# First try at butterfly.... ouch...



## Byudzai (Aug 31, 2013)

Angelos/SmilingFury got talking to me about butterfly shooting yesterday. Inspired me to give it a first try. Cut some long looped 1/8" tubes and hooked them into my flatcat.

LOVE the ballistic advantage. I have about a 62" full butterfly draw, and with 10" of 1/8" looped tubing I got 225fps with a 9lb draw. Compare that to 210fps with a 13lb draw with ~7 inches of looped 2040s at a draw to my ear, which feels like a crossbow in comparison!

Also was surprised to find that, touching the stretched tubes to my cheek for an anchor point, I could zap the hanging can almost every time. "This" I thought "is SO MUCH BETTER!"

Then two things happened:

1) Got my first fork hit of all time. 3/8" steel at 225fps left its mark on the G10 scales on my FlatCat.
2) Spaced out a little and got a kiss on the cheek from a ball bearing. Ouch.

So... shrug. Angelos says TTF and butterfly don't really go together. Also means longer tubes that dangle from the pocket and get tangled more. I'll probably compromise with the thicker shorter tubes and deal with the 13lb pull for now.


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## Metropolicity (Aug 22, 2013)

That's the kiss of the butterfly! Such a rush right? 

I still can't go all the way back and love 1/2 butterfly.


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## wll (Oct 4, 2014)

I don't want fork hits and i don't want to get smacked !

wll


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## oldmiser (Jan 22, 2014)

Mercy that be a big ouch..For my self I do not shoot butter fly...or PFS's to many hand & fork hits..I don't need that at my age of 71 takes to long to

heal....I just shoot sideways anchor to my right ear lobe..thank you very much..Some ppl do very well shooting buttery fly...Hey that isgreat for those's

who can......well my friend you tried shooting buttery fly ..yup you got the same as I did.....you will heal up in a day..as to your shooter well it has a

mark as does your cheek......best too ya....~AKAOldmiser


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## Firefly (May 12, 2015)

ouch!


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## Samurai Samoht (Apr 6, 2013)

Ouch indeed!


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## leon13 (Oct 4, 2012)

Uhhh slingshot gang sign


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## Emitto (Sep 11, 2013)

What di you do? practicing full butterfly? right 

We all been there.  I just started shooting .50 lead and large dipped latex tubes full butterfly, I won't lie I still get the rush! and fear!

IMO once you are accurate and have it done, it is hard to go back.

Stretch those tubes mate!

Welcome to the gang!

Cheers.


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## Bill Hays (Aug 9, 2010)

Nah, I shoot butterfly TTF pretty much all the time... just watch your release and you'll be fine.

See you at the MWST, and don't forget the lovely Stephanie!


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## Chuck Daehler (Mar 17, 2015)

Hi man, well, you gained 15 fps and got a rosy red cheek and a wounded SS. We all have to try everything at least once...else life would be pretty boring and uneventful. You braved the risks. I'm proud of you. But count your benefits vs your liabilities as in anything...women, business, investments, etc..

I've tried butterfly, half butterfly and all I get is wild shots. I don't care if they can light matches or cut cards stretching rubber from here to hades and back. I can't do it. I don't need to do it.

What is the object of shooting slingshots? It's different for everyone..more or less. I shoot for relaxation, challenge, focus and to see how this old phardt is degenerating or NOT. And I just love to shoot. If one is trying for maximum velocity, you gained only a few percent, OK, be happy but if someone is just shooting for whatever reason OTHER THAN maximum velocity, why fool with maximum velocity? My point exactly.

Good your flat cats are in production, a fine slingshot alright..sell a million of them and go for the big market else you fiddly fool around with small fry sales. I want to see you GO BIG. Al.

And about the wound at work, they'll ask. Say it is a hickie from hades and yes it was worth it. Be happy you didn't flick out your cornea. Had you safety glasses I bet THEY would have also hit the target. LOL Spectacular vid if you can manage it...ROFFLMAO

Am most regretful of your experiences. Oh, you will bring Steph to the Midwest? You forgot to send me a pic..whassamateryou? LOL


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## pgandy (Aug 15, 2011)

Chalk it up to experience. I've been there and went back to gangster style. I can't remember if I had a fork hit but did feel something sting my cheek a few times, not to your extent, and thought that I best quit well I was ahead. I get a bad feeling any time something is behind my head. It can be done and with an advantage but as for me I am not willing to pay the price to learn the technique.


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## peppermack (Dec 10, 2013)

Alex, try what Metro said and try half butterfly and then go to full butterfly. I managed the same thing on the cheek at the ECST. Only the once though. Butterfly is sooo much fun, stick with it man


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## SharpshooterJD (Oct 9, 2012)

I agree semi butterfly is worth it! Josh


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## SmilingFury (Jul 2, 2013)

Byudzai said:


> Angelos/SmilingFury got talking to me about butterfly shooting yesterday. Inspired me to give it a first try. Cut some long looped 1/8" tubes and hooked them into my flatcat.LOVE the ballistic advantage. I have about a 62" full butterfly draw, and with 10" of 1/8" looped tubing I got 225fps with a 9lb draw. Compare that to 210fps with a 13lb draw with ~7 inches of looped 2040s at a draw to my ear, which feels like a crossbow in comparison!Also was surprised to find that, touching the stretched tubes to my cheek for an anchor point, I could zap the hanging can almost every time. "This" I thought "is SO MUCH BETTER!"Then two things happened:1) Got my first fork hit of all time. 3/8" steel at 225fps left its mark on the G10 scales on my FlatCat.2) Spaced out a little and got a kiss on the cheek from a ball bearing. Ouch.So... shrug. Angelos says TTF and butterfly don't really go together. Also means longer tubes that dangle from the pocket and get tangled more. I'll probably compromise with the thicker shorter tubes and deal with the 13lb pull for now.





Bill Hays said:


> Nah, I shoot butterfly TTF pretty much all the time... just watch your release and you'll be fine.
> See you at the MWST, and don't forget the lovely Stephanie!


Sorry you got that fork hit and the "butterfly kiss" from that 3/8 steel. It has happened to just about anyone who has tried Bfly draws.

It is a small correction, but I thought it important to mention that what I said was that butterfly and ttf don't go together for me. Just due to several factors of my shooting style, from pouch grip, to fork hold angle, etc , ttf just does not feel natural to me. But then again , neither did swinging a golf club, or the first time I pitched a jig with a baitcasting rod, so I still include ttf in my practice sessions. Just because it does not feel right, doesnt mean it isnt right. So I keep it in the rotation.

Obviously Bill has had great success with bfly and ttf, but it just isn't my best style.

Oh, and what I am trying to get Byudzai to do, is to shoot single tubes butterfly( 2040) since flats arent his thing at the moment.

Dont give up completely Alex! Just keep it in the rotation and start at semi bfly at first. Personally, I bend the pouch even when shooting ttf just to drift the ammo away from my pretty face. It DOES still make the old balloon knot pucker every time I shoot that way. Hahaha.

Be well, and good luck,
SF / Angelos


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## Can-Opener (May 11, 2013)

The pouch hold and release is critical in FB. If I bend the pouch the wrong way a fork hit happens. I have never got the kiss though  The power and accuracy is addictive. I say I do not need it and then I have to have it. 

Good luck with your shooting


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## sharp eye (Jun 3, 2014)

I solved my fork hits problems by shooting only with frames that have no less that 2" space between forks.


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## you'llshootyereyeout (Apr 5, 2014)

Alex!

I think that the problem you have with hitting your face is your supermodel high cheekbones. I sometimes shoot Full-Monty and occasionally graze my cheek (not my cheek bone). See, my chubby cheeks stick out the farthest. So I suppose I could drop a few LBs but I think you are stuck with excellent bone structure. We all have our burdens to bear.

How does the 1/8" do in terms of hand slap with 3/8" steel? When shooting 3/8" full butterfly with 2040 I get slapped hands. I have to shoot 1/2" steel to eliminate it. Lee Silva told me that he gets wicked hand slap shooting tubes FB. I don't know if this is a widely experienced prob but I don't know too many FB tube shooters either. If you are not having this problem it could be another advantage to shooting 1/8".

For whatever reason I' having no probs shooting FB PFS. Here is what I've been shooting. It's a "spaggat" from Zero.


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## Byudzai (Aug 31, 2013)

you'llshootyereyeout said:


> How does the 1/8" do in terms of hand slap with 3/8" steel? When shooting 3/8" full butterfly with 2040 I get slapped hands. I have to shoot 1/2" steel to eliminate it. Lee Silva told me that he gets wicked hand slap shooting tubes FB. I don't know if this is a widely experienced prob but I don't know too many FB tube shooters either. If you are not having this problem it could be another advantage to shooting 1/8".
> 
> For whatever reason I' having no probs shooting FB PFS. Here is what I've been shooting. It's a "spaggat" from Zero.


I will approach FB like an ewok approaching a spaceship I think -- haltingly and with high suspicion.

I tried half-butterly -- or whatever awkward version of it I was doing -- with looped 1/8" tubes and the little extra length I was getting didn't give me any meaningful speeds. With full butterfly I don't recall getting any hand slap but I didn't do it very long.

If I balls up and try again I'll let you know. Angelos says use single tubes, like you have there. If I can focus long enough to tie single tubes to pouches I can still hook the free end into the flatcat and give it a whirl.


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## M.J (Nov 1, 2010)

I would recommend ditching the face anchor and just drawing across the chest.


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## Slingshot Silas (Apr 4, 2013)

You Butterfly Guys are all out to lunch!!!

When I first got on the forum and was just cruising around checking out the great, great slingshot designs, accessories, gear, and videos, I ran across one vid on butterfly shooting that looked interesting.

I had no idea what the caption was about, so I opened it up. But I quickly found out that I had stumbled into some type of alternate reality. The guy in the video looked normal enough, but, Buddy was I wrong! This guy was shooting in his basement, using a not particularly formidable looking slingshot. We'll he was shooting what I assumed at the time were fairly large projectiles, appearing to be about one inch diameter spheres. All was well till he went to full draw--from the end of the slingshot all the way back past his head, still drawing till his pouch hand was all the way extended in the opposite direction into a full cross or T shape.

All was still well as he stayed in the full draw for a couple of seconds. Then when he released the pouch, *all He!! broke loose!* The entire back of the basement blew all to pieces from the impact of what could have only been a chunk of depleted uranium, or a particle of anti-matter in a small containment vessel! It blew my hat off my head, and that was *through* the video without me even *being* there! Impressive to say the least. Yeah, the guy did have on his safety glasses, and man was I ever proud of him!

*Without a doubt, the greatest thing I have EVER seen on the forum!* It was fricking great--I loved it!-- :yeahthat:

Have not tried butterfly, YET, but it is definitely on my Bucket List! :woot: :woot:

SSS :bouncy:


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## SmilingFury (Jul 2, 2013)

Shooting B-fly makes me feel... 








...like I am flying!! Hahahaha!


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