# Dry Firing



## kevmar (Aug 5, 2017)

Is it a bad thing to dry fire a slingshot?

Can it lessen the band life? I know it's a compleate no no with crossbows,spring air guns and possibly bows.

Just a beginner thought or two thanks.


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## I like rubber (Jun 12, 2017)

Just don't do it


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## romanljc (May 26, 2014)

If you have any sharp edges on your slingshot I'm sure it will shorten band life and even if you don't it will most likely.any time you stretch it the break down of the material begins.with or with out ammo


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## mattwalt (Jan 5, 2017)

The unused energy (whats not pushing the weight of the ammo) has to go somewhere... You should get a good handslap - thats the catty saying 'you kidding me?!'

It will also dramatically effect the band life. So don't do it.

If you're wanting to practice - Tremo was looking at a knotted ball on a wrist loop string for practicing draw and hold. If you are shooting indoors - or have nosy sensitive neighbours. Consider BB's or 6mm airsoft ammo - but obviously you would need a specific setup for these. Wasp does some full-size plastic balls that are cool as well - a curtain should work OK as a backstop.


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## kevmar (Aug 5, 2017)

Thanks guys,message understood.


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## brucered (Dec 30, 2015)

I do it all the time.

I go 5/5 in my shooting, never get fork hits and can shoot in the living room.


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## kevmar (Aug 5, 2017)

/\ what are you like lol.


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## mattwalt (Jan 5, 2017)

Bruce - thought all the dry firing was upsetting your wife...


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## kevmar (Aug 5, 2017)

oh er missus.


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## mattwalt (Jan 5, 2017)

LOL - I had that written like that actually - thought it was a step too far ;-)


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## brucered (Dec 30, 2015)

After 17y of being married to me, she puts up with my quirks.

To be honest, I usually just dry fire a newly banded frame to test out the feel, check for slippage, the kids want to see it and I'm on my way out to the yard to shoot.


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## kevmar (Aug 5, 2017)

Thanks fellas.


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## Alfred E.M. (Jul 5, 2014)

"It will also dramatically effect the band life. So don't do it."

*I don't dry fire tubes bc we all think it's a no-no. But in a spirit of 'question everything' please explain why this is true ... how is band life 'dramatically affected'. I understand about rim fire weapons, air rifles etc, but don't get how continuously snapping unloaded latex will hasten it's demise any faster than loaded elastic. Please enlighten. *


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## brucered (Dec 30, 2015)

I heard if you dry fire too often, you can go blind.

Wait a minute....maybe that's a metaphor for something else. We are still talking about slingshots, right?


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## treefork (Feb 1, 2010)

Dry firing a slingshot will cause hair growth on the palm of your hands .


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## CornDawg (Sep 27, 2015)

Well, snap caps don't work, I can tell you that, and will take the head right off a 60 year old Hummel figurine. You may as well be shooting real ammo...


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## mattwalt (Jan 5, 2017)

Well I used to dry fire. This caused callouses, hairy palms and I'm half blind... Mrs MW treated me like a leper...

I tend to have one or two frames on my desk while I'm working - so occasionally was picking them up and dry firing... I tend to shoot tubes mostly - I went through 3-4 sets in rapid succession (about 1/3-1/2 the lifespan I'd have expected - not that I was actively counting ). All snapped of at the pouch. It could be that that they were simply dud sets but they were from 4 different sources. Found similar (slightly shorter lifespan) with 117B office band though they tend to snap just behind the frame contact point - about 1/2" or so.

I did have a bandset fail within like 20-50 dry-fiered shots - but suspect that it got nicked. That also failed about 1/2 from the post end.

But I have not done the science - so I don't have definitive proof. Just my experience.

I no longer dry fire intestinally, I have regained most of my sights in my right eye - so I'm good.


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## Alfred E.M. (Jul 5, 2014)

*Good that we got past chicken chokin' and decapitated Hummels. * :wacko:

*You may have something. Someone would have to shoot two identical frames and elastics alternately, one then the other, empty then loaded, to know when things fail. Not me. But if it is a fact, I'd like to understand why.*

*Other than a couple of test snaps (or therapy), why dry fire at all - to focus on sighting or release? Might as well use ammo at ten feet into a soft catcher. In Herrigel's book 'Zen in the Art of Archery', students shoot arrows into a bale at ten paces, focused on just breathing, form, and release ... for the first year! A target is eliminated, not the ammo. (Of course, bows have their own issues.) *

*Lucky to have a vacant five acre lot about 100 yards from my patio, that is my bale - I can lob into it without collateral damage or a target ... to just practice form. I believe that kind of exercise improves my accuracy. *


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## mattwalt (Jan 5, 2017)

I used to shoot 34lb recurve bows into bales - often would fly right through (for some distance) hoped they had a back stop behind....

I have a really small garden (5x8m at best - actually larger than our last 2 properties) and is overhung by neighbours windows on 3 sides... Shooting is not as accessible as I'd like (and as a result tend to mainly shoot light setups - BB's etc.) - dry firing was simply to keep a 'feel' for stronger draws but without the risk of upsetting our 'delicate' voyeurs.

It would be an interesting experiment actually

However I no longer dry fire. My hobby is on a minuscule budget - can't afford to risk premature wear if I can help it.


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## bigdh2000 (Feb 9, 2015)

All joking aside, dry firing a slingshot hyper extends the bands even worse where they would normally be transferring the energy to the ammo. It tends to wear them out at the pouch area faster. That being said, when you first band up it never hurts to dry fire a slingshot once or twice to seat everything correctly, warm up the bands and break them in a little.

This also leads to another topic. Ammo not matching band strength. If your band strength is too great for your ammo size, it is not much better than dry firing the slingshot. It causes the bands near the pouch to hyper extend worse and wear out quicker.


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## brucered (Dec 30, 2015)

Is there any proof to all this "dry firing hurts bands" or is it all subjective and personal thought? As Dan said, the pouch area is likely to wear out first. That makes sense in theory I guess, as the energy from the empty shot is transferring to that area and putting stress on the attachment there.

Has anyone personally noticed bands decreasing, getting dinged up, life being shortened by dry firing or done tests to confirm it?


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## mattwalt (Jan 5, 2017)

I only have my experience... Which support Dan's comments. 4 tubes sets - all snapped off at pouch (all very even wear at the pouch on all 4 tubes). Around 200-250 shots max from new. Usually get LOAD's more when shooting steel. 4 different suppliers (well 3 - I tied the last set)


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## jazz (May 15, 2012)

bands are fastest when empty.

as soon as you put, say, a steel ball 9.5 mm, the velocity drops.

this means that when shooting empty bands they fly fastest and also get behind the forks and towards the target with most energy and further than when loaded.

This, is, in my opinion is what causes them to tear (among other things).

cheers,

jazz


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## bigdh2000 (Feb 9, 2015)

brucered said:


> Has anyone personally noticed bands decreasing, getting dinged up, life being shortened by dry firing or done tests to confirm it?


Yes.


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## brucered (Dec 30, 2015)

bigdh2000 said:


> brucered said:
> 
> 
> > Has anyone personally noticed bands decreasing, getting dinged up, life being shortened by dry firing or done tests to confirm it?
> ...


Ok then. Thanks for the thorough rely and helpful information.

I'll try again....does anyone have a link to supporting data or the tests they performed? If they do, would they please post a link to it.


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## CornDawg (Sep 27, 2015)

I don't dry fire because I don't think it does me any good. No weight in the pouch means no perception of drag, and therefore false or absent follow through feedback. My front hand learns nothing.

The pouch is empty. I'm pressing 2 flat pieces of leather together, which feels completely different than squeezing a ball of any size. Knowing how critical a good release is to accurate shooting, and how delicate that feel actually is, I came to the conclusion that an empty pouch release teaches how to release an empty pouch- worthless. My rear hand learns nothing.

I will draw and hold a dozen or so times on days when I can't shoot. Keeps my shooting muscles vigilant...


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## kevmar (Aug 5, 2017)

/\ Points taken,cheers.


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## brucered (Dec 30, 2015)

When I do it, it's for kicks and not for self learning or technique training. It's usually because I spot a frame and give it a few fires.

An interesting thread none the less.


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## treefork (Feb 1, 2010)

Unlike a firearm or archery slingshot bands are short lived and disposable anyway . Why not dry fire if you desire ? Make your own band sets and go crazy . It's not going to hurt the frame . If you had fun then you got good use out of the band set . No data , charts or studies required . Just a bit of common sense . Noting when your band set snaps will give all the data needed .


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## romanljc (May 26, 2014)

treefork said:


> Unlike a firearm or archery slingshot bands are short lived and disposable anyway . Why not dry fire if you desire ? Make your own band sets and go crazy . It's not going to hurt the frame . If you had fun then you got good use out of the band set . No data , charts or studies required . Just a bit of common sense . Noting when your band set snaps will give all the data needed .


If you pull on anything to much it will break


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## brucered (Dec 30, 2015)

romanljc said:


> If you pull on anything to much it will break


Must resist....


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## romanljc (May 26, 2014)

brucered said:


> romanljc said:
> 
> 
> > If you pull on anything to much it will break
> ...


Lol


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## treefork (Feb 1, 2010)

romanljc said:


> treefork said:
> 
> 
> > Unlike a firearm or archery slingshot bands are short lived and disposable anyway . Why not dry fire if you desire ? Make your own band sets and go crazy . It's not going to hurt the frame . If you had fun then you got good use out of the band set . No data , charts or studies required . Just a bit of common sense . Noting when your band set snaps will give all the data needed .
> ...


The blindness and hairy palms weren't a warning sign first ? :slap:


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