Stabarangs!!!

[stabman]

Ever since the jester skull bead scared off Ben Affleck so quickly that he left his Batarang behind, I began thinking that I needed my own, more stabtastic version of this throwing device.

So, I ordered some Grade 5 titanium from Alpha Knife Supply, and got some Grade 38 from titanium mad scientist Mecha.

I got to work on the thinner piece of Grade 5 that I added to the order to meet the minimum for international shipping; the thicker stuff was reserved for waterjetting in the future.

Let's get grinding!

I went over to my brother's house, and worked on it with the belt sander and a Dremel sanding drum. Went through 4 belts, and 7 sanding drums...yay!

Then I decided to heat it up with a torch.

Finished it up in 3 hours to the minute, pretty much (cue the commercial for Ground to Shape, up next on History Channel ).

The next day, the Grade 38 titanium came in the mail.
Went though 4 designs and redesigns till I had one I liked. Made paper and cardboard templates for it.

Ground it out the next day; didn't video it, as the batteries were charging, and I just didn't feel like it. Had to "git er done!"

Went through a bunch more belts at my brother's place that night, and torched it too:

Along the way, I realized that the first one (the grade 5 version) had picked up a warp somehow. Spent about 5 hours figuring out a fix, which eventually worked with a combination of torching the middle section, followed by flattening it between two heavy, flat slabs of steel (compliments of my mould from my college machining days).

So, yesterday I headed out to test them out.
Did I mention I made Kydex sheaths for both of them too?
Because I did.

 

[stabman]

Well, they look good, but how do they work?
Off to the throwing knife spot!
This spot has been in use for at least 11 months that I know of, so why not use it, eh?

Well, here you can see pictures of the thinner, grade 5 (0.130" thick) Stabarang bouncing off the wood repeatedly:

Never before have I worked so hard on something that sucked so much.
The light weight (1.7 ounces) combined with the design inspired by fantasy Batarang depictions made for a truly awful throwing device...grrr.

Oh well, perhaps the other one will work better.
The Grade 38 one weighs 3.5 ounces, and is 0.210" thick.
It threw better, but I do really suck at throwing knives.
The first throw bounced off...and went tip first into a rock!

The second throw stuck solidly, and many of the subsequent throws did also.
Both Stabarangs proved awesome and finding every rock in the vicinity when they bounced off though. I'd moved one rock, then they would discover a brick. Move that, and they'd discover a piece of volcanic rock the same colour as the soil. Truly impressive, this ability of theirs.

Here they both are in the wood:

Anyway, it was a successful venture in that I did come up with one version that delivered the goods.

 

[FOG2]

Murphy is alive and well in your living space as well as mine. You can count on whatever things dropped or thrown to receive damage.

 

[BitingSarcasm]

Just carry a small tactical rock with you. Throw the rock first, then the Stabarang--guaranteed hit every time! Seriously though, nice work powering through on titanium like that, and the happy face on the bat put a smile on mine. Don't give up on the light knife yet, too, they just take a lot of work to develop the timing to throw them with enough power to both make them stick and not dislocate your shoulder doing it.

 

[stabman]

Murphy is alive and well in your living space as well as mine. You can count on whatever things dropped or thrown to receive damage.

At least they didn't disappear to another dimension, as has happened in previous throwing attempts with other knives.

Just carry a small tactical rock with you. Throw the rock first, then the Stabarang--guaranteed hit every time! Seriously though, nice work powering through on titanium like that, and the happy face on the bat put a smile on mine. Don't give up on the light knife yet, too, they just take a lot of work to develop the timing to throw them with enough power to both make them stick and not dislocate your shoulder doing it.

I'm thinking of making one in 0.125" steel to see if a bit of extra weight makes it work better.

Glad the happy face transferred its smile to you.

 

[wensynch]

Wow, it really works too.

That's really cool, Starman. The pics really make this thread. Felt like I was watching Batman Begins again but in flip-a-pic style.

Does it come in black?

 

[stabman]

Wow, it really works too.

That's really cool, Stabman. The pics really make this thread. Felt like I was watching Batman Begins again but in flip-a-pic style.

Does it come in black?

It could, with a bit of "tactical paint."

 

[Lapedog]

Ever since the jester skull bead scared off Ben Affleck so quickly that he left his Batarang behind, I began thinking that I needed my own, more stabtastic version of this throwing device.

So, I ordered some Grade 5 titanium from Alpha Knife Supply, and got some Grade 38 from titanium mad scientist Mecha.

I got to work on the thinner piece of Grade 5 that I added to the order to meet the minimum for international shipping; the thicker stuff was reserved for waterjetting in the future.

Let's get grinding!

I went over to my brother's house, and worked on it with the belt sander and a Dremel sanding drum. Went through 4 belts, and 7 sanding drums...yay!

Then I decided to heat it up with a torch.

Finished it up in 3 hours to the minute, pretty much (cue the commercial for Ground to Shape, up next on History Channel ).

The next day, the Grade 38 titanium came in the mail.
Went though 4 designs and redesigns till I had one I liked. Made paper and cardboard templates for it.

Ground it out the next day; didn't video it, as the batteries were charging, and I just didn't feel like it. Had to "git er done!"

Went through a bunch more belts at my brother's place that night, and torched it too:

Along the way, I realized that the first one (the grade 5 version) had picked up a warp somehow. Spent about 5 hours figuring out a fix, which eventually worked with a combination of torching the middle section, followed by flattening it between two heavy, flat slabs of steel (compliments of my mould from my college machining days).

So, yesterday I headed out to test them out.
Did I mention I made Kydex sheaths for both of them too?
Because I did.

Awesome, I had something complimentary to say but then I saw the bottom of your post.

Now all I can say is, “those Timmy’s chocolate croissants are badass!” Word up!

 

[stabman]

Awesome, I had something complimentary to say but then I saw the bottom of your post.

Now all I can say is, “those Timmy’s chocolate croissants are badass!” Word up!

They are delicious, and give you the required energy for mighty deeds.

 

[BitingSarcasm]

They are delicious, and give you the required energy for mighty deeds.

Why am I suddenly reminded of Dwarf War Bread from Terry Pratchett's Discworld series?

 

[stabman]

Why am I suddenly reminded of Dwarf War Bread from Terry Pratchett's Discworld series?

This was considerably softer.

 

[danbot]

Cool project Stabman! And hey, you just discovered what doesn't work! So it's still a win!

 

[Velitrius]

At least they didn't disappear to another dimension, as has happened in previous throwing attempts with other knives.

LOL! Oh man, I've had some throwing stars and some bolts for a crossbow pistol that had this interdimensional ability.

Those are great, Stab. My youngest boy would totally dig a bat shaped thrower.

Don't know that I'm up to the same level of craftsmanship as you though, so he gets NINJA stars!

 

[stabman]

Cool project Stabman! And hey, you just discovered what doesn't work! So it's still a win!

For sure.
Learning what doesn't work is quite important to finding what does.

LOL! Oh man, I've had some throwing stars and some bolts for a crossbow pistol that had this interdimensional ability.

Those are great, Stab. My youngest boy would totally dig a bat shaped thrower.

Don't know that I'm up to the same level of craftsmanship as you though, so he gets NINJA stars!

It does seem to be a common throwing implement and arrow ability.

I would have been so happy with ninja stars as a child.
Got a chance to try some out as an adult, and being able to get them to stick on just about every throw was such a nice change from the bonks and rebounds I experience with throwing knives.

 

[Mecha]

Nice! I like the double-ended throwing knife. Twice the stabby!

 

[stabman]

Nice! I like the double-ended throwing knife. Twice the stabby!

Indeed.
Double the knifey goodness.

 

[Sonnydaze]

Good grief, man. That's a double SPARKY!
Very impressive...the amount of labor that goes into such an endeavor. And, as someone said previously, even "failure" indicates that learning has taken place.
I give you lots of credit for the fun that you had in the process. Nice pics, btw...but I think that there was a "light leak" getting into your filming.

 

[Lapedog]

For sure.
Learning what doesn't work is quite important to finding what does.



It does seem to be a common throwing implement and arrow ability.

I would have been so happy with ninja stars as a child.
Got a chance to try some out as an adult, and being able to get them to stick on just about every throw was such a nice change from the bonks and rebounds I experience with throwing knives.

Try throwing spike shaped projectiles like this. I couldn’t get them to stick at all till I tried this no spin technique.

 

[stabman]

Try throwing spike shaped projectiles like this. I couldn’t get them to stick at all till I tried this no spin technique.

I got Ralph Thorn's book on no-spin knife throwing.
At really close range I can do it sort of.

With a blade-heavy Bowie knife it works well with an underhand throw at close range.
Large Bowie knives don't fit easily into a pocket though.

I may have to get some cheap throwing spikes and see if I can get better at it.
Ah heck, I might as well just make some.

 

[Lapedog]

I got Ralph Thorn's book on no-spin knife throwing.
At really close range I can do it sort of.

With a blade-heavy Bowie knife it works well with an underhand throw at close range.
Large Bowie knives don't fit easily into a pocket though.

I may have to get some cheap throwing spikes and see if I can get better at it.
Ah heck, I might as well just make some.

Large nails actually work pretty good. The trick is all in slapping your wrist down at the end of your throw. It is definitely an up close technique though.