaking and innovative . U sir are an extremely talented feller. Very inspiring . And u r very lucky to be able to call that your very own. I'm in awe. I hope someday to be half that talented. Doug


Thank you very much Doug  I tell you what mate your turning out some awesome work yourself ! 



SmilingFury said:


> Nice treat for yourself! What a cool shooter! That's the kind of shooter batman would carry, just so you know...
> Hahaha. Good job pushing your boundaries and doing new things, I love that.
> 
> Be well,
> SF


Thanks SF ! Batman already has 2 of these mate and i'm working on a commission for the Punisher as we speak ! top secret though so don't tell anyone :rofl:



GHT said:


> Superb Dan, that's one high class shooter bud.


Thank you very much Tom !



Danny0663 said:


> Nice job Dan, the metal and carbon fiber looks awesome. I'm also currently working with carbon fiber on my next project ... should be interesting to work with. :hmm:


Thanks Danny ! From what i've seen online carbon fibre isn't to bad to work with its the twaron that's the pig ! Good luck with it mate ,can't wait to see what you come up with 



flipgun said:


> Lacumo said:
> 
> 
> > Wow! This one should be well beyond merely durable! It'll probably be discovered by archaeologists several centuries from now and then they'll be jabbering away about the "primitive weapons" that were still evidently in service during the early 21st century...
> ...


Thanks Flipgun! hopefully it will outlast me at least


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## dan ford (May 13, 2013)

rockslinger said:


> *That is so cool Dan! I can imagine how tough that material is being that it stops bullets!*


Thanks RS ! it was hard work taming it but well worth the effort i think


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## leon13 (Oct 4, 2012)

wow that is XXXXXX cool !!!

cheers


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## BC-Slinger (Jan 6, 2013)

Super cool fork you have there. When I made my EDC slinger I wanted it to be bullet proof as well. Happy slinging and have fun with that one.

Cheers

BC-Slinger


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## Btoon84 (Nov 22, 2011)

Fantastic looking shooter Dan! What a piece of class and durable to boot! Very cool.


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## MagicTorch100 (Jun 4, 2013)

Hi Dan, that black laminate is an absolute belter, drooling!


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## dan ford (May 13, 2013)

wow that is XXXXXX cool !!!

cheers

Thanks Leon !


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## dan ford (May 13, 2013)

Super cool fork you have there. When I made my EDC slinger I wanted it to be bullet proof as well. Happy slinging and have fun with that one.

Cheers

BC-Slinger

Thanks BC ! Bullet proof is good !


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## dan ford (May 13, 2013)

Btoon84 said:


> Fantastic looking shooter Dan! What a piece of class and durable to boot! Very cool.


Thanks mate  I've been testing it today and i really like the feel of the slimmer frame ,shoots fantastic !



MagicTorch100 said:


> Hi Dan, that black laminate is an absolute belter, drooling!


Thanks Jamie ! very kind of you mate


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## Dr J (Apr 22, 2013)

Outstanding work Dan, the extra effort put in in its creation will serve you well in future projects . Congratulations.


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## quarterinmynose (Jan 21, 2012)

*bling*

A bullet proof beauty this one is.


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## Danny0663 (Mar 15, 2011)

> Thanks Danny ! From what i've seen online carbon fibre isn't to bad to work with its the twaron that's the pig ! Good luck with it mate ,can't wait to see what you come up with


You're right, i tried working with 3/8" thick carbon fiber today, it's machines and sands like butter, really easy to work with just like G10.


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## ash (Apr 23, 2013)

Wow, where did you get 3/8" CF plate?


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## Danny0663 (Mar 15, 2011)

Ended up making it ... brought m^2 of 2x2 twill weave and laminated it myself. Though ... i think i will end up buying CF from http://www.truesaber.com/Home_c1.htm in the future because i just ended up spending $80 on CF and Epoxy for one set of scales.


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## Yago (Mar 29, 2013)

incredible work


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## dan ford (May 13, 2013)

Dr J said:


> Outstanding work Dan, the extra effort put in in its creation will serve you well in future projects . Congratulations.


Thank you Doc ! I learned a lot making this one the next one shouldn't be as difficult 



quarterinmynose said:


> *bling*
> 
> A bullet proof beauty this one is.


Thank you very much QIMN !



Yago said:


> incredible work


Thank you Yago !



Danny0663 said:


> Ended up making it ... brought m^2 of 2x2 twill weave and laminated it myself. Though ... i think i will end up buying CF from http://www.truesaber.com/Home_c1.htm in the future because i just ended up spending $80 on CF and Epoxy for one set of scales.


Good on you for laminating it up yourself Danny ! Did you use a press ? Surely you didn't use the whole m2 for one set if scales ???


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## Danny0663 (Mar 15, 2011)

> Good on you for laminating it up yourself Danny ! Did you use a press ? Surely you didn't use the whole m2 for one set if scales ???


For the press i just used two slabs of 1" thick MDF and clamped it down with 6 clamps. I wasted so much CF when i was laminating/cutting the thing, I ended up with the slab finished, but i also ended up with a whole bunch of loose thread mixed with epoxy ... it was like watching $20-30 dollars worth of material going down the drain.


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## tnflipper52 (Jan 26, 2012)

Oh man, that is top drawer there Dan. You really got game now. When you first started they looked great but now? Really nice work and thanks for sharing.


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## Mr.Teh (Feb 28, 2012)

Three very nice pieces, awesome your work...always  !!


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## myusername (Oct 5, 2013)

ooooooo :wub:


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## dan ford (May 13, 2013)

Danny0663 said:


> > Good on you for laminating it up yourself Danny ! Did you use a press ? Surely you didn't use the whole m2 for one set if scales ???
> 
> 
> For the press i just used two slabs of 1" thick MDF and clamped it down with 6 clamps. I wasted so much CF when i was laminating/cutting the thing, I ended up with the slab finished, but i also ended up with a whole bunch of loose thread mixed with epoxy ... it was like watching $20-30 dollars worth of material going down the drain.


If you decide to have another go Danny you could try not using a press just consolidate each layer with a roller ,worked a treat for me mate .



tnflipper52 said:


> Oh man, that is top drawer there Dan. You really got game now. When you first started they looked great but now? Really nice work and thanks for sharing.


Thanks tn very kind of you to say so mate 



Mr.Teh said:


> Three very nice pieces, awesome your work...always  !!


Thank you very much Mr Teh !



myusername said:


> ooooooo :wub:


Thank you myusername !


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## Can-Opener (May 11, 2013)

I love that slingshot! I had to say it again! I do not really like tubes but that one has me. Super awesome!!!!!


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## alfshooter (May 11, 2011)

Slingshot majestic, great Master. :thumbsup:


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## Dayhiker (Mar 13, 2010)

Both of those forks are incredible. You're not only a great craftsman, Dan, but you also have exquisite taste! Well done.


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## S.S. sLinGeR (Oct 17, 2013)

Nice job dan. Looks killer


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