For this project I’m going to show you how to make a water balloon slingshot that’ll
give you power and prestige while defending and dominating your next water fight. This
sling-bow will lob water bombs over 150 feet away and wreak havoc on friends and family.
Not to mention, it’ll shoot up to 3 balloons at a time.
Let’s start this project with a trip to the hardware store for 1/2” PVC tubing
and handful of sprinkler fittings. These adaptors are all pretty standard, and you should be
able to find them at a home improvement, or sprinkler supply outlet, near you.
I went ahead and cut the tubing into 1-3/4”, 2”, 5”, and 10” pieces so we can jump
right in and get busy connecting them all together.
Now just like any PVC project it’s a really good idea to dry-fit everything together just to
make sure all the pieces are going to fit, before you glue them together.
And it’s a good idea to practice putting an angle on the bow forks first, by propping
the handle on a small box, then simply pushing the prongs down on either side until they
touch the table. This will angle both sides symmetrically, without the need for any precision instruments.
The basic frame for your sling-bow should look something like this, and if it does,
then the next step, is to cement it together, so it can take some abuse.
To make my connections, I’m using a fast set cement because it’s lightening fast
when it sets, and doesn’t require a primer to clean the connections first.
However, it’s really important to follow the directions on the back to make sure your
connections are as strong as possible, because you don’t want your bow breaking under pressure.
Cement it together one connection at a time and be prepared to work quickly, because once
two pieces touch, you’ll only have about 5 seconds to get them into place before they
lock up, and won’t move anymore.
That’s why using a box to help set the angle, can make all the difference in
whether you get them into position with enough time to spare.
Now you can see I glued all the pieces together except for the two inside tubes, and that’s important.
We’ll glue these together in a minute, but for now, make sure to keep them separate.
In the mean-time, let’s take our bow frame to the next level with a couple cans of spray paint.
Of course I colored mine black and yellow, but you can paint yours any color you want.
Or even use Duck Tape to make a quick and easy custom wrap, like we did for the Laser
Blowgun. You’ll see how to make this in another project video.
Ok, now that we’ve got our custom colors, we’re ready to add the sling.
I found a 50” workout band in the sporting goods section of a local super center, and
coincidentally, it’s black and yellow as well, which matches my color scheme perfectly.
These bands have a handle at either end, which we won’t actually need. So go ahead and
chop them off with a pair of scissors, but don’t throw them away just yet. Let’s
salvage the padded foam handles, and repurpose them for our sling bow instead.
Cut the strap off the handles and carefully pull the padding off so you’re left with
just the foam exteriors.
Twist them onto the outside of the 1/2” PVC pipe, and you should find they make a
perfect fit, and stretch the entire length of the tubes.
Now before we glue the handles back onto the frame we actually need to roll the ends of
the foam down a little so they’re out of the way. Both sides should be folded back
so there’s enough space to glue the ends, without any glue touching the foam.
If there is, then go ahead and apply the cement to the connections, and twist them together like you did the others.
Do the same thing with all four connections, and give it about 2 minutes for the cement
to begin curing, then unroll the ends of the foam so they overlap part of the PVC Tee,
which you can see, gives us a nice handle grip.
With the padded foam handles in place, the frame is finished and looking good, so let’s
move on to making the sling next.
We need a way to join the two ends of the rubber tubing together, and I found a really
effective way to do that is with a disposable pen.
Take the pen apart and cut two to three inches off the tube, then carefully use one of the
blades on your scissors to score angled markings down the sides. Do this as many times as you
can on both ends, making sure the plastic is scored at about a 45º angle away from the tips.
Now it’s going to take a bit of effort, but you need to push half of the pen inside
the tubing, so apply some pressure and wiggle it around, and eventually it’ll slide into place.
Push the other end of the tubing on the same way until both pieces butt up next to each
other and become one. It should be hard to tell where they join, and if you pull them
apart as hard as you can, the grooves in the pen should lock onto the rubber, and prevent
the joint from coming apart.
Alright now that we’ve got an enormous homemade rubber band, it’s time to make the launching
pouch, and all we’ll need for that, is a roll of Duck Tape.
Most Duck Tape is 2” wide, and we need 4 strips cut around 18” long. While you’re
here, cut 4 more strips about 14” as well.
Carefully overlap the longer strips just a bit, and press them together so you can effectively
double the width of the tape. If you do that with all 4 pieces, you should end up with
a nice large piece of Duck Tape fabric, with the sticky side facing up.
Now just for convenience, I marked the tape so you can see where everything will get attached,
and if you center two of the 14” strips facing down, and press them into place, you
should be left with 4” exposed in the center, and 5” on the sides.
Carefully wrap the tape around to the backside and press it smooth, but keep the two black
strips facing upward, because we’ll need them for attaching this to the tubing next.
Now bring back the big rubber band and stretch it sideways, so the bands lay exactly on top
of the black strips, and double check that the pen tube connection is in the center.
Fold one side of the material over the tube, and press the sticky side down so it adheres
to the inner pad, then smooth the tape until it’s flat. The other side gets folded over
next, and smoothed down as well the same way.
Alright, the pouch is nearly done, and you can see how this design let’s it slide freely
up and down the band, making it easily adjustable. The only thing our launcher needs now, is a handle.
Grab the last two strips of Duck Tape and fold one of the strips lengthwise into thirds,
then wrap the other piece of tape around it to make it even stronger.
Now cut 2 slits in the center of the pouch about 2” from either end, so you can weave
the strap through both of the holes. And when you pull it flat, it should look like this.
Trim the ends of the strap, so that when you fold them in toward the middle, they meet
the edge of the handle in the center.
Surprisingly, all it takes to hold them securely in place, is a 5” strip of tape. So just
lay one overtop, and press it down smooth.
Our launcher is finished and looking good, so let’s go ahead and attach it to the bow.
Start by lining the ends of the tubing up with the grooves in the tips of the bow, then
double check that the tubing is symetrical with the pouch exactly in the center.
Grab one side and stretch the rubber down as hard as you can, rocking it back and forth
so it slips inside the groove. Then use something like a 4” cable strap to pinch the tubes
tightly together at the bottom.
Now simply cut the ends off the zip-ties, making sure they’re smooth, and double check
the rubber is held firmly in the grooves at the tip. If they are, then you’re done, and ready for action.
I thought it would be fun, to test my Skyblaster Slingshot, on a recent camping trip with some friends and family.
If you look closely at the pouch when it gets pulled back, you’ll see it automatically
cups itself, which means it’ll grip onto balls or water balloons securely, until they’re released.
Just for fun I just loaded up a bucket with over 100 water balloons ready for blasting,
so we could have some fun and test it out.
The slingshot gets loaded by placing a water balloon in the pouch while it’s facing upward.
Pull back to lock onto it, then fire when ready. With only a bit of effort, you’ll
be able to send balloons soaring high into the sky, and up to 150 feet away.
To get the best leverage, try shooting it like a bow, and as you practice, your shots
can get incredibly powerful, and impressively accurate as well.
I tried going for distance, and you can see this one landed 168 feet away. And I’m confident
that some of you, will get them even farther than that.
If you want even more power, try laying on your back and resting your feet on the prongs,
to send your payload even further.
Now depending on which kind of resistance bands you get, you’ll be able to make sling-bows
any custom color scheme you want. And what’s really cool is you can make as many as you
want for around $10 bucks each. But check this out.
I found a box of two, slightly shorter resistance tubes for the same price as one long one,
which means you can effectively cut the cost of the rubber in half, and make two slingshots for the price of one.
And just for fun I rigged up a Duck Tape arm band, that slides down over the frame and
holds the contraption tightly to my arm, which prevents the end from kicking out on release.
The sling-bow will launch up to 3 balloons simultaneously. But if you’re thinking of
shooting them at friends or family, there’s something you need to know first. The balloons
hit hard enough to leave welts. So make sure anyone being used for target practice is ok
with with it, before you open fire.
And if you’re not in the mood to get anyone wet, try using your sling-bow to launch one
of the Sky Balls,f we made in another project video. You’ll see they open up around 40
or 50 feet high in the air, and are guaranteed outdoor fun for everyone. So keep an eye out
for how to make these Sky Balls, in another video.
Well now you know how to convert Duck Tape and resistance rubber, into a powerful water
balloon slingshot. And if you don’t want to spend money on workout bands, you can always
try modifying a bag of rubber bands instead.
I quickly braided 100 of them into a rubber rope that makes an impressively effective
and low budget alternative.
Well that’s it for now. If you like this project perhaps you’ll like some of my others.
Check them out at www.thekingofrandom.com
What’s up guys, thanks for watching my video to the end, and if you’re ready to get to
work making one of these bad boys for yourself, I’ve got something that might help.
I just created a set of high quality step-by-step instructions, for this project that you can
down download instantly, so you’ll have a hard copy you can reference, while you’re building your slingshot.
I designed this project PDF to be as user friendly as possible, with high quality pictures,
step by step instructions, as well as some helpful hints, and fun facts to help you on your way.
They’ll be for sale on my webpage for $10, so just click here on the screen, or check
the video description for the link on where to get it. And if you get a copy before the
end of the month, you’ll automatically be entered to win one of the SkyBlaster Slingshots from this video.
Now to make this an even sweeter deal for you, my subscribers, I put a private link
in the description to where you can get this project PDF for only $2.95. That’s 60% off,
and just for you, for watching my videos.
So there you go. See how you’re helping to support me? And in return I can keep making
more projects and videos for you.
By the way if you download my PDF but don’t feel like it was worth your money, I’ll
give your money back. How about that?
So you’ve got nothing to lose. Click here to get yourself a copy, and at least get your name
on the list to win a slingshot.
Thanks again for supporting me and my projects. I appreciate you, and and I’ll see you in
the next project video. Talk to you then.