Hunting Ammunition for Slingshots

Types of Hunting Ammunition for slingshots

 



 If you ask most people about the best ammo for hunting with a slingshot the most popular answer is lead balls no doubt lead balls are effective projectiles for hunting with a slingshot but there are other alternatives. As a person who was raised not knowing lead balls as slingshot ammo I would like to share some of what I learned.

For the following you will need a proper pouch so many people now have taken to calling it a rock shooter's pouch but really this is the original styled pouch.

  In this post I wanted to quickly cover some of types of ammunition that are readily available and are more old fashioned in their style and effective. All of what is shared in this small post is very easy to acquire and unless you dont apply yourself to searching or as some guys out there love to make excuses say "we dont have those here or they are hard to find" really this means you have better apply yourself to their search look past the obvious because these everyday items are always within reach.

I grew up using rocks as ammo aka stones, pebbles etc, in addition as a stone user you pick other "stone like items" to improvise as ammo when the need is great. What follows are the most common with some simple explanation to get you started.

From top row to bottom.

Row 1: These are crushed limestone gravel rocks aka gravel rocks very common and in fact I picked these from my neighbor's driveway with permission. What you want when selecting crush limestone and related gravel are the cubic/square shapes and not so long rectangular shapes. Look for density more than anything as this will stablize their flight and are good up to an easy 20 yards. You can go up to 25+ yards but they must be heavy and a controled shot. They are roughly 1x1.5 inches and weigh close to 3/4 ounce. Please look first at density and weight before going for specific size dimensions as weight equals proper impact. Remember these gravel rocks take some learning and practice but are as effective as the best hunting ammo.

Row 2: These are igneous rocks aka Pebbles aka River Stones, they are oval shaped and within similar size dimensions to the gravel rocks but their width is different as they are ovoid shapes which some look like an egg others resemble a football. These are by and far the best of the natural world's hunting ammunition and can reach accurate ranges of 30 yards. They are a lot more dense than crushed lime stone gravel. These igneous pebbles are so dense and hard that they rarely shatter when hitting hard surfaces and can ricochet. On the other hand if a gravel rock impacts with a hard surface like a tree stump it can shatter. These igneous rocks do not shatter but can break if the surface/velocity of impact is great.  Look for density, as a lot of these igneous pebbles have strong veins of natural iron especially the darker stones. The ones pictured weigh from 3/4 oz to 1 oz. 

Row 3: These are 1/2  inch inner diameter hexnuts, they weigh roughly 17-18 grams very effective for hunting small game and can shoot accurate to 30 yards easily. In the middle is an igneous rock with a different shape this is like a 3/4 sphere a friend calls these a lozenge shape but can also be said to be a candy shape. Also good range accuracy, you hold these and hexnuts with their flat side resting between pouch finger grip.

There are other alternative types of ammo but I listed these as the kind to go to because they do not require preparation and just some selection and you have decent hunting ammunition.

You can use other types of stones as well, sometimes you can find very decent quartz pebbles with a good weight these are ok for hunting.

Whatever you use make sure you practice with the ammunitiion you intend to use for hunting as any variations will create "unexpected situations".

Good luck shooting and hunting..

Nico