You can buy very effective tubular or square section latex rubber in many fishing and shooting shops, and a metre length should be plenty for one good catapult. In a survival situation you may be able to improvise using surgical tubing, bungee cord, Latex gloves, and pieces of tire inner tube, elastic bands, or anything else that will provide enough spring. Occasionally when practicing you will hit your hand when it shoots forward, this hurts, but serves as a good reminder to hold the catapult straight next time.Ĭatapults were traditionally made using a forked stick and a piece of elastic material which would provide the spring to propel a pebble or other projectile. To take a shot the pouch is released and the projectile is propelled forward (Hopefully) between the arms of the catapult and towards the target. The pouch is drawn back to the same position at each shot, and I use the side of my thumb against my cheek bone as a guide. As the left hand holding the catapult is raised and the arm straightened, the right arm is simultaneously drawn back, using the shoulder and back muscles, with the elbow held high. (I am Right handed so if you’re Left handed just reverse this description). The projectile in its leather pouch is held between the folded index finger and thumb of my right hand. The Catapult is held and used in a similar way to an Archery bow. Through constant practice you will develop the necessary muscle memory and instinctive aim for taking fast shots as they present themselves. I have found that I achieve the best results when I don’t try too hard to aim before releasing the projectile. I’ve successfully used this Catapult to hunt Rabbits and Squirrels for food on many occasions, and often take it with me on walks for impromptu roving, or target practice. 38 Calibre steel ball bearings or lead shot. My preferred choice of hunting ammunition is. This wrist brace really helps to maintain accuracy and reduce strain on the arm. The Catapult I have owned for many years is an extremely powerful manufactured model with a wrist brace. This devastating power makes a Catapult a humane weapon for small game. Despite their short range a good catapult with the correct ammunition packs a lot of punch, and in terms of energy delivered to the target this can be several times more power than the legal 12Ft Lbs legal limit for Air Rifles in the UK. The effective range of a Catapult is fairly limited, so for practical purposes they should really only be used for hunting ranges of around 15-20 metres maximum. However, unlike an air Rifle the technique for shooting a Catapult is more spontaneous, requiring many hours of practice to become proficient enough to hunt effectively and humanely, in this respect it has more in common with Archery. These include the ability to stalk and walk quietly, camouflage and concealment and tracking. I wrote about Hunting with an air rifle, and many of aspects of Air Rifle Hunting could equally be applied to Hunting with a Catapult. This makes it an ideal choice for “opportunist” hunting, while going about your other business like setting traps and foraging. The real beauty of the Catapult is its compact size which allows it to be tucked away in a pocket, belt, or up ones sleeve until it’s required. Provided that all game regulations are complied with, and you have permission to shoot over land, then hunting with a catapult is still a valid hunting method for the modern day Bushcrafter, or for anyone surviving in the wild. The Catapult was considered a good learning tool for novice hunters to hone their stalking skills and accuracy, before they could be trusted to use a Blow Pipe, or more commonly these days, a Shotgun. While staying with The Orang Asli people of the Cameron Highlands in Malaysia, I watched youngsters using catapults to hunt birds, Lizards and small Mammals. In the minds of many people a catapult is nothing more than a child’s toy, or one of the weapons used by the “Beano’s” Dennis the Menace to terrorise the softies (For those of us old enough to remember).įew people these days would ever consider using a catapult for hunting, but not too many years ago catapults were the tool of choice for poachers and anyone else who wanted to “discreetly” hunt small game animals and Birds for food.
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