View Full Version : Catapult
Mel had her second ever go with a non-fishing catapult the other day at a field archery weekend. Once she got into it, she enjoyed it enough to want one of her own.
Any of you guys got any recommendations on a good one? Dont worry about the "draw weight" (sorry, field archery comming out again) 'cause she is well used to drawing a bow.
Next thing she will be making a forge with an old Land Rover wheel and making her own shot :shock:
bushwacker bob
16-07-2004, 21:51
there are a few plastic ones about and one even has an arm stabilizer on it with a hellish name,diablo I think. None are much different from the sort you make yourself,but all are more expensive. find a nice piece of forked hazel and buy some catapult elastic.Our local gunsmith sells it by the foot.If you cant find any pm or e-mail me and I'll send you some.Milbro used to sell one with a cast alloy frame which was reasonable.None of the commercially available ones seem to have a wide enough frame.
:-D
whoo whoo Im a qualified NOMAD
:-D
whoo whoo Im a qualified NOMAD
:biggthump
http://www.barnettcrossbows.com/slingshots.htm
Once youve tried a catapult with a wrist brace you wont want to bother with anything else. I still have a Black Widow from my misspent youth, hours of fun ;) bands have perished now though, I should get some more it would make a good squirrel scarer now I think of it. SWMBO wont let me shoot the damn things.
No need to go to the expense of the Diablo.
http://www.barnettcrossbows.com/slingshots.htm
Sorry, heres the UK website
http://www.barnettcrossbows-uk.com/slingshots.htm
The company is based near Brum
Jason
Thanks for the info.
I remember Black Widows form along time back. Didn't know if they were still available.
:yikes: catapaults with stabilisers ?????????? :shock:
TheViking
19-07-2004, 09:27
How long a distance can a Strike 9 or Black Widow shoot??? :roll: :wink: :yikes:
Cheers :uu:
We used to make our own
you had a choice of "Sparrer laggy" ( brown ) or "Rat laggy " ( grey ) or that surgical tubing stuff ! :twak:
I have a diablo and it is great. I originally bought it for scaring off the cats in my back garden, but decided that it would just as easily kill them as scare them, so I don't bother anymore.
A well rounded stone (10 - 15mm in diameter) will travel well beyond sight. I have fired mine at an old greenhouse (I was going to demolish it anyway) and it went straight and cleanly through both 'walls' with enough velocity to seriously trouble the fence on the other side.
You are supposed to use ball bearings as shot, but I have never had the courage (too many windows and small children around my neighbourhood). I have found that mint imperials fly pretty well. They also explode on impact, leaving a little white 'see where you've been' mark which disolves in the rain. A 19p value pack from tescos will give you plenty of ammunition.
I know. I'm sad.
yes mint imperials work well but ball bearings are much better...through a car door at thirty yards apparently.as for their effectiveness? ever been hit in the butt by one?
Hi Bill, welcome to BCUK. I find ball bearings a bit expensive, and therefore a bit precious. But a good amunition are bolts. Cheap, non-precious and make satisfying noises when shot at anything. I tend to avoid shooting living things, a bit risky, i would feel a lot of guilt if it wasnt a clean kill.
;)
i have a barnett diablo and i think it is great. i am always in my back garden destroying cans and always trying to improve my aim. i use steel bb's- i get these free because my uncle is in the trade and gets them for me, which is good 'cause i dont need to worry about losing them.
I've got a black widow - same as the diablo but wihtout the weights.
Could darts be used in a catapult? - something I've wondered about but never tried. I might give it a go with some safety goggles and blunt darts.
I have a diablo and it is great. I originally bought it for scaring off the cats in my back garden, but decided that it would just as easily kill them as scare them, so I don't bother anymore.
Water pistols.
Personally I'm a big cat fan and love to see cats in the garden but if you don't share my view water pistols are a fun way of seeing them off.
Have a care though, some recommend adding chilli to the water but this would see you commiting a serious firearms offence! :nono: By adding chilli (or any such irritant) you have created a Section 5 restriced weapon - a device emitting noxious fluid. Crazy. :?:
mr dazzler
30-08-2004, 15:37
When me and my mate were 15 we made the forked stick and "laggy" catapults, and spent nigh on 6 weeks in the summer doing little else than shooting practice. We started off using coke cans like in the western movies. We managed to hit thrown cans after a bit. Our range was among the boulders next to a derelict mill beside a river. We started trying to shoot pigeons (dozens lived in the mill buildings) After a while we were able to hit pigeons in mid flight without even thinking or trying too hard; see-pull-release (you heard a thud as the stones hit em - ball bearings might have killed em) It was like seeing tracers going up if you fired directly up to the sky. Brilliant. 100's and 100's, 1000's of shots mind you. :biggthump
We were keeping out of trouble, didn't steal, vandalise or show direspect.
No police moved us on, no one complained about cruelty or offensive weapons. :roll: We just spent some time learning to shoot, better than we thought possible, and the catapult became an extension of your body.
MagiKelly
30-08-2004, 16:08
Am I right in assuming that since it is illegal to hunt with a bow in the UK that it is also illegal to hunt with a Catapult?
I am sure I have an Black Widow on the loft but the Bands will definately be rotted. Although I am sure there are spare bands with a Dragonslayer survival knife which is still lying around from my youth.
Squidders
30-08-2004, 16:46
Magikelly...
I remember reading this on: http://www.bushcraftuk.co.uk/articles/knife_law.html
"The case of Southwell v Chadwick (1986) illustrates this well. The Court of Appeal accepted that it was reasonable to be in possession of a machete and a catapult in a public place for the purpose of killing grey squirrels as food for licensed wild birds. Without this justification either item could have been classed as an offensive weapon, particularly the machete."
As I understand it, the law accepts any reasonable reason that can be justified.
Joe
_____________
I'd rather be lucky than good
MagiKelly
30-08-2004, 21:59
I am stunned that hunting with a bow is considered too cruel but hunting with a catapult is not. I am glad it is not but still none the less stunned.
TheViking
30-08-2004, 22:06
I am stunned that hunting with a bow is considered too cruel but hunting with a catapult is not. I am glad it is not but still none the less stunned.
Shhh....! :wink: Don't give the politicians any good ideas! :wink: :nana: :biggthump :lol: They might have a spy on the site... :shock:
21st century pict
10-10-2011, 15:10
I use a chief AJ modified Trumark S9T with Barnett magnum bands shoots real good, but you have got ditch the Barnett pouch just way to thick and heavy.
For a spare the basic Barnett strike 9 is a real comfortable slingshot to use, again with the red magnum bands, and it will easily fit in a pocket
.Probably draws around 19 lb.
The more expensive slingshots tend to have to much extras a folding wrist brace is ok but anything with stabilisers , long rods or sights are just to bulky.
I prefer to shoot with tubes as the Therabands just don’t last that long they look very untidy and worsed of all they are very noise with a lot of slap.My pal shoots his Hunter and Cougar with flat bands and he is endlessly having problems with bands coming off, or bands snapping for on apparent reason, possibly UV, But credit where credit is due they pack a ton off punch.
http://img522.imageshack.us/img522/8889/picturephone096.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/522/picturephone096.jpg/).http://img8.imageshack.us/img8/517/dennisthemenacecatapult.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/8/dennisthemenacecatapult.jpg/)
here's a bit of a review i did recently (http://www.bushcraftuk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=80075&p=970690&highlight=#post970690)
google 'gamekeeper capatpults' though, i've not long hand one and can say it's easily the best money i've spent so far, John is a meticulous craftsman and these things legally put out about 21 ft/lbs power using a 12mm lead ball
I have a smallholder1/Terry kid - pocket catty - very nice indeed - shoots arrows pretty well too :D
I've a diablo, without the weights. Only used it at targets, but an m8 locknut will do serious damage, and travel astonishingly far. Screwfix charge about 3 quid for a hundred iirc.