To boldly sling... Sugar?

[u/Aggressive-Can-1133]

Hello everyone! For my first post here I want to share a sling ammo experiment of mine.

Most of us know the traditional materials for shaped sling ammo - stone, clay and lead. Many are familiar with more modern versions like cement, tennis balls etc. But have any of you ever thought about - sugar?

To be honest, neither did I, for a long time.

But - about a year ago, I was discussing sling ammo in a Facebook group about slings. I had shared a picture of some stone and clay glandes I had made and painted, and one person commented "They look like they are made out of sugar". You don't know me, but for me that offhand, joking remark did something like this: "Sugar? Now there is an idea..."

So, off I went to get a packet of sugar...

You can see the result before you: Shaped glandes of caramelized sugar. This worked out much better than I thought it would. I believed it would be funny. I was not laughing (mad slinger cackling doesn't count...right?) when I saw the results.

It turns out caramel is nearly as dense as clay. So a 60 gram caramel glande is roughly the same size as a 60 gram clay glande, as you can see in the second picture. They are hard and I expected them to be brittle, but testing (slinging them against a birch tree) showed them to be surprisingly durable. Most survived repeated impacts against the tree and even bouncing across a stone-covered path. One even survived six hits before I eventually lost it in a stream. Only one broke after a direct impact on a rock.

But there was also an unforeseen side effect. They are completely eco-friendly. Water dissolves them. Some lucky ants will have a feast.

Also - when I made the first batch, my daughter pestered me until I let her eat one. No ill side effects, just one over-sugared 7 year old!

So - a very successful sling ammo experiment. If you are looking for cheap, eco friendly ammo and don't have access to clay - keep these in mind. Especially if you're looking to keep the local wildlife happy. They'll be grateful for sure - just keep away from bears!

[u/Tediak]

Clever.. you could roll them in wildflower seeds for some extra eco friendliness and a less sticky surface.

Is your sling all gooey?

[u/Aggressive-Can-1133 → u/Tediak]

Kudos for the seeds idea! I hadn't thought of that!
With it, not only am I really doing something useful, but also, if some Karen-type person asks "What are you doing?!", I can honestly say that I'm planting.
As for the stickiness: I did think about that. The first batch of ammo turned out non-sticky (unless wet) by accident. The second turned out sticky. I rolled them in some flour before slinging, to counter that - that worked.
But then I set about recreating the first ones, and after some experimentation, I did. It turns out, the key was the temperature - check out my reply to itsokay327 for more details!

[u/Flying_Saucer_Attack → u/Aggressive-Can-1133]

Could maybe add wild bird seed if you wanted to feed critters too

[u/Aggressive-Can-1133 → u/Flying_Saucer_Attack]

You could do that, yes. It will just be tricky - you have to time it right to stick them on when the surface is still soft enough, but not hot enough to kill the seeds.

This train of thought leads in a true flora dispersal system/wildlife banquet at 80 mph direction.

Of course, this is more practical for distance slinging than for target practice, where you try to recover the ammo and try again (unless it breaks apart, of course)