Most compact "lethal" slingshot crossbow?

Slingshot crossbows are fascinating weapons. Powerful enough to be lethal (>60 ft-lbs), easy to make and very accurate.

However, all of my power sling-x-bows were pretty long. That is, until now!

I built a bullpup crossbow, with rollers that extend the draw. This has a stirrup and can therefore be cocked with both hands, allowing very strong bands.

Here you see it in comparison with an earlier model of mine:



In this video



you see it shooting triple TB gold bands per side, the maximum I can draw on a conventional slingshot. But the photos already show it with six layers per side, it shoots a 20 mm steel ball with more than 230 fps - well in the 60 ft-lbs realm commonly stated as "lethal".

I will do some more sanding, add a front handle and a scope, plus a nice paint job.

Will make a how-to video (tutorial) for next week! Stay tuned.

Jörg

I already saw the video on the Youtubes, and I have to say, ingenious design! It's basically like a compound bow, you lengthen the draw with the rollers.

You just keep re-establishing your name as the Slingshot God time and time and time again. Amazing.

Looking forward to the how to and the scope addition!

I saw it also on YouTube, before you posted it here...
Great design man, I totally love it, you really are the King/God (choose what you want to be) of Slingshots. You really ar a Amazing

But I have a few questions.

1. How do you want to mount the scope? The "barrel" is in use for the Shoot, do you want to build something around the rubber with the ball? (I don't know, if you understand what I mean...i would switch to German, but that would be unfair against others, that might interest my question) but well i will see that huh?

2. well that's not directly to this Slingshot, i have a basic law question, due to you live in Germany too, if I’m not getting something wrong.
Well I’m playing with the idea to build my own slingshot...nothing fancy...just a basic thing

Well...you said Slingshots don't need a weapon license, do you need to be 18 to have one? I’m 17, but i turn 18 in March, so i could wait (also i would at first need to get the Tubes or bands...)

Second law thing...you have stocks on your thingies here...a friend of mine said that this would be illegal...now you’re the one with the knowledge, does Stocks change anything (in law things)?

thanks for all answers I might recieve

Greetings
Sadd

Sadd, the scope will be mounted on a swing arm. Precision woodworking is called for, but I'll manage. After all this is not a sniper rifle that has got to be accurate from 500 meters. It is an assault rifle that has to hit its shoe box size target from maybe 25 meters max.

Slingshots are not regulated in Germany as long as there is no arm rest. You can legally make one if you are under 18, but of course you should talk to your parents first. If they OK it, you may go ahead, but please be cautious and responsible.

My "stock" based weapons are crossbows, not slingshots, legally. The law defines a crossbow this way:

- Has no tube like barrel
- is cocked with muscle power only
- has means to store the energy (= lock and trigger)

A crossbow requires you to be off age (=18 or older).

A slingshot with an arm brace (e.g. the famous wrist rocket) is banned, a silly law from the 70s, when some demonstrants used these slingshots to smash some police equipment.

Good luck

Jörg

Ah okay, thanks for your Answer
hm...my Parents would not allow me to build a working one I think, so I have to wait until I'm 18 and out of the house (thanks to G8 this won\'t take too long, planned is next year) so I might just build a wooden Slingshot, as a training, without being able to finish it...so I have already some experience when I start building the real things.

Well, if you don't attach bands, I don't see what can be bad about making a wooden "Y" shaped thingy.

Good luck!

My bullpup pulley equipped slingshot crossbow is finished!







It works really nice.

It looks sweet Jörg! I like the paintjob a lot! But about the scope, If you're watching through the scope, and you fire, isn't the ball and the rubber dangerously close to your face? Have you thought about some sort of chinguard?

Other than that, keep it coming, I love it!

Posted this on mine and Joerg's forums and checking in here.

Ivo wrote:

Ivo checking in to the slingshot portal.

Had no
internet for a few days and decided to go play with this design a
bit...not yet ready to build off of, but certainly a dreamer.



Tried incorporating a spanning lever similar to the one on AK-48 Crossbow.

Spoiler:

And
to do that had to reposition the riser so that it mount upside-down
compared to the way it was done on the original. Also I figured it could
be made a bit more compact with the addition of two more rollers.



I
am of two minds on this design. There are issues that may follow due to
friction and inertia, but that's something that will only be known if
built.

The design is for shooting arrows (it is a crossbow afterall ) and is under discussion...thoughts welcome.

Ivo

Oi mates!

Got a quick update on my progressing insanity.

from topic: Trigger safety designs where I wrote:

I got this crazy idea a long time ago for a
bullpup crossbow with a built in spanning lever that runs the full
length of the crossbow. Yeh...from the end of the track all the way to
the corner of the buttstock. As you remember from this thread here...the grip is actually part of the lever so i had to come up with a solution that would make this composition possible.

Here is the the concept I have in mind.

It has an automatic safety that disengages as you grip the weapon and re-engages if you decide to let go.


Enlarge this image


The
latch is simply cut from square pipe and is spring loaded in such a way
that it comes back up to be engages by the string while spanning.


Enlarge this image


It's
a modular assembly similar to upper/lower receivers on firearms. The
two modules are attached to different parts of the crossbow...the latch
that retains the string is the upper receiver permanently attached to
the the crossbow body and the release is the lower receiver and a
permanent part of the spanning lever. These two modules come apart
during spanning and once the latch engages the string and is in the
locked position, the sear also becomes locked by a safety mechanism.


Enlarge this image


Since
the mechanism's safety is engaged as soon as the string is latched...it
prevents accidental releases when you snap the lever back in place to
bring the two modules back together. Weapon remains in safe mode at all
times except the moment the string is latched(since the sear needs to be
unblocked for this) and when you grip the weapon to pull the trigger.


Enlarge this image


So
yes, to shoot this thing you basically grip the pistol grip of the
weapon - pressing the orange lever which disengages the safety and then
pull the trigger. Otherwise it's always in safe mode.

EDIT:
The parts are located on different planes, so they don't bump into each
other...just thought I'd mention it. May need to be spread apart a bit
more though.

Top View.


Enlarge this image


PS: It's still a concept, not a blue print...don't hate...I'm still working on it.

Ivo