Atlatl

[BeardyMan]

Gonna have to order myself one of these!!

http://www.nottinghamatlatl.com/

I made one when I was a kid, but nothing like these!

[Grumpy Grandpa]

Don't know about you Beardy but I've been thinking about these. The prices seem pretty damned reasonable too! I was thinking of going the homemade route but these are worth consideration, don't you reckon?

[BeardyMan]

(7 September 2013, 00:32)Grumpy Grandpa Wrote: Don't know about you Beardy but I've been thinking about these. The prices seem pretty damned reasonable too! I was thinking of going the homemade route but these are worth consideration, don't you reckon?

Yeah, I was surprised at the price. I mean, it's only wood - and they're not difficult to make. (I don't know what wood I used (I was about 10) but I went into the garden with a saw and took the right piece of wood for the launcher, then bits to make arrows with. We had a big garden so there were plenty of tree's to choose from.) But, for about £80 / £90 with arrows and delivery you can't go wrong.

Had I not just spent £65 on air rifle pellets I'd be ordering one right now!

[Steve]

That's interesting,you could make one from the plastic ballthrower available in pet shops.

[Tigs]

I remember as a kid in the 70's we used to make throwing arrows and used a boot lace with a knot in it to launch them , the arrows would easily clear a football pitch and cost us nothing

[Tartar Horde]

(7 September 2013, 06:10)Tigs Wrote: I remember as a kid in the 70's we used to make throwing arrows and used a boot lace with a knot in it to launch them , the arrows would easily clear a football pitch and cost us nothing

We used to make these too Tigs, we called them "French" arrows and they do fly well.

[Timelord]

They are one of the most underrated bits of weaponry for a survival situation. They are damn lethal, have a high mass inertia impact of the small javelin and are easy to carry. They can be held inconspicuously and brought up to target in an instant from cover or on the move. They are not bulky and can be deployed from partial cover. they are more robust and less atmospheric affected than a bow. They are relatively easy to make.
There is a good reason why we rose to the top of the food chain and wiped out most large land mammals and that is the Atlatl. Humanities first weapon system! The bow has only just appeared on the block in the geological time frame..
(Lets not talk about Kevlar - Ahem!!)

[Nottingham Atlatl]

Hi,
They are definitely a formidable bit of weaponry and greatly underrated! And in the right hands with a bit of practice - pin point accurate over both short and medium/long distances.
I do sell them, and the darts (that's my website up at the top of the thread), but I am more than happy to offer as much help as you need to those who want to make their own! Just drop me a message joe@nottinghamatlatl.com
There is an art to making them, and a big difference between a stick with a spur, and one that has been crafted with skill - saying that, there is also great satisfaction when you launch your own dart from your own atlatl.
For those that don't want to make one from scratch - I do offer kits with everything in them that require minimal work to assemble eg, the atlatl shaft will just require the final sanding and coating, the handle binding or carving, the spur drilling in or binding on - I can custom a package like that for you pretty much to suit any of your needs, at a price that you're happy with. Hope that helps!!
Awesome site by the way - some really great info!

[BeardyMan]

Cheers Joe - I'll be in touch next week, I like the look of the bespoke ones. Not enough time to construct one though, so I'd be after one ready to go!

(8 September 2013, 09:57)Nottingham Atlatl Wrote: Hi,
They are definitely a formidable bit of weaponry and greatly underrated! And in the right hands with a bit of practice - pin point accurate over both short and medium/long distances.
I do sell them, and the darts (that's my website up at the top of the thread), but I am more than happy to offer as much help as you need to those who want to make their own! Just drop me a message joe@nottinghamatlatl.com
There is an art to making them, and a big difference between a stick with a spur, and one that has been crafted with skill - saying that, there is also great satisfaction when you launch your own dart from your own atlatl.
For those that don't want to make one from scratch - I do offer kits with everything in them that require minimal work to assemble eg, the atlatl shaft will just require the final sanding and coating, the handle binding or carving, the spur drilling in or binding on - I can custom a package like that for you pretty much to suit any of your needs, at a price that you're happy with. Hope that helps!!
Awesome site by the way - some really great info!

[Tartar Horde]

Atlatls are a superb weapon and compared to a bow are a lot easier to make in a shtf scenario, you just have to ask "what will you use it for"?, Atlatls were designed to be used on Palaeolithic mega fauna and are not suited to hunting small game in brushy cover, and were not designed as such, the environment they were used in was one of open grassland/tundra, and they are not good in woodland. If however post SHTF if there are lots of "farm" animals like sheep and cattle then the Atlatl will do the job very efficiently.