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Thread: Cloth rifle sling

  1. #1
    Boolit Grand Master Bazoo's Avatar
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    Cloth rifle sling

    So I have this idea to sew a fixed length rifle sling out of flannel or wool. I'm thinking sew a layer of felt in the middle for body and fold it so it's three layers of material ending about 2" wide. Sew on swivels and be fine for a traditional rifle like a winchester 94.

    Anyone ever seen anything like this?

  2. #2
    Boolit Grand Master
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    Anything will work. Seems felt would be a poor performer in wet conditions. I've sewn on sling connections to woven belts made by an inkle loom and shoulder straps from military bags. I much prefer them too stiff and less flexible leather or nylon slings. Lighter, very quiet, and they are "almost not there" when it comes time to shoulder the rifle. Never have had to adjust them out of the way when bracing against a tree or other support to take a shot. My most favorite is about a 2" wide military shoulder bag strap. Very thin material which is about the thickness of blue jean material. It's made to be a bag strap, so it's strong, but o-so-light. You've got a good idea going there. I just have the personal preference of thin but strong. Your multi-layered idea would make it too stiff for me. Fabric stores had many webbing type material to choose from. Might be worth checking out places like "Jo-Ann's Fabrics", etc. Good luck.

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  4. #4
    Boolit Grand Master Bazoo's Avatar
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    Ive got 4 slings right now. One being a cheapo nylon strap, another a padded nylon strap, and a horsehair browning.

    And my favorite being a sling I made from cotton webbing I found, It's soft, and quiet.

    The felt I'm talking about is some sewing stuff the wife has, and would just give it a little body but won't be stiff or thick. I'm considering too, using webbing for each end.

    Keep in mind, I'm a craftsman and I'm always tinkering on a project. This is something I've been mulling over a while. I know there are plenty of ready made slings of much better materials. I originally was thinking a red flannel but now it seems we have a nice length of green wool that'd be just right.

    Thanks for the ideas.

  5. #5
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    I'm not sure flannel or wool would be good in tension and I'm pretty sure they would be problematic in wet conditions.
    Not to mention every briar and thorn you encounter will attach itself to a soft fabric.

    Now a flannel section sewed to a stronger core may work.

  6. #6
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    My favorite cloth sling is on one of my Enfields. It's the original sling that has softened and the edges have swollen over the years. Looks like trash but it's a comfortable, quiet, lightweight sling.
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    Hmm. Looking at my web belt now and thinking that would make a nice sling. May have to play latter as I have a roll of the stuff from making the belt. Hate those thin ones.

  8. #8
    Boolit Grand Master pietro's Avatar
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    I like cloth slings, as they can be easily rolled up & pocketed until needed - and they're lightweight to boot !

    I started making them after seeing a camera strap with a pattern design that appealed to me, but camera straps were too short to use on a rifle.

    Sooooo, I sped to a fabric chain store (Jo-Ann's, Walmart, etc, etc), where there was a wide selection of colors/designs in various widths.

    Also, I learned to look at both sides of the cloth (ribbon ? ) to ensure that one side wasn't a bunch of threads from the weaving style of whoever made it.





    When fashioning the sling, the ends need to be squeezed down enough to thread through a (QD) sling loop enough to sew the loose end to the body of the sling, as close to the loop as possible.

    Since I'm not doing an adjustable-length sling strap, I simply measure the length I need for the sling to reach the mounted sling loops, with enough extra length to fit over my shoulder & around my body. (measure twice, cut once).


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    Last edited by pietro; 11-07-2020 at 11:59 AM.
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  9. #9
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    I guess slings have been made out of just about every imaginable material. That might be an exaggeration, but paracord, packaging web straps, rawhide, even seen shoelaces all tied together. I did see one awhile back that was made from a used pants belt. One end had a snap to secure the belt buckle (the buckle was removed) and that end was passed through the butt swivel and snapped, and the other end with the holes had been slimmed down a bit and passed through the top swivel, then secured through two of the holes with a Chicago screw. Actually, because of the embossed pattern on the belt it looked pretty good.

  10. #10
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    I can't remember where I got all three of my woven slings but, this is one of them. Most of my rifles have 3/4 in. slings and I get those from Levy's also. Good stuff.

    https://www.levysoutdoor.com/product...v=1d20b5ff1ee9

    Ahhh..another came from Track of the Wolf, for my Jaeger.
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    Boolit Master Shawlerbrook's Avatar
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    I prefer leather for a traditional look .

  12. #12
    Boolit Grand Master Bazoo's Avatar
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    I used a leather military sling for years. I never used it as a true sling, just a carrying strap. I rarely use a sling for a shooting aid. Course, I rarely shoot long range, or prone, mostly it's from field positions. I'm not sure how I feel about leather. I know I don't want stiff.

  13. #13
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    I once used a guitar sling for a camera strap. Maybe guitar slings are a consideration. Some are pretty stout.

  14. #14
    Boolit Grand Master GhostHawk's Avatar
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    Neoprene is my favorite, I have 2 that I found cheap at the pawn shop.

    It has a little stretch/give to it. When you put it on your shoulder it stays there. Lighter weight than leather.
    But I can still do a GI wrap around left arm and anchor that rifle dead solid steady.

    https://www.amazon.com/Allen-Cascade...003ITENDU?th=1

    22$ seems pretty reasonable in todays economy.
    If you look below there is more of a plain jane model for 14$.

    I have one my Win 94 .30-30 that has pockets for 4 rounds. Lightweight, comfortable, hassle free.
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  15. #15
    Boolit Master curioushooter's Avatar
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    First off I will say this about rifle slings. About every cheap alternative to appropriate type of leather that could possibly work has been tried and found wanting. Even if they approach the functionality they look cheap. I can't for the life of me understand why someone will pay good money for a rifle or whatever then put something other than a quality leather sling on it.

    This said a good leather sling shouldn't cost more than $60! The Montana Gun Sling is one of best I've ever had the pleasure of using and it costs under $40. So for the cost of two pieces of chinese nylon you can have one sling you can be proud of! NO BRAINER!

    I can say this about fabrics. Any kind of knit fabric wont work because it will stretch too much. Woven fabrics of strong material like nylon (like a seatbelt basically) will work alright. They won't have any nice grip like the flesh side of a leather sling will, though. Also, all fabric is made of thread so all the edges must be finished very carefully otherwise it will begin to fray. Leather, as a material, doesn't have this very significant problem. Even ripstop fabircs and seatbelts can fray with just small cuts.

    Unfelted wool as a material changes tensile and dimensional properties greatly with water, temperature, and heat. Felted wool, which is what cowboy hats are made out of and would possibly work as a sling, costs a LOT more than even the finest German Latigo leather which is best for making slings.

    Any fabric made from a cellulose fiber (linen, cotton, hemp) will be terrible if it gets wet. Proteinacious (wool, silk) or synthetic fibers are better in the face of water.

    One thing that could work is a leather sling with a felted wool pad on the shoulder under a leather sling. That would be nice.

  16. #16
    Boolit Grand Master pietro's Avatar
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    I guess YMMV from mine, curiousshyooter…..

    The cloth carry strap I made over 40 years ago, has gone hunting with me every year w/o any deterioration.

    I made it adjustable for length via sewing on a few strategic strips of Velcro.

    The woven leather strap has the same level of comfort, and neither slips off my shoulder when carrying the gun.

    The adjustable Cordua Nylon sling is also comfortable, but will slip a little if I'm not careful.

    Last edited by pietro; 11-19-2020 at 06:01 PM.
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  17. #17
    Boolit Master
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    Quote Originally Posted by curioushooter View Post
    First off I will say this about rifle slings. About every cheap alternative to appropriate type of leather that could possibly work has been tried and found wanting. Even if they approach the functionality they look cheap. I can't for the life of me understand why someone will pay good money for a rifle or whatever then put something other than a quality leather sling on it.

    This said a good leather sling shouldn't cost more than $60! The Montana Gun Sling is one of best I've ever had the pleasure of using and it costs under $40. So for the cost of two pieces of chinese nylon you can have one sling you can be proud of! NO BRAINER!

    I can say this about fabrics. Any kind of knit fabric wont work because it will stretch too much. Woven fabrics of strong material like nylon (like a seatbelt basically) will work alright. They won't have any nice grip like the flesh side of a leather sling will, though. Also, all fabric is made of thread so all the edges must be finished very carefully otherwise it will begin to fray. Leather, as a material, doesn't have this very significant problem. Even ripstop fabircs and seatbelts can fray with just small cuts.

    Unfelted wool as a material changes tensile and dimensional properties greatly with water, temperature, and heat. Felted wool, which is what cowboy hats are made out of and would possibly work as a sling, costs a LOT more than even the finest German Latigo leather which is best for making slings.

    Any fabric made from a cellulose fiber (linen, cotton, hemp) will be terrible if it gets wet. Proteinacious (wool, silk) or synthetic fibers are better in the face of water.

    One thing that could work is a leather sling with a felted wool pad on the shoulder under a leather sling. That would be nice.
    Well, that's your opinion. I like a good leather sling but prefer the woven sling from Levy's. It hardly looks cheap. They're quality merchandise as is the one on my Jaeger from TOTW. None have suffered any of the calamities from being wet that you mention.

    Edit: Better cowboy hats are made out of felted beaver, not wool.
    Last edited by sharps4590; 11-30-2020 at 07:44 AM.
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  18. #18
    Boolit Grand Master

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    What may make a starting point is one of the canvas military slings. They are tough and strong. even when used as a support there is little stretch.

  19. #19
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    Brownell's used to make/still makes perhaps a sling called a 'Latigo sling' or something like that. They shorten up really fast to fit a rifle in a soft rifle case, then out again to sling over our shoulder/pack board while hunting, then pull into a shooting sling with a loop that goes around your bicep. Very nicely adjustable.

    I use a sling a lot when shooting while standing, sitting, etc. The Latigo works very well at doing that - and it's also classy looking on a traditional hunting rifle. My first two I bought from Brownell's - when the price got to what I thought was unreasonably stupid some time back, the local saddlemaker did copies of them for $15. I bought a bunch and gave them away as gifts to family and friends,etc.

  20. #20
    Boolit Master curioushooter's Avatar
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    sewing on a few strategic strips of Velcro.
    You lost me at Velcro...that noisy, cheap stuff has no business around anything related to hunting.

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