Anyone use an Atlatl before?

[abo4ster]

Just curious if anyone has used and/or made an Atlatl before. What was it like? Thoughts? Survival application?

 

[Kelt]

I used one quite a few years ago, I don't remember where- some kind of Native American/primitive outdoorsy thing...
Anyway, the first few times, I had to get down the feel for it. Kinda like getting the arrow properly on the bow and not "twitching" too much. Most of my throws were goofed up by the added "length" of the tool. I was throwing the thing too soon and therefore, getting it up high but not very far forward. Scary, it seemed like it was going to go straight up and come back down to hit me in the head! But that was just the way it felt. Many times I would try it and it would just flip over and backwards- you have to commit to it or else you're kinda going nowhere...
Once you get the hang of it, you really can add some powerful distance to the 'spear.'
Aiming it and actually hitting your target- that's a totally different problem. I didn't have time to really practice with it. It's definitely different and seems strange cause- well, picture throwing a ball, and then picture throwing a ball that's attached to the end of a long stick in your hand...

 

[longbow50]

I havn't made one, but did attend a flint knappers, bow makers and atlatl event a couple years ago. They had the atlatl scoring target that we all had a try at and they had set up a 15-20 target competition range with animal targets that were set up at ranges from 5 yards to 40 yards. Had a blast but didn't do so well in the scoring. By the end of the three day event, I could hit fairly consistently out to 15 yards. Lots of fun.

There's a site called Paleoplanet that has some of the top spear throwers in the country posting and they used to have workshops on making and throwing the altalt. You might want to check it out and say hello to Tom Mills while you're there. Heck of a nice guy that's always willing to help out if he can.

 

[Deer Runner]

Yes, I've made and used one before. They're quite powerful, and I can see wy primitive man used them. One can take down a large animal with one of these.


Joe

 

[Moine]

Yup. I have one right now. I made the handle from a piece of oak. I'm throwing many different "darts" with it. I really like bamboo, since it's fairly rigid compression-wise and mostly straigth.

Don't underestimate how hard it is to actually make a good one. It has to be really straight, and your darts must fit very well, otherwise it's just not usable.

I practice with it pretty much daily, and with time I'm getting better, but precision is a real issue. It's extremely powerful, though. Once you get the good "snap" feeling, you double or triple your actual throwing power.

I add some kind of feathers behind the darts, just like on arrows, so that the shaft will travel straighter. That helps. Some weight at the tip (spear point of some sort) will also help the dart not to go straight up or turn around when you throw it.

Cheers,

David

 

[anomad]

I heard a story about a guy in Georgia (I think) that makes and uses these. He actually competes against bow in competition and does quite well. Also, the atl-atl delivers a much heavier bolt compared to a bow. In a survival situation I would make one of these long before a bow and arrow.

I read another story about the atl-atl in a sea kayaker magazine (some paddlers are really into traditional native boats and tools). the author got or made an atl-atl and went out in his kayak with it and practiced for a while and said it wasn't hard to get the hang of. Now, harpooning a walrus and hanging on while it drags your kayak would be another story. I understand the natives would use their atlatl "handle" as a back up one hand paddle, stowed on the fore deck. So it served multiple purposes, delivering harpoons and bolts, and as a rolling aid if they dropped their paddle.

I'm in the process of building my third boat, but I haven't built and atlatl...