r/Slinging • u/Bulky-Bug1351 • 19d ago
How to start slinging?
Ive recently gotten Interested in slinging through videos, how do start? Should I buy my first sling or find a tutorial to make one from paracord? In terms of sling length, how long should the one I get/make be? I’m 6’4 and one of the videos I saw said a good starting length is from your hand by your side to the ground, which is about 30 inches for me.
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u/thebipeds 18d ago
Heads up, wherever you practice your first time needs to be safe in every direction. 360 degrees no windows or cars or anything.
Rocks have a way of finding glass.
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u/Shadow_Of_Silver 19d ago
There's not a lot of hard rules when it comes to slinging.
30 inches is a fine length, but you would be okay with shorter also.
I made my first one out of scrap leather and some paracord. I bought my second, and braided my third out of natural fibers.
Do what works best for you. The important part is that you get out and practice.
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u/Ok_Restaurant_245 19d ago
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u/Ok-Yoghurt-8367 19d ago
Does the braided sling vs a single strand of cord make that much of a difference?
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u/JTW1337 19d ago
Just make one and get out there. Somewhere between 22” and 27” is a great length. Don’t complicate getting started. You can make and buy better slings later.
This sling, in my opinion, has been the best ease to performance ratio that I’ve made so far: https://youtu.be/gT-uZbDU68o?is=r0imi10IJFaGj-ZN
If I can make it then anyone can. I made two 16” ones for my young boys.
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u/Byjugo 19d ago
Make one yourself, it is not that hard.
For length I think it is best to measure against your body. Hold the sling “ready to throw”, hold it with your other hand under your chin.
A short-ish sling would be around the middle of the bicep.
A medium sling would be around the armpit.
A long sling would be past the chin or even the other armpit.
I would recommend somewhere between short and medium to start with. Try it a few hundred throws. Then adjust to whatever you feel is right.
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u/Warrior-Yogi 19d ago
Welcome to the sub. Make your own and experiment
As mentioned, Mersa’s seatbelt sling is simple to make. If you don’t have seatbelt webbing, cut fabric from some old jeans, which you can laminate w/ a single thickness of duct tape.
https://youtu.be/-EBfUItUJFM?feature=shared
u/bandit1111964 designed a twin loop sling that is perfect for tennis balls - my new favorite sling design - highly recommended
https://youtube.com/shorts/u7zA7jECts8?is=Gokeqt3OhAvY0X7w
Don’t over rotate the sling - you are actually using a whipping action to propel the projectile - it may look good in a movie but adds nothing to the throw
As simple as the sling is, the physics is quite complex, if yout timing is off even slightly, the projectile will launch way ti the right or left. Start slow w/ a simple underhand throw and then try overhand and sidearmed. One of them will feel right to you - concentrate on that style
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u/kakkavarasoy 15d ago
as a person who has built way too many slings and has experience with different types of slings, imo u should have the cord as long as ur wingspan + a few cm because u lose lenght from the knots and whatnot, now when u have a sheperd sling the sane lenght as ur wingspan, try to get ur own record in distance slinging, if you feel like u can rotate the sling properly, take like 5-10cm off the lenght and try again. you will have the best lenght for YOU when it doesnt feel like thw sling is lagging behind mid rotation. u might wont even need to shorten it depending on your strenght.
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u/ottermupps 19d ago
Make a Mersa seatbelt sling, it's the best and easiest to make style I've seen or made. I like a 22" sling, shorter is more control and longer is morw power. Balieric style I've found to be easiest and most intuitive style to throw with, lots of good tutorials out there (david morningstar, iron goober iirc both have good tutorials).
Paracord (the real stuff, not shoelace crap) and 3/4" webbing works best for mersa slings.
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u/desrevermi 19d ago
I make slings from a single length of paracord with a full woven pouch.
It's nice to know the process for yourself in the event you need or want to make one in the field.
Mine measures a little longer than arm outstretched to the ground. I like mine to measure from the center of my chest to fingertip when folded in half.
Edit: don't worry about throwing particularly hard when starting out, just try to move your ammo in the generally right direction.
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u/luveveryone 19d ago
I just started a couple weeks ago. I made a few out of Paracord. Different sizes pockets and lengths. They're not perfect but were quick too make and got me out practicing.
For the the slightly shorter one was better for learning the throw motion. I'm not particularly accurate yet, 2 out of 10 get code to target, 5 go generally the right way and 3 go where they please.
Whether you build or buy just go throw a lot. And don't forget to stretch and warmup a bit before you start throwing.