This was our second box we received from our bi-monthly subscription.  Apocabox is shipped six times a year, February, April, June, August, October, December.  Each box has different survival skills themes.  Please check out the first post I wrote in this series to understand more about Apocabox and see the example of the “Forager” theme, and my second post on the “Mass Exodus” theme to understand why I believe this is such a great educational and life skills investment for homeschool families.

Silent Hunter

The theme of the April 2018 box is “Silent Hunter“.  This box goes over several skills challenges to help you learn a few “quiet” hunting skills and techniques that could help you in a survival situation.

Contents:

• Torque Slingshot by Simple Shot
• Steel Shot Ammo
• Powder Ball Ammo
• Silent Hunter Canvas Belt Pouch by Rothco
• Pocket Survival Guide: Survival Slingshots
• Fabric Spinner Targets x 2
• Rubber Spinner Targets x 2
• Paper Targets: 3 pack
• Digital Paper Targets: print out, unlimited quantity
• Interrupted Pattern Diamond Bench Stone: Sharpener
• Bait Snare Skills Kit
• Shepherd Sling
• Newsletter: 4 page high gloss contains Apocabox contents, skill challenges,

Skill Challenges:

1. Target Practice With Sling Shot
2. Build A Target Practice Ammo Trap
3. Shepherd Sling
4. Bait Snare Skills Kit

Pocket Field Guide: Survival Slingshots

This is an 88 page 4×6 pocket sized field guide.  It is filled with DIY Skills Challenges to Master making a variety of sling shots from different materials and a lesson on how to make an ammo trap.

Chapters with multiple skills challenges:

• Band Sets and Pouch Design
• 10 Improvised Sling Shots to build
• Survival Style Sling Shot Ammo
• Creek’s Sling Shot Shooting Basics
• Target Practice Ammo Trap

 

Videos

• Video by Creek Stewart teaching How To Use the Sling Shot Video
• Target Practice Ammo Trap Video
• Bait Snare Video
• Exclusive sling shot training videos by Simple Shot, the creator of the sling shot.

After looking over the reading materials and watching the videos, the first activity we did was to put together the Silent Hunter Sling Shot Practice Kit.

Everything stores nicely in the belt pouch and is easy to access for practice.

 

When I get more time to do so, I will post here more pictures of the activities and skills we did as I write more about the Apocabox DIY Survival Skills in a box series.

Final Thoughts:

My family loves to practice with this sling shot.  Creek Stewart has motivated us to improve our sling shot skills, learn about sling shots, and up our game considerably.  Everyone in our family is improving their skills each time we practice.

I decided to do a little research about the legal issues of hunting with a sling shot.  The kinds of animals might you be able to hunt with sling shot in a survival situation include a variety of birds, rabbit, and squirrel to name a few.  Sling shots work great for small game.  However a modification that Creek Stewart suggests is checking out an adapter to use a sling shot to shoot arrows and then you could hunt for larger game. With an arrow, you could bring down a deer or other large animal.

Currently there are 32 states in the USA that do not ban the use of a sling shot with nongame animals and nonprotected species.  The rules are more friendly toward land owners when wild animals have ventured onto their property and are causing damage to it (such as eating crops, attacking livestock on farms, tearing up buildings or fence, etc), and then they are seen as a nuisance.  Before hunting with a sling shot (or any other weapons or traps) be sure to check with your state wildlife agency about the rules of your state.  Another suggestion is to take a hunter’s safety class.  These classes are usually offered by the state parks department or hosted at sporting goods stores like Cabella’s or Bass Pro where hunting gear is sold.

Though we have enjoyed practicing shooting at paper targets our yard, we had not seriously planned to hunt for our food with a sling shot in a survival situation.  However since getting this new sling shot and the Silent Hunter box, now we are target practicing for fun and with a purpose, in the event we might have to use a sling shot to put food on the table someday.