The Gun Blogs

Having handled Tam's 9mm AR with a single point sling, I decided I want one for my next AR-15. Even better, I decided I also wanted one for the UltiWasr. Being the cheapskate err do-it-yourself, Wile E. Coyote School of Gun Smithing sort that I am, I decided to build one. If you want to build a two point sling, plans are here. But I wanted a single point and refused to drop $40 on it. I searched the web and found this image of a popular brand of tactical slings and worked from there:

For this project, you will need the following: 60 inches of 1.5 inch think nylon webbing (yeah, it sounds like a lot but it's better to do too much and cut excess off than to make one too short); 12 inches of 1 inch nylon webbing (note: if your sling swivel is 1.5 inches wide, you can use 1.5 inch webbing); one 1.5 inch buckle; three 1.5 inch slides; one 1 inch slide; you will also need a pair of scissors, a lighter to burn of frayed edges if you have to adjust length, and needle & thread (optional* but you'll need a fourth 1.5 inch slide if you're not up to sewing). Here's a pic of the parts and tools:

You can get all of the parts at Strapworks.com, shipped to your door for $5.38 + $3 shipping. Or, if you must do it today, any fabric store (like Joanne's) will have the stuff but they probably won't have the cool looking OD green like I got. I only have two 1.5 inch slides pictured, one didn't make it into the shot.

This sling consists of two parts, the base and the sling. The base will stay attached to the weapon and the buckle will connect the sling to the base. This is to make it easy to remove and, if you feel froggy, you can put many bases on many weapons and use the same sling. Of course, these slings come in at less than $10 so you could just make as many as you like. Take the 1 inch slide and slide it on the 1 inch nylon webbing and place it through your sling swivel, sling mount as shown:

Place male piece of the buckle opposite the slide. Run the webbing through buckle from both ends, doubling over to add extra support. The best way I can tell you how to tie this not is to show you the picture:

If you can't do that, you may need to find another way to secure the base. Or I may need to do step by step pictures. Let me know if you have issues. Next, use one 1.5 inch slide and the female end of the buckle. Stitch the webbing together as shown.

*Note: I said the thread and needle were optional. You can use a fourth 1.5 inch slide to secure the female end of the buckle and the loose slide.

On the opposite end of where you just stitched, place the two remaining 1.5 inch slides as shown:

Loop the unstitched end (now with two slides on it) through the first 1.5 inch slide that was stitched as shown:

Insert the unstitched ends through the remaining two slides and tighten. Adjust using the two slides. Here it is all done and compared to the original image I obtained: