# Shooting my PFS



## RHTWIST (Jan 31, 2014)

Matt posted about the accuracy of his pickle fork and all the pickle fork talk made me dig through my slingshot drawer. I made this in 2014 and started getting better with it and had a couple of fork hits and put it to the side.

These are still the original Dankung 2040s from 3 yrs ago and they are still shooting. (?) Saturday night, I built this cardboard box trap and shot some 5/16s while in the garage. On and off, I picked away at the center of the can.

I was even changing the shape of my PFS as I shot, as my thoughts have changed in 3yrs. I went back for some Monday night and ripped the second one, I did not count or time but I don't think it was 25 shots or 15 minutes.

The way I am shooting it right now is, instead of standing sideways, I am soft shooting, facing the target, pulling to the side of my nose with a tweek and floating the forks under the can. Only 25 feet. BUT no fork hits, and on can 2, I hit every

shot until I got to one strand, then I missed a bunch (6-8).


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## Ibojoe (Mar 13, 2016)

That's a good looking pickle Twist! Nice shootn


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## RHTWIST (Jan 31, 2014)

Joe, thanks. If you look where its hanging in the trap, you'll see the thumb area is whiter as I was rasping some changes Saturday night, after digging it out. The pic with the cans I had put a little oil on it to protect it.

Bands started to break last night. I was shooting a few at paper while I got a few reps in and and noticed the tubes were opening up on each side. The 2040s are about 31/2 year old and I shot it a bunch in 2014, maybe May-June.

They last. -CD


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## VAshooter (Feb 10, 2015)

Every time I thought about getting a pickle I would read about all the hazards of shooting them and it would scare me off. You guys are making me rethink my position.


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## RHTWIST (Jan 31, 2014)

VAS, Do it.

As a novice PF shooter & have had fork hits that broke expensive things, I now have no fork hits and I don't fear having any more. Read above, I am not Joey, pulling past my face or some of the other guys that are shooting PF's full butterfly with no tweek.

Everyone has to find their own way, BUT, if you point the tip ends of your PF, at the target, keep both eyes open, pull back toward your nose / side of your nose, bands in perfect triangle, and tweek the ammo down, it goes OTT every shot and has very consistent impact.

It does not shoot to point of aim in this sense, @ 18' your tips are well below your aiming point (ball over forks), 25' closer, but still under the target. As you get out further, impact gets closer to "pointing" point. I focus on a small target spot and kinda aim with the

pouch. I know others can reference mark aim their PF's. I will start like this and work toward that. -CD


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## Jolly Roger (Aug 14, 2017)

VASHOOTER; Just say the word and I'll send you a PFS.


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## VAshooter (Feb 10, 2015)

Thanks for the information and offers. I think with Monkeynipples help I can get started OK. If I get into trouble I'll be back, crying for more help.


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## dogman (Jun 8, 2017)

i'm the same , bit scared of the pickle shooters, never tried one yet they always feel a bit small in my big old hands, keep thinking i will have to make one and give it a go, worried about hitting my hands especially with my arthritis in them, and also i can't really get to grips with ott shooting, not much chance have i lol.


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## RHTWIST (Jan 31, 2014)

Dog, I am now pulling past my face. At close range (20'), taking a blank piece of paper, shooting a hole, then trying and striking that same hole with 5/16s. At this point I can't tell you how I am doing it. Am I absolutely consistent in shot placement - NO? I am working

on my form and at 20'; +25 shots on the piece of paper that is hanging, all shots are in like 4" (I would have to measure) with one ragged hole where most are going through. You have to start, by deciding which side of the pouch will go under the other as you have to

tweek the ammo down or into your body not away from your body. So, either right or left side of the pouch is under or down. When I was pulling to my face, straight on, the right side of my pouch went under and the tweek down was done over my finger. Now, that

I am pulling past my face, the left side of the pouch is in or down over my thumb tip.

During this new go, I have broken no expensive items, had no fork hits and kept all shots in the general area of the desired ammo strike. Do it, build one for your hands, I or others here can help with a template. Check out that Tron pickle fork in "home made"

I have a rather large (for PFS) from a box elder fork, I am working on now. -CD


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## dogman (Jun 8, 2017)

cheers for that RHTWIST will have to give it a go, will check out the tron pickle fork, just thinking of knockin one out of birch multiplex for starters, do you recomend tubes or flatbands or no preference, thanks again.


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## RHTWIST (Jan 31, 2014)

Dog, that is a nice feature of a PFS, birch ply makes a very good one. Joey and PFS shooter make a bunch from materials around 1/4" thick, I have not tried; they sure do well! Easy in and out of the pocket. Tubes vs bands, you will probably get as

many answers to that as there are members. Some of us might even have double answers! The one I started this post with I was shooting tubes and will re-band with tubes. The one I was shooting the other night, was a little SS that fits in an Altoids Can and

I have long 5/8" Theraband Black bands on it, set up with a little pouch just for the 5/16s steel. I have made a bunch of PF style shooters and just about all of mine, ammo would make it through the forks so they are more "pickle-ish" than the real McCoy.

I know I shoot them differently than a regular sized frame; interesting isn't it? That short fork style frame it's all OTT! -CD


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## D.Nelson (Feb 20, 2014)

Gotta love the PFS. Pretty much all I shoot these days.

Sent from my A571VL using Tapatalk


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## S.C.Daniel (Nov 7, 2017)

I shot a slingshot a lot when I was a kid. Didn't shoot again until I was in my mid 60s. My favorites are the PFS and some that are just a little larger.

When I was a kid my grandfather shot a Stick Slingshot. He had shot them since WW1. While they were in the trenches in France, my grandfather used to shoot rocks over into the German trenches. They were that close part of the time. They harassed the Germans while they were trying to sleep.

My grandfather taught me to shoot, but I never loved the stick slingshots like he did.

Once I shot my first PFS I was hooked. I still occasionally cut a slingshot thats large, but my interest has always been in the small slingshots that fit in a pocket.


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## RHTWIST (Jan 31, 2014)

S.C , good stuff. I never know when I might have some moments to shoot. Having one banded up and in my pocket helps. I wanted a slingshot so bad as a kid, my first one, a marksman, that I was not that crazy about, just

wasn't strong enough to contain the forces.

I think about your grandfather and some of the horrors they endured, trench warfare. What a different world today, in terms of how we conduct war. They lived it and did what they had to do. We are still war driven creatures. -CD


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## inconvenience (Mar 21, 2016)

Great shooting!

I absolutely love pickle fork. But no matter how much I practice I am not as consistently accurate as I am with a regular OTT slingshot. It's a lot to do with the width making my aiming point several inches beneath the actual target.


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## RHTWIST (Jan 31, 2014)

IN, agreed. I am finding that much of what the experienced shooters say about "fine" accuracy when "sight referencing" the fork and true instinctive shooting is true. I will say the more that I practice another said truth, "muscle memory" is working and

I am getting better. I can't hit that "exact spot" every time but when I do, it puts a smile on my face and thanks giving in my heart. I like shooting a hole in a small piece of paper and then trying to hit the same hole. Of course there is no "magic" to it

but sometimes it feels that way. Some of the things Mark says in this video are interesting. -CD


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## tastetickles (Jul 3, 2017)

Get a full face helmet and machinist gloves before a pfs... J/k


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## RHTWIST (Jan 31, 2014)

Taste, I have been there. As other stories, of "shooting holes" and "breaking" whatever. But it's not that bad. Wherever you hold your forks, upright, to the side, however far back you pull, "tweak INTO" the inner, of the "oval" formed by your frame arm and bands

in pouch hand.. This will always mean that the pouch has to turn one way or the other and the tweak will happen over the finger or over thumb. Ammo will go over the top every time. -CD


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## RHTWIST (Jan 31, 2014)

Mark's 5 min video is really a good tutorial on what it takes. The first aiming method he shows where he pulls to the eye is a great way to start; just rig your band length correctly. What he goes into at the 4 min point is what you can give thought to "what is

happening" during the firing sequence. He is right on with his teaching points. - CD


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## inconvenience (Mar 21, 2016)

An odd thing is I've never really had any problem with shooting a pickle fork from the very beginning. The only time I ever had fork hits was with a very thick natural PFS I made.

I don't even have to tweak or turn the pouch or anything anymore even with very large ammo. I put up a crappy video on how I do this.

I know a lot is down to taste and body structure. I'm coming to the realization that the ideal fork width for me is about 3 to 3 and 1/2 inches.

While I still love pickle fork, every time I pick up a "regular" slingshot things are a lot more natural for me. Even intuitive shooting is easier with the "full" frame.

Maybe I should try "The Beast" pfs.


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## RHTWIST (Jan 31, 2014)

I had a natural PFS with upturned forks and I had fork hits on that, but that was early on in my PFS shooting. I believe you on the tweak as I get where I don't think about it but believe its still there for me. I'm with you on width, I like smaller frames, but around that 3 to

3.5 is where I seem to build. It's a nicely balanced frame as well with a 5 to 5.5 overall. -CD


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## S.C.Daniel (Nov 7, 2017)

RHTWIST said:


> S.C , good stuff. I never know when I might have some moments to shoot. Having one banded up and in my pocket helps. I wanted a slingshot so bad as a kid, my first one, a marksman, that I was not that crazy about, just
> 
> wasn't strong enough to contain the forces.
> 
> I think about your grandfather and some of the horrors they endured, trench warfare. What a different world today, in terms of how we conduct war. They lived it and did what they had to do. We are still war driven creatures. -CD


My Grandfather lost his left eye in a trench battle. When he got out of the army they gave him a glass eye. His right eye was nearly Gray, but his army eye was light blue. He taught me to read when I was 3-4 years old. We lived with them while my dad was in the Korean Conflict... Seemed like a war to the guys over there.


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## VAshooter (Feb 10, 2015)

I got out of the military with all my body parts and most of my marriage. I felt very lucky.


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## RHTWIST (Jan 31, 2014)

SC, of course, for all those who serve, whether wartime or between, men and women in the service are ready to do battle. Daddy was a Marine in Korea, mostly DMZ patrol as he got there in '53. My son Ryan was an EOD tech in Afghanistan & Iraq and had to do the

"door to door". It still gets up close and personal. I just mean as technology has risen to the degree that it has, in such a short span of time, that we can watch such things as planes, at nighttime, shooting the combatants in the IR spectrum.

We still do battle and conduct war. My hat off and hand over my heart and pray for all those out there serving. -CD


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