Planedude
02-14-2016, 09:50 PM
Ahhhhh... Remember being young in the sixties and seventies. Our parents trusted us to do some cool things and own to cool things that would make the new parents of today heads explode.
When my Dad came back from Vietnam in January 1971, the USAF decided his next duty station would be K. I. Sawyer AFB in the upper peninsula of Michigan. Before those orders came down, none of us had ever heard of an upper peninsula before...
Our family left Texas (where we stayed while Dad was at war) and arrived in the U.P. right in the middle of a blizzard at 2am in the morning. I didn't know what to think, but I had already figured out that (much) snow sucked. After we settled in, my new friends told me that a strong boy, not afraid to hustle and work, could make some money shoveling the white stuff. After the next big storm, I made the first ever "hard earned" money in my life.
The first thing I ever mail ordered was soon on its way. From an ad in Boys Life I purchased a Trumark WS-1 slingshot for a whopping three bucks. It took over three weeks, but one day my Dad and I came in the door finding my Mother looking less than happy. My Mom was somewhat crossed when she asked my Dad, "why in the heck do you need a slingshot" (I am a Jr so the box seemed to be address to my father), "Nope" I said "that's me" and snatch the prize out of my shocked Mothers hand. My parents asked how this came to be mailed to our house and I laid out every step I had made for that. They laid down some very basic, common sense safe usage rules and turned me loose with my "almost-a-gun" slingshot. That thing went everywhere with me, other than school and I was soon a crack shot with it. In the U.P. they mine iron ore. The best stuff is long ago gone but the mines produce an ore know as Taconite. When processed for shipment, taconite is spun into small Iron marbles up to a half inch in diameter. A most excellent slingshot ammo and available by the ton along any railroad track in the county. That spring I made friends with my Buddy John, a fellow slingshot shooter. His Dad was an NCO with the base hospital and he was able to supply the best tubular rubber bands that you could ever want. Those wrist rockets had the power of a rimfire rifle out to fifty yards.
Good times!
Fast forwarding to today, my interest in slingshots was recently rekindled. My daughter called to ask dear Dad to help her find a "fancy non-firearm" for her Husband. He needed a "cat remover" and wanted either a crossbow or a slingshot. Due to some recent bad press on pets vs. crossbows in the area, I recommended the rubber band type slingshot. The Son-in-law loves it and shoots it out side the remote gas drilling sites that he works. I decided to relive my own youth and buy another basic wrist rocket so he and I can shoot together when he is in town. I tried to buy from the Trumark web site, but accidently found that Buds Gun Shop had them in stock and about Seven bucks cheaper than Trumark itself. Go figure.
A check of eBay found someone who could have five pounds of taconite pellets delivered to my door. It was like old times when my wife brought me the mail and asked "what the heck did you buy from Michigan, rocks??" and I had to sheepishly reply "well yeah, they kind of are rocks". So now I am once again armed, gunpowderless, but dangerous. These days you'd say I'm ready for the zombie apocalypse...
Anyone else here grow up a fervent rock slinger in the good old days? Any others find themselves shooting with rubber today?
No real point to this thread, I just had to share the smile. Peace
When my Dad came back from Vietnam in January 1971, the USAF decided his next duty station would be K. I. Sawyer AFB in the upper peninsula of Michigan. Before those orders came down, none of us had ever heard of an upper peninsula before...
Our family left Texas (where we stayed while Dad was at war) and arrived in the U.P. right in the middle of a blizzard at 2am in the morning. I didn't know what to think, but I had already figured out that (much) snow sucked. After we settled in, my new friends told me that a strong boy, not afraid to hustle and work, could make some money shoveling the white stuff. After the next big storm, I made the first ever "hard earned" money in my life.
The first thing I ever mail ordered was soon on its way. From an ad in Boys Life I purchased a Trumark WS-1 slingshot for a whopping three bucks. It took over three weeks, but one day my Dad and I came in the door finding my Mother looking less than happy. My Mom was somewhat crossed when she asked my Dad, "why in the heck do you need a slingshot" (I am a Jr so the box seemed to be address to my father), "Nope" I said "that's me" and snatch the prize out of my shocked Mothers hand. My parents asked how this came to be mailed to our house and I laid out every step I had made for that. They laid down some very basic, common sense safe usage rules and turned me loose with my "almost-a-gun" slingshot. That thing went everywhere with me, other than school and I was soon a crack shot with it. In the U.P. they mine iron ore. The best stuff is long ago gone but the mines produce an ore know as Taconite. When processed for shipment, taconite is spun into small Iron marbles up to a half inch in diameter. A most excellent slingshot ammo and available by the ton along any railroad track in the county. That spring I made friends with my Buddy John, a fellow slingshot shooter. His Dad was an NCO with the base hospital and he was able to supply the best tubular rubber bands that you could ever want. Those wrist rockets had the power of a rimfire rifle out to fifty yards.
Good times!
Fast forwarding to today, my interest in slingshots was recently rekindled. My daughter called to ask dear Dad to help her find a "fancy non-firearm" for her Husband. He needed a "cat remover" and wanted either a crossbow or a slingshot. Due to some recent bad press on pets vs. crossbows in the area, I recommended the rubber band type slingshot. The Son-in-law loves it and shoots it out side the remote gas drilling sites that he works. I decided to relive my own youth and buy another basic wrist rocket so he and I can shoot together when he is in town. I tried to buy from the Trumark web site, but accidently found that Buds Gun Shop had them in stock and about Seven bucks cheaper than Trumark itself. Go figure.
A check of eBay found someone who could have five pounds of taconite pellets delivered to my door. It was like old times when my wife brought me the mail and asked "what the heck did you buy from Michigan, rocks??" and I had to sheepishly reply "well yeah, they kind of are rocks". So now I am once again armed, gunpowderless, but dangerous. These days you'd say I'm ready for the zombie apocalypse...
Anyone else here grow up a fervent rock slinger in the good old days? Any others find themselves shooting with rubber today?
No real point to this thread, I just had to share the smile. Peace