If you’ve been shooting slingshots for a while you undoubtedly have your own ammo preferences. For a really long time I was in love with 3/8" or 9.5ml steel ammo. If you’d asked me why I chose this ammo I would probably say because its easy to handle, easy (and cheap) to get hold of, and it hits pretty hard.

But the real truth is that it was just the first type of ammo I tried and I found that I could be decently accurate with it. Cut to today, I have buckets of 9.5 ammo lying about in my garage that aren't being shot at things. The reason for this is simple, smaller ammo has many advantages and In this article I’m going to briefly dive into what those are.

Speed

The biggest difference between big and small ammo is increased speed. Smaller ammo is lighter, so your bands have a much easier time accelerating the projectile and that means a higher velocity. This is good. The faster your projectile is traveling, the flatter its trajectory. Simply put, small ammo shoots straighter than heavy ammo and that means it’s easier to be accurate.

Lighter bandsets

Lighter projectiles mean lighter bands and smaller pouches to match. Bands with an easy, smooth draw make aiming much easier as the shooters muscles are not straining as hard against the force of the elastic. There is little to be gained from using super-heavy bands to accelerate a world ending projectile if you can’t hit what you’re aiming at.

More shots!

Pound for pound you’ll get more shots for the same price if you buy in bulk. Secondly when you’re out and about it means you can carry more ammo for the same weight!

Safe(er)

If you live in an apartment or in crowded suburbia It can be hard to find a wide open space to get out and shoot your slingshot. This sucks and the reality is that sooner or later you’re going to try shooting inside your apartment/house. In this situation, small ammo is king as you can let fly at your target without worrying too much about a ricochet, or one of your shots going clean through a can and into your flatscreen. I actually have a small catchbox in my lounge and its nice to take a few shots during the ads without fear of damaging any pets or family members.

Clean release

Getting a clean release is a cornerstone of marksmanship with the slingshot. If you have a sloppy release it's going to send your ammo all over the place. Because smaller ammo is physically hard to manipulate it forces you to develop a clean and consistent release. Get this nailed and you will see a big increase in accuracy. Regardless of the ammo type you use. 

What are your ammo preferences? Get in touch and let us know. You can email us hello@deadeyeclub.com or you can drop us a DM on instagram @deadeyeclub.

Peace.