what sling do you use on your deer rifle?

[mustanger98]

I got my Montana sling and it will require some treatment to soften it up a bit.

I’ll ask my daughter what she’s got. I’m confident that whatever she used for her saddles won’t attack the stitching. One of them cost as much as a high end custom rifle and she had 2, one for jumping and one for Dressage. If you think this shooting hobby of ours is expensive, well......

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Well, we're kinda OT with this, but it reminded me of seeing a tv program of three-day eventing... cross-country, jumping and dressage... they said it originated with cavalry and couriers. I hear it's a lot of hard work. In the military context, I'm thinking the couriers would want to go as lightweight as possible... no rifle, so no need for a sling.

 

[Rembrandt]

Magpul on 450BM Deer rifle

 

[DerMerchant]

You ought to keep it in a back mounted scabbard, you'll look so good pulling it out that any onlooking deer will voluntarily impales themselves on nearby tree branches of sufficient pointieness.

 

[Nature Boy]

I think I have a new favorite rifle sling

 

[jmr40]

I used Extra Virgin Olive Oil to soften up my Montana slings. That was the recommendation I got from another forum when I bought mine. Only treated it once and it has held up for several years. It has gotten wet, just not soaking wet.

I attach mine the way you have. The rough out leather on my shoulder holds it in place very well. But it is actually designed to be attached the other way so the loop can be used as a shooting aid. But the slick leather on my shoulder doesn't stay in place as well. I usually carry a small set of collapsible shooting sticks so having a shooting sling is less important to me. I suppose I could carry it that way, and reverse it once on stand for shooting.

 

[mustanger98]

I used Extra Virgin Olive Oil to soften up my Montana slings. That was the recommendation I got from another forum when I bought mine. Only treated it once and it has held up for several years. It has gotten wet, just not soaking wet.

I attach mine the way you have. The rough out leather on my shoulder holds it in place very well. But it is actually designed to be attached the other way so the loop can be used as a shooting aid. But the slick leather on my shoulder doesn't stay in place as well. I usually carry a small set of collapsible shooting sticks so having a shooting sling is less important to me. I suppose I could carry it that way, and reverse it once on stand for shooting.

Although the black powder guys use vegetable-based lubricants, I never thought about using anything but heats foot oil... that's animal-based, pure or compound... on leather. I might have to try the EVOO some time.

Thinking of how NB is showing his sling rigged vs the other way, if someone used the sling loop-end forward as the shooting aid and carried African... y'all know, muzzle down... they'd be set, too.

 

[phonesysphonesys]

I have 1907 on most of my rifles.

 

[Crowman]

Galco Ching Safari Sling on my Ruger GSR Scout Rifle in 6.5 Creedmoor.

 

[Picher]

1-1/4" USGI (cotton) web - on all of'em.

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But, for speed and ease, am considering the 1907.

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GR

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My stainless 700 BDL Remington has a similar stock and scope. The stock is a used one, found at Kittery, ME Trading Post. I skim-coated the bedding block with AcraGlas and being a sporter contour, the barrel is very much free-floated. My rifle shoots hunting reloads under 0.3 MOA.

 

[JeeperCreeper]

I use my sling for shooting and some I don't carry it more than a few miles, I want a basic sling without doo-dads.

Any 1-1.5" nylon strap or belt for me. Also use the old surplus SKS canvas ones.

That way I can wrap them up all around my arms without pads or buckles or bedazzles getting in the way.

If I had a long mountain hike, I might need to change that up for my shoulders sake.

 

[crestoncowboy]

I have probably 20 rifles with slings. I cant think of any two that are the same. As long as I can stalk with the rifle securely on my shoulder they are fine. I do have lighter ones on my 17 and lightweight guns

 

[mustanger98]

In my post #61, I mentioned adding a surplus pack strap pad to the M1 web sling. I tried it yesterday evening and I'd say it'll work. Placement of the forward clamp holds the pad up by the QD and that's where all the quick adjustment is for this application. As near as I can see, it can still be used as a loop sling with the pad in place.

If you like African carry, nothing says you can't swap ends with the QD's, leaving the pad in place.

Another thing I thought of... suppose you plan for African carry up front... when you assemble the sling, the pad can be secured in the rear swivel loop. I haven't tested this idea yet to see if it gets in the way of using the loop.

The part I said about the surplus pack strap pad... I field-tested that a while back and don't recommend it. The M1 web sling works, but adding the pad turns it into a wrestling match.

 

[SwampWolf]

I don't use a sling to shoot with when hunting. All I want is one that is light and uncomplicated and is easy to put on or off via detachable sling swivels. The bane of slings for me is a cumbersome, "Whelen-style" military contraption or, worse, a bulky, heavy "Cobra-style" strap that takes a half of a cow to make.

 

[fireside44]

1907, all the way. If you like rifles you owe it to yourself to develop at least a basic idea of how they can be used. It's ingenuous to this day, and remains cutting edge imo. If you disagree I'd have serious doubts we can be friends. Kidding of course. Unless I have a a barrel mounted sling arrangement, 1907. I have a zahal sayeret on my AK, it ain't a 1907 but it does the job.

 

[SwampWolf]

1907, all the way. If you like rifles you owe it to yourself to develop at least a basic idea of how they can be used. It's ingenuous to this day, and remains cutting edge imo. If you disagree I'd have serious doubts we can be friends. Kidding of course.

I love rifles and have been hunting with them for well over a half a century. Whereas I know enough to "buckle-up" with a "1907" chastity belt when shooting targets competitively, I've never found a reason to be so constrained in the cedar swamps of Michigan that I hunt in regularly for whitetails nor, for that matter, the groundhogs I hunt for in the rolling hills of Ohio farmlands.
I suppose we can still be friends even if you're strapped in the yoke of 1907 sling restraint when that buck of a lifetime leaps from its creek bed hiding place and you can't bring your rifle to bear. Just don't cry on my shoulder...I warned you.

 

[mgmorden]

I just use a cheapo Uncle Mike's nylon sling, but after I get up a tree I typically will remove it - here in SC most hunting is very close range (as in I rarely get to take shots over 30 yards), so the clanking around is too loud.

 

[nortwoods1]

my wife makes mine out of paracord she braids. its not adjustable, just made at the length i desire.

 

[stillquietvoice]

It's gi style for me. I have used a few nylon 1" though. I just prefer leather.

 

[Robbins290]

For my ar's i use the USGI slings and in my hunting rifle, i use the super sling. (i think that is what it is called)

 

[Chuck R.]

For those still looking, I've recently bought a couple of these:

https://www.amazon.com/STI-Point-Rifle-Sling-Adjustable/dp/B00JK1XW3W

I've mounted them on a REM M7 and a Ruger 77/22. They work extremely well for quick adjust, are light, and won't break the bank at $23.90.

 

[mustanger98]

my wife makes mine out of paracord she braids. its not adjustable, just made at the length i desire.

A great thing there is if you end up in a bushcraft/survival situation, cordage being very useful, you have the option if necessary of unbraiding your sling. From there, you have the outside nylon sheath and several smaller inner cords. Many uses.

 

[nortwoods1]

mustanger98 yes. that's one of the reasons i wanted my slings like that. i also just like the feel of braided paracord, feels nice in the hand and very easy to grab. there's some companies that make paracord slings but they are adjustable ones with nylon straps, so they aren't much different than just a cheap sling.

 

[Trey Veston]

Hunting out here means more than getting out of your truck and walking 100 yards to a deer stand. It typically means covering miles of rough terrain with a pack. My brother's pack has a built-in scabbard, so his sling is a thin nylon one since it's used for short distances, my pack doesn't have that feature, so I need a sling that is both comfortable and won't slip off either with the thick winter coat in the mornings, or the thin T-shirt we're usually stripped down to by midday.

I haven't actually carried a deer/elk rifle in the woods for a few years, but I will pack my .450 Bushmaster into the back-country for extended hikes. For that duty, I found a sling that is a hybrid of light nylon and thick, grippy gel-like rubber that is super comfy and doesn't slide off my shoulder.



My last elk hunt that I actually had a tag for and brought a rifle along was in pretty mild country with maybe 2-3 miles of hiking, so I had my .35 Whelen with a traditional leather rifle sling on it...

 

[mustanger98]

This subject just came back to me... do y'all know about the old U.S. Kerr slings?

 

[Tommygunn]

This subject just came back to me... do y'all know about the old U.S. Kerr slings?

In Feb I bought a Kahr M1A Thompson (semi-auto non-NFA) and bought a Kerr sling through Amazon.Com for the Tommygun. I read somewhere that it was adapted for the Thompson from a WW1 rifle .... I don't know how it would work for a bolt action hunting rifle, or an AR-15 style hunting rifle.