Making and Using the Venerable Hand Sling

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Finish up by melting all four exposed ends of nylon cord (to prevent unraveling) with a match, lighter, or candle — then coat the string windings generously with Elmer's Glue-All to protect them from abrasion.

CASTING THE FIRST STONE

Ancient slingers had a variety of throwing techniques, including both underhanded and overhanded vertical swings, as well as whirling the sling either horizontally or at an angle over the head. While most of these styles of casting work well with practice, the simplest and — for me — most effective sling technique is an overhand "baseball throw."

To practice, first find an open throwing area with no people or animals nearby that might be struck by a stray missile. Hook the middle finger of your throwing hand through the looped cord and pinch the knot of the other cord between the thumb and forefinger of the same hand. Load the sling by placing a rounded stone no larger than a golf ball in the center of the pocket. [EDITOR'S NOTE: In testing a sling made according to Mr. Ballard's instructions, we found that, up to a point, the larger the stone, the easier it was to control the cast. In fact, we attained good results with some stones that were considerably larger than a golf ball.]

Now, with your free hand, grasp the loaded pocket and lift it toward the target as if aiming; turn your body about 90° away from the target, and sight over the top of your extended hand. Keep your feet together, your throwing; hand close against your chest, and your eyes on the target.

To make a throw, drop the loaded sling and draw your throwing hand slightly downward to start the orbiting motion. The sling must fall in front of you and then be lifted upward and back in a wide vertical arc beside your body. On the first spin, let your throwing arm rise high behind you and then fall just to the rear of your head as you begin a "pitcher's step" with your leading foot. (By decreasing the size of the arc in this manner, you'll be increasing the velocity of the sling.) As the stone reaches the top of its second orbit, throw it as you would a baseball, releasing the knotted cord as your leading foot completes the pitcher's step and your wrist snaps forward.

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