# Talk to me about .177 BB's



## SlingNerd (Mar 15, 2017)

All,

There are any number of super informative posts regarding BB shooters and I think I've read them all. I understand the math and science. Physics is great and all (I am a self appointed Nerd after all) but to me, experience is priceless. I'm not necessarily looking for hard numbers or optimal performance.

Here's my question(s).

I want to shoot .177 Daisy BB's. Who's done it? What was your bottom-line setup? What worked best for you? Is accuracy an issue with such small ammo? What tips and tricks did you figure out?

Looking forward to your responses. SSF is a huge wealth of knowledge and I know I've only scratched the surface.


----------



## Imperial (Feb 9, 2011)

theres so much to suggest, just remember one thing- light pouch for b.b.s is a must.

and its just like everything else, find one that your comfortable with. small, big, thin, wide- your choice.

as for bands, ever start out by trying just single strands of rubber bands first? some #64's or the red #32's(like the kind used to roll up newspapers). until you try some things first, we cant really suggest to you what could be better. have you found your draw length and anchor your comfortable with? tubes? flat bands? heres a couple of pics of what ive used in the past with b.b.s hope it helps with giving you a start.


----------



## peppermack (Dec 10, 2013)

Small frame with 1632 tubes or the extra small tubes from Simple Shot


----------



## bradclark1 (Jan 26, 2016)

Simple Shot has a slingshot setup for shooting BB's and 1/4 balls.


----------



## trapperdes (Apr 5, 2015)

I would recommend the extra small black tubes from simple- shot but I have also used 2040 tubes as well as .25 inch strips of latex or theraband.


----------



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

*If you haven't already, read thru forum member Metropolicity's voluminous content, member title "The BB Man'.*


----------



## mattwalt (Jan 5, 2017)

Metro's - definitely your guy. I agree with Imperial - I use local postal bands (messy bunch - thanks) 4 x 160mm They are almost the perfect draw length and pretty zippy. If you just want to try Staple's 108 bands I believe. You can in theory even band your regular SS really (though seems diminutive's part of the fun.

They're a lot of fun - was shooting mine today - but the bands I have are slow, and long so its a little pathetic currently. Surprising power for size as well.

If you want to go full-hog Simple shot does the Dead ringer or something for BB - and has the tubes as mentioned - Metro grade goods - is almost a BB shooter's one stop shop.


----------



## Northerner (Nov 9, 2010)

Sometimes I use single 2040 but I prefer the 1632 pseudo-tapers for BBs. A mild draw weight can still zip them out at 250-270fps with my 32" draw. With a bit of practice, a pop can at 20 yards is a realistic target. The BBs do make an audible smack and poke holes in the aluminum. I find the BBs sensitive to shoot but that just means you have to have your shooting form tuned. Ammo is cheap and you can carry a lot of them in a small container.


----------



## SlingNerd (Mar 15, 2017)

Guys, thanks a bunch for the responses thus far. I've been flatbanding 1/2inch marbles for a few years so this is all great stuff to chew on.


----------



## Northerner (Nov 9, 2010)

Here is a BB shooter that I was playing with last night. It's a SimpleShot Jelly Bean with 6" single 2040 tubes and a small homemade pouch. At my 32" draw it spits BBs at 225-230fps.

My limit with BBs seems to be about 20 yards. I have tried 25 and couldn't hit much.


----------



## Samurai Samoht (Apr 6, 2013)

I have a little Metro frame that works great for BB shooting. I use 1632 tubes and a lightweight kangaroo leather pouch. I'm thinking I might make an even smaller pouch though. I personally don't get much accuracy past 10 yards but I'm not shooting BB's all the time.


----------



## Winnie (Nov 10, 2010)

I have made slingshots for BBs small enough to fit on a key ring - 1 inch by 1.5 inch micarta. With a 4.5 in x 3/16 x 1/8 tapered TBG band it will send a BB faster than a BB gun (over 300 feet per second). Kangaroo works well on BB slingshots. It is very thin and strong and will help make a nice light but balanced rig.

winnie


----------



## Winnie (Nov 10, 2010)

Here is a picture:


----------



## SlingNerd (Mar 15, 2017)

Winnie that's a seriously incognito little shooter you got there! Let me bother you a bit more.. Would you recommend that flat band setup over tubes?


----------



## Ibojoe (Mar 13, 2016)

Hey Winnie, that's such a cool little shooter. Love it! Good thread S. N.


----------



## Henry the Hermit (Jun 2, 2010)

Winnie said:


> I have made slingshots for BBs small enough to fit on a key ring - 1 inch by 1.5 inch micarta. With a 4.5 in x 3/16 x 1/8 tapered TBG band it will send a BB faster than a BB gun (over 300 feet per second). Kangaroo works well on BB slingshots. It is very thin and strong and will help make a nice light but balanced rig.
> 
> winnie


Yes, indeed. I have used 1/2 - 1/4 inch taper TBG with a very small 'roo pouch, and that combo outperforms my Red Ryder BB gun by about 40 fps.


----------



## Northerner (Nov 9, 2010)

Henry the Hermit said:


> Winnie said:
> 
> 
> > I have made slingshots for BBs small enough to fit on a key ring - 1 inch by 1.5 inch micarta. With a 4.5 in x 3/16 x 1/8 tapered TBG band it will send a BB faster than a BB gun (over 300 feet per second). Kangaroo works well on BB slingshots. It is very thin and strong and will help make a nice light but balanced rig.
> ...


Hi Henry... What was your draw length and stretch factor with these BB bands? I gotta try some!


----------



## Northerner (Nov 9, 2010)

I had a bunch of my BBs shooters out this afternoon.

Jelly Bean, DK-POM, Palm Thunder, Ringer Shooter, and 3 homebrew HDPE frames. Lots of fun! The power source was 2040, 1632 and .030" latex flats.


----------



## Henry the Hermit (Jun 2, 2010)

Northerner said:


> Henry the Hermit said:
> 
> 
> > Winnie said:
> ...


If my old brain is still working, I believe they were about 7 inches long and I draw to about 35 inches. Say, 5:1 draw. The pouch was very small 'roo leather. I actually got better performance with .25 steel, indicating the rubber and pouch was a bit heavy for .177 BBs.


----------



## Northerner (Nov 9, 2010)

I set up a new BB tube set for my POM frame. The double 1632s broke at the pouch but I was able to use the remaining tubing to make a set of pseudo-tapers that shoot the same speed as the full loops... but with less draw weight. The full looped 1632s were overkill for BBs.

Red DK1632 tubes, adjusted to 6 3/4" with 3 3/8" loops with small DK BB pouch. At my 32" draw length and 66F temperature, I was getting 276-281fps.


----------



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

*Yikes, that's over 190 mph ... there's smoke coming out of my calculator. *


----------



## SlingNerd (Mar 15, 2017)

All I can say is Wow. Thanks, all, for the heaps of advice. I want to show you what I cooked up for starters. But be nice.. it's only my first attempt at an HDPE frame!

And yes MonkeyNipples, this is the tube sniper I told you I was going to take a crack at. Many many thanks again for your generosity with the pouches.


----------



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

*You're very welcome.*

*That looks great! And first time no less ... very, very nice. * :thumbsup:

*I'm a stickler for lanyards but that could always be added. Or not.*


----------



## Northerner (Nov 9, 2010)

Last night I set up my Jelly Bean with amber 1632 BB tubes... but I geared it specifically for 20 yards (backyard distance). The tubes are 7 1/2" from fork to pouch. The looped section is 3 3/8" from fork to tie. With my 32" draw length I'm getting 235-238fps. My anchor point is my thumb knuckle on the little flap in my ear (tragus). This lets me aim spot on at 20 yards. Accuracy was very good today. I finished up with 9/10 hits on a hanging pop can at 20. It's best to stop at that point... lol.

I can always rev up the speed to 275fps but it's so nice where it's at right now. With such low tube stress they should last for a couple thousand shots.

I do realize that the plugs are in backwards on the JB frame. It feels better this way and nothing moves with such a light draw weight. My thumb has a nice feeling perch without the end of the plug sticking out the back.


----------



## SlingNerd (Mar 15, 2017)

You know, here's a mostly related secondary question.

I've got a big glass jar of .177 pellets/wad cutters. Anyone ever slung those? Can't imagine it would be too bad.


----------



## mattwalt (Jan 5, 2017)

SlingNerd said:


> You know, here's a mostly related secondary question.
> 
> I've got a big glass jar of .177 pellets/wad cutters. Anyone ever slung those? Can't imagine it would be too bad.


Yes... found they work OK.


----------



## Steve32 (Jul 7, 2011)

I use Tex Shooters magnetic pouches. My hands ain't great, so I don't feel the BBs. The magnet takes care of that.

Sent from my SM-N920V using Tapatalk


----------

