How to Make a Rubber Band Gun

The rubber band gun is a classic toy that you can make at home. Rubber band guns first became popular in the 1930's when manufacturing made rubber bands cheap and money was tight for such luxuries as store bought toys. Read on to learn how to make a rubber band gun.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• 1/2 inch thick panel (wood or plywood)
• Ruler
• Pencil
• Jigsaw
• Sandpaper
• Clothespin
• Rubber Band
• Finishing nails
• Hammer

1. Measure your hand from pinky to thumb. The handle of your rubber band gun should be a little bit longer than this measurement. The barrel of the gun should be less than 10 inches and more than six inches long.

2. Using your ruler, transfer the measurements to your panel. With the jigsaw, cut the L-shaped blank out of the panel. Sand the edges of your blank. Watch out for splinters.

3. Remove one of the legs of the clothespin from the spring. Place the leg of the clothespin with the metal spring on it against the back of the handle of the blank.

4. Hammer two finishing nails through the leg of the clothespin, one above and one below the spring. Reattach the other leg of the clothespin.

5. Loading and Firing: Stretch the rubber band from the upper corner of the barrel to the clothespin. Be sure the rubber band runs down the barrel and into the clasp of the clothespin without any overlap on the sides. Aim the rubber band gun and depress the clothespin.