Equipment standards - All equipment

General standards and safety

You have the final responsibility for the proper care and safe use of your weapons and equipment, and for knowing and following Society and your kingdom's thrown weapons rules. There may also be mundane laws that apply to the possession and use of throwing weapons for practices and competitions.
You must not knowingly use unsafe weapons or equipment.
Before taking part in any thrown weapons activities, your weapons and equipment must be inspected and approved by a marshal warranted for this purpose and activity. See Inspecting equipment
1. At any time, if you are unsure of the safety of your equipment, request the assistance of a thrown weapons marshal in inspecting your equipment.
2. The thrown weapons marshal can re-inspect your equipment at any time.
The thrown weapons marshal inspecting your weapons or equipment will make a reasonable attempt to locate any unsafe conditions or violations of kingdom rules and inform you of what is found and how to correct it.
The inspection by the thrown weapons marshal may not find all equipment faults and is conducted as a service to all the throwers on the line. It does not remove your primary responsibility for the safe condition of your own equipment.
If a thrown weapons marshal has said that your equipment is not safe, you must not use it until it is made safe and re-inspected by a thrown weapons marshal.

Axes must be of a size and weight that allows them to be thrown safely and easily by the person throwing it.
The handles of all axes should be firmly attached.
1. Some axes are designed to allow the head to slide up a tapered handle and pressure-fit on. The heads will come off if they are pushed toward the butt of the handle. When the axe is used, the head is forced into place and seats tightly. The inspecting marshal must make sure that the head actually seats tightly and will not slip over the taper.
The haft must not have any major cracks.
The haft must not have any burrs or rough surfaces that could cut or give splinters to an unprotected hand.

Throwing knives must be of a size and weight that allows them to be thrown safely and easily.
If the knife has a handle, the handle of the knife must be firmly attached.
The throwing surface must be free of burrs or protrusions that could cut or injure an unprotected hand.

Spears must not be excessively long or heavy for the person throwing it.
Spear heads must be firmly attached to the shaft of the spear.
The shaft must not have any burrs or rough surfaces that could cut or give splinters to an unprotected hand.
The shaft must be sound and without major cracks

Slings must be made of natural material. These include leather, cloth or other fibers.
The sling must have a restraining method for the hand, such that the sling cannot easily fly out of the hand. A loop that goes around a finger or wrist is best. A disc or toggle that is held in the hand is also allowed.
Slings must not have any rips, tears or fraying in the material.
Payloads thrown with a sling must be of "soft" material. Cloth balls stuffed with rags, and bean bags are examples of "soft" payloads. These are allowed to be thrown at normal thrown weapons distances using normal safety zones.

Other thrown weapons are any weapons or items other than the weapons forms listed above that have been approved by the thrown weapons marshal as safe for use based on the marshal's discretion.
Weapons or items for throwing which require non-standard safety considerations may require an official experimental program.

Targets must be made of a material or materials that are unlikely to cause dangerous bounce backs or damage weapons.
There are no target size requirements for thrown weapons, though specific sizes may be required in competitions or Royal Rounds.
Some common types of targets are "rounds" (slices of tree), constructed targets, and hay bales.
Rounds should not cause weapons to become sticky with sap and may need to be dried out and aged depending on what is locally available.