# Steel rod slingshot for flat bands



## Pebble Shooter (Mar 29, 2014)

Hi everybody,

Here is a video with a shooting section and a detailed tutorial on how to make a steel rod slingshot with a new type of attachment system for flat bands. I used 8 mm thick stainless steel rod for this project: a rod bender is essential here in view of the forces involved for cold bending.

Materials per slingshot cost app. US$ 10, and about 3 hours are needed to make it (depending on your tools and making skills).

This design handles very strong flat band sets without any problems.






Enjoy the video & let me know what you think.

Pebble shooter


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## treefork (Feb 1, 2010)

Well done !


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## Rip-van-Winkelholz (May 7, 2015)

Form follows function.

Very cool bud!



Rip


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## lunasling (Apr 5, 2015)

like that bending jig where did you find it ?


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## Grandpa Grumpy (Apr 21, 2013)

I really like this one! I have a thing for wood/metal combination slingshots. Looks good!


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## NaturalFork (Jan 21, 2010)

That is great! I love it.


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## Genoa Slingshot (Oct 29, 2015)

Very nice!


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## Pebble Shooter (Mar 29, 2014)

Thanks for all the positive replies.

For those interested in making this slingshot, I used the "mighty rod bender" sold by BAC Industries Inc. (USA); a very good product. The aluminium base is inserted in a vise, which should be soundly installed and strong enough to resist the huge forces involved during bending.

Here is their website:

http://www.bacindustries.com/product3-bending-forming-tools-rod-mighty.php

I ordered it at Amazon. com for delivery to Europe:

http://www.amazon.com/Shop-Tuff-MR-01-Mighty-Bender/dp/B0000AXFCD/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1452672414&sr=8-1&keywords=BAC+bending+rods

The longer the bending rod, the more leverage you will have to reduce effort input. I would assume that "Home Depot" probably sells similar items too, or more professional types of rod benders, albeit at a much higher cost.

I used the 13 mm wide die placed on the main bending pin of the aluminium support: you will find that the significant pressure applied by the 8 mm thick rods during the bending process will eventually damage the outer surface of the steel die (after making several slingshot frames). I would thus avoid bending these thicker rods directly around the bending mount pin: the 13 mm die and other dies can be replaced relatively cheaply, whereas the aluminium rod bender base would be harder to replace.

Always use protective leather gloves and ideally, safety glasses, when cold bending to avoid potential nasty accidents. Bend progressively, bearing in mind that particularly stainless steel is slightly "springy" i.e. the final bending phases need to be carried out very gradually to achieve the precise angles required. Least but not last, place yourself in such a way that you do not find yourself flying backwards if for any reason something were to give suddenly while you are pulling away during the bending process. Safety comes first at all times...

I also strongly recommend making a wood base rig, as shown in the video, on which the measured bending angles are marked with a protractor to ensure symmetrical bending at each stage. A key issue is to ensure that the rod lies flat on the bending surface during the entire process.

Finally, if you choose to use standard carbon steel, you should be able to get the final slingshot frame blued by a local gunsmith for a reasonable cost: they simply place it inside the hot chemical bath along with other gun parts. Not a big deal.

Have fun...


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## grappo73 (Dec 15, 2015)

Love this video thanks for sharing and congrats for your work!!!!


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## Chuck Daehler (Mar 17, 2015)

I was thinking of doing the same thing but using steel strap instead of rod. Yours is an excellent rendition however.

Instead of tieing you can use rubber tubing "cuffs"to roll over the flats and instead of the complex curve on the fork tips you can just bent it 90 degress as would be a TruMark or Marksman wire frame.

You can blue the steel yourself and at the same time temper it.
Heat it cherry red with a blow torch and quench it in a gallon can of used motor oil. If you do this twice it will result in a deep black color that is really resistant and costs you nothing. When/if you get nicks or worn spots just oil blue it again.

I've used simple slots for band attachment on the diagram below, why tie when all you have to do is stretch and insert a doubled over band with match stick in the loop?

I've diagramed this with 2 possible handle options. One is an insert similar to what you did and the other is a two piece hollow handle held together with two bolts, into which one could stash "survival gear" or extra band/pouch set.

Once the die and posts are made it's pretty simple to mass produce these. You could also make a hydraulic truck jack (20 tons or more) press using a similar one piece die idea and just press strap into the die to yield a finished frame. Slot the ends and you have a slingshot frame. A myriad of markeing plans could include a DIY frame itself to let the buyer make his/her own handles, aluminum, stainless or ordinary black iron for frames, powder coated or blued or satin finish for stainless and Al..anodized... it goes on and on.


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## Pebble Shooter (Mar 29, 2014)

An interesting concept with potential, Chuck.

One key issue for me was to have a flat band attachment method where nothing could fly back at the shooter from the steel rod forks - with the exception of a steel fork loop itself suddenly breaking under tension, but somewhat unlikely with the modulus of 8 mm steel rod. Well, never say never...

The elastic strips used to wrap & tuck the band ends are placed externally around the fork loops, which makes it practically impossible for the strips and the band ends to pull out the wood attachment blocks towards the shooter. This solution creates a real O.T.T steel rod slingshot for a strong set of flat bands to shoot larger ammo (16 to 20 mm BB's)

It also makes small but powerful slingshots possible (see the attached image): 6 mm thick stainless steel rod is OK here. The only danger with the smaller versions is the exposure of the index finger and thumb (see image) in case of a fork hit, but it works extremely well for 10-12 mm sized BB's. This particular size literally fits inside any pocket.

A rapid attachment system for flat bands, such as the one used by Saunders, would make this system even more effective.

The attachment blocks could also be made of molded plastic or cast aluminium in the case of mass production.


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## alfshooter (May 11, 2011)

:thumbsup: Excellent work !!!!!


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## leon13 (Oct 4, 2012)

Thanks for posting and sharing 
I like that bend rod frame 
oh wait I like al kinds of slingshots 
Cheers


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