Hornets can be improvised out of almost any foldable or rollable material you find lying around, including cardstock, foil, construction paper and newspaper. Get creative if you don’t have any normal paper. Heavy and glossy types of paper will add weight, increasing the distance and impact you can achieve. Creasing the paper with your fingernail before tearing it will result in cleaner edges. By tearing the paper into 4 or 5 individual strips, you can fashion several hornets at a time.
The idea is to keep the hornet to a predetermined width (that of the original strip of paper) while folding it down to decrease its surface area.
Rolling your hornets as opposed to folding them can save you time if you’re stockpiling ammunition for friendly warfare. Watch out: hornets made using this method hurt a lot more!
After you’re finished, you can reinforce the hornet by wrapping it in duct or electrical tape. The tape will keep it from losing its shape and also give it more heft. This is about as heavy-duty as hornets get. Each time you fold the paper, the hornet will become denser and more difficult to fold. The upside of this is that the reduced size and added density will cause it to sail like a dream.
For best results, see if you can obtain one of the thick, colorful bands used to secure the stalks of produce at grocery stores. Rubber bands that are old, dry or show signs of wear and tear are prone to snapping unexpectedly. This could be bad news if it were to hit you in the face or eyes.
Position the rubber band so that it wraps flat around your hand without any twists. Keep your fingers braced firmly when you pull back the hornet to generate more elastic energy.
If the last fold you made in the hornet isn’t perfectly even, it may not shoot straight.
Don’t pull the rubber band back too far or it could snap.
Release the hornet in one quick motion to keep from dulling your shot. When launched at high speeds, hornets can really pack a wallop. There is a real risk of injury if a hornet were to hit someone in any of the sensitive areas of the face.
