# jmplsnt Chained Gypsy Copper Ranger



## jmplsnt (Jan 1, 2010)

Hello All.....check out my lastest project:



This is, of course, from the excellent Bill Hays Ranger he so kindly posted in the Shared Designs forum a while back. I was very taken with this idea and wanted one for my own use. I also wanted to do something completely different and therefore went ahead with my ambitious project to craft one from copper. I have never seen a copper slingshot on this forum and thought it would be nice to do something completely original in regards to materials. That, and I am best-known for my naturals so again I thought it might suit me (and you, for that matter) to get a little out of my comfort zone.

I thought the flat metal would also pay homage to the parent of this slingshot, the Milbro of old which manages to be both mighty and dimunitive simulataneously, which is no mean feat. I made this one just this size it came off the printer with no sizing or scaling from the computer. It is only 5 7/8" long, which puts it just barely over the length of an original Milbro if my memory serves me correctly. It fits quite well in the pocket and while the copper is much heavier than aluminum it is not bad at all when out on a jaunt. I find that I am liking the heft and stability of the copper more and more as time goes on.

As you can see I have affixed my tabs and high-quality red clay 32/444 chained bands and large ersatz-firing pouch. I shot a variety of ammunition on yesterday's walk to include two hex nuts, 101 marbles, several .44 lead round balls, about 10 .50 lead round balls (all cast by myself) and about 10 stones. As this was my first session ever with this design I was at first baffled by my attempts to hit something. Shots flew off in all sorts of odd directions to the point of my beginning to despair. I then drew on my experience with a cheap knockoff cast Milbro that I have at home that is set up with the same tabs and chains rig, along with some advice from my friend Stelug who is a Milbro user of great experience and knowledge. He says (and I totally agree) that the Milbro will magnify any tiny mistake you make due to the narrow forks many times over what it would be if you were using a larger slingshot. I really buckled down and concentrated on my shooting and after a little while the hits started to come. I began moving beer cans around at 5-7 yards and was able to back that off until I was able to strike discarded 32-oz drink cups at about 20 yards with lead, marbles, and one very well-placed quartz pebble I found in a truck stop parking lot. For those of you who are not stone shooters, you should be. The impact of a well-placed stone on a sun-rotted plastic cup at 20 yards is very satisfying and as an extra bonus the white colour of the quartz made tracking its flight both simple and enjoyable.

On the return leg of my jaunt I simulated running out of ammunition by searching the side of the road for suitable fodder. I picked up the best stone I could (which wasn't all that good) and bagged a Miller Light 12-oz longneck laying on its side at exactly 20 yards with my first shot using this pebble. Needless to say it was a very satisfying experience and to use a subpar pebble for a solid connection only heightened my enjoyment.

I do think it proper to mention that this is only a flat copper cutout of 1/4-inch thickness and not the full-ergonomic version of Mr. Hays' masterpiece Ranger. I am absolutely certain there has been a loss of certain ergonomics and handling by the flattening of the design that would be very easily replicated with a simple board cut. This was not possible using the copper. I had thought seriously of making some bone scales for it but in the end decided I wanted to leave it naked, just as the original Milbros have been for years and years.

I didn't polish it like a lot of you probably will think I should have because I feel something so small, flat, and concealable has been created wth a sinister, tactical mood and intention of being used for certain activities that don't call for a lot of mirror-like shine.

I also want everyone to know that I made this slingshot with hand tools only and scrounged the piece of flat copper from a dumpster/skip in south Texas about a year ago. The jeweler's saw I used took a long time to cut this out but it is very exact and I will probably make some more like this in the future. You don't need a bunch of expensive equipment or special training to make something nice and flat aluminum is not that expensive or hard to find. It can be purchased online in small quantities for a reasonable price. The only tool I really bought for this catapult was the saw and if memory serves correctly I think I paid about $12, delivery and all on ebay. I will warn you that it took many, many hours of sawing and if you don't have that amount of time (or equally important, patience!) but want something metal and nice then I strongly reccommend giving ProShot a PM. But for those of you who are daring spirits and have hours and hours of your life to waste then by all means, go for it.

thanks for looking


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## dragonmaster (Dec 24, 2009)

Great job I really like the tabs been thinking of doing that on some of my other frames. If you ever decide to put scales on it I would go with a split peace of stick to look like a natural handel.


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## Dayhiker (Mar 13, 2010)

Well!

Now you've gone and outdone yourself, Jump. I am soooo envious of that fork. You did a very neat and meticulous job of it (of course you do that on everything). I'd love to shoot something like that that I made myself. All I can say is: great job, my friend, I wish you all the luck with your new masterpiece!


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## M.J (Nov 1, 2010)

Looks great!
Did you do this with hand tools?


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## jmplsnt (Jan 1, 2010)

M_J, all I used was a cheap jeweler's saw, sandpaper, and a small screwdriver and carpenter's hammer to mark the edges. All the cutting was done with the saw. You just have to take your time and the advise you can readily find online for using one of these jeweler's saws. If you wish to duplicate my results make sure you have a LOT of replacement blades.

There was zero use of any power tools for this entire project.


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## M.J (Nov 1, 2010)

jmplsnt said:


> M_J, all I used was a cheap jeweler's saw, sandpaper, and a small screwdriver and carpenter's hammer to mark the edges. All the cutting was done with the saw. You just have to take your time and the advise you can readily find online for using one of these jeweler's saws. If you wish to duplicate my results make sure you have a LOT of replacement blades.
> 
> There was zero use of any power tools for this entire project.


As much as I admire the work ethic and the results I have zero desire to attempt this!
A regular boardcut is just at the edge of my patience threshold, this is way beyond it!


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## wd40 (Jul 19, 2010)

So here it is!

You've been saying that you were going to work on a design of Bill's that was going to take a lot of time.

Time well spent, my friend!!!

That is excellent.

I admire the slingshot and you even more for your work.

I wouldn't put the shine on it either. That one suits you just as it is.

Way to go, Buddy.


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## builderofstuff (Feb 14, 2011)

Excellent work! Doing that with nothing more than hand tools is a real accomplishment, it's definitely a keeper.

Chris


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## dhansen (Aug 31, 2010)

Way to go, Jmplsnt. That is one nice shooter. Very cool to know you did it with only hand tools. I thoroughly enjoy reading your informative posts. Thanks


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## Dan the Slingshot Man (Nov 21, 2010)

very nice, great work with just hand tools


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## Bill Hays (Aug 9, 2010)

I don't envy the work that went into this piece... Wow, that must have taken a lot of time!
Looks great though!


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## foreigner (Jan 16, 2010)

Awesome... I like it.


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## e~shot (Jun 3, 2010)

Good job, I can imagine the power behind it


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## Nico (Sep 10, 2010)

Nice work!


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## locko75 (Apr 16, 2010)

Thats superb. You can see the amount of work that went into that fork. The red bands look great with the copper too.


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## Frodo (Dec 19, 2009)

I would call that a true masterpiece! Great job!


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## jmplsnt (Jan 1, 2010)

Thanks everyone for your kind comments. I still have a lot of the copper material left but will be sticking to naturals for the next month of my off-time!


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## stelug (Feb 6, 2010)

Hi Jamie, very nice and extremely flat: love to hear how it shot in a hunting eviroment


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## rodgy (Jan 31, 2011)

Like it and over time with use the copper will develop a nice patina.


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## ChrisMan (Jan 3, 2011)

lovely frame man, I admire your patience creating something with nothing but hand tools out of a rather tedious metal!

Peace and Love

Chris


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## BaneofSmallGame (Sep 22, 2010)

You did it!!!

By the way you described this undertaking a few times, I thought it would be the project to end all projects!









That looks fantastic, I firmly believe that all of those blood, sweat, and tears will pay off in the years of service that one will provide you. I have a feeling that frame is fantastic in the hand, allowing for a nice steady grip on account of its significant heft.

Jmp, I commend you for staying the course and completing this challenge, I beleive you have came away with a true master piece. I know you basically sold your soul to this little swath of copper plating, cutting and filing copper of this thickness much have been an absolute ****.

This is a beauty, and a great design, you had good foresight to grab that copper plate....or did you?









Thank you for sharing, and including your always entertaining narrative

All the best - John


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## Dayhiker (Mar 13, 2010)

Jump, stay away from the power lines with that. YEEEOOOOOOWWW!!!!


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