# Make A Natural You Will Be Suprised How They Shoot



## spanky (May 29, 2011)

Hi Guys
Moff left the natural he made at my place,Well as it was here i thought i would have a go with it.
It was made for a leftie so i had a bit off a struggle at first finding a comfortable hold.
I really cant believe how accurate this thing is,Hitting cans at 33 feet became boring.I did a spot of instinctive shooting and speed loading-The same result.
Going to have to make one now.
How many guys out there prefer their naturals to board cuts etc?.


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## Bert (Mar 20, 2011)

Naturals all the way. .. Love searching them out!


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## spanky (May 29, 2011)

Yep going to take a walk in the woods see what i can find.


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## mckee (Oct 28, 2010)

i prefer naturals


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## spanky (May 29, 2011)

Going to have a go at making a simple design first-Then play around making one with finger grooves etc.


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## spanky (May 29, 2011)

In fact a few of us could make some naturals,Then post pics and have a mod or one of the great makers on the forum judge the best.
FLIPPINOUT is banned from this competition-In fact he would make the perfect judge.


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## Dayhiker (Mar 13, 2010)

Naturals are my favorite.


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## spanky (May 29, 2011)

Hows about it Guys-Have a natural maker competiton.


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## dragonmaster (Dec 24, 2009)

I have a bucket full that I collected last April after a storm. There Black Walnut and Hard Maple been in the ******* fork dryer all these time. I Relay love shooting them. I have a few made by other forum members and a few I made my self. I like gypsy tabs and chained rubber bans on mine.


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## spanky (May 29, 2011)

surely it would be interesting to see what we can come up with-Type of wood used-where it was sourced-what tools were used etc.


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## marcus sr (Jun 5, 2011)

naturals all the way mate


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## Gib (Sep 21, 2010)

Love naturals, Some of my best shots come from em.

Dont get me wrong I still love a good boardcut but nothin beats natural


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## John McKean (Dec 24, 2010)

Surprisingly it was the wonderful experiences at the ECST that really turned me on to naturals ! Some of our sport's very best shooters at that meet, who often shot with the neatest boardcuts, are also very keen on naturals -Tom from Bunnybuster (he makes some dandy naturals-these probably got me thinking the hardest toward this form,with one he gave to my grandson!), Blue Skeen who told me all his early tournaments were won with simple unvarnished forks that he collects in the woods & puts together to this day (his are my most accurate shooters!), and even Nathan from Flippinout, who many new to this site will be surprised to learn makes tremendous naturals!! These days I follow Blue's advice and don't fuss much with the actual fork - I try to select neat pieces of driftwood from lakes/ocean/rivers of my fishing trips and simply saw the rough extra wood off to shape the forks,some quick notching and removal of knots,mild sanding, and tie the bands to forks with fly tying thread. Love the feel of driftwood in my hands- no varnish or slippery polish for me! MUCH target shooting in my backyard range has proven(to me ,at least) that this is the most fun style of plinking in the slingshot world! And if I took a photo of my slingshot collection ,everyone would laugh - it looks more like a stack of kindling for a bonfire ,than a "furniture store" of sculped boardcuts!!


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## NoSugarRob (Jun 3, 2010)

.


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## spanky (May 29, 2011)

John McKean said:


> Surprisingly it was the wonderful experiences at the ECST that really turned me on to naturals ! Some of our sport's very best shooters at that meet, who often shot with the neatest boardcuts, are also very keen on naturals -Tom from Bunnybuster (he makes some dandy naturals-these probably got me thinking the hardest toward this form,with one he gave to my grandson!), Blue Skeen who told me all his early tournaments were won with simple unvarnished forks that he collects in the woods & puts together to this day (his are my most accurate shooters!), and even Nathan from Flippinout, who many new to this site will be surprised to learn makes tremendous naturals!! These days I follow Blue's advice and don't fuss much with the actual fork - I try to select neat pieces of driftwood from lakes/ocean/rivers of my fishing trips and simply saw the rough extra wood off to shape the forks,some quick notching and removal of knots,mild sanding, and tie the bands to forks with fly tying thread. Love the feel of driftwood in my hands- no varnish or slippery polish for me! MUCH target shooting in my backyard range has proven(to me ,at least) that this is the most fun style of plinking in the slingshot world! And if I took a photo of my slingshot collection ,everyone would laugh - it looks more like a stack of kindling for a bonfire ,than a "furniture store" of sculped boardcuts!!


Great read John,If it shoots its a good un.


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## spanky (May 29, 2011)

I have one of Flatbands cracking slingshots and have ordered the cocobolo package form Richard.Going to make my own natural,Then my ultimate goal is to own one of Flippinouts stunning naturals.


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## As8MaN (Mar 6, 2011)

Both work for me


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## AlmostHuman (Jul 10, 2011)

Naturals for me too but only just as one of my new favourite shooters is a ply job ( thanks to Hunter69 for that ) . Would love to see what some of the others are making in a competition though as there's some stupendously good makers here on the forum .....


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## marcus sr (Jun 5, 2011)

whats the prize?


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## Melchior (Dec 27, 2009)

After some years of shooting, most people recognize that the slingshot is just there to hold the bands in place...I prefer board cuts, but they aren't better or inherently more accurate.

There was an Italian shooter on the European slingshto tournament 2 years ago. His slingshot looked like it was made by a child - skinny prongs, no finish and the bands were attached "African style", so even the fork ends were totally unfinished. And the shooter just said "I know it looks like ****, but I shoot best with this one". He got a very good score on that day.


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## spanky (May 29, 2011)

marcus sr said:


> whats the prize?


I could get a certificate made up with the winners name- best natural 2011
Type of wood made from etc
Awarded by slingshot forum members.
What do you think?.


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## M.J (Nov 1, 2010)

I like a good natural, but my favorite shooters are "boardcuts". Actually, my top three are the EPS, Hammermil and SEAL Hunter and calling any of those a boardcut is a bit of an insult.
I do have one particular natural that I've always shot well with:







This one is just the right size and shape. I was a boardcut snob until I got it and was shown that a good natural is a good slingshot.


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## Martin (Jan 17, 2010)

I love making boardcuts, but when it comes to shooting I prefer my naturals I just seem to shoot better with them.
Martin


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## tubeman (Mar 7, 2011)

spanky said:


> Hows about it Guys-Have a natural maker competiton.


That get's my vote


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## spanky (May 29, 2011)

Well at least thats two of us,Thanks Tubeman.


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## tubeman (Mar 7, 2011)

I think there will be more votes spanky. Most of the members on this Forum are in a different time zone mate


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## spanky (May 29, 2011)

Cheers Tubeman,I think it would be a interesting project if no power tools were allowed just a knife and sand paper sort of thing.


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## marcus sr (Jun 5, 2011)

ill have some of that,and the certs a wicked idea spanky,specially if you can get a mod or better still admin to endorse it

marcus


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## fatboy (Oct 26, 2010)

While reading this post and watching the Sportsman Channel these guys are hunting in Africa and come across a black mamba, one of the deadliest snakes in the world, and the guide pulls out a natural slingshot, picks up a rock and kills it with one well placed shot to the head.

I love naturals too!


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## tubeman (Mar 7, 2011)

spanky said:


> Cheers Tubeman,I think it would be a interesting project if no power tools were allowed just a knife and sand paper sort of thing.


I use a knife, various files and occasionally rasps, and of course sandpaper to finish. Power tools are not normally needed on a natural apart from drilling a hole in the fork, but routers and a belt sander must be a must for boardcut vendors. Thanks for this post spanky, I hope your suggestion is taken up by Staff


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## spanky (May 29, 2011)

Hi Tubeman i meant using a dremell for making the band slots.
We could make a short list of the hand tools allowed.


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## tubeman (Mar 7, 2011)

With you now. I like a round file for the band slots


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## tubeman (Mar 7, 2011)

fatboy said:


> While reading this post and watching the Sportsman Channel these guys are hunting in Africa and come across a black mamba, one of the deadliest snakes in the world, and the guide pulls out a natural slingshot, picks up a rock and kills it with one well placed shot to the head.
> 
> I love naturals too!


Saw that. He made it look like an everyday thing for him.


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## spanky (May 29, 2011)

tubeman said:


> With you now. I like a round file for the band slots


Man you have made a good job there


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## spanky (May 29, 2011)

tubeman said:


> While reading this post and watching the Sportsman Channel these guys are hunting in Africa and come across a black mamba, one of the deadliest snakes in the world, and the guide pulls out a natural slingshot, picks up a rock and kills it with one well placed shot to the head.
> 
> I love naturals too!


Saw that. He made it look like an everyday thing for him.
[/quote]
Sorry for not replying straight away-yes seen this on you tube.Great shot.I wouldnt want to just injure one of thoses things,They have been known to chase blokes down.


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## tubeman (Mar 7, 2011)

spanky said:


> With you now. I like a round file for the band slots


Man you have made a good job there
[/quote]
Thanks


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## tubeman (Mar 7, 2011)

Just noticed that NightKnight is watching this post spanky. You might get a result now that the Boss is paying attention to your natural maker Competition suggestion







mate


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## spanky (May 29, 2011)

I hope so.


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## Ted (May 27, 2011)

A competition for naturals would be fun. Part of it would be seeing the different kinds of wood available in different parts of the world.


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## Jacktrevally (Feb 14, 2011)

I took a break from natural forks for about 10yrs! I've done 2 since a few months. I use to make dozens of them before.

A saw, or a piece of hacksaw blade, some broken glass. For a cheap finish which will last for 15yrs+, sump oil or candle wax.

Sand paper? It's not a must.

I've never used a microwave to season a fork. I heat it gently over a pit fire.

The second one I made has not been banded, waiting for the 20 of Aug, when 1 slingshot for a month ends.


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## tubeman (Mar 7, 2011)

Excellent point re the different woods Ted. Here in Scotland, we have strong tight grained woods like Oak, Ash, Beech and Sycamore. They make excellent strong slingshots even with thin forks, but they have no nice grains like the ones from trees that grow in warmer climates.


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## Ted (May 27, 2011)

tubeman, I'm not an expert on trees, but in the eastern U.S. we have cherry, dogwood, maple, birch, willow, to name some that I know about. So many trees...so little time!


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## mckee (Oct 28, 2010)

personnally i think xiodo and chepo make the best naturals on the forum !


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## NoSugarRob (Jun 3, 2010)

.


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## spanky (May 29, 2011)

Hi Guys
Plenty of replies but not many interested in having a natural competition,About half a dozen by the looks of it.I thought this was something that everybody could have a go at,No expensive tools needed-Just find a decent fork and get to it.
Never mind,I will have a go anyway,See what i can come up with.


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## Greywolf (Jul 16, 2011)

spanky said:


> Hi Guys
> Plenty of replies but not many interested in having a natural competition,About half a dozen by the looks of it.I thought this was something that everybody could have a go at,No expensive tools needed-Just find a decent fork and get to it.
> Never mind,I will have a go anyway,See what i can come up with.


I will give it a try with ya. Any deadline to have it done by?


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## Martin (Jan 17, 2010)

spanky said:


> Hows about it Guys-Have a natural maker competiton.


This could be interesting, I'm in.
Martin


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## dgui (Jan 12, 2010)

Jim Harris sent me a couple of very nice naturals one is from the locust tree I think honey locust the other oak and then Tex sent me one and they shoot as good as any slingshot and I would say and no different, in my opinion. I do love the look though.  And now I am awaiting a Natural from TubeMann. Can hardly wait to crank off some rounds from that one and now I'm in a lather.


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