Experiment 22: Cast Primative Slingshot Ammo

Recently, I have been quite fascinated with slingshots.  They are so simple and yet, as seen on The Slingshot Channel, they are powerful beyond belief.  Slingshots perform very well with lead balls or steel ball bearings for ammunition.  I have none of the former and the latter are quite expensive.  Thus, decided to make my own ammo!  I used a drill press and some medium-density fiberboard to make a mold with two wooden dowels as a locking mechanism.  it is pretty amazing what one can do with just a drill press.  Then, I melted some of the same tin/lead/zinc alloy used in my Instructable from Experiment 19: Lost Wax Casting using the stove as a heat source and a tin can as a crucible.  I also clamped the mold together with two woodworking clamps.  It cast beautifully!  The ammo aren't perfect spheres (due to drill bit shape and misalignment), but the alloy was soft, so I was able to cut off the sprue (seen in bottom left picture) with a pair of wire-cutters.  After a few minutes, I was able to crank out eight really awesome slingshot balls!  If I could get my hands on some pure lead, I could also make even denser, higher-performance ammunition, but I suppose these are cool enough for now. :)