How to Make Rubber Band Shooters
With toy aisles stocked with overpriced merchandise that, once played with, leads to inevitable boredom, many parents are turning to the toys of yesteryear as an alternative. Luckily, many of these toys can be handmade with little experience or material cost. One such toy is the rubber band "gun," sometimes called the "shooter" to avoid negative connotations. You can build the classic rubber band gun with a difference in the firing mechanism to avoid the possibility of confusion with a real gun.
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Things You'll Need
- Wood block (pine or cedar), 14 inches long, 6 inches high, 2 inches thick
- Clothespin
- Jigsaw
- Coping saw
- Medium-grit sandpaper
- Carpenter's pencil
- Industrial-strength adhesive gel
- Ruler
- Rubber band
Instructions
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1
Lay the block flat and measure 2 inches from the bottom left. Draw a dot with the pencil. Measure 4 inches up from that dot and draw another dot. Use the ruler to draw a straight vertical line to connect the two dots. From the second dot, use the ruler to draw a straight line from the dot to the end of the right side of the block. Draw a 45-degree angled line in the top left of the block.
You will have drawn an "L" on the block with the 45-degree triangle on the top left.
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2
Use the jigsaw to cut the triangle first, then follow the other lines to cut out the "L" gun shape. Do not discard the extra wood pieces; you'll need them.
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3
Use the coping saw to cut the small wooden triangle piece in half so you're left with two equally sized triangles. Discard one of the triangles. Using medium-grit sandpaper, sand the entire shooter to smooth out jagged edges. Glue the triangle to the top side of gun, flush to the edge of the barrel, to make a sight/rubber band attachment point.
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4
Sand the grip's corners for a more comfortable grip. Glue the clothespin to the top of the shooter, leaving three-fourths of the clothespin to hang over the 45-degree slope. Allow to dry. Glue the leftover wood block to the underside of the gun, equal distance between the barrel and hand grip, to simulate an ammo cartridge.
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5
Attach the rubber by stringing one end over the sight, slowly pulling back toward the clothespin. Clamp the other end in the clothespin by slightly pressing down on the top of the pin. To fire, simply aim at your target and fire by pressing down the top end of the clothespin.
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Tips & Warnings
For a more futuristic-looking rubber band shooter, glue on more wood pieces, wires or metal plates.
Painting the shooter black will make it resemble a real gun. For safety reasons, if you must paint it, try a more vibrant color. Rubber bands can launch with more velocity than one might think. Never point the shooter at yours or anyone's face or head.
