Catapults

[woz 260]

when i was young with a family to feed we had many a meal killed by a catty....even now i have one in my glove box and a box of steel ball bearings between the seats of my works van!!!! im rusty compared to what i used to be....i visited a friend tonight and we were talking about the old days when we didnt have to pennys to rub together..as i was leaving his house he walked to the van with me and i produced the catty to show him.from 25 yards i put a sizeable dent in his metal ash bucket.which i must say was possibley a fluke but it hit.....we are more than happy saying that we have lurchers that retreve live to hand,so roosting pheasants,duck,rabbit and woodys arnt a problem.....rats in buildings are brilliant...i like to use a very large cardboard box with some cardboard inside and a target on one side...practice untill you can hit a 2 inch target.then move away and prastice some more...do ten shots and have a break and go collect your ball bearings from the inside of the box...........its amazing how big a bag you can fill with a hunger in your belly and a good catty.....

[nrat 8]

Alright lads i bought a black widow there on saturday. Are they any good, what can they kill, what distance are they good at. thanks a mill

 

They are as good as you are, if you are accurate enough to hit a rabbit, squirrel or pigeon etc in the head at 10 yards the catapult will kill it. if you cant shoot as well as that do NOT hunt with it. You will also need to use either lead or steel ball bearings and NOT stones. You can use the steel 9mm BBs but they are really too light for hunting, lead is better but you have to make your own which is a pain.

 

For practice, until you are good enough to hunt, hang a sheet up as a back stop. Make sure there are a few folds on the groung to catch the ammo ang put a target up in front. Once you can hit a matchbox size object from 10 yards repeatedly then have a go at hunting.

 

To be honest unless you are very dedicated your better off with an air rifle

 

There is a good thread on catapults in the Gamekeeping sectiontoo.

 

Good luck

 

Very good advice there mate Catapults in the right hands are a very effective hunting tool and I’ve had hundreds of rats over the years, pigeons and a few rabbits too.

 

Thanks Ratman, i try to be of help. They are a handy tool arent they, i try never to be without mine when im out. Whenever you havent got the catty you see all sorts!

 

Stringer9, your effective range is whatever you can hit the bo at. 10 yards is about right so your fieldcraft has to be pretty good too.

 

Here is one i prepared earlier

 

 

hi,tharts well said 10yds is about the maximum range and even then you have to be a very good shot,mind you they are great fun and you get several chances to use them when ferreting for those rabbits that just creep out and sit in the hedge bottoms,but an airgun will put far more quarry in the bag,like i said good fun but loads of bullshit talked about long range kills, moving quarry, etc enjoy your catty but practise jim

[ferret boy charlie 0]

i got a black widow used to go out in the afternoon when the pheasants go up to roost brilliant fun good to carry around in ya pocket too

 

 

atb charlie

[Holdaway 2]

As a teenager many moons ago, I used to hunt with a catapult too. I used a black widow, or a home made one using motorbike innertube as the elastic.

 

I hunted with standard sized marbles and took a few rabbits. Now I wouldn't use one on anything. The airgun at or near 12 ftlb is far superior to any catapult no matter how good you are with a catty.

 

I also have to tell you that if caught by the police hunting with a catapult you will be in hot water. I know they are not illegal, but it is frowned upon deeply.

 

Hunt with one if you like, but I recommend a gun.

 

And one other thing, this IS an airgun forum, so you can't complain if the mods remove your topic altogether from here.

 

Good luck anyway

 

H

[gilly-93 31]

is it illigal to carry a catapult in a public place i might get 1?

[Holdaway 2]

is it illigal to carry a catapult in a public place i might get 1?

 

 

Nowadays? You will be held at Guantanimo bay indefinately....