Slingshot master Joerg Sprave has shown off the most powerful and the most gleefully insane slingshots during his time as reigning rubber band madman. But even a slingshot devotee as loyal as Sprave had to ask himself whether or not the weapons can hold their own against handguns. The short answer? Yes. The long answer? Hell yes.
Using a simple, shootable pendulum setup, Sprave and his pal Nathan compared the momentum generated by various handguns from .22s, all the way up to a .44 Magnum. And out of all the hand-cannons tested, the slingshot bested all but one. Now granted, the slingshot’s steel ball ammo is a bit heavier than your average bullet, and not exactly shaped for precision flight, but it holds up pretty well against projectiles with explosions on their side.
So you an safely set aside any notions that slingshots are mere child’s play. They definitely aren’t if you’re building ’em right.