the use of the sling a dying art ???

[Guest tangojuliet]

is it just me or is the use of the loop sling or even any sling as a shooting aid a dying art ive had to show ( i be it  i have never been in the military but was taught my both my grandfathers to use a sling) some Gis how to use a sling to steady their rifle and making tighter groups they were amazed at me knowing such a thing  which kinda worried me :/

[Omega]

is it just me or is the use of the loop sling or even any sling as a shooting aid a dying art ive had to show ( i be it  i have never been in the military but was taught my both my grandfathers to use a sling) some Gis how to use a sling to steady their rifle and making tighter groups they were amazed at me knowing such a thing  which kinda worried me :/

Its not the training, its the GIs. Basic Rifle Marksmanship (BRM) has not changed much in the past 30 years, and many still teach these techniques. We even used various special slings on our M4s to make them more useful.

[btq96r]

I learned how to use a sling for stability at some point in the Army (I can't remember if I managed to pick up the lesson in basic), but it was never stressed as any kind of fundamental like keeping my elbows on the ground while shooting prone or how to keep a sight picture the same every time like touching the tip of my nose to the charging handle.

 

Slings becoming a "cool guy" factor entered into things before long.  I was guilty of it myself, scumming to the three-point tacti-cool and putting it on my M4 during my 2003-2004 and 2005-2006 Iraq deployments.  They looked high-speed while snagging on my mag pouches, but I never felt like I could use it for stability.  On my last deployment in 2007-2008 and now on my personal AR, I only attach a two point from the buttstock to a mounted sling adapter on the side of a rail or the underside attachment point with some 550 cord to offset it to the side.  Sometimes it's quick adjust length, sometimes not, but it's really all you need.

 

They also issues those Grip Pod's Army-wide now (not sure about the Marine Corps, but I'd wager they use them as well).  Before I got out, there were only a handful in rotation, and of course, the supply folks managed to get some so they could put their M4's on a bipod in the chow hall.  But now, every troop in pretty much every combat brigade I worked with as a contractor in Kuwait, Iraq and Afghanistan had one on the bottom rail of their M4's and some M249's.  Using a sling for stability isn't much of a concern when you can press a button and have a good enough bipod pop out for use.

Edited August 9, 2014 by btq96r

[RED333]

and I thought you was talking about the rock slinging thing. :cool:

[Mike.357]

learned the basics of sling use at a CMP clinic several years ago.  It is definitely a technique that works.

[173rdABN]

I use a sling, but not to steady my rifle, but to throw my weapon to my side and transition to a secondary. more of a retention system than anything else. 

[Ugly]

I've learned it in CMP training also.

[Oh Shoot]

Not really what you are thinking of, but steadying out an AR or AK pistol on a one point sling is pretty common, especially the AK since unless you modify them, no buffer tube to lay alongside cheek as third point of contact.
 

 
Though I shoot one AR pistol with Sig Brace now and another with buffer tube alongside cheek, I have been using a one point sling to steady down an AK pistol I picked up not long ago:
 

 

- OS

[BigK]

My dad taught me to use a rifle sling to steady my shot deer hunting growing up. It works, but now I only shoot rifles at the range and they make you shoot from the bench. I'd use a sling more, if I had a place to shoot where I could use multiple shooting positions.

[A.J. Holst]

and I thought you was talking about the rock slinging thing. :cool:

That makes two of us

[Spots]

The Marine Corps still uses a loop sling for Known distance shooting. We spend hours learning to loop up and stay in postion, even when it hurts. There is a week of dry fire and postion practice in Boot Camp and then every year before qualifying on the range. Some guys use grip pods, but they aren't allowed when qualifying on the range.

[peejman]

I learned it in a CMP clinic as well, and it certainly helps. But it would seem of only modest use in modern combat. The opportunity to sit relatively still with sustained fire doesn't seem to happen much.

[Guest tangojuliet]

I learned it in a CMP clinic as well, and it certainly helps. But it would seem of only modest use in modern combat. The opportunity to sit relatively still with sustained fire doesn't seem to happen much.

well im not talking about army only im talking about civilian rifleman also

[Loon160T]

Project Appleseed still teaches sling use at each and every clinic.

 

Full disclosue: I am an Instructor-In-Training for Project Appleseed.

[peejman]

well im not talking about army only im talking about civilian rifleman also

I don't know of anywhere that would teach sling use other than the military or Appleseed.

[Guest tangojuliet]

I don't know of anywhere that would teach sling use other than the military or Appleseed.

well my grandfathers taught me so i think  it being general  knowledge is slowly fading away 

[Clod Stomper]

Apparently it is fading away. It's a shame too. I can shoot much better slung up in prone than I can from a bench.

And I can't take a bench with me out into the field. But I can take a sling.

In the interest of full disclosure, I learned to shoot from my Dad, my Papaw and my Uncles (and I really was pretty good). But I really learned Rifleman marksmanship via the Appleseed Project. And they teach how to use a sling. And it works.

Edit: I do think it's just like many passing fads. Right now the trend seems to be "run and gun", CQB, MOUT, etcetera. Where extended ranges are the exception, not the rule. So even with long guns, the ranges are kept fairly close.

Makes me sad. They don't have to be mutually exclusive. Edited August 10, 2014 by Clod Stomper

[Mike.357]

The Marine Corps still uses a loop sling for Known distance shooting. We spend hours learning to loop up and stay in postion, even when it hurts. There is a week of dry fire and postion practice in Boot Camp and then every year before qualifying on the range. Some guys use grip pods, but they aren't allowed when qualifying on the range.

 

my coach at the CMP clinic said if it did not hurt you were not doing it right.  I had a belt sized bruise on my tricep for a week.  But dayum I shot good 200 yrd groups

[peejman]

From a hunting perspective, seems slings have been replaced by bipods. Some hunters complain about heavy rifles but a sling weighs a lot less and is useful in more positions than prone.

[Guest tangojuliet]

From a hunting perspective, seems slings have been replaced by bipods. Some hunters complain about heavy rifles but a sling weighs a lot less and is useful in more positions than prone.

good point 

[Dustbuster]

The Marine Corps still uses a loop sling for Known distance shooting. We spend hours learning to loop up and stay in postion, even when it hurts. There is a week of dry fire and postion practice in Boot Camp and then every year before qualifying on the range. Some guys use grip pods, but they aren't allowed when qualifying on the range.

Ah that week of "snapping in"
The loop sling is a great support, the older slings worked well, and are hard to find, I like the proctor sling, and a single point for ar pistols. Like a few others said they can be cumbersome and easily get hung up on stuff when you least need em to...

[Jonnin]

heh this is what came to mind...