# My Thoughts On Linatex



## The Norseman (Mar 5, 2018)

I ordered some linatex from the Simple Shot website, after hearing about it's great elongation factor, and abrasion resistant qualities. I hadn't been expecting the Holy Grail of flatbands, but I was hoping for something that was somewhat better than TBG, cause that gets boring after a while. It arrived, and I was extremely surprised by it's thickness, and stiffness. I was going to be shooting 3/8" steel, so I cut myself some 1cm straights, I tied 'em on and headed for the shooting range. I was extremely surprised by the draw weight when I first pulled it back. I figured I could deal with it, so I let fly. MAJOR handslap, the shot went wild, and put a sizable dent in the garage door. I figured it was an anomaly, and fired again. Same result. I headed outside into the freezing rain, determined to give the elastic a fair trial. My accuracy never improved, and all I got were cold fingers. Granted, I wasn't using large lead, but I was thinking that those small bands would be sized down enough for my medium steel. Anyway, I have relegated the linatex to the band tying strip box, and have gone back to the good old 1745's.

Cheers,
The Norseman


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## M.J (Nov 1, 2010)

What does the stuff you got look like? Is it smooth on both sides or bumpy on one? 
I had a good relationship with the company that imports and distributes Linatex (pronounced line-a-tex, incase anyone was wondering. I used to say it wrong ). They used a couple of my videos for advertising and made a little poster for their trade show booth with me on it. In return they sent me a bunch of samples to play with. 
I found one thickness that really worked, I'll try to dig around and figure out what it was. Nathan and I talked about it and I told him which thickness I liked and had him get in touch with my contact at the company. 
A couple things I learned : you have to cut it skinny, short, and tapered.
Straight cuts are really inefficient, they end up just being heavy and slow. Try a 3:2 or a 4:3 taper and cut them narrower than you think they will work. And start with 600% stretch. 
Also, because the material is so heavy they really work better with bigger ammo. I like how now 3/8" steel is "medium" ammo :lol: . It's little ammo. You'll have to cut Linatex almost down to a point to be really comfortable shooting it.


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## M.J (Nov 1, 2010)

And if you try again and really don't like it ,you can send it to me  I got rid of my stock before the move.


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## Ibojoe (Mar 13, 2016)

I love the stuff. But I don't know how small you would have to cut bands for 3\8. The bands you cut would be great for .40 lead. Add a bit to the frame end for .44 cal. Put the rough side down. The stuff SS sells is 1\32" thick and trust me it's going to last you a long time.
I use it for hunting in foul weather 9\16 to 1\2" for .44 lead. It is seriously tough stuff.


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## MakoPat (Mar 12, 2018)

1 cmnis pretty wide. I need to get some and try it.

But I have a fine love for TBG. I am easily amused and seldom get bored though. A benefit of beimg naturally tedious.

MJ, thanks for the info. I had no idea.

Good luck, Norseman.
PS- I am waiting for my son at the dr. and slinging an awewome ironwood pfs behind the building. Hahaha... misbehaving in the city limits. S'cool because I know the local policeman here. He sometimes will take a shot or two with me... he is an ex-marine and gun enthuisiast... and has beginner's luck. That is how he out shoots me.


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## BushpotChef (Oct 7, 2017)

Ive had some good luck with it in 3/4-1/2" cuts at 7.5". Took a squirrel with 3/8" steel and it had some wicked thump. Ive never cared about band slap as Im usually gloved up while hunting. I totally hear you about them being a little odd and sluggish at first, they 'shoot like a gun' IMO. Strong pull, harsh release and take some getting used to. But super rugged and good for all conditions of crap weather lol. Id say cut em long and narrow, shoot em 3/4 draw instinctive and twist that pouch. Treat it like the nickname Ive given it:

'The Devils Gum Rubber'

Nice writeup Norseman 

Sent using two thumbs and Tapatalk.


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## Hulla Baloo (Nov 25, 2017)

Linatex begs for load. Like full beer cans, lacrosse balls, and small shot puts. Shines when heaving heavy, in my experience.


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## Ibojoe (Mar 13, 2016)

It's all so exciting! Love the heavy stuff.


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## The Norseman (Mar 5, 2018)

M.J said:


> What does the stuff you got look like? Is it smooth on both sides or bumpy on one?
> I had a good relationship with the company that imports and distributes Linatex (pronounced line-a-tex, incase anyone was wondering. I used to say it wrong ). They used a couple of my videos for advertising and made a little poster for their trade show booth with me on it. In return they sent me a bunch of samples to play with.
> I found one thickness that really worked, I'll try to dig around and figure out what it was. Nathan and I talked about it and I told him which thickness I liked and had him get in touch with my contact at the company.
> A couple things I learned : you have to cut it skinny, short, and tapered.
> ...


It's bumpy on one side. My bad for calling 3/8" medium, I had always thought that 1/2" was big, 3/8" was medium, and 1/4" was small. Now that I think about it, it does seem a bit oversimplified. ????


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## M.J (Nov 1, 2010)

It's all good 
Maybe try a 10-7mm taper and see if that works any better.


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## rockchunker (Jan 1, 2017)

So Linatex would be the very thing to send random white flints and 3/4 to 1 inch river stones whistling down range? And it outlasts gum rubber? Does tapering significantly reduce band life of Linatex as it does in other materials?


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