Performance Boomerangs

Acknowledgements

The pursuit of trying to get the best out of all the boomerangs I have – both
those I made myself and those I have bought - is one of the most satisfying
parts  of  the  sport  or  boomerangs.    I’ve  been  making  and  throwing  boomer-­
angs since the mid eighties and in that time, I have learned a lot about boo-
merangs and how to get them to perform the way I want them to.

I have spent countless hours, making, tuning, and thinking about how boo-
merangs work, as well as talking with other throwers and trying to figure out
a  system  to  make  it  easier  for  me  to  get  the  results  I’m  after.      I  continue  to  
have an insatiable appetite for information on tweaking boomerangs to im-
prove performance.

I  couldn’t  have  accumulated  the  information  in  this  book  without  consider-­
able guidance along the way. This book is the result of collecting carving
and tuning tips wherever I can. Special thanks to the people who have
shared information with me over the years (either directly or indirectly) as
well as those who crafted the boomerangs featured in this book. A lot of
credit must go to them however any mistakes or omissions are solely mine.

Thanks to the late Brother Brian Thomas, Ted Bailey, Eric Darnell, John
Flynn, Fridolin Frost, Axel Heckner, Fred Malmberg, Doug Dufresne, Mi-
chael  “Gel”  Girvin,  Volker  Behrens,  Georgi  Dimantchev,  Bruce  Carter,  
Adam Carroll, Jonas Romblad, Ola Wahlberg, Michael Siems, Dan Nee-
lands, Pat Steigman and Chet Snouffer. Special thanks goes to Tibor
Horvath for prompting me to update this book although that project got
stalled for a couple of years. He was instrumental in editing and helping
with this second edition. I truly appreciate his help and advice. Thanks
also goes to David Bjørklund for again prompting me to finish what I had
started and for hosting the electronic version of the book.

I hope that as new tricks are learned and new boomerangs are designed,
people in the know will continue to share their knowledge so that we can all
benefit. I encourage you to discuss your experiences and findings with
other throwers and to pass on your knowledge to others whenever possi-
ble.

John Cross — 2012

1
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

“Performance  Boomerangs”

Author and publisher

John Cross
1422 Highwood Blvd
Devon, Alberta
T9G 2E8
Canada

Graphics and pictures by John Cross

The boomerangs featured in this book are from

the collections of John Cross and Andrew
Cross.

First edition published 2003

Second edition published 2012

All rights reserved.

Copyright John Cross 2003, 2012

2
 P E R F O R M AN C E B O O M E R A N G S

CONTENTS

Foreword 4
Safety 5
Good Boomerangs Great Boomerangs 7
General Design and Features of Boomerangs 8
Materials 11
Introduction to Tuning - The Tuning Model 15
Using the Tuning Model 14
Bending and Twisting 18
Add-Ons 21
Airfoil Modifications 28
Tri-Fly Modifications 34
Special Considerations for Wind 36
Putting It All Together 37
Alternate Tuning Methods 39
Repairs 41
Competition 42
Accuracy 44
Aussie Round 48
Fast Catch and Endurance 52
MTA 61
Trick Catch/Doubling 74
Relay 80
Long Distance 82
Performance Boomerang Gallery 85
Suggested Reading 122
Troubleshooting Chart 123

3
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Foreword
One of my major complaints back when I
started throwing boomerangs was the lack of
tuning information. Although the information
available was a good starting point, most of it
was  very  general  and  didn’t  really  take  you   the flight is the boomerang and not you. It will
very far after you had the basics down. I al-
ways found it disappointing that there was no
source of information that went beyond the ba-
sics on how to tune and carve boomerangs.
Because of the lack of information, tuning can
be a bit overwhelming for the uninitiated. For
instance, many never try tuning an MTA be-
cause  they  don’t  even  know  where  to  start.    My   are presented as examples of how different
objective is to remove some of the mystery
from the art of tuning and provide a starting
point to get you going. Granted, experience is
the best teacher and it would be foolish to as-
sume by reading about it, anyone could be-
come a master tuner. Having a guide to at
least get you started will ideally make the en-
tire task less intimidating and hopefully, you
will be more willing to give it a try.
Carving and tuning boomerangs is not hard.
Although there are numerous tricks and tech-
niques used when tuning, in reality, they are
mostly variations of the same thing even
though they seem unrelated. This book is an
attempt to shed light on these techniques and
how  to  use  them.    I’ve  tried  to  make  connec-­
tions when I can to give a bit of insight into why
things are done the way they are.
If you work your way through the tips in this
book, hopefully you will end up with some
pretty good flying boomerangs. The tips here
are ones that have worked for me. Undoubt-
edly,  I’ve  missed  tricks  here  and  there  and  do   that have excellent sections on these topics.
things differently than some other throwers. I
do not know all the tricks the top competitors
use to get their boomerangs to fly the way they
do. I definitely do not mean to suggest that the
solutions presented here are the only way to
do things. This book outlines how I approach
problems and how I go about trying to fix them.
Although there are exceptions to the examples
given, they should be useful even though they
won’t  always  apply.
4
This book is not aimed at the novice thrower.
To use the techniques in this book to their full
potential, you have to be able to throw consis-
tently enough that you know the problem with
be assumed here that you know how to adjust
for wind, power, elevation and layover to get
fairly good returns with your favorite boomer-
angs. Although it is helpful if you have tried
carving and tuning your own boomerangs, it is
not required to get good results. Nor is it re-
quired that you intend to use these techniques
to construct competition boomerangs. They
modifications are used. Hopefully, the tech-
niques here will help you get your boomerangs
to perform better or inspire you to get back out
in the shop and try some new things.
This book has specific sections on the various
types of competition boomerangs. The section
on long distance boomerangs was not in-
cluded in the first edition of this book. It is ad-
mittedly brief and less complete than other
sections. Their performance is so unlike other
types of boomerangs, I could not do them jus-
tice in the space provided. Besides, a great
book has already been written on them exclu-
sively (see Suggested Reading) and anything I
wrote would be just plagiarizing it.
Similarly, there are a number of other topics
usually covered in other boomerang books left
out of this book. These include history, theory
of the physics, construction basics, thrower
profiles, and specific plans. If you are inter-
ested in these subjects, there is a list of books
at the end of this book worth tracking down
A quick search on the internet will yield more
plans than could ever be included in a book.
What follows is what I think is the most com-
prehensive guide on maximizing the perform-
ance of boomerangs available. In this, the
second edition, additional tips and tricks have
been added that were missed in the first edi-
tion.      I’d  like  to  think  I  got  them  all  this  time.
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Safety
Any time you are throwing boomerangs, you
should take care to ensure the safety of those
around you. Boomerangs can be dangerous if
thrown carelessly or around others not aware
of where they are in the air. Do not assume
others know where your boomerangs are going
or are paying attention to you. Be aware of
your surroundings and any people who may be
walking near your throwing area. Wait to throw
until you are sure the area is clear. If a throw
does get too close to someone, loudly yell a
warning to duck.
A good general rule is to throw on a field with
at least 2 to 3 times the range of you boomer-
ang in every direction. If not possible, the bare
minimum for a field to use is 20 meters larger
that the range of your longest range boomer-
ang. If you were throwing a 50 meter boomer-
ang, you need to be at least 70 meters away
from anything you could hit .
Boomerangs should be painted bright colours
to make them easy to see - both in the air and
on the ground. Losing sight of a boomerang is
never fun. If it crashes, you want to be able to
know where to go looking for it to find it. If you
lose sight of it in the air, it can be quite unnerv-
ing to hear it whiz past you on the return.
Don’t’  take  your  eyes  off  a  boomerang  that  is  in   materials. Although more money than dis-
the air.
It is also good practice when throwing with oth-
ers to wait until other boomerangs have landed
or been caught before launching yours into the
air. Although some games such as suicide call
for everyone throwing at the same time, this
should be the exception and not the rule while
on the field.
Ordinary sunglasses offer protection in the
event of a catch that bounces off your hands
towards your face or from an errant throw.
This is particularly important when throwing
boomerangs such as fast catches which can
have more of a tendency to bounce off your
hands as you go for the catch. For this rea-
son, it is also wise to only attempt catches
when the boomerang is below head level.
5
Some throwers like to wear protective gloves
as well but this is a matter of preference and
not required safety equipment.
As well as the usual safety throwing rules, ex-
tra care should be taken when tuning boomer-
angs. The process of tuning can sometimes
yield unpredictable results – particularly when
you are at the beginning of the learning curve.
Tuning can potentially turn a poor performer
into either a great boomerang or a throw stick.
Make sure you leave even more room for mis-
takes than you would need if you were throw-
ing your favorite boomerangs. Remember,
with each change you make to a boomerang,
you can completely change the characteristics
of that boomerang. Keep this in mind particu-
larly if there are others in the area you are
throwing.
When carving some of the more exotic mate-
rials, protection from the dust is required. In
particular, extra care should be taken to en-
sure you do not breath the dust from materi-
als such as fiberglass or phenolics. They can
cause serious damage to your lungs if pre-
cautions are not taken. A HEPA rated dust
mask (good to 1 micron particle size) should
be used at all times when dealing with these
posable paper masks, they offer significantly
more protection. Safety glasses and hearing
protection should also be used any time
power tools are being used.
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Safety
After carving, it is a good idea to shower and One last safety consideration that should be
wash off any dust. Some dusts may cause obvious  is  to  make  sure  you  don’t  attach  any-­
irritation on the skin if not washed off. thing sharp or jagged to your boomerang.
Similarly, jagged edges should be rounded to
Additionally, precautions should be used prevent injury when catching.
when handling lead used for weighting boo-
merangs. Wash your hands after handling
and spray a sealer coat of paint or cover the
weight on the boomerang with tape. Avoid
melting lead or using power sanders which
could cover the area with lead dust.

Although good boomerangs can and have

been made out of aluminum, making metal
boomerangs should be avoided. Metal boo-
merangs can de-tune easily if they crash lead-
ing to unpredictable flights. Also, because of
their thinness and colour, unpainted metal
boomerangs seem to disappear against a
cloudy sky making tracking difficult to impossi-
ble. For these reasons, they are not allowed
in competition.

If spray painting your boomerangs, do it out-

side or in a well ventilated area. If you plan to
paint a number of boomerangs, it may be a
good idea to invest in an organic vapour
mask. Be aware that organic vapour masks
and HEPA masks are not interchangeable.
Using an organic vapour mask in a dusty envi-
ronment will not help to protect your lungs.
The same goes for using a HEPA mask in a
vapour rich environment like when you are
painting. Although you can get combination
masks that have cartridges for both, I recom-
mend using separate masks for the different
activities.

If you are dealing with epoxy either for repairs

or for laminating, be sure to wear protective
gloves and work in a well ventilated area.
This is another situation in which an organic
vapour mask can be beneficial, particularly if
you are dealing with it for an extended time
such as when laminating. Epoxy can become
an irritant with repeated exposure and it is
best to minimize contact with it if you can.

6
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Good Boomerangs, Great Boomerangs
To me, the difference between a good boomer-
ang and a great boomerang is one you like to
throw  or  one  you  don’t.    The  difference  can  be  
quite subtle. For some reason, the ones you
throw remind you of what attracted you to boo-
merangs in the first place - that uncanny ability
of a stick to return to your hand. The other
type may work OK but there is something un-
satisfying about them. They may require too
hard of a throw, not go far enough or not per-
form like you want them to. You may not even
be able to explain why you like one over an-
other.
To get a boomerang to be one of those that
you always tend to throw, there are a lot of fac-
tors. Looking good and feeling well crafted are
important, but unless it flies how you want it to,
you  are  unlikely  to  throw  it  regularly.    If  I  don’t   takes  practice  and  lots  of  patience.    Don’t  be
like  the  flight  or  don’t  enjoy  throwing  it,  I  am   dismayed  if  you  don’t  get  it  first  try.    If  you
more likely to either put it in a box or display it
for art than to throw it on a regular basis. My
most treasured boomerangs are the ones I al-
ways take with me out onto the field not those
that have excellent artwork or a fine finish.
The  boomerangs  that  don’t  get  taken  to  the  
field  are  not  bad  boomerangs,  it’s  more  that   Used properly, the tips and modifications pre-
they  don’t  match  my  throwing  style.    They  may   sented in this book can be used to fix most
just be slightly out of adjustment for my tastes.
To make boomerangs the ones you always
carry with you, you need to know how to adjust
them so that they match your throw.
It’s  not  possible  to  adjust  every  boomerang  to  
match every throwing style. Some designs
have an inherently smaller throwing window
than others. Most boomerangs, however, are
made to be suitable for a wide variety of throw-
ers. Many boomerangs that may not fly at their
maximum potential for you fly fine for someone
else.
Tuning and carving for performance is subtle
business but is not difficult to learn if you have
a good starting point. A lot will depend on your
throwing style and how particular you are
about your results. Most boomerangs require
at least some tweaking to get them flying right.
7
Sometimes even minor changes can have a
dramatic effect on the flight.
Although getting the best out of your boomer-
angs is very satisfying, it can also be very frus-
trating. Sometimes, what you do fixes the
problem on the first try but more often, you
struggle through it trying different variations.
Sometimes you feel you have tried everything
and are still not quite satisfied with the results.
There  is  always  a  challenge  that  hasn’t  been  
come  across  before  or  something  you  haven’t  
tried yet in your attempts to increase perform-
ance that little bit more. Approach each prob-
lem with an ideal flight in mind then strive to
get that flight.
Learning to adjust a boomerang to your throw
 
 
struggle for a long time on a particular prob-
lem, sometimes it is best to leave it alone for a
while and re-visit it a later time with a fresh
mind. Just like throwing, getting the perform-
ance you want gets easier with practice. The
more you do it, the better you get at it.
flight related problems. They are not a substi-
tute for poor design, poor craftsmanship, or
poor throwing technique. The tuning tips pre-
sented here are generally very effective when
working with proven designs.
Likewise,  these  tips  also  won’t  make  your  boo-­
merangs foolproof. You will still need to throw
them right to get good returns. In some in-
stances, an adjustment to your throw may be
required once the tuning modification has
been done.
Practice is the only way to get really good.
Get out there and do it and you will be a con-
tender.
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
General Design and Features of Boomerangs
Below is a diagram of the different parts of a
boomerang. For lefties, the boomerang is a
mirror image of the one below.
Elbow
Lead Arm
Dingle Arm
Center of gravity
Direction of rotation
One note about naming conventions. The
terms arms wings and blades are all inter-
changeable. Similarly, the dingle arm can also
be referred to as the trailing arm, the free arm,
or arm 2 while the lead arm can also be called
the lift arm, the throwing arm, or arm 1.
Rather than try to force boomerangs into cate-
gories such as omegas or hooks, instead lets
look at some key different design features.
Typical tips designs include: straight, tapered
out, tapered in, bulbous, flared (or swept) or a
combination of two or more of these features.
Bulbous and flared tips are used extensively to
enhance the performance of boomerangs.
They add extra surface area near the tip where
it has the most effect and also contributes to a
natural weighting that comes from having more
mass near the tips.
Two-bladers are generally considered anything
with two fairly distinct arms. This definition can
be fuzzy as on some boomerangs, the elbow
8
can act as a third blade. This is easiest to see
on boomerangs with a sharp V shaped elbow.
The below diagram shows the transition from a
tri-blader into a traditional shaped boomerang.
There are essentially five types of elbows
commonly seen on two-bladed boomerangs:
the V, the U, the flat-top, the keyhole, and the
1/2 blade extension.
Generally, tri-bladers or multi-bladers are de-
scribed by having neutral wings, offset back-
wards or forwards or swept forwards or back-
wards. In actuality, wings swept forward or
offset backwards actually are variations of the
same thing. The degree of sweep or offset
helps determine lay down rate. Swept forward
wings reduce the lay down rate whereas back
swept wings increase the lay down rate. For
this reason, it is commonly used when design-
ing multi-blade boomerangs for specific events
such as fast catch or trick catch.
Designs may be fairly symmetrical or not even
close. It is not uncommon for the blades to not
only be of different length but different shapes
as well. Multi-blader boomerangs with blades
of significantly different lengths or that are not
evenly spaced are generally referred to as
non-symmetric multi-bladers.
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
General Design and Features of Boomerangs
The relatively standard airfoil used on most
boomerangs is the semi crude airfoil. There
are many variations to the basic airfoil but most
boomerangs will work quite well if carved using
this airfoil. The leading edge is cut down ap-
proximately 1/3 -1/2 the material thickness.
The trailing edge is cut at a less acute angle
and down about 1/3 - 1/2 of the thickness of
the material.
Trailing edge Leading edge
Undercuts typically are understood to be cut
along the underside of the leading edge unless
otherwise specified (i.e. trailing edge under-
cuts) or when talking about long distance boo-
merangs when the undercut typically refers to
a trailing edge undercut.
Leading edge undercut
Other airfoil modifications will be covered in
later sections.
With the exception of MTAs, most boomerangs
are relatively flat. Any bending and twisting is
fairly subtle. The bends and twists that are
present however are a critical part of a good
flying boomerang. Most boomerangs will have
a slight amount of dihedral (the tips are higher
than the elbow) and a relatively neutral angle
of attack applied to each wing (angle at with
the airfoil meets oncoming wind). You can
check for dihedral and angle of attack by care-
fully referencing off a surface you know to be
flat such as a table top. Holding the elbow
down, you can tap the tips to see if they move
to identify dihedral. You can also sight down
the wings to identify any warps or curves.
The thickness of the boomerang depends
largely on the material it is made from as well
as the design. Wood boomerangs are typically
3 - 6 mm thick although there are some that
are up to about 8 mm. Plastics tend to be 3 - 4
mm thick and composites like phenolics and
GFEC run 1.5 - 4 mm.
9
The boomerang spins about an axis that
passes through the center of gravity. This
point is also known as the center of rotation.
The rotating boomerang can be thought to be
spinning in a single plane which is perpendicu-
lar to the axis of rotation. This is known as the
plane of rotation. Since boomerangs are typi-
cally fairly flat, the plane analogy works fairly
well. When there is significant warp, the wings
may be above or below the plane of rotation.
All these factors; airfoil shape, thickness,
chord length, overall design and small differ-
ences to angle of attack and the flatness of the
plane of rotation add up to give the lift gener-
ated by the airfoil and the drag trying to slow it
down. Both lift and drag are related to the
speed of the boomerang in terms of both for-
ward velocity and speed of rotation. They are
so interconnected, it is virtually impossible to
separate them.
Spin retention is controlled not only by the
drag but also by the weight distribution of the
boomerang which depends on design any
weights if present. For a dramatic demonstra-
tion of the effect of weight distribution, place
weights on a tri-blader near the center then
move them out towards the tips. When close
to the center, it will spin faster initially but
seem to slow down significantly. With weights
nearer the tips, the spin rate will not seem to
change very much at all over the course of the
flight.    The  weight  didn’t  change  but  the  weight  
distribution did.
The weight distribution also contributes to the
gyroscopic stability of a boomerang which im-
pacts the lay down rate. With the example
above, you will also notice a difference in how
quickly the centrally weighted tri-blader lays
down compared to the one with weights nearer
the tips.
The gyroscopic stability can also be seen as
well as how closely the plane of rotation of the
boomerang matches a flat disc and how much
of that disc the boomerang takes up. You have
no doubt seen wide angle traditional that al-
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

General Design and Features of Boomerangs

most seem to flutter during the hover while nar- The flight path itself can be almost circular or
row elbow V shapes with flared tips seem like more elliptical. At the extreme, it can even
a solid disc. The wide angle traditional has begin to look like a figure 8 however this is
relatively poor gyroscopic rarely a desirable flight path (except for in
stability as the design takes some cases when throwing a long distance
up a relatively small portion boomerang) as they are hard to catch.
of the disc that the spinning
boomerang traces out while
spinning (shaded area on the
figure to the right). The
sharper V shape boomerang
covers a larger portion of the
same disc even though the
tip to tip distance is the same Likewise, the elevation over the course of the
for both boomerangs. flight can range from relatively level the entire
flight to a gradual increase in height over the
The  last  effect  of  weight  distribution  is  the  “feel”   flight to a sweeping
of the boomerang when throwing. Some boo- flight where the boo-
merangs seem to pull themselves out of you merang gains height
hand and getting spin on them is easy. Oth- on the way out most
ers, not so much. All my favorite boomerangs dramatically near the
have an indescribable feel to their throw. apex of the flight, then
drops down again to
The flight of a boomerang starts at the launch. come in low.
The boomerang is thrown the right of the wind
for a right handed boomerang or to the left of The end of the flight ends with a hover stage
the wind for a left handed boomerang. The lay assuming the boomerang has laid down over
over of the throw, the power behind it, and the the course of the flight. The stability of the
elevation of the throw all depend on the boo- hover stage is often critical to how easy a boo-
merang and conditions. Generally, the more merang is to catch. Ideally, the hover should
spin you can put on it the better. Finding the be fairly straight down but it can also present
sweet spot for a given boomerang requires a itself by rocking side to side to varying de-
bit of trial and error until you get to know that grees or even the dreaded death spiral in ex-
boomerang. treme cases (neither of the last two being de-
sirable).
When the boomerang is initially in the air, it will
be travelling away from the thrower tilted off to
the side the same amount as the initial layover.
As the boomerangs starts to turn, it slowly be-
gins to lay down going from a roughly vertical
plane to a horizontal plane. How quickly the
boomerang lays down is known as the lay
down rate. Different lay down rates are desir-
able for different boomerangs. For a good fast
catch, the difference between the initial rotating
plane and the final one may be negligible. For
a sport boomerang, the final plane of rotation
may be fully horizontal.

10
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Materials
There are numerous materials to choose from
when making your own boomerangs. Just
about anything will work although the use of
metals is generally frowned on (metal boomer-
angs are not allowed in competition). Most
people choose to carve their boomerangs out
of sheet stock of different materials although
other methods are possible. Different materi-
als have their advantages and disadvantages.
The following describes some of the more
common materials used in boomerang con-
struction, and the applications to which they
are best suited. They are listed in order of in-
creasing density.
Wood
Wood is the material most people learn to
carve boomerangs with. It is stable, does not
require special tools to carve and is readily
available. If using power tools, it is recom-
mended to use a dust mask to avoid breathing
the dust. All wood boomerangs should be
sealed to prevent warping due to humidity
changes and to protect them from the ele-
ments.
Plywood is probably the most common mate-
rial used for making boomerangs. Aside from
being very stable, and easy to carve, the differ-
ent plies also act as a contour map of sorts
that allow you to track how much material you
have taken off which greatly aids in developing
consistent carving skills.
It is recommended to only use a good quality
plywood. Most regular big box store plywoods
have few layers and the inside layers are often
full of voids or of low quality. Generally, only
the outside plys are any good. Boomerangs
made of cheap plywood are very prone to
breaking. You are far better off to use one of
the better grades of plywood available.
It is generally accepted that birch plywood is
the best choice of all the different types of ply-
wood available. Marine mahogany, maple,
and plywoods made up of exotic veneers have
been used but generally only in special appli-
cations where looks are given high priority.
11
There are two types of birch plywood generally
used for making boomerangs: Baltic birch and
Finnish birch.
Baltic birch is readily available at better
stocked lumber stores. The 1/4 inch 5 ply is
excellent - particularly for sport boomerangs.
It is relatively inexpensive and is ideal for ex-
perimenting with. There tends to be the occa-
sional void which can make this material more
prone to breakage than higher grades of ply-
wood. For this reason, it is not typically used
for competition boomerangs. When tuning, it
is recommended to use heat (steam over a
kettle or about 10 seconds in the microwave).
Finnish birch on the other hand is suitable for
competition boomerangs. It is very high qual-
ity material and is often referred to as aircraft
grade. It usually has no voids to worry about.
Typically there are 2 plies per mm thickness.
The density is about 0.8 g/cm3 - slightly more
than that of Baltic birch plywood.
Finnish birch is available in several thick-
nesses suitable for boomerangs ranging from
2.0 - 6.0 mm. Thinner material is a good
choice for MTA while thicker material is great
for sport or aussie round boomerangs. Be-
cause of the density, you may need to weight
it to get extended ranges of over 40 meters.
Material 3.0 - 4.0 mm thick is ideal for trick
catch, fast catch, and accuracy boomerangs.
Unfortunately, suppliers of this material are
rare so it generally takes some looking around
to find it. Mail order is probably your only op-
tion unless you happen to live in a major cen-
ter which has a lumber store that carries it. It
is also expensive at over four times the price
of Baltic birch but if you are serious, it is worth
the extra cost and effort to track down.
Tuning can be done by gently bending on the
field and holding for few seconds or with heat
Thicker materials will need heat of some sort
to get any changes to the tune to stick.
Boomerangs can also be made of solid wood.
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Materials
Typically, solid wood boomerangs are a show-
case of craftsmanship and the woods used
themselves over performance. They typically
do not find much use in performance boomer-
angs although as with anything there are ex-
ceptions. Solid wood boomerangs can be di-
vided into three groups: Lap joints, strip lami-
nates and natural elbows.
Lap joint boomerangs generally showcase the
woods used to make them. Highly figured
woods are typical choices but any nicely
grained wood is a viable option. The building
technique is basically to join two boards using
a lap joint (hence the name) at the elbow.
Since the grain follows the length of the arms,
this gets around the inherent weakness that
would result if you used a single board to make
a boomerang. If the grain was reasonably
straight, a single board boomerangs would end
up with at least one of the arms having the
wood grain running across the chord of the
arm which is just asking for breaks.
An alternative is to build up plywood using ve-
neers. It can look quite stunning if contrasting
coloured woods are used. If they arranged so
that the veneers overlap at the elbow, it is of-
ten referred to as a feather lap.
Strip laminated boomerangs rely on thin strips
that follow the curve of the boomerang. The
strips may be veneers or be thicker steam bent
strips such as oak or ash. For visual appeal,
often more than one species of wood can be
used. Many classic hooks look particularly
good when made using this technique.
Natural elbows are boomerangs made from
bent branches and roots of trees that naturally
follow the shape of the boomerang. Makers
need to be particularly patient as it takes sig-
nificant time to find appropriate pieces of wood,
cut them, dry them, and to prepare them for
shaping. If care is not taken, the blanks can
warp to the extent that no amount of tuning
(short of steam bending it flat again), would
result in a flying boomerang.
12
Plastics
There are numerous plastics used in the con-
struction of boomerangs. Most used are typi-
cally 3.0 - 5.0 mm thick. Thinner material is
simply not rigid enough. The four most com-
mon plastics are polypropylene (PP), ABS,
Nylon and polycarbonate (lexan). Others such
as styrene, acrylic, PVC, and PET have also
been used but are not nearly as common. All
are excellent for making small multi-bladers for
competition events such as fast catch, accu-
racy, or trick catch. Typically they do not find
applications in MTAs or aussie round boomer-
angs. Most are relatively inexpensive and
readily available.
Plastics tend to be difficult to carve without
power tools. They have a tendency to melt
when cutting with a power saw and are very
hard on cutting blades. Cut slowly and use a
coarse blade for best results. Sanding will
generally leave a slightly furry or rough sur-
face. If you want a smooth surface, you may
have to resort to scraping with a small knife
held roughly perpendicular to the surface.
Polypropylene is the lightest of the plastics
typically used. It is slightly more dense than
wood (0.9 g/cm3) but will still float so makes
great boomerangs for use at the beach. You
may, however, need to add weights to get the
range you want. Bending and twisting is very
easy (except in the cold when polypropylene
has a tendency to shatter). Typically there is
no dust emitted when carving so you can
carve without the need of a dust mask. For
boomerang use, look for stress relieved poly-
propylene.
ABS is slightly heavier than polypropylene with
a density just over 1.0 g/cm3 (it  won’t  float).    It  
is most commonly used in 3 mm thickness. It
is more rigid but is still relatively easy to bend
and twist. ABS is easier to cut, grind and
shape than polypropylene. ABS is probably
the most common material for making fast
catch boomerangs. The fast catch world re-
cord was made with an ABS boomerang. ABS
makes excellent 30 meter relay and trick catch
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Materials
boomerangs.
Nylon is more dense than ABS (about 1.1
g/cm3) but not as stiff thus it is easier to tune.
If unprotected, nylon will soak up moisture so
unlike most other plastics, needs to be sealed
after carving. Nylon makes excellent trick
catch, accuracy, wind fast catch and 30 meter
relay boomerangs.
Polycarbonate is very tough and is difficult to
twist tune without heat. It is the most dense of
the commonly used plastics and is a great
choice for wind fast catch or accuracy boomer-
angs. Tri-bladers with ranges of 30 meters can
be made relatively easily with this material.
The density of polycarbonate is about 1.2
g/cm3.
Composites
Composites are typically a series of thin sheets
of reinforcing material bonded together using
an epoxy or phenolic resin. The combination
of the two materials yields mechanical proper-
ties superior to either component by itself.
Composites tend to be more expensive than
other plastics.
Composites tend to be very dense and power
tools are generally required for carving. Spe-
cial precautions must be taken to avoid breath-
ing the dust generated when carving compos-
ites. Use a minimum of a HEPA rated dust
mask if you carve these materials. A regular
paper filter dust mask is simply not sufficient.
Linen or canvas phenolic use woven cloth as
the inner matrix. It is very easy to twist tune
and very durable. However, it is difficult to get
a smooth finish. This is not necessarily a bad
thing - particularly for wind boomerangs that
require lots of drag. It is excellent for aussie
round boomerangs in 3.0 mm and for trick
catch boomerangs in 1.5 - 2.0 mm. It can be
used for MTAs in the thinner thicknesses but it
is not very stiff compared to other materials.
Density is about 1.3 g/cm3. The best grades
are CE (canvas) or LE (linen).
13
Paper phenolic (generally referred to as pax in
boomerang circles) is made from paper im-
pregnated with resin. It has numerous trade
names such as pax, paxoline, garolite, perti-
nax, bakelite, XX grade paper phenolic, and
hard paper. It is very stiff and fairly durable
although breaks may occur without warning -
particularly when twist tuning or if crashes oc-
cur. It finishes very well but should be sealed
after carving to protect it from the elements.
Like the plastics mentioned earlier, an excel-
lent finish can be achieved by scraping. The
density is typically about 1.4 g/cm3. It is excel-
lent for aussie round and distance boomer-
angs in 3.0 - 4.0 mm. In thinner thicknesses
(1.5 - 2.0 mm), it is excellent for trick catches
and wind MTAs.
GFEC is a fiberglass composite that uses ep-
oxy as the binder material. G10 is probably the
most popular grade. Other grades such as
G11 are sometimes used although generally
only in distance boomerangs. Boomerangs
with relatively short chord lengths are easily
twist tuned. The density of GFEC is 1.7 -1.8
g/cm3. GFEC is virtually unbreakable although
repeated tuning may result in loss of stiffness
and cause the boomerang to loose its tune
easily. GFEC is fantastic for aussie round
boomerangs in thicknesses of 2.0 - 3.0 mm. It
is also excellent for trick catch boomerangs in
thicknesses of 1.5 - 2.0 mm. It tends to be too
heavy to find use in MTA boomerangs.
Carbon fiber is the most expensive and most
exotic of the composites. Like GFEC, it also
typically uses epoxy as the binder matrix.
Sheet stock of carbon fiber is incredibly stiff
and usually reserved only for distance boo-
merangs although other boomerangs have
been made with it as well. It is difficult but not
impossible to twist tune. Generally heat is re-
quired if adjustments to the tune are required.
More common is to actually carve tune. Den-
sity in sheet stock is about 1.5 -1.8 g/cm3.
Carbon fiber is one of the most striking of all
materials due to its iridescent appearance.
Some people actually make up their own com-
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Materials
posites for boomerangs. It is not that hard to
laminate multiple layers of paper, cotton, silk,
fiberglass, carbon fiber or even aramid (Kevlar)
fabric with epoxy to make up your own, custom
thickness sheet stock. Some even mix and
match the fabrics to take advantage of the
properties of each.

A variation of this finds use with numerous

makers who have made high performance
MTAs. They make an incredibly light but still
stiff boomerang by wrapping a carbon fiber
skin over a very lightweight core. More details
of this technique are included in the MTA sec-
tion.

14
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Introduction to Tuning—The Tuning Model
The following pages outline generic tips for
tuning. As with any generic tips, they will typi-
cally give good results. There are exceptions
to any rules but they will give you a good place
to start when deciding how to fix a problem.
These tips will work for most sport and aussie
round boomerangs. With minor variations and
key ideas applied, they are also very useful for
more specific types of boomerangs.
When tuning a boomerang, you are after a bal-
ance of the forces acting on the wings. Think
of each adjustment as a step toward balancing
these forces. If the lift of one wing is out of bal-
ance with the other, you need to take steps to
re-achieve the balance otherwise it will ad-
versely affect the flight. For instance if your
boomerang has too much lift on the lead arm,
you could regain the balance and fix it by either
increasing the lift on the dingle arm to match
the lead arm, or decrease the lift on the lead
arm to match that of the dingle arm.
Imbalances can be identified by the flight be-
havior of the boomerang. With practice, you
will develop an eye for these behaviors and be
able to identify problems based on how a boo-
merang flies. Once you think you know the
problem, you can take appropriate action to
correct it.
Many modifications, although seemingly unre-
lated are in fact just variations of the same
thing. By thinking of each adjustment as a way
of balancing the forces on your boomerang,
you can use what you know to try other modifi-
cations to get the same effect.
The right combination of adjustments is often
found by a mix of experience, trial and error,
and educated guesses. Multiple adjustments
may be required to find the flight you are after.
In any given situation, it is possible that a vari-
ety of combinations of modifications will give
satisfactory results but one combination might
be a bit better than others. Learn from your
mistakes and develop your eye for how to get
the performance you want.
15
There are four changes you can make to your
boomerang that you need to worry about –
dihedral, lift, drag, and weight distribution. Al-
though seemingly unrelated, they in fact sig-
nificantly overlap in their effects and can at
least partially be thought of as just variations
of the same thing. Because of this, you can
often pick which one you want to use and still
get the same effect.
These four parameters are variations of the
same thing and are so intricately connected, it
is often impossible to change one without in-
advertently changing one or more of the oth-
ers. This can happen despite efforts to not
change more than one parameter at a time.
For this reason, be wary that things are not
always as they seem. The modification that
you expect to work may not actually be what
you  end  up  using.    If  an  adjustment  didn’t  have  
the desired effect, re-examine the flight and try
reversing what you did. The problem may be
somewhere  where  you  didn’t  originally  expect  
it, be a bit more subtle than you expected, or
be the result of unavoidable interconnections
of the effects.
Suppose you are throwing a boomerang with
dramatically forward swept wings and it
crashes into the ground partway around. Your
first inclination might be to add some positive
dihedral to increase the height of the flight but
this seems to make it worse. However, when
you add negative dihedral the problem goes
away.    This  doesn’t  make  sense  until  you  no-­
tice that when you add negative dihedral to a
forward  swept  wing,  you  can’t  help  but  also  
give it positive angle of attack at the same
time! The increased lift that results from addi-
tional positive angle of attack is what in-
creases the likelihood of a full return.
Unfortunately,  since  you  can’t  measure  the  
forces at work directly, you have no way of
telling if a boomerang is in balance with itself
by just looking at it. To determine if an altera-
tion  to  your  boomerang  will  improve  it’s  flight,  
you need to throw it, make an adjustment and
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Introduction to Tuning—The Tuning Model
throw it again. If you see an improvement, you
did something right. You can make another
adjustment to see if you can make the flight
even better. If it got worse, you can either re-
verse what you did or try a different approach.
However, unless a clear method is used to
solve the problem, tuning would still be a
daunting task. Random changes would make
progress slow. What is needed is a model to
use as a guide for making modifications.
The tuning model used here is just such a
guide. Others use a similar approach only for
dihedral adjustments but I have found it works
for almost all modifications. It works on two-
bladers, tri-bladers, both competition and sport
boomerangs. It can even be applied to quads
but  it  isn’t  quite  as  reliable  as  I’d  like  (however   like but be consistent to avoid having problems
if you can tune a tri-blader, chances are you
can handle a quad with minimal difficulty). It is
invaluable when figuring out how to approach a
tuning  problem.    It’s  not  100%  perfect  but  is   you need to be able to determine where along
generally a great place to start.
In essence, the basis of this tuning method is
to superimpose the flight of the boomerang
over the boomerang itself to help you figure out
how to fix a problem. It is assumed that
changes made at the corresponding spot on
the boomerang translate into changes in the
flight during that portion of the flight. This
seems  like  it’s  too  simple  to  actually  work  but  it   on the way back are generally fixed by adjust-
does. All modifications presented in this book
will use this model as a reference point.
For two-bladers, the lead arm corresponds to
the first part of the flight (the way out). The
dingle arm corre- Dingle arm Lead arm
sponds to the second Return Outbound
part of the flight (the
way back). The elbow
represents the point of
the flight when the
boomerang is furthest
from you.
On a tri-blader, you have to use your imagina-
tion a bit more. If you cover up one arm, you
16
can imagine that you are left with a two-blader
boomerang. Treat it like one and apply the
same idea we did for
the two-blader above to
the tri-blader. Assign
one arm as the lead
arm and the other “Dingle”  arm   “Lead”  arm                                          
as the dingle arm. Return Outbound
For best results
leave one arm (the
“elbow  arm”)  com-­
pletely neutral.
It is recommended to mark the arms on tri-
bladers with a pen (i.e. L for lead, D for dingle)
to avoid confusion in the event that additional
changes are required during another throwing
session. Use whatever labeling system you
later on.
To be able to use this tuning model effectively,
the flight path you want the change to happen.
This will give you a starting point for any
changes you make.
For problems that originate on the outward
path, changes to the lead arm are usually
made. Things that happen on the way out are
the initial turn, gain of elevation on the outgo-
ing path, and the outward range. Problems
ments to the dingle arm. Things that can be
attributed to the dingle arm include gain of ele-
vation on the way back, accuracy of the return,
how quickly the boomerang cuts in on the way
back and hover. For instance, if your boomer-
ang flies too low immediately after it is thrown
(on the way out), an adjustment to make it fly
higher on the lead arm should be made.
It is wise to make adjustments in a series of
small steps rather than one big one. Test
throw your boomerang after every adjustment
to make sure you are on the right track. Any
subsequent changes you make should be
based  on  the  results  of  that  throw.    If  you  didn’t  
get the magnitude of effect you were after,
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Introduction to Tuning—The Tuning Model
make additional adjustments over a few steps.
Small adjustments reduce the risk of break-
ages and it is easier to backtrack in the event
that you chose the wrong adjustment. If ad-
justments do not yield the expected results or if
you go too far, it is easier to reverse the
change back where you started.
It is also wise to focus on trying to change only
one characteristic of the flight at a time. In the
above example, adjust for height of the flight in
small steps until it is flying right. Once the
height problem has been fixed, work on range,
accuracy, or some other aspect you feel needs
work.
As well as focusing on fixing only one problem
with the flight at a time, try to only make one
adjustment at a time. Making multiple adjust-
ments at the same time (such as adjusting
both dihedral and angle of attack at the same
time or adjusting dihedral on both arms) may
lead to confusion over which adjustment had
what effect on the flight. If additional adjust-
ments are required, it may not be clear what
needs to be done. This can be particularly
frustrating  if  things  don’t  go  as  expected  - it
may be nearly impossible to backtrack to your
original performance.
You can often resolve a problem and get the
same end result using more than one ap-
proach. As mentioned earlier, balance can be
achieved by either adjusting the lead arm to
match the dingle arm or adjusting the dingle
arm to match the lead arm. Your choice will
depend on your expectations and how you
view the problem. Be prepared to look at
problems from different points of view to find
the one that works best for you.
For example, lets look at a
boomerang that is landing in
front of you on the return.
You have tried altering your
throw but you are convinced
that the tune needs to be al-
tered.
17
The tuning model would indicate that balance
could be restored by an adjustment to the din-
gle arm since the problem happens in the re-
turn portion of the flight. It is suspected that
too much lift on the dingle arm
is causing it to cut in too fast.
A reduction of the lift on the
dingle arm would make it so
that the boomerang would not
cut back in as quickly and
would thus improve the accu-
racy.
However, an equally valid approach would be
to look at this as a range problem. The reason
it is not making it all the way
back is that it is going too far
out initially. In this case, the
tuning model would suggest
an increase in lift on the lead
arm would reduce the range
and fix the accuracy problem
as well.
Now that we have a bit of an idea on how to
use the tuning model, we will move on to spe-
cific modifications you can use. The modifica-
tions you can make are separated into three
categories – bending and twisting, add-ons,
and airfoil modifications. Each of these is de-
scribed in their own section with specific tips
on how to apply them.
Note that the pictures used to describe airfoils,
modifications, and flights are often exagger-
ated for clarity and may not be to scale.
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Bending and Twisting
Bending and twisting offers the advantage that
the outward appearance of your boomerang is
unchanged. Unlike other modifications, you
can’t  tell  what  was  done  without  either  throw-­
ing the boomerang or making very precise
measurements.
When learning how to bend and twist, it is rec-
ommended to hone your tuning skills using a
plastic boomerang (polypropylene or ABS).
Once you have the basics down, move onto
other materials.
Plastics lend themselves to bend and twist
tuning as they are relatively pliable and not
very likely to break. When bending or twisting
plastic, simply bend past where you want it
and release it immediately. If you need more
bend , repeat the procedure.
Linen phenolics and GFEC are tuned in the
same way. Paper phenolic typically needs to
be tuned in smaller steps. Heat may be re-
quired to prevent breaks.
Wood is a bit trickier. On the field adjustments
can be made by twisting slightly past where
you want as with plastic and holding it in that
position for a few seconds rather than releas-
ing right away. For more dramatic changes,
heating over a steam kettle or microwaving
may be required to get the tune to stick.
The two variations of bending and twisting are
dihedral and angle of attack (AOA).
Dihedral
Dihedral is how much flex the arm has in it.
Most boomerangs are not perfectly flat but are
actually slightly dish shaped. Positive dihedral
is defined as the tips being bent slightly up.
Negative dihedral (or anhedral) is just the op-
posite and represents when the arms are bent
slightly down.
Positive dihedral Negative dihedral
18
Usually the flex is applied in a gentle curve
over the length of the arm starting at about the
mid-point of the arm however may be concen-
trated near the
tips in certain
applications.
Dihedral can also be applied in steps although
this is more rare. To apply it in steps would
likely require either a very flexible material or
heat to avoid breaking.
To get an idea for the amount of dihedral pre-
sent, place your boomerang on a flat surface
and hold the elbow down. By tapping the tips,
you should be able to determine how much
they are up off the surface of the table. If light
tapping does not result in a clicking sound, try
flipping the boomerang over and tap again.
You can also sight down the wing looking from
the elbow to the tip for a gentle curve however
this can be tricky if the wings are not straight.
Dihedral affects the height of the flight. When
the tips are bent up, they are above the plane
of rotation around the center of gravity. As a
result, the force generated off the airfoil is an-
gled such that the produced flight is higher.
With negative dihedral, the tips are below the
plane of rotation and a lower flight results.
Most sport and aussie round boomerangs
work well when relatively flat. A small amount
of positive dihedral (1 - 2 mm) is usually a
good thing to help get good returns and im-
prove hover at the end of the flight. Some
specialized boomerangs such as trick catches
and MTAs may require significantly more dihe-
dral (some MTAs may have 10 mm or more of
dihedral) to achieve the height needed for a
proper flight. Other boomerangs such as fast
catches typically need a bit of negative dihe-
dral to ensure they have a low flight path.
How To Use Dihedral
Dihedral is adjusted to control the height of the
flight. If a boomerang flies too high or scoops
up somewhere along the flight, it has too much
positive dihedral. If it flies too low, it needs
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Bending and Twisting
more  dihedral  so  that  it’s  not  crashing  on  the   the leading edge and the trailing edge are
way around. Some positive dihedral will also
often help stabilize the hover at the end of the
flight. Additionally, small increases in dihedral
will sometimes dramatically reduce the power
required to throw a given boomerang.
Using the tuning model as a starting point, if
your boomerang immediately climbs too high,
it is fairly safe to conclude that since it hap-
pened on the outward part of the flight, there is
probably too much dihedral in the lead arm.
Bend it down a bit to get it to fly lower. If, on
the other hand, it crashed right away, bend the
lead arm up a bit to keep it in the air.
Similarly, adjust the dingle arm if the height of
the flight needs to be adjusted on the return.
Generally, it is best to adjust the boomerang so
that there are no extreme height variations
over the flight. If you are after a high flight, ad-
just the boomerang so that the height is gained
in a smooth arc – not a dramatic swoop at any
point. A smooth arc implies relatively good
balance between the two wings.
Dihedral also helps with the hover at the end of
the flight. Minimal dihedral will result in a mini-
mal hover. More dihedral will generally result
in more hover. Too much dihedral however,
will result in an unstable, unpredictable hover,
spiraling in the hover or can cause S-ing out at
the end of the flight. Drag can have a big effect
on how much dihedral a boomerang can han-
dle
Angle of Attack (AOA)
Angle of attack refers to the angle at which the
airfoil enters the air to produce lift. Positive
angle of attack is when the leading edge of the
airfoil is higher than the trailing edge (on right
handed boomerangs this is counterclockwise).
Negative angle of attack is when the trailing
edge is higher. Neutral angle of attack is when
Positive angle of attack Negative angle of attack
19
even with respect to one another.
Angle of attack is difficult to determine visually.
You can sometimes see variations by sighting
down the arm from the tip to the elbow looking
for any twist. More often, analysis of the flight
is your only option.
Angle of attack affects the lift of the arm it is
applied to. More positive angle of attack will
increase the lift. Negative angle of attack will
reduce the lift. Angle of attack can also affect
the lay down rate. Positive angle of attack will
increase the speed at which a boomerang lays
down over the course of its flight.
Too much positive angle of attack will result in
excess drag and cause the boomerang to run
out of spin before it ends its flight or cause so
much drag that the boomerang has trouble
making a full return. Negative angle of attack
can help with spin retention although too much
can reduce the lift such that full returns are not
possible.
If too much angle of attack is applied (either
positive or negative), you can reach a point
where the amount of drag overwhelms the lift.
As a result, most boomerangs work well with
fairly neutral angle of attack. Generally only
minor adjustments are required. Exceptions
are fast catch boomerangs and MTAs where
significant angle of attack adjustments are
common to achieve the optimal flight.
Angle of attack is adjusted by twisting the arm
of the boomerang. To adjust the angle of at-
tack, grab the tip and just below the elbow and
twist the direction you want. Positive angle of
attack on a right handed boomerang is added
by twisting the tip counterclockwise. To add
negative angle of attack, twist the tip clock-
wise. Small adjustments usually go a long
ways. Extreme changes are usually not re-
quired.
How To Use Angle of Attack
With angle of attack, a little goes a long way.
Positive angle of attack will create more lift
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Bending and Twisting

(unless you overdo it in which case you create
too much drag to maintain spin) and cause the
boomerang to lay down slightly quicker. Nega-
tive angle of attack will decrease lift, may in-
crease spin and will slightly delay the lay down
rate making the boomerang stay vertical
longer.
Extending the range will often make the boo-
merang land in front of you. Additional adjust-
ments to the dingle arm would be required.
Finding the right balance requires patience
and practice.

Increases to the amount of lift will tighten the

curve of the circle the boomerang makes. De-
creasing the amount of lift will increase the size
of the curve.

From the tuning model, we know that changes

in lift made to the lead arm affect range (the
way out). If you wanted to get another couple
of meters of range out of your boomerang, the
tuning model would indicate that an adjustment
to the lead arm is required as the range is de-
pendent on the outbound path. To extend the
range, the tightness of the curve of the out-
bound path needs to be extended. This can be
achieved by reducing the lift of the lead arm. A
slight twist of negative angle of attack into the
lead arm will give it to you. Similarly, if it is go-
ing too far, a bit of positive angle of attack will
tighten up the flight path a bit.

The dingle arm works in a similar way. If your

boomerang is cutting in front of you, some
negative angle of attack on the dingle arm may
allow it to come all the way back. The tight-
ness of the circle can be expanded to correct
for the boomerang cutting in too fast. If it is not
cutting in fast enough, a bit of positive angle of
attack will fix it. Positive angle of attack on the
dingle arm will also reduce the lay down rate.
Too much negative angle of attack on the din-
gle arm may result in the boomerang S-ing out
or having a figure eight flight path.

It is also important to note that changes to one

arm will invariably affect the other and may re-
sult in additional adjustments being required. If
you are making adjustments to range, you will
likely to also have to make adjustments to ac-
curacy once the range has been established.
It is often impossible to adjust the range with-
out having some effect on the overall return.

20
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Add-Ons
Add-ons are things you attach to your boomer-
ang to modify its flight. These can include vari-
ous items to modify drag of the boomerang or
to alter the weight distribution of the boomer-
ang. They can generally be easily removed to
get you back to the original performance or re-
positioned for a new or enhanced effect.
Because they are so easy to experiment with
without permanently altering your boomerang,
add-ons are probably the easiest and most effi-
cient way to learn how to tune a boomerang.
They are quick to apply, quick to adjust, and
easy to remove to restore the original perform-
ance  if  things  don’t  go  the  way  you  expect.  
Add-ons are an ideal starting point for many in
the quest to learn how to tune a boomerang.
You can experiment quickly without fear of ru-
ining a good boomerang. You have instant
feedback for whatever modification you tried
and feedback for how minor adjustments affect
the flight. They also give a visual cue as to
what you did to the boomerang since they are
fairly obvious. Each adjustment takes less
than a couple of seconds and is easy to keep
track of what you did. Add-ons are also the
preferred method for on the field adjustments.
What you learn using add-ons can be applied
to help you learn how to do other adjustments
as well. If an add-on fixes a flight problem, any
modification that has a similar effect should
have a similar result. By making connections
between the similarities of add-ons and other
possible modifications, you can expand you
knowledge into other tuning techniques rapidly.
Unfortunately, most add-ons deter from the
overall appearance of the boomerang. Simply
put, they cover up the paint job the maker
spent time getting to look nice. However, if
you are after performance or are interested in
competition, you need to be able to understand
how to take advantage of add-ons.
There are only two types of add-ons routinely
used. These are drag modifiers and weights.
21
Drag Modifiers
Drag modifiers are used to make adjustments
to lift, the hover, and the overall accuracy of
the return. It is also likely the most common
method used for dealing with excessive wind.
Drag typically reduces the lift of the arm onto
which it is applied. This has the similar effect
as adding negative angle of attack to that arm.
However, when adjusting the lift using angle of
attack, we had the option of increasing or de-
creasing the lift of a wing to get it into balance
with the other wing. With drag, you only have
the option of reducing the lift.
Using the example in which the dingle arm has
too much lift relative to the lead arm, a similar
effect could be seen by adding positive angle
of attack to the lead arm or adding negative
angle of attack to the dingle arm. Both can
bring the balance back. However, when using
drag, only drag added to the dingle arm would
be effective.
The amount of drag added is directly related to
the destructive effect on the lift and thus the
flight. The amount of drag can be controlled
by the size of the object used to create the
drag and by its placement on the boomerang.
The position where
the drag is placed
has a significant ef-
fect on the magni-
tude of the effect on
lift realized. Posi-
tioning the drag near
the tips will maximize
the effect it has on
lift. Moving it closer to Close to tip Far from tip
the center of rotation Large effect Small effect
will reduce the effect.
The effect of position is due to how much air
the drag disrupts as the boomerang rotates.
Near the center of rotation, the drag does not
pass through as much air as if the drag were
closer to the tips. Since the drag does not
pass through as much air, it has a less de-
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Add-Ons
structive effect on the lift. situations, additional rubber bands may be
added until you get the effect you are after.
Similarly, the size of Rubber bands are also among the quickest
the object used to adjustments you can make to a boomerang.
create drag has an They are so fast that it is even possible to
effect on the drag make adjustments when throwing under time
and thus the effect pressure such as in the middle of a fast catch
on the flight. For round.
fairly obvious rea-
sons, a large flap or For extra drag, another option to just adding
rubber band will cre- more rubber bands is
ate more drag than a Large add-on Small add-on to thread another rub-
small one. Large effect Small effect ber band under the
original rubber band
As you might guess, playing with both location and allowed it to hang
and size of the drag allows complete control out into space. Place-
over how much drag is added for a given appli- ment can be either on
cation. A small flap near the tips may offer the the top of the airfoil, on
same effect on the flight of the boomerang as a the bottom, or hanging
larger flap near the center of gravity. The re- off the trailing edge.
sulting drag is the same in both scenarios.
You can add a tiny bit of drag or a huge Another rubber band
amount quickly and easily and adjust either for alternative is to thread
ideal placement. a rubber band through
a small hole and letting
Your most common choices for drag are non- it hang out into space
destructive, on either side.
easily mov-
able meth- Wrapping entire sections with athletic tape is
ods such as sometimes used when the drag
rubber is required over a large area.
bands, Vel- This technique is not used very
cro, and extensively because of the diffi-
flaps. culty in changing the position of
an area wrapped in tape.
Other options are to Sometimes this technique is
wrap large sections forced into use by the need to
with athletic tape or cover an area repaired or by the
use turbulators (also repair itself.
known as turbs) but
these methods are Attaching adhesive Velcro dots (1/2 inch di-
comparatively rare. ameter) to your boomerang is ex-
cellent if you want to add lots of
My favorite form of drag is rubber bands be- drag. Either side of the Velcro will
cause they are so simple and easy to re- work (the fuzzy stuff or the small
position. Just wrap them around the blade you hook side). Because of the mag-
think requires a bit of drag. They are easily nitude of the drag caused by Vel-
rolled up or down the wing to find the proper cro, they tend to only be used
position. For added effect in more extreme nearer to the center of gravity

22
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Add-Ons
where the effect is not as strong or for wind
applications. Velcro dots can be placed either
on top of the airfoil, on the bottom, or even
around the leading edge for different effects.
For a smaller effect, a small piece of sandpa-
per may be used as a substitute for the Velcro
dot. The sandpaper can also be used to help
with grip if throwing in wet conditions if put
near the tip of the throwing arm.
Flaps are another common add-on. They work
great but some people feel they are more
prone to change than other approaches (they
can lay down or change shape if crushed) al-
though typically, this is not a significant prob-
lem. Flaps can be made using any kind of
tape available (athletic, duct, electrical, etc).
Flaps have the same advantage as Velcro in
that they can be placed either on the top or
bottom of
the wing,
or on the
leading or
trailing
edge to
achieve
additional
effects.
A relatively new way of dealing with wind is the
use of turbulators. Turbulators are small strips
of tape or stickers attached to the boomerang.
The strips are generally about 2 - 3 inches long
and about 1/8 inch wide. They may be straight
or zigzag (cut with pinking shears). Although
only the thickness of a piece of paper, they can
have a surprisingly large effect on the flight of
a boomerang. Typically they are
positioned parallel to the leading
edge about 1/4 inch from the edge
but other locations are possible
too. Turbulators are most often
found on MTAs but they may have
potential applications for other
types of boomerangs as well.
Generally, it is felt that turbulators create a
small boundary layer of air that sticks to the
23
surface of the boomerang similar to the dim-
ples on a golf ball. There is some debate as to
whether turbulators add drag or reduce drag.
Either way, the end result is a localized area
where the drag is modified from adjoining ar-
eas. It is simply another variation of the same
idea.
There are more permanent ways of adding
drag to your boomerang but these will be dealt
with under the airfoil modifications section.
How To Use Drag Modifiers
Drag modifiers are very straight forward to
use. In a nutshell, if you add drag and the ef-
fect is not as great as you wanted, move it
closer to the tips. If the effect of the drag was
too much, move it closer to the center of grav-
ity. Small adjustments in the placement of the
drag can have a great effect on the return of
your boomerang.
To take advantage of drag for accuracy of the
return, throw so that the boomerang is coming
directly for you at the end of the flight. De-
pending on where you place the drag, you can
control where it stops or as some people refer
to  it  “put  on  the  brakes”.    If  it  lands  or  sets  up  
into the hover in front of you, you can pull it
back a bit by adding drag on the dingle arm.
Adjust the location of the drag up or down the
arm until it pulls the boomerang back to you. If
it blows past you, move it closer to the center
of gravity. If it is still in front of you, try moving
it closer to the tip. If on the other hand the
boomerang starts out landing behind you, try
putting the drag on the lead arm. Adjust the
location to find the sweet spot where your boo-
merang is landing right in your hands.
Flaps made with tape have a bit of an advan-
tage over other forms of drag such as rubber
bands. Since they can be put either on top, on
bottom, around the leading edge or around the
trailing edge of the airfoil, additional effects
can be achieved. Used properly, they can be
used to adjust the height of the flight (similar to
dihedral), range, or just the lift. The following
diagram shows how placement on the airfoil
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Add-Ons
affects your flight. center has a similar
effect. However, the
hole has to be small
enough for the rubber
More drag More drag band not to fall out and
Flies lower May fly higher
keeping it where you
want it is sometimes a
problem.
More drag More drag
May fly higher Flies lower A flap or Velcro dot in the center on the bottom
seems to help make trick catches float better
and reduces rocking. Placed on top, they
have a similar effect although they speed up
More drag More drag the rate of decent rather than slow it down.
More range Less range

Velcro dots can be used for similar effects but

are not as effective for adjusting the range.
Put on top of the airfoil or around
the leading edge, they tend to
lower the flight. On the bottom,
they seem to help increase the
height of the flight. Velcro is also
very effective at slowing down a In wind, drag is your best friend. Drag can
boomerang that is coming in too make normally unmanageable winds tolerable
fast to catch. and will let you throw in higher winds without
fear of being blown away. In very windy condi-
Multi-bladers need a bit of special attention tions, the best boomerangs often have numer-
when it comes to drag. Drag near the tips can ous flaps and rubber bands on them. Add on
help slow the spin and make catching easier. more as conditions get more extreme. When
Drag in the center section of a tri-blader will the wind is up, a bit of drag will do wonders.
often help resolve unpredictable hovers and
will slow the forward Weights
momentum near the Like drag and bending and twisting, weights
end of the flight. This can also be used to adjust the flight. Weight-
can be particularly ing can be used to increase range, to improve
useful for trick catch wind resistance, adjust for height, and adjust
boomerangs to help for accuracy. It is particularly useful when try-
stabilize the hover. A ing to adjust difficult to twist tune boomerangs
rubber band wrapped such as those made out of thicker composites
around the center sec- such as 4 mm paper phenolic.
tion will only slow for-
ward motion and help When most people think of weighting, it is usu-
stabilize rocking hov- ally to take advantage of the extra momentum
ers. It has minimal ef- the boomerang gets when a weight is added.
fect on the rate of de- This extra momentum is generally used to in-
scent. crease the range. Unfortunately, the tuning
model  doesn’t  incorporate  the  direct  effect  of  
Threading a rubber band through a hole in the more mass on the performance of the boomer-

24
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Add-Ons
ang. However, weights affect the characteris-
tics of boomerangs in more subtle ways than
just increasing the overall momentum of the
boomerang and these effects can be related
back to the tuning model.
In addition to the additional overall momentum,
weights shift the center of gravity around which
the boomerang rotates. A weight on one arm
will shift the center of gravity such that the effi-
ciency of that arm is reduced and the efficiency
of the other arm is increased. The weighted
wing does not follow an arc as big as before
the weight was added and thus it is moving
slower through the air over a single rotation.
Since it is moving slower, the airfoil on the
weighted arm generates less lift. The other
arm follows a larger arc and is thus moving
faster. The lift generated on the non-weighted
arm is actually increased. The end result is
similar to the effect of adding positive angle of
attack to the unweighted arm or negative angle
of attack or drag to the weighted wing.
When the weight is put either on top of the
wing or on the bottom, an additional effect can
be realized. When attached to the surface of
the wing, the center of gravity not only shifts
towards the wing on which it was placed but
also shifts out of its original plane. This shift
creates a wobble in the actual plane of rota-
tion. This wobble can be such that the relation
of the tips may be above or below the actual
center of gravity. This results in an effective
change in angle of attack and effective dihedral
on the wings which affects the height of the
flight. This has a similar effect as adjusting
dihedral and adjusting the angle of attack and
can result in an overall effect of a higher or
lower flight.
25
To permanently attach a weight to your boo-
merang the weight is generally imbedded into
the wing. A hole is drilled at
an appropriate place and a
weight is inserted.
The most common weights permanently at-
tached to boomerangs are generally either
brass or lead although coins are sometimes
used as well. Typical, lead weights range in
size from 1/4 – 3/8 inch in diameter although
larger sizes can be seen for certain applica-
tions. Brass weights are typically approxi-
mately 3/8 inch in diameter.
To insert a brass weight, cut a short section of
brass rod slightly longer than the thickness of
the material it is to be inserted into. The rod is
inserted into a hole and glued in place with
epoxy. The ends are then filed or sanded
level with the surface of the airfoil.
The same method can be
used with a lead weight but
instead of gluing the weight
in, the weight can be set in
place with a couple of gentle
taps with a hammer.
However, when filed or sanded to a level sur-
face, lead may cause a black smear - particu-
larly if the weight is inserted into wood. Lead
weights are best cut to very close to the right
size, and put into a slightly oversized hole.
For a bit of extra holding power to keep the
lead weight from falling out or becoming loose
after a long periods of use, two different tech-
niques for locking in the weight are sometimes
used. A hole can either be drilled partway
through the material then flipped over and
drilled though from the other side. A small
ridge on the inside of the hole is created which
holds onto the weight a bit
better than a flat surface.
Another method is to either drill small holes in
the sides of the hole or to machine a small
groove into the side of the hole using a small
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Add-Ons
rotary tool. When pounded into the hole, the
lead will form itself into the
groove and never fall out.
For a particularly professional looking weight,
use round lead shot. Drill a blind hole (only
partway though the thickness of the material)
then insert the lead ball into the hole and tap
lightly to set the weight. If the hole is drilled to
the right depth, when the ball is tapped into
place, it will be level with the surface. Drilling
the hole to the right depth can easily be done
with a drill press and do-
ing a few test runs on a
scrap piece of material.
When using lead, be sure to tape over or paint
over the weight so that the lead does not di-
rectly contact your skin when throwing or
catching. Be sure to wash your hands after
handling lead. Lead is an known toxin and it is
best to minimize contact with it.
Inlaying coins is done by drilling an appropriate
sized blind hole but in this case, gluing the
weight in rather than tapping it into place as
with lead. Try to drill the hole so that no filing
or sanding is required to get a flush fit as that
would ruin the novelty effect of using a coin.
To temporarily attach a weight to the boomer-
ang, just use tape and stick them on. This
method can be ugly but will work just as well
as permanently imbedded weights. Taping on
weights has the advantage that they can be re-
positioned to find optimum placement if you
don’t  get  it  right  the  first  time.      It  tends  to  also  
add drag and can affect the lift because the
shape of the airfoil is modified where the
weight is taped on. However, the effect of the
change in drag and lift are relatively small com-
pared to the effect of shifting the weight distri-
bution.
Typical objects to be taped on include coins or
small pieces of lead. A pocket full of coins of-
fers a number of readily available weight incre-
ment options. Use pennies or dimes for minor
adjustments and nickels or quarters for larger
26
adjustments.
Lead tape available from some sports stores
for adjusting golf clubs is also used for minor
adjustments. It allows for smaller additions of
weight with less risk of modifying drag or the
shape of the airfoil. As when dealing with
other lead weights, tape over the weight to
minimize contact with your skin once the
placement has been finalized.
A typical rule of thumb to use when weighting
is to limit the amount to about 1/3 the weight of
the boomerang. The only boomerangs that
typically approach this limit are old style dis-
tance hooks that needed excessive weight to
perform as desired.
How To Use Weights
When most people think of weighting their
boomerangs, it is to extend the range. When
placed near the tips, significantly more range
can be obtained. This is particularly true when
the weight is added to the tip of the lead arm.
If we look at the example shown earlier, a
weight on the lead arm causes the center of
gravity to shift towards the lead arm tip. This
significantly reduces the effectiveness of the
lead arm since the lead arm is not passing
through as wide of an arc around the center of
gravity as the boomerang rotates.
Weight on lead arm shifts center of rotation so that the
lead arm is less effective
As we know from the tuning model, a reduc-
tion in the effectiveness of the lead arm will
result in more range. Combine this with the
added momentum and significantly extra
range can be realized. You can get even
more range by either moving the weight closer
to the tip or by using a bigger weight.
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Add-Ons
Weighting either tip will generally result in more
range although the effect is more pronounced
when it is placed on the lead arm. If signifi-
cantly more range is required, both tips can be
weighted. This effectively reduces the effec-
tiveness of both arms. Additionally, the elbow
can also be weighted although the extended
range due to this modification is due mostly to
increased overall mass of the boomerang.
If less range is required, a small weight placed
near the elbow can be used. Weighting near
the elbow typically will increase the efficiency
of both wings which re-
sults in a shorter range.
If too large a weight is
used, the range may in-
crease due to the in-
creased overall mass of
the boomerang.
Properly placed, weights can be used for other
effects as well. Weights put near the center of
gravity can increase the wind resistance and
help increase the spin rate. Also, by strategi-
cally positioning a weight on the boomerang,
you can greatly affect the return of your boo-
merang. Apply in a similar manner as drag
and shift it around until you find the sweet spot
to fine tune the return.
If for instance you had a boomerang where the
dingle arm had too much lift (i.e. the boomer-
ang is cutting in ahead of you), you could put a
weight near the midpoint on the dingle arm to
correct the flight. The weight will shift the cen-
27
ter of gravity such that the dingle arm is closer
to the center of gravity
and reduce its effective-
ness. Properly placed,
a weight can work just
as well as other tuning
methods for fine tuning
a boomerangs flight.
As an added bonus, placement of the weight
can also be used to modify the height of the
flight as with flaps. On two-bladed boomer-
angs, a weight on the top surface of the lead
arm generally makes the boomerang fly
higher. On the bottom, lower. On the dingle
arm, the opposite is true. If you are adding
weights to a tri-blader, weights on top gener-
ally yield a slightly lower flight. On the bottom,
slightly higher. This effect is particularly useful
when fine tuning doublers.
Multi-blader boomerangs may need weights
on just one or two arms or on all of them.
Weights of different sizes can be used (it is
often beneficial to use weights of different
sizes for some reason). Placement is often a
combination of on top and on the bottom.
Weights near the center of gravity can greatly
stabilize a boomerang
with an unpredictable
flight and can help in-
crease lay down rate.
As before, weights
placed closer to the
tips result in more
range.
Finding the right balance using weights is a
matter of finding the proper size and place-
ment of the weight through trial and error. Like
experimenting with drag, try different place-
ments and combinations before settling on the
best place for the weight on your boomerang.
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Airfoil Modifications
Airfoil modifications are another effective
method for altering the performance of your
boomerang. It can be just as effective as other
techniques. This section covers the various
changes you can make and how they can be
used to affect the flight.
If you are considering re-shaping or modifying
the airfoil of your boomerang, keep in mind that
you are likely to wreck the paint job on it. Stick
with non-destructive tuning methods such as
bending and twisting, drag and weights if you
want to maintain your boomerangs appear-
ance. Better yet, save carve tuning for boo-
merangs you make yourself and do it before
you apply the finish.
Changes to the Airfoil
Most boomerangs generally use a semi-crude
airfoil. Experience and experimentation over
the years has determined that this airfoil, al-
though not as sleek as airfoils you see in other
applications such as airplanes, typically yields
user friendly boomerangs. As a result, it is a
great starting point for a wide range of boomer-
angs. Some even feel that this is the
“standard”  boomerang  airfoil.  Other  airfoils,   material off in this area may reduce lift such
particularly more profiled airfoils, tend to result
in boomerangs with flighty or unpredictable
flights.
The leading edge of the semi-crude airfoil is
generally cut at about a 45 degree angle and
cuts down to approximately half the thickness
of the material. The trailing edge also cuts
down to about half the thickness of the material
but is carved at a much more gradual incline
than the leading edge. All edges are rounded
but compared to airfoils used on planes, it is
not very streamlined.
For an easier throw
boomerang, round the leading edges a bit
more. This creates less drag. This may how-
ever reduce wind resistance. For low wind
boomerangs, round all corners a bit more than
standard.
You can modify the airfoil for more lift by un-
28
dercutting the leading edge. This is the most
common modification made to airfoils after a
boomerang has been carved as the effect on
lift is probably the largest of all airfoil modifica-
tions. Since it is done on the bottom of the
boomerang, it can also be done after the boo-
merang has already been painted without fear
of wrecking the appearance of the finish.
Leading edge undercuts also generally in-
crease the height of
the flight slightly.
Lift can also be increased by removing more
material off the trailing edge although the ef-
fect is more subtle. Carving too much off the
trailing edge tends to make the flight charac-
teristics of the boomerang less forgiving. For
most boomerangs, a semi-crude airfoil is su-
perior to a fully profiled
airfoil.
Lift can be reduced by carving an undercut
along the underside of the trailing edge. The
trailing edge undercut is often used to extend
range and may decrease drag as well. The
effect is very pronounced and taking too much
that your boomerang
won’t  return  anymore.
A more subtle way of reducing lift is to cut the
leading edge back more. There is less of an
effect on range but still a large effect on drag
reduction. Care should also be taken with this
modification as carving too much off can re-
duce lift to the point
where returns are no
longer possible.
Another method to reduce the lift is to reduce
the chord length of the arm. Short chord
length airfoils tend to be more wind resistant.
It should be obvious that taking this modifica-
tions to the limit will severely weaken the arm
of the boomerang and
may make breakages
more frequent.
A feature often found on fast catch boomer-
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Airfoil Modifications
angs is camber on the underside of the boo- volved is typically fairly small. Dimpling in
merang. They are also sometimes referred to particular can be very difficult to do cleanly on
as concave undercuts. This is generally done wood because of tear-out. These modifica-
near the tips for the greatest effect. This de- tions are best suited to materials such as com-
creases overall weight and increases lift at the posites  or  plastics  where  this  isn’t  a  concern.
same time. Usually this modification adds a
bit of extra drag. This When making boomerangs for wind applica-
type of modifications tions, the airfoils are often carved even less
seems to make the than the semi-crude airfoil. The angles the
airfoil more sensitive leading and trailing edges are carved at may
to angle of attack ad- also be carved at steeper angles relative to the
justments. Various top surface. This increases the overall drag.
styles of this undercut Unfortunately  you  can’t  modify  an  existing  
are possible. boomerang to have this type of airfoil if already
carved without shortening the chord length so
most boomerangs that use this feature are
carved that way in the
first place.

When carving thin materials for wind applica-

tions, the leading edge may almost completely
A variation of cambering the underside of the be missing. This is fairly common on trick
boomerang is to put deep grooves in the top catch boomerangs
surface of the airfoil. It is felt this made for higher winds.
also increases lift while providing
drag vital for performance in the Another interesting airfoil to try is the invertible
wind. Bulgarian Georgi Di- airfoil. A standard trailing edge is carved but
mantchev has pioneered the no leading edge bevel on the upper side. In-
used and application of grooves. stead, an undercut that runs the length of the
As with camber, many variations arm is cut on the leading edge. You will notice
are possible however deep that if the boomerang is flipped over, the trail-
grooves on the top of the airfoil ing edge and undercut are in the same relative
is not as common as position as before. As a result, a boomerang
camber on the bottom. carved with this type of airfoil will work with
either side as the top. Different flights are
Texturing the surface of the boomerang is possible depending on which side is used as
sometimes used for interesting effects. The the top when thrown. One side will generally
two most common result in a high, shorter range flight while the
modifications are to other will have more range and be lower. This
either cut multiple shal- airfoil is common on trick catch boomerangs
low grooves in top of but finds applications in other boomerangs
the airfoil or to dimple from time to time. It is particularly suited for
the surface in a manner use in thin composite
similar to a golf ball. materials.

Another variation for wind stability is the far

more subtle modification of slightly tapering
Both modifications are fairly rare as the differ- the  trailing  edge.    This  slight  angle  doesn’t  
ence in performance vs. the extra work in- look like much but has a surprisingly dramatic

29
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Airfoil Modifications
effect on wind resis- back. On two-bladers, typically
tance. this modification is only done on
the dingle arm and on the top
A fairly rare modification to help with wind re- surface of the boomerang.
sistance is to carve the trailing edge with a
scooped out contour. This is a tricky modifica-
tion to do cleanly. A small sanding drum in a
rotary tool such as a dremel would likely be
the best approach. It is sometimes used on
wind Aussie round As mentioned earlier, you can add drag to
boomerangs as well as your boomerang by making the airfoil more
on high wind fast blocky or by adding airfoil effects such as
catches. grooves. There are other ways of adding drag
permanently to your boomerang though.
The thickness of the material may be altered
for different effects as well. Although relatively The most common form of permanently adding
rare, some boomerangs have specific areas drag to your boomerang is holes. They are
thinned to as little as half the original material easy to make with a drill and can be taped
thickness. over if required to ne-
gate or modify (i.e. only
If thickness is reduced at the elbow, range is tape over one side of
often increased (likely due to the natural tip the hole or only partially
heavy weight distribu- cover the hole) their ef-
tion that results). fect. Variations include
Thickness modifica- size, number, and
tions at the elbow are placement on the wing.
typically only done to
the top surface of the Other variations that are generally thought to
boomerang. have less of an effect
than just drilling straight
If material thickness is through , are tapering
reduced closer to the the hole, rounding the
tips, reductions made sharp edges or drilling at
from the top typically an angle .
result in a lower flying
boomerang, or off the Holes in the tips work similarly to other forms
bottom for a higher flying of drag placed near the tips. They are often
boomerang. used for fine tuning the return or to reduce
These modifica- spin and forward momentum to make catching
tions also seem easier.
to help with wind
resistance. In tri-bladers, a hole (or numerous holes) in
the center can be used to slow down or stop
Another airfoil modification entails making an the forward motion of the boomerang. This is
indentation in the airfoil near the tip. Some- particularly useful for trick catches as it often
times, these indentations are put on to en- helps to stop rocking or unpredictable hovers
hance grip in less than ideal conditions but (a similar effect can be achieved by not round-
they also serve the purpose that they seem to ing over the center section). A hole drilled in
help get the boomerang to come all the way the center also will make the drop of the hover

30
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Airfoil Modifications
more quick which can be of use to get better
separation in a set of doublers. A hole in the
center also reduces the lay down rate.
trailing edge, the effect is more akin to a flap.
Placement of holes, slots and combs is the
same as with other non-permanent forms of
drag. Before drilling or cutting into your boo-
merang, it is recommended to find the proper
placement of drag using add-ons.

Carve Tuning Using Airfoil Modifications

Carve tuning is the only tuning method pre-
sented here that is not reversible without fur-
ther modifications. Carve tuning involves mak-
Slots are the next most common type of per- ing adjustments directly to the airfoil of the
manent  drag.    They  don’t  offer  any  obvious   boomerang to adjust the balance of the lift.
advantage over standard holes aside from pro-
viding even more drag and as a result are not When learning how to carve tune, initially use
as common. other methods to guide your actions. Add-
ons such as drag or weights can be used to
Most slots are essentially just elongated holes tell you which arm either needs more or less
although there are a few variations to how they lift. Use what they tell you about the balance
are cut such as tapered like a tear drop (note of the lift and carve accordingly. It is also
the narrower end can be either close to or far very important to note that all modifications
away from the tip), consistent width, or a thin should be made on the field using a sanding
kerf joining block so you can evaluate the alterations right
two holes. away under the same conditions.
They can also
be cut at an Where you choose to make an airfoil modifica-
angle relative tion will affect the overall flight. Use the tuning
to the leading model for determining what you want and
edge if de- where. Here are a few specific tips to get you
sired. started.

Like holes, a number of variations on how the Undercut the leading edge of the lead arm to
slot is machined can be tried such as rounded reduce range or increase the lay down rate.
over or cut out on an angle. On some boo- Taking a bit off the top
merangs with slots, the area on either side of leading edge may ex-
the slot is profiled with tend your range a bit
airfoils. and make it fly a bit
lower. Blunting the lead-
Combs are even rarer and generally only used ing edge may help im-
by powerful throwers as they dramatically in- prove wind resistance.
crease drag. Combs are
thin saw kerfs cut into ei- Undercut the leading
ther the leading edge or edge of the dingle arm
the trailing edge or the to help get the boomer-
wing. On the leading ang to come all the way
edge, they are very effec- back if it is landing way
tive for stabilizing the boo- out in front or to reduce
merang in wind. On the lay down rate. Blunting

31
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Airfoil Modifications
the leading edge may also help with wind re- maximum lift occurs and acts like a more sub-
sistance. tle version of reducing dihedral. This works
great on fast catch boomerangs. However, if
Trailing edge undercuts are most often done you are making a trick catch or MTA, make
either on only the lead arm or on both arms. sure  you  don’t  do  this  or  you  will  be  carve  tun-­
The reason is that this modification has the ing your boomerang to fly low before you ever
greatest effect on range when done on the get on the field.
lead arm. If just doing it
to  the  lead  arm  doesn’t  
yield the desired range,
then additional trailing
edge undercuts can be
added to the dingle arm
as well.

Undercut on the outside edge of the elbow Flies lower

section will make the boomerang fly higher To lower the flight slightly at a specific point in
and increase lay down the flight, cut back the leading edge at the ap-
rate. Cutting back the propriate area using the tuning model as your
airfoil so it resembles a guide. For instance, if the boomerang is flying
typical trailing edge on too high halfway along its outward path, try
the top will make the cutting back the leading edge of the lead arm
flight path lower and de- about halfway up the lead arm.
crease lay down rate.
To slow down or stop the forward motion of a
Adjustments to the inside of the elbow section tri-blader, square the entire center section so
are reverse of that of the there is barely any round-over. If you want it
outside. Undercut on to come in faster, carve this area more. This
the bottom will make it idea is a nice way of being able to step up the
fly lower while taking off speed of your fast catch until it is coming in at
material on the top will the right speed. Start off square and slowly
result in a slightly higher cut it back on the field testing in between each
flight. step. You will be able to get your boomerang
to suit your throw exactly.
Another modification to keep in mind when
carving boomerangs with a sharp V shaped
elbow (rather than a U shaped elbow) is that
the elbow can be carved with an airfoil to act
as a third wing. This is a
common feature on some
designs such as the Fuzzy.
It is a great way to get a bit
of extra lift to help out your
return.
Comes in faster at end of flight

To adjust the height of the flight, you can re- A hole will work equally as well for slowing for-
carve the tips. By extending the trailing edge ward motion at the end of the flight if the cen-
around the tip, you can make your boomerang ter section has already been rounded over but
fly lower. This changes the angle at which the will also increase the drop rate while the boo-

32
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Airfoil Modifications
merang is in its hover.

You can fine tune

these effects by alter-
ing the size of the
center hole or by drill-
ing a number of small
holes in the center.

Carve tuning takes lots of practice. It is best to

learn using boomerangs you have carved
yourself as it is the most destructive of all tun-
ing  methods.    If  you  screw  up,  you  often  can’t  
get back to where you started. Be sure you
know what you want to do before you take
your sandpaper to your favorite boomerang.

Also keep in mind that carve tuning is best

done before finish is applied to the boomer-
ang.    It  doesn’t  take  much  carving  to  totally  
wreck a nice paint job.

Despite being a bit more daunting than other

tuning methods, the results that can be
achieved with carve tuning can be almost
magical. It is worth learning or at minimum,
experimenting with.

Also, if you over carve, all is not lost if you

don’t  mind  adding  wood  putty  or  epoxy  mixed  
with sawdust onto the over carved area then
re-shaping  once  cured.    This  isn’t  very  com-­
mon on wood boomerangs but when using an
expensive material like carbon fiber, it makes
sense. You can always paint over an area
that looks lousy.

33
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Tri-Fly Modifications
The Tri-Fly was introduced to the world by Eric
Darnell in the early 1990s. Since that time, a
huge number of the boomerangs have been
sold around the world. As well as being popu-
lar with sport throwers, They have become a
vital part of almost every competitive throwers
kit. It is virtually impossible to find a competi-
tor  that  doesn’t  have  at  least  a  few  Tri-Flies in
their throwing kit.
For these reasons, the Tri-Fly is important
enough to the competition scene that they de-
serve their own section.
Although they look fairly simple, the Tri-Fly is
actually quite an advanced design. The airfoil-
ing and design is actually patented technology.
The airfoil is designed so that it can work ei-
ther right or left handed. The below diagram
gives an ap-
proximation of
the airfoil used.
Simply by twisting, the boomerang can be
made to perform as either a right handed or a
left handed boomerang. Cambering on the
underside of the boomerang allow a quick ad-
justment to the angle of attack to change the
characteristics of the airfoil without adding lots
of drag as
many other
neutral airfoils
will.
Being made out of plastic, the Tri-Fly is easy
34
to adjust and are virtually indestructible. They
are also relatively inexpensive. A polypropyl-
ene Tri-Fly can sell for as little as a couple of
dollars.
The original idea was to have something that
anybody could use and was durable without
being cost prohibitive. They tend to be a bit
tricky for novices to tune but they provide ex-
cellent bang for the buck.
The stock Tri-Fly is a good performer when
tuned properly. They can be used for trick
catching, accuracy or even juggling. By play-
ing around with angle of attack and dihedral,
many different flights are possible. Use the
tuning model as before as your guide to good
flights but be careful not to over-tune. Often
only positive angle of attack on one arm is all
that is needed for adequate returns.
It  wasn’t  long  before  people  realized  that  the  
Tri-Fly was an ideal platform for making per-
formance boomerangs. It was then that the
design really started to show its potential.
Rather simple modifications could turn this un-
assuming boomerang into an indispensable
part of a competitive throwers arsenal. It could
be easily reshaped and tuned to perform as
high performance trick catch boomerangs,
doubler sets, accuracy boomerangs or for fast
catch.
Modifications of the Tri-Fly have been used
successfully in every boomerang event except
long distance. In windy conditions, they have
even been used in MTA. They offer unparal-
leled flexibility in what they can be used for.
Because of the popularity of modifying these
boomerangs, it is rare to see a Tri-Fly unmodi-
fied  in  use.    Some  throwers  don’t  even  refer  to  
them as boomerangs anymore but rather
blanks to be carved into something else.
Originally, the Tri-Fly was available only in
polypropylene. As demand increased, Eric
started experimenting with other plastics such
as ABS, nylon, polycarbonate, and PET.
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Tri-Fly Modifications
These heavier materials lent themselves to
even better competition boomerangs and even
to applications for aussie round boomerangs.
They added not only an increased density to
the picture but also greater rigidity over the
polypropylene model. Eric continues to try
new plastics to take advantage of the endless
number of varieties available.
A big part of the appeal of modifying your own
Tri-Fly is not only the number of choices in the
base material, but also how easy it is. The
basic shape and size is already set out for you
so  you  don’t  need  to  spend  a  lot  of  time  cutting   tions seems endless. For ideas on different
out your shape out of sheet stock. Also, the
thickness is almost ideal for many competition
boomerangs.
Tri-Fly  based  on  Eric  Darnell’s  design.    So  was  
the record previous to that, and the one before
that. They are the choice for many top com-
petitors.
Carving a great fast catch out of a Tri-Fly is
relatively easy. Cut out the basic outline on an
ABS Tri-Fly and carve fairly standard airfoils
for a good performer. Carve according to the
tips in the section on fast catch boomerangs
and you will have a real contender.
The number of possible variations of modifica-
modifications check out the picture below or
take a look in the gallery section.

Modifications range from simply drilling a few

more holes to drastic changes to the shape,
narrowing the chord or changing the thickness
of the material. Changes to the airfoil can be
anywhere from a simple rounding of the lead-
ing edge to full profiling.

Because of the shape of the stock airfoil, re-

markably simple modifications can yield some
pretty impressive results. For instance, using
a polycarbonate Tri-Fly, simply shaving back
the leading edge of each wing and rounding it
over will make an excellent 30 - 40 meter boo-
merang . This modification is essentially carv-
ing the boo-
merang so
that it has
positive an-
gle of attack.

Another reason for their popularity in carving

performance boomerangs is the cambering on
the underside. This feature is one of the major
desirable features of the fastest fast catch
boomerangs. It is already built into the design
so  you  don’t  need  to  try  to  do  this  difficult  
modification yourself.

Some of the quickest fast catch boomerangs

available are Tri-Fly modifications. The world
record in fast catch was set using a modified

35
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Special Considerations For Wind
Dealing with wind can be frustrating. Few
things make you want to throw less than hav-
ing to chase all over the field for your boomer-
angs.
You could try to adjust your throw for the con-
ditions by throwing lighter or attempting the
humpback throw but a much better option is to
customize your boomerangs for the conditions.
Typically, it is best to have a series of boomer-
angs that work well in calm conditions as well
as a series that work in higher wind conditions.
The following are some suggestions to help
you modify your boomerangs to handle wind.
Materials
One of the best pieces of advice for dealing
with wind is to use more dense materials. Ma-
terials such as polycarbonate and phenolics
are much heavier than wood or plastics such
as ABS and Polypropylene. Because of the
increased density, boomerangs made of these
materials are also typically much thinner (4
mm or less). These features allow boomer-
angs made out of these materials to cut
through the air and not be bounced around as
much by gusts.
Alternately, you could use thicker material to
take advantage of the increased weight and
increased drag of the airfoil. Some makers
have great success using 6 mm wood.
Drag
In windy conditions, extra drag is a lifesaver.
Additional amounts can be added or taken off
as required. Drag can be used to reduce the
efficiency of the airfoils such that under calm
conditions, the boomerang would land way out
in front of you. In wind, the boomerang will get
carried back to you. Add more or less de-
pending on the conditions.
Weight
Next to drag, weighting is probably the next
most practical option for dealing with the wind.
Extra weight makes the boomerang less sensi-
tive to gusts and may stabilize flights that get
36
bounced around by the wind. Placement of
the weight also allows you to easily adjust the
return. To increase wind resistance without
changing any other parameters of the flight,
weights added near the mid-point of each arm
may be helpful.
Tuning
Generally speaking, if wind is a factor, try to
tune the boomerang so it flies low. The idea is
that it keeps it out of the fast moving air and
closer to the slow moving air close to the
ground. Reduce the dihedral a bit for a lower
flight. Also tune it so that under calm condi-
tions, it would land well in front of you.
Airfoil Modifications
The usual method of altering the airfoil for
higher wind conditions is to make the airfoils
more blocky. This creates extra drag and re-
duces the overall lift of the boomerang. Lead-
ing and trailing edges should be left square
rather than rounding over. A variation of this is
to taper the trailing edge so that it is not
square but angled. However, the effect of this
modification is more subtle than just making
the airfoil more blocky.
Drag in the form of holes, slots, combs, or
grooves may also be useful. For really high
wind  boomerangs,  don’t  be  afraid  to  go  nuts  
with the drill and turn your boomerang into
swiss cheese.
The last variation that is sometimes used is to
not carve the airfoil all the way to the tips. At
the midpoint of the wing, the airfoil may look
fairly standard but at the tips, the airfoil
changes to a more neutral shape
that one would expect to see
closer to the elbow. Herb Smith
used this feature on some of his
classic designs (Classic Hook,
Veebo) and it can also sometimes
be seen on accuracy or trick catch
boomerangs.
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Putting It All Together
Now  that  you’ve  read  through  the  different   atically make changes and see how the effects
techniques used to adjust boomerangs, how
do you go about picking which one you want?
Simply put, pick one and try it.
All the techniques presented in this book are
variations of doing the same thing – balancing
out the forces on your boomerang. The bal-
ance can usually be achieved by utilizing any
of a number of different techniques. If one
modification will work, often so will the others.
Once you find that balance, you will have a
great performing boomerang.
The best choice for given conditions will de-
pend on both your throwing style and the con-
ditions. You may find you have the best luck
when you do your adjustments with drag. Oth-
ers may prefer weighting. For those that hate
having anything sticking on their boomerang,
bending and twisting or carve tuning will likely
be the most satisfying options. Be open to
trying a few variations before you settle on a
given solution.
If you are new to tuning, it is recommended to
start out with non-destructive methods like
drag in the form of rubber bands or flaps.
Start with boomerangs that fly OK but need a
special throw to get a perfect return. Tweak
them until they fly perfect. Slowly work your
way through your throw kit until almost every
boomerang has some sort of drag on it to tune
it for your throw.
From there, you may want to try moving onto
strapping on weights. Try to get the same
effect as you did with drag by applying
weights. Try different sizes of weights and
different placements to see the different ef-
fects possible. Also experiment with the ef-
fects of weighting near the tips to extend your
range.
After  you’ve  figured  out  drag  and  weighting,   Making minor adjustments on the field will in-
bending and twisting is pretty straight forward.
If you have the option, bend and twist tuning is
easiest to learn using plastic boomerangs
since the material lends itself to this. System-
37
add up. From there, try tuning two boomer-
angs to have the same flight. This is a vital
skill to develop for when you are making or
tuning doublers.
After you have a pretty good handle on all
these  techniques,  then  try  carve  tuning.    Don’t  
be afraid to take your file, sandpaper, or even
a pocketknife to the field. You will see instant
results with every modification you make.
Carve tuning is the most destructive and you
can ruin a good boomerang if you do some-
thing wrong so initially stick with self-made,
unfinished  boomerangs  you  don’t  mind  experi-­
menting on. I tend not to re-carve others boo-
merangs but rather make myself a copy and
play around with that. You may just find that
you can improve on that old favorite you al-
ways throw.
If  you  can’t  seem  to  re-create the flight of your
favorite boomerang no matter what you do,
carefully check out the airfoils for anything out
of the ordinary. There may be some interest-
ing  trick  used  somewhere  that  you  hadn’t  spot-­
ted the first time around. Try get as close as
you can then try a few variations to see if you
can match the flight better. You will quickly
learn what works for you.
Also,  don’t  worry  if  you  end  up  with  signifi-­
cantly different airfoils that the one you copied
or expected. The final tune of any boomerang
depends on how it was carved in the first
place. Even seemingly small differences can
results in different flights. If both are flying
right, they are both carved and tuned right re-
gardless  of  how  they  are  “supposed”  to  be.
Regardless of the choice you make when tun-
ing your boomerangs, try to do as much of
these modifications on the field as you can.
stantly let you see the effect of what you did
on the flight of the boomerang. You can use
what you learn to expand on the modification if
required to enhance the performance further.
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Putting It All Together

It is also best to do your modifications during a
single throwing session. You not only take
advantage of the instant feedback of seeing
your results right away but you will also find it
easier since your throw will be more consistent
and  you  probably  won’t  be  fighting  changing  
conditions.

Go to the field with a pocket full of coins, rub-

ber bands, a roll of tape, and your sanding
block. Take notes of what you find. Some
even write notes directly onto their boomer-
angs. Throw often and in a wide range of con-
ditions (calm to windy). You will be rewarded
for your efforts.

38
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Alternate Tuning Methods
As you might have guessed, the method for
tuning boomerangs presented in this book is
not the only approach. The method in this
book was devised based on experience and
an attempt to come up with a consistent
method for all type of boomerangs. For com-
pletion, here are a few alternatives. You may
want to give them a try to see if they work for
you.
Bowl Tuning
Bowl tuning was popularized by Al Gerhards
and his famous strip laminated hooks. The
idea is that the bottom surface of an ideally
tuned boomerang will sit flush in a shallow
spherically shaped bowl. Al apparently had
shallow bowls he made that he used as a
starting point to tune all his boomerangs.
Modifications to the tune were then thought of
as either increasing or decreasing the size of
the bowl. To decrease the bowl, you basically
tried to flatten it out. To increase the bowl, you
held both tips and twisted in and up.
Mickey Kinley (the maker for the famous
boomalum aluminum boomerangs) published
a small tuning booklet with his boomerangs
that had tuning suggestions for specific prob-
lems. Certain problems could be fixed by in-
creasing the overall bowl or by focusing on
one arm or the other. Many of his tuning tips
are the same as those used in the tuning
method used in this book - just presented dif-
ferently.
Bowl tuning can make for some great flying
boomerangs as the boomerangs of Al
Gerhards and Mickey Kinley can attest. How-
ever, from a tuning standpoint there are a few
problems with it. It is fine for a starting point
but only if it matches the airfoils to which it is
applied. Assuming your boomerang must fit
into a bowl to work is usually a pretty big as-
sumption. Few boomerangs actually do. Sec-
ondly, the method of increasing or decreasing
the bowl changes dihedral and angle of attack
on both arms at the same time which makes
keeping track of everything you did difficult.
Lastly, it has little to say on the effects of
39
weight or drag.
Darnell Stock Tri-Fly Method
As mentioned in the Tri-Fly section, it is very
common to over-tune a stock Try-Fly. Eric
Darnell suggested using the following ap-
proach. Label one arm P (for pitch - the same
as angle of attack), one arm D (for dihedral),
and one arm T (for throw). Always throw from
the throw arm. Angle of attack adjustments are
made on the P arm only and dihedral is only
changed on the D arm. This simplified ap-
proach is very effective to keep you from over-
thinking your Tri-Fly.
Darnell Tri-blader Method
On a modified Try-Fly such as a Stubby or
Eric’s  Advanced  Fast  Catch,  Eric  Darnell  sug-­
gested a slightly different approach. Eric would
assign one arm to be the lead arm and the
next as the dingle similar to the method sug-
gested in this book. As with the process used
in this book, the lead arm controls the outward
flight and the dingle arm controls the return
flight. However, only angle of attack adjust-
ments were done on the lead and dingle arms.
The third arm (which is left neutral in the
method in this book) is reserved for dihedral
adjustments.
This method works fine for fast catch and ac-
curacy boomerangs but can be tricky to get to
work on trick catch boomerangs. It can in par-
ticular be difficult to stabilize the hover to an
acceptable level.
Random Approach for Multi-bladers
There  are  those  that  don’t  use  any  system  at  
all when tuning a tri-blader. A random ap-
proach is used instead.
If more lift is required, angle of attack is added
to one wing. Any wing is suitable for dihedral
adjustments  as  well.  The  process  isn’t  actually  
quite this random. Careful examination of the
angle of attack and dihedral of each arm is
done before picking which arm the adjustment
is  done  to.  The  arm  that  is  “most  wrong”  gets  
the adjustment. Ideally, all the arms end up
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Alternate Tuning Methods

with roughly the same angle of attack and di-
hedral.

This method has the disadvantage that you

don’t  know  which  arm  you  did  the  last  adjust-­
ment to so reversing an adjustment can be
trickier. It also requires the ability to sight down
a wing and see how much angle of attack or
dihedral or angle of attack it has. With the sub-
tle angles involved, it can be difficult to differ-
entiate between one arm and the others.

However, this method appears to work better

on quads than any attempts to use the tuning
method described in this book. Like any
method, there are exceptions to every rule.

40
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Repairs
Unfortunately, boomerangs are not indestructi-
ble. Poor throws or attempting new catches
sometimes yields damaged or broken boomer-
angs. Minor damage such as dings caused by
hitting the ground hard can often be ignored or
simply filled with a mixture of epoxy and saw-
dust. Minor dents rarely have a significant det-
rimental effect on the flight. Breaks however
are  another  matter.      You  can’t  ignore  a  break  
and keep on throwing.
As a result, you have the choice of either at-
tempting a repair or never throwing that boo-
merang again. Depending on the situation,
the second option may be unacceptable.
If  you  can’t  bear  to  lose  a  great  boomerang,   glass fabric (the width of the wing and about
you can repair it. Done properly, a good repair
can last the life of the boomerang and actually
be stronger than adjoining areas.
The technique used to repair breaks and major
cracks varies slightly from material to material.
Some materials such as polypropylene are
virtually un-repairable. Other plastics such as
ABS can be repaired using ABS plumbers ce-
ment. Sport boomerangs made out of wood
can generally be repaired fairly easily with
some 5 minute epoxy or wood glue.
Regardless of the method used be sure to
align all pieces properly before the glue sets.
If you glue up a break that is not aligned prop-
erly, at best you will have lousy looking repair.
At worst, you may have significantly altered
the tuning by changing the angle of attack or
dihedral to end up with a poor flying boomer-
ang.
To ensure proper alignments, it is a good idea
to sandwich the pieces between two splints or
plates of stiff material such as G10 or pax to
make sure the break cures flat. Make sure
you place either some wax paper or plastic
wrap between your broken boomerang and the
plate  to  make  sure  you  don’t  glue  the  plates  to  
41
the boomerang. Clamp the two plates tightly
together and allow the glue to cure.
If you want your repair to last or are repairing a
competition boomerang, it is recommended to
use some sort of re-enforcement on the glue
joint. One of the best materials for use to re-
enforce a break is fiberglass fabric.
To make a repair that will last as long as the
boomerang, first scuff sand any painted sur-
faces (to allow for better glue adhesion) and
put glue on the fractured surfaces (1). Care-
fully line up the two broken sections (2). Brush
a thin layer of epoxy over the area surrounding
the break (3). Place a small section of fiber-
2 - 3 cm long) over the break and wet it out
with epoxy by gently dabbing with a brush (4).
If wetted out properly, the fiberglass will almost
turn invisible. Once all the fiberglass is wetted
out, place a thin piece of plastic over the glue
joint and press out any air bubbles. Bubbles in
the epoxy will greatly reduce the strength of
the joint so it is a good idea to try to get rid of
as many as possible. Start from the center and
move towards the edges.
Once this is done, clamp between two plates
as before. Both sides can be done at the same
time if desired although maintaining alignment
may be tricky. It may be easier to do one side,
allow it to set, then do the other side just to
make sure everything works out.
Once the epoxy has cured (5), sand and
feather the edges down to match the sur-
rounding material (6). If another break occurs,
it  won’t  be  at  your  repair.
1 2 3 4 5 6
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Competition
Although  you  don’t  need  to  be  a  competitor  to   ered by some to be too long for fast catch).
enjoy or get useful information out of this book,
a lot of attention is given to competition boo-
merangs. Competitions have driven the de-
sign of boomerangs and it is important to get a
feel for how they have helped push the evolu-
tion of boomerang design.
Like the boomerangs that were designed for
them, competitions have evolved a lot over the
time since they were first held until now. The
objective of each of the following sections is to
give a bit of insight into major events that
spawned new ideas or major achievements in
boomerang design before going into detail
how each of these factors has helped advance
boomerangs and how you can use it.
The first organized modern competitions were
held in Australia starting in the 1960s. They
were not very regular and the rules were still in
their infancy, but they were a start. During the
early years, only versions of accuracy, aussie
round, and consecutive catch were contested.
Over time, new events and other changes
were introduced.
One of the first changes that was brought
about was a standardization of the field used.
Before the first international meeting of the US
and Australia in 1981, different areas did not
necessarily use the same field.
For instance, in Australia, there were fewer
circles for range and accuracy. As a result,
scoring for aussie round and accuracy were
different and the maximum scores attainable
were lower. After 1983, the field circles were
changed to the internationally agreed upon
present form.
Early competitions also were not very consis-
tent in the events contested. Which event
might be contested one day was generally the
whim of the tournament director/organizer.
Rules were subject to change and new games
were tried on a regular basis. Even the re-
quired range for many events was yet to be
standardized (for instance, 20 m was consid-
42
Some even suggested doing away with ranges
altogether by using boomerangs pre-certified
to fly a certain distance. Although no doubt
very fun, this did nothing for allowing people to
consistently know where they stood in terms of
their level of throwing compared to others
unless they attended all the tournaments.
It was the topic of heated debate during the
late 80s and early 90s as to what defined a
boomerang. Some areas such as Australia,
would only allow two-bladers. Others
(particularly the Europeans) did not have this
restriction and competitors were free to use
anything they wanted. Depending on the com-
petition, the officials had the right to rule any
boomerang  they  didn’t  think  fit  the  definition  as  
illegal. If it was too close to being a tri-blader,
the competitor would have to find something
else to use if they wanted to throw.
The big problem was getting everybody to
agree to a definition of what the difference be-
tween a tri-blader and a two-blader was.
Some two-blader boomerangs such as the
Fuzzy are really a tri-blader in disguise.
Where do you draw the line on what is accept-
able? Likewise, tri-bladers could be carefully
made to fit within even the best written de-
scription of a two-blader.
It  wasn’t  until  the  early  90s  that  there  was  in-­
ternational agreement that the shape of the
boomerang could not be used to define what
could  and  couldn’t  be  used.    What  defined  a  
boomerang is what is does, not what it looks
like. Today, the only restrictions on competi-
tion  boomerangs  are  the  boomerang  can’t  be  
made out of metal and cannot have any catch-
ing aides on it.
Although every once in a while, there is a bit of
grumbling about the use of multi-bladers, there
is little debate on this subject anymore. Multi-
bladers have found their niche areas where
they rule the field just as there are areas
where  they  aren’t  used  very  much.
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Competition
As well, the rules of competitions have been Only the formally recognized events are in-
evolving. Some rules like foot faults, being cluded here. Missing are juggling, a lot of the
called short on range, or drops were relatively Gel games like glorp and hackuracy as well as
easy to get agreement on. Others have re- thing like the fast make competition. Also
quired much more work. Some scoring sys- missing are variations like night tournaments,
tems have changed (particularly in trick catch/ indoor tournaments, Fun-Fly or Air Dancer
doubling since too many competitors could tournaments, Throw stick competitions, virtual
routinely get perfect scores under good condi- tournaments, head to head competitions.
tions) as well as new rules to more strictly de-
fine what was a valid throw (such as the dis-
tance restriction in MTA100) needed to be im-
plemented to keep tournaments running
smoothly. Variations on the number of throw-
ers required for a valid tournament and even
how events were run have been tried (i.e.
head to head or tandem throwing in accuracy
and aussie round).

The following sections outline the current state

of tournaments and offer some tips on how to
carve boomerangs for each event. Since rules
occasionally change, it is recommended to
consult the rulebooks for the completion you
are attending. Similarly, the records noted are
as of 2012 so may not be 100% up to date.

All events with the exception of long distance,

use the same field. Lines are drawn at 2, 4, 6,
8, 10, 20, 30 , 40 and 50 meters. Not all lines
are used for every event.

43
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Accuracy
In accuracy, the ability of the thrower to get
their throw to return to as close to the spot
where it was thrown is measured. Your boo-
merang must fly out the minimum 20 meter
distance and return to where it is thrown. Cir-
cles drawn on the ground like a giant bulls-eye
determine the scoring for the event.
Accuracy is also the only event in regular tour-
naments in which the catch is not allowed. In
accuracy, only the throw counts. Although it
doesn’t  have  the  speed  appeal  of  fast  catch  or   Accuracy as it is contested today is probably
the showmanship of trick catch, accuracy is
still an integral part of modern competition.
Accuracy History
Accuracy is the original boomerang game. It
was played by aborigines before the first set-
tlers ever made it to Australia. Apparently,
aborigines did not like to play catching games
with their boomerangs. This is easy to under-
stand since many aboriginal boomerangs were
actually quite heavy and large by modern stan-
dards and would probably not have been very
fun to try to catch.
Ever since the first official competitions, some
form of accuracy has been contested. One
early  version  was  “Closest  to  the  Pin”  where   awarded.
the landing spot of the boomerang was meas-
ured from a predetermined spot. Naturally, the
closest to that spot won. Other variations in-
cluded trying to get the boomerang back to a
certain spot (such as into your boomerang
bag) after a predetermined number of throws.
In this case, only the last throw really counted.
Over time, it evolved into the version that is
currently contested. Accuracy circles are
drawn on the field and throws are given a spe-
cific number of points based on where they
land. A total of five throws are made and the
total for the five throws are added to give the
final score.
A perfect score in accuracy is five bulls-eye
throws for a total of 50 points. If five tens in a
row are thrown, extra throws are allowed until
a throw which does not score a 10 is made.
44
The first time a perfect score was ever made
was in 1999 when Fridolin Frost of Germany
threw a round of 50 (+9). In 2001, Thomas
Stehrenberger of Switzerland threw an accu-
racy round of 50 (+10, +8). A 10 throw version
(100 points maximum) version is also some-
times contested. The current world record us-
ing the 100 point scale is 99 points by Alex
Opri in 2007.
Current Rules
the simplest of all events. The thrower
launches their boomerang from the 2 meter
circle and lets it land. The throw must make
20 meters in order to be counted. Circles
drawn onto the ground give guidelines for
points received for the throw. After five
throws, the points awarded for each throw are
totaled. The highest total wins.
Catching or touching your boomerang before it
lands results in a score of 0 for that throw.
Foot faults or interfering with another throwers
boomerang (when throwing tandem), will also
result in a score of 0. The thrower must not
touch their boomerang until after the center
judge has determined the points to be
Setup and Scoring
Required circles are accuracy circles at 2, 4, 6,
8 and 10 meters and a 20 meter range circle.
At least three range judges and a center judge
(for foot faults and tracking scores) are re-
quired. All throws must be made from the 2
meter circle and have a range of at least 20
meters. To speed the 20 m
event up, sometimes
two throwers throw at
10 m
the same time. The
thrower must not
touch their boomer-
ang until after the
center judge has de-
termined the points to
be awarded. Scoring
is as follows.
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Accuracy
Inside the 2 m circle – 10
On the 2 m line – 9
Inside the 4 m circle – 8
On the 4 m line – 7
Inside the 6 m circle – 6
On the 6 m line – 5
Inside the 8 m circle – 4
On the 8 m line – 3
Inside the 10 m circle – 2
On the 10 m line – 1
Outside the 10 m circle - 0
Strategies for the Best Scores
When throwing for accuracy, pick your most
accurate boomerang for the conditions. Avoid
boomerangs with hover as the landing spot
can vary widely with changes in wind.
Position yourself in the circle to take advan-
tage of where your boomerang will land. If for
instance your boomerang always lands slightly
in front of you, throw from the rear of the
throwing circle. If the range of your boomerang
is only marginally over the minimum required
range, throw from the front of the throwing cir-
cle to minimize the chance of getting called
short.
Watch the results of other throwers that throw
before you. You may be able to identify odd
wind currents plaguing otherwise good throws
that you can avoid. Take advantage of wind
indicators placed in locations other than in the
throwing circle when deciding the direction you
will throw.
If you need to make an adjustment to how
your boomerang is flying during a competition,
it is best to make the changes using easy to re
-position drag like a rubber band. If a larger
change is required than can be handled by
adjusting the drag a bit, switch to a different
boomerang. For this reason, it is wise to have
more than one boomerang ready that suit the
approximate conditions you will be throwing in.
The best strategy for accuracy is to have a
boomerang that barely makes it back to the
bulls-eye. Extra drag is added to prevent the
possibility of the boomerang flying past out of
45
the accuracy circles. The flight should be rela-
tively low so that it will be unaffected by slight
variations in the wind. There should be little or
no hover at the end.
Generally, accuracy boomerangs are made
and tuned so that they must be thrown at full
power. Throwing at full power ensures the
flight is quick and seems to be more effective
and easier to control than using boomerangs
that require less power. Add drag to your boo-
merang so that it requires a full power throw.
The tuning should also be such that the boo-
merang has laid down completely by the end
of the flight. If it were to come in still vertical, it
is more likely to bounce and roll uncontrollably
when it hits the ground.
Variations
Variations of accuracy such as the one involv-
ing throwing your boomerang into your boo-
merang bag or landing closest to a pin or
some other object are often made up on the
spot. Rules are easily modified depending on
the skill level of the throwers involved. These
are generally just fun games for informal get-
togethers and not formally contested.
The only organized variation of accuracy regu-
larly contested is the Gel game hackuracy. In
this game, the throwers (often in teams) are
encouraged to hackey and bounce their boo-
merang off themselves towards the bulls-eye.
Each hackey counts as a multiplier (i.e. 2
hackeys triples the score of the final landing
spot of the boomerang).
Design Features
There are actually very few boomerangs de-
signed outright for the event of accuracy. Any-
thing out of your throwing bag that fits the bill
of having an accurate return in the conditions
you are throwing in can be used. As men-
tioned earlier, they are generally made to be
thrown at or near full power.
Properly tuned, an accuracy boomerang will
only go slightly further than the required 20
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Accuracy
meter range. If more range is present, there is
additional risk of the boomerang being blown
out of the scoring circle. Most accuracy boo-
merangs are designed and tuned so that they
spend a minimum
amount of time in
the air so that
there is less time
for winds to shift
or a sudden gust
to take effect.
Naturally, an accu-
rate return is a
requirement of a
good accuracy
boomerang.
A lot of people choose to go with a slow fast
catch boomerang that has excessive drag built
in. Others opt for regular boomerangs that
have  been  “trashed  up”  with  lots  of  drag  and   In addition to holes, slots or combs are some-
possibly weights to ensure the required range
of 20 meters is met.
The airfoils are generally blunt with minimal lift.
Large holes and lots of drag allow the boomer-
ang to be thrown at full power yet not blow
past the accuracy circles.
Plastics such as ABS or polycarbonate are
probably the most common materials used for
accuracy boomerangs but as mentioned ear-
lier, since any boomerang can be used, so can
46
any material. If it works, use it.
Accuracy Carving Tips
When carving an accuracy boomerang, one of
the key elements is not to take much time get-
ting everything smooth. Drag is very good
from an accuracy standpoint.
The airfoils are typically quite blunt. Some use
the invertible airfoil
similar to that used on
many trick catch boo-
merangs although with
less profiling.
Holes are often drilled in the tips to reduce
spin and slow the boomerang near the end of
the flight. A hole in the center of a tri-blader
can also help reduce the forward motion at the
end of the flight as well as help it drop quicker.
times used but are not as common.
Accuracy Tuning Tips
When tuning an accuracy boomerang, ideally
it should fly a relatively low circle with little or
no hover at the end. The flight is similar to a
slow fast catch. The wings should have neu-
tral or negative dihedral to achieve this type of
flight. The idea is to minimize the time the
boomerang is in the air do that it will be unaf-
fected by slight variations in the wind since a
gust of wind while the boomerang is hovering
down can greatly affect where it lands.
Fine adjustments to the accuracy can be made
using angle of attack to make sure the boo-
merang flies exactly as desired. Once accu-
racy is close to where you want it, make final
adjustments using drag. During a competition,
small adjustments can be made between
throws by re-positioning drag such as a rubber
band. Making angle of attack adjustments
while in competition is not recommended as a
slightly too large adjustment can seriously af-
fect  the  accuracy  (and  you  can’t  test  the  flight  
between throws to see what effect the adjust-
ment had.
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Accuracy
Drag and weights are used to maximize con- Does not make it all the way back
trol in wind. Weights ensure the boomerang Adjust placement of drag
makes  the  required  range  and  stabilize  it’s   Remove some drag
flight. Drag makes sure it drops quickly. Vel- Twist negative angle of attack into one or
cro dots are used fairly extensively because of more wing
the additional drag they contribute. Tape over holes

One trick to stop your boomerang on a dime Too much hover

and has minimal hover is to place a flap on the Add flap on leading edge of one wing
leading edge of one wing. This will cause the Add Velcro dot on top
boomerang to fly lower. By play- Bend down one or more wing
ing around with placement, the
accuracy of the final return can Too sensitive to wind
be fine tuned. If place far Add weights
enough out towards the tip, spin Add drag
near the end of the flight will be Blunt airfoils
slowed to the point that there Carve out of heavier material
should be no problem with any
hover. Cuts in too fast or not fast enough
Adjust angle of attack of dingle arm
Accuracy Trouble Shooting Guide Adjust throwing direction
Flies too high Adjust placement of drag
Bend down one or more wing
Add weights on top
Add flap on leading edge of one wing
pointing forward

Flies to low
Bend up one or more wing
Add weights on bottom
Add positive angle of attack to one or more
wing
Remove drag from top
Tape over holes

Does not make range

Twist negative angle of attack into lead
arm
Add weights

Flies past accuracy circle

Add drag
Add angle of attack to one wing
Square center section if using a tri-blader

47
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Aussie Round
Aussie round is arguably the quintessential
boomerang event. It combines accuracy, dis-
tance and the ability to catch.
Aussie Round History
Like accuracy, some form of aussie round
has been contested ever since the first boo-
merang competitions were held. Originally,
the maximum distance contested in this event
was 40 meters. At the time, it was also
known as 40 meter round. As boomerangs
with a range of 50 meters became more com-
mon, the extra range of 50 meters was
added.
Foot faults, or interfering with another throwers
boomerang (when throwing tandem) will result
in a score of 0. Once a catch is made, the
thrower should avoid moving until the score
keeper has recorded the score.
Setup and Scoring
Required circles are accuracy circles at 2, 4, 6,
8 and 10 meters and range lines drawn at 20,
30, 40, and 50 meters. At least three range
judges per line and a center judge (for foot
faults and tracking scores) are required.

The maximum score for a single throw is 20

points. This would entail a throw that went 50
meters (6 points), caught inside the 2 meter
circle (4 points for the catch and 10 accuracy
points). A perfect round would be five bulls-
eye catches with each throw going 50 meters
for a total of 100 points. If five perfect scores
in a row were thrown, additional throws would
be allowed until a score of less than 20 was
made.

In all the time that this event has been con-

tested, no one has yet managed a perfect
score in competition. The current world re-
cord is 99 points scored by Fridolin Frost.

Current Rules
Aussie round as it is contested today is com-
prised of points awarded for distance accu- All throws must be made from the 2 meter cir-
racy and the catch. cle and have a range of at least 20 meters. To
speed the event up, sometimes two throwers
The thrower launches their boomerang from throw at the same time. Points awarded are
the 2 meter circle and tries to catch it on re- as follows.
turn. Circles drawn onto the ground give
guidelines for points received for the throw. Distance
Spotters at each of the range lines determine 20 m – 0
the range of the boomerang. 30 m – 2
40 m – 4
Scores for each parameter are added up to 50 m – 6
give the total for the throw. After five throws,
the points awarded for each throw are totaled Accuracy
for the final score. The objective is to get the Inside the 2 m circle – 10
highest total. On the 2 m line – 9
Inside the 4 m circle – 8

48
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Aussie Round
On the 4 m line – 7
Inside the 6 m circle – 6
On the 6 m line – 5
Inside the 8 m circle – 4
On the 8 m line – 3
Inside the 10 m circle – 2
On the 10 m line – 1
Outside the 10 m circle – 0
Catching
Inside the 20 m circle – 4
On the 20 m line – 3
Inside the 50 m circle – 2
On the 50 m circle – 1 (imagine having to run
50 meters and only get one point for it!)
Outside the 50 m circle - 0
Strategies for the Best Scores
Typically, it is almost a matter of pride that
many competitors use a 50 meter boomerang
for aussie round. It is wise to remember
though that you get far more points throwing
for accuracy than for distance. Although dis-
tance points are virtually guaranteed, they may
reduce your overall score because of the loss
of accuracy points. It is often better
(particularly in unfavorable conditions) to use a
40 or even a 30 meter boomerang and focus
on getting accuracy points rather than going
for distance.
Make sure you use a boomerang that can han-
dle the conditions you are throwing in. Be
ready to add weights or drag to adapt to
changing conditions.
To maximize the points for each throw, it is
important to ensure that you make every
catch. When possible, stretch for the catch
from a higher point area to maximize your
points. As well, the trick of jumping in a score
is used when possible. The catch is made
while in the air, jumping from a lower point
area into a higher point area.
Watch the results of other throwers that throw
before you in your round. You may be able
to identify odd wind currents plaguing other-
wise good throws that you can avoid. Take
49
advantage of wind indicators place in locations
other than in the throwing circle when deciding
the direction you will throw.
If you need to make an adjustment to how
your boomerang is flying during a competition,
it is best to make the changes using easy to re
-position drag like a rubber band. If a larger
change is required than can be handled by
adjusting the drag a bit, switch to a different
boomerang. For this reason, it is wise to have
more than one boomerang ready that suit the
approximate conditions you will be throwing in.
Design Features
Aussie round is the only place (aside from
MTA) where two-bladers still rule the field.
Most aussie round boomerangs are essentially
longer distance versions of sport boomerangs.
Although there are a few multi-blader designs
available, they are still relatively rare in com-
petition except when conditions dictate a
shorter range boomerang.
Most aussie round boomerangs are designed
and modified to be thrown at full power.
Weights and drag are used extensively to en-
sure the desired range is met and to adjust for
a very accurate return. Range is generally
adjusted to be a couple of meters over the de-
sired range to reduce the risk of being called
short on your desired range.
A few observations of some of the more popu-
lar aussie round boomerangs are listed below.
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Aussie Round
These are by no means rules for design but
rather observations of some of the more com-
mon features employed. Aussie round boo-
merangs may be designed with many, some or
none of these features. Look to the gallery
section for examples of these features.
Materials of choice are generally dense
composites such as phenolics or G10
The dingle arm is often slightly longer than
the lead arm
The dingle arm often has a shorter chord
length than the lead arm
Like many sport boomerangs, flared or bul-
bous tips are common
V shapes and omegas are the most com-
mon followed by pseudo tri-bladers and
two and a half-bladders - multi-bladers are
still relatively rare but are gaining popular-
ity
If shorter range is acceptable (30- 40 me-
ters), tri-bladers made out of heavy mate-
rial such as composites or weighted wood
sport models can be used
Coins and flaps are used extensively for
tuning
Typically are smaller than sport boomer-
angs because of denser materials used
Aussie Round Carving Tips
For the most part, aussie round boomerangs
are generally longer distance versions of sport
boomerangs. To achieve distances of 50 me-
ters, generally one of two options are used.
These options are to either use heavy materi-
als such as phenolics or G10 instead of wood
or to weight the tips of the boomerang to ex-
tend  it’s  range.    Sometimes  both  options  are   Use drag as required and weight to achieve
used.
Using composite materials such as phenolics
or GFEC will make it easier to make 50 meters
but will also require special precautions when
carving to ensure you are protected against
the dust generated. If you choose to use
wood, you will likely have to weight the tips to
maximize your range. Most plastics such as
ABS or polypropylene do not find much use in
aussie round boomerangs.
50
The thinner composites tend also to be more
wind resistant. This is partly because of their
additional weight and partly because they are
so much thinner than their wood counterparts.
Thinner airfoils tend to be less susceptible to
changes in the wind.
When carving your own, I recommend starting
either with any of the designs available off the
internet or copying one of your favorite boo-
merangs. You can also use the design for a
sport boomerang but will likely have to modify
it to get it to work for longer range applications.
Start by possibly reducing the size slightly and
reducing the chord length of each arm and us-
ing a composite instead of wood.
Experiment with various airfoils to build up a
kit of aussie round boomerangs for various
conditions. Some models work well even
when carved with significant undercut on the
trailing edge - particularly on the lead arm.
This airfoil is excellent for getting a bit of extra
range without having
to resort to weights.
Another interesting airfoil to try is the invertible
airfoil. With this airfoil, different flights are pos-
sible depending on which side is used at the
top when thrown. One side will generally re-
sult in a high, shorter range flight while the
other will have more
range and be lower.
Aussie Round Tuning Tips
For aussie round boomerangs, the tips given
in the generic tuning tips section all work well.
the distance you desire.
Aim for a stable flight that resembles an ex-
tended version of the flight of your favorite
sports boomerangs. There should be no dra-
matic changes in the height of the flight and it
should be very accurate. There should be
enough hover that the catch at the end can be
made comfortably.
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Aussie Round
Aussie Round Troubleshooting Guide
Not enough range
Add weight to lead arm
Add weights to both arms and possibly el-
bow
Carve out of heavier material (i.e. G10)
Twist slight negative angle of attack into
lead arm

Flies too high

Add negative dihedral to appropriate arm
Add flap on top
Add weight on top of dingle arm or bottom
of lead arm
Carve tune airfoils for a lower flight

Flies too low

Add positive dihedral
Add flap on bottom
Add weight on top of lead arm or on bot-
tom of dingle arm
Undercut both arms slightly

Does not make it all the way back

Adjust drag (probably on dingle arm)
Adjust weights (probably on dingle arm)
Adjust angle of attack of dingle arm
Adjust airfoil (i.e. dingle arm depression)

Flies past bulls-eye

Adjust drag (probably on lead arm)
Adjust weights (probably on lead arm)

Too sensitive to wind

Add drag
Add weights near center of rotation
Change airfoil (i.e. more blocky or
grooves)
Carve out of heavier material (i.e. G10)

51
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Fast Catch and Endurance
In fast catch, the objective is to make five
throws and catches in the shortest period of
time. A good round requires that everything
works perfectly – five times in a row. You
need a good throw, fast hands, smooth transi-
tions between throws and catches, and a fast
boomerang.
Endurance is fast catch extended for a total
time of five minutes. Endurance requires eve-
rything a good round of fast catch does com-
bined with the stamina to keep it up for an ex-
tended period of time.
It should also be noted that in fast catch and
endurance, probably more than any other
event, it is best to wear some sort of eye pro-
tection. Sunglasses not only protect you from
the sun but will also protect your eyes if the
fast catch bounces out of your hands towards
your face.
Fast Catch and Endurance History
The first time fast catch was competed, the
best time was almost 5 minutes. It should be
noted however that 10 catches were required
and there was a restriction on where the boo-
merang could be caught.
The rules were changed to only 5 catches but
times  were  still  slow  by  today’s  standards.    Un-­
til the early 80s, anything under a minute was
considered a pretty good round and a score in
the mid 30 second range was considered ex-
ceptional.
Fast catch boomerangs, like those used in
some of the other boomerang disciplines such
as MTA and long distance, have evolved
greatly over the time since the events incep-
tion. In the beginning, ordinary sports boomer-
angs were used which explains the long times.
At the time, there was little else available.
Over time, people began to realize that since
you could achieve different flight patterns us-
ing different boomerangs, it was probably pos-
sible to design a boomerang specifically for
fast catch.
52
The first big leap in technology happened in
the early 80s when a young competitor named
John Flynn was experimenting. He was actu-
ally trying to make an MTA but at the time, he
was relatively new to tuning and bent the
wings of his boomerang down rather than up.
His boomerang flew a very tight circle, low and
very accurate. Rather than being dismayed
over his apparent failure (it was a lousy MTA),
he clued into the fact that this boomerang
would make an excellent fast catch. He incor-
porated some features shared with him by Eric
Darnell into his designs and completely domi-
nated the early years of fast catch. John was
the first thrower ever to break the 30 and 20
second marks. John also was the top competi-
tor in endurance being the first ever to break
50 catches in 5 minutes and later had 70 in
five minutes.
By the end of the eighties, there were many
good two-blader designs. Most were V
shapes or pseudo tri-bladers. The pseudo tri-
bladers are actually tri-bladers disguised as a
two-blader. The elbow section of these acts
as the third wing. They are not necessarily
faster than the V shapes but are much easier
to catch. Most two-blader fast catch boomer-
angs were generally heavily cambered on the
bottom and had extensive undercutting.
In the early 90s, tri-bladers became legal in
competition according to the international
rules. Since that time, tri-bladers have com-
pletely dominated the fast catch event. There
are a few quad designs but they are still rela-
tively rare.
Modern designs have not only become faster
(this point is debatable based on the two-
bladed fast catch boomerangs in my collection
- they are scary fast) but also more user
friendly. This area is constantly changing and
new ideas are being put forth to make life eas-
ier for the thrower. It is dramatically easier to
break 30, 25 or even 20 seconds now than it
was in the early 90s. It still requires skill but
designers are doing their best to push per-
formance to new levels.
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Fast Catch and Endurance
Probably the most common fast catch boomer-
angs  are  modifications  of  Eric  Darnell’s  Tri-Fly.
Tri-Fly modifications are particularly popular
because they are so simple to make. They
are cambered on the bottom so this part of the
design was already taken care of. As well,
since they are made of plastic, they are very
easy to tune. They are available in a number
of different plastics although most competitors
lean towards ABS.
The current world record for a round of fast
catch was set in 1996 by Adam Ruhf of the
USA with a time of 14.60 seconds. Adam
used a self carved Tri-Fly modification based
on  Eric  Darnell’s  Advanced  Fast  Catch  design.   after the five minutes is up. Drops, throws with
Adam is the only person to break the 15 sec-
ond barrier in competition although others
have come exceedingly close.
The current endurance record was set by
Manuel Schütz in 2005 with a total of 81
catches in five minutes. That translates to
maintaining the equivalent of a sub 19 second
round for five straight minutes.
Current Rules
The goal of fast catch is to throw and catch a
20 meter boomerang five times as quickly as
possible. In endurance, the throwing contin-
ues for five minutes and the objective is to
rack up as many catches as possible in the
allowed time.
For both fast catch and endurance, all throws
must be made from inside the 2 meter circle.
Stepping over the line of the 2 meter circle is
considered a foot fault and that throw will not
count if caught. Similarly, if the boomerang
does not make the required 20 meter range, it
will not count and the thrower must throw
again (if time allows).
Time in fast catch is from the first throw until
the throwers foot lands back in the 2 meter
circle after the fifth catch. If a drop is made,
range is called short, or a foot fault called, that
throw does not count as part of the five throws
required. The thrower must continue until five
53
valid catches are made or the maximum al-
lowed time has been reached (in which case
the number of catches is recorded). The last
throw must be released before 60 seconds of
time in the round has elapsed. The time or a
round may be significantly over one minute if
the catch is made outside the circle and it
takes some time for the thrower to get back to
the 2 meter line to stop the round. Usually,
each thrower has two rounds of fast catch.
Endurance is run very similarly except the
round does not end until five minutes has
elapsed. The last throw must be made before
the end of the five minutes but may be caught
foot  faults  or  throws  that  don’t  make  range  do  
not count towards the total. Only one round or
endurance is usually allowed for each thrower.
Both fast catch and endurance can be com-
peted under independent, team, or head to
head formats.
Setup and Scoring
Minimum requirements for the fast catch and
endurance events are 20 m
one 20 meter range
circle and one 2 meter
center circle. Typically,
the circles used for 2m
aussie round or
accuracy are used but
all the other lines are
not needed.
Three range spotters to confirm each throw
makes the required 20 meters and one center
judge to check foot faults and call out the end
of the round are required.
Typically for fast catch, three timers are used.
The top and bottom times are dropped and the
remaining time is given as the time for the
round. Two rounds are generally run with the
better of the two score counting as the official
time.
For endurance, only one timer is required.
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Fast Catch and Endurance
Time is periodically called out to the thrower
so they know how much time is left in the
round.
Strategy for the Best Times
It would be easy to say that your best bet for a
great time in fast catch or endurance is to use
the fastest boomerang you have. However,
this is rarely the case. You are usually much
better off to use something that you can
handle rather than something you risk
dropping or flying past you.
Even a single step here and there eats up time
like  you  wouldn’t  believe.    A  slightly  slower   Be sure that you are throwing at full power (or
boomerang that  you  don’t need to move to
make the catch will get you much better times
than a faster boomerang that you need to take
a couple of steps every time you catch it. As
your skills advance, you can move towards the
faster models and still maintain control.
To have a good round of fast catch, you need
to have your boomerang adjusted perfectly. It
should  be  very  accurate  so  you  don’t  have  to   your eyes off it just as you catch to line up
move to make the catch. You should not have
to take even a single step to catch your
boomerang. If you are taking more than a
step between your
catch and your
next  throw,  you’ll   gets there. Trying to catch at the last second
have troubles
getting good times.
Naturally, this is
much harder than it
sounds and will
take a lot of
practice.
Actually, the boomerang should come in
slightly behind you for best times. This allows
you to be part way through you wind-up when
you make your catch – saving precious time.
Practice this technique using a slow, predict-
able fast catch. You will be surprised how
much it can affect your time.
Once tuned for this flight, you can make minor
adjustments to where it comes back to you to
54
accommodate different winds with your throw.
You can do this not only by adjusting left or
right in the wind but also by slight variations in
your throwing elevation. Slightly higher will
bring it back further a bit. Lower will move it
forward a bit.
Typically, you are aiming for the boomerang to
come in about chest level at the highest.
Much higher and you risk it flying over your
head with a puff of wind. The flight should be
low and round. The boomerang should look
like it is at the same level all the way around.
close to it), with lots of spin and virtually no
layover for the entire round.    Don’t let up on
power part way through the round.
Make sure you make every catch. Missing a
catch is the easiest way to mess up a great
round.    To  make  sure  you  don’t  miss  a  catch,  
never take your eyes off the boomerang during
the whole flight. It can be tempting to take
your next throw but make sure the boomerang
is in your hands before your turn your head or
take your eyes away. Also make sure your
hands follow the boomerang and are in the
right place for the catch before the boomerang
by snagging it out of the air is not the best way
to  make  every  catch.    Stay  relaxed  and  don’t  
tense up right before each critical catch.
As mentioned earlier, use a boomerang you
can handle. Drag will slow your boomerang
down enough by the end of the flight so that
you can catch it. If you have the power and
the right throw, the added drag will not slow
down the time the boomerang is in the air
much. Many like fast catch boomerangs that
just about stop as they come in for a nice easy
catch.    Others  don’t  mind  something  coming  in  
a bit faster but often need to wear gloves to
protect their hands. Many top competitors opt
for catching gloves to protect their fingers dur-
ing fast catch rounds just so they can use a
faster boomerang.
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Fast Catch and Endurance
Generally, since there are two rounds in fast
catch, the first round is considered a safety
round. Make every catch and try to get an ac-
ceptable score. Use a slower boomerang if
necessary. If you mess up, you can still re-
cover with a good second round. If everything
went well in the first round, the second round
is run with no holds barred. The idea is you
have nothing to lose so you might as well go
for it. Use the fastest boomerang you feel you
can handle.
In endurance, it is generally a good idea to
stick with a slower, safety boomerang. Noth-
ing will wear you out faster than having to run
a lot to chase after a boomerang you missed.
Focus on making every catch not speed
unless conditions are perfect.
You may also want to have a few different fast
catch boomerangs for different conditions.
Fast catch boomerangs are notoriously sensi-
tive to wind. Top throwers often carry at least
three with them into the throwing circle. A su-
per fast one for dead calm conditions, a safe
one for if the wind is up a bit, and a brick for
when the winds are really tough.
Practice is the only way to get good at fast
catch and endurance. There is no luck
involved in a good round. Even under ideal
conditions, they are very challenging.
Variations
The most common variation of fast catch and
endurance is speed. It is basically a one min-
ute version of endurance. For novice throw-
ers, fast throw may be competed where only 5
throws need to be made (the catches are not
required but will speed up the time).
Another variation sometimes contested is su-
percatch. Supercatch entails throwing an MTA
and then starting a fast catch round. Catch as
many fast catches as you can before catching
the MTA. To qualify as a supercatch round,
you need at least 5 catches with your fast
catch boomerang.
55
A variation of supercatch is often part of the
team events at international competitions. In
the team version, one thrower launches his
MTA and the rest of the team throws fast catch
until the MTA is caught. If the MTA is not
caught, none of the other catches count. The
total number of catches for the team are
added up for the score.
Another common variation is team endurance.
In this variation, each team member sprints to
the throwing circle, throws one minute of en-
durance then sprints back to tag the next
member of the team. If there is still time on
the clock when the last team member gets
back to the starting line, the first thrower can
sprint back to the throwing circle and throw
until any remaining time runs out. The team
with the most total catches wins.
Design Features
Most modern fast catch boomerangs are tri-
bladers. Almost all modern fast catch boomer-
angs share the common design feature of hav-
ing forward swept wings. This keeps the lay
down rate to a minimum and lends itself to a
low, round, fast flight-path. The degree of for-
ward sweep does not have to be very much to
have a significant effect.
Before tri-bladers were legal in international
competition, two-bladers were used. Without
getting into too much detail about them (since
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Fast Catch and Endurance
they are rarely used anymore), the major fea-
tures used on two-blader fast catch boomer-
angs was extensive undercutting and camber-
ing on the underside. Some two-blader fast
catch boomerangs will actually outperform
many modern tri-bladers in terms of overall
speed of the flight but are much harder to han-
dle.
Today, it is rare to ever see anyone throwing a
two-bladed fast catch in competition. Multi-
bladers (tri-bladers in particular) have com-
pletely overtaken this event. This is largely
due to the fact that they tend to be easier to
throw, catch, and are more forgiving.
Generally, the airfoils
are fairly similar to the
standard semi-crude
airfoil. Undercutting
and camber on the un-
derside are still used
extensively.
Another vital part of the design is drag. It is
rare to find a fast catch boomerang that does-
n’t  have  either  holes  in  it  or  have  some  other   Fast Catch Carving Tips
sort  of  drag  on  it.    If  they  don’t  have  enough   Since very few people throw two-bladed fast
built in drag, they can be too fast to handle
and thick gloves would bee needed just to get
through a round unscathed.
Drag not only makes the boomerang slower
but also makes it easier to handle. It slows
down the speed at the end of the flight enough
that a very fast boomerang is catchable. A
properly dragged fast catch boomerang can be
thrown at top power but will slow down enough
by the end of the flight to still be catchable.
This balance depends on the skill of the
thrower.
Drag is used to stabilize unpredictable flights.
Boomerangs that need a very specific throw or
conditions often are helped by the addition of
drag.
Rubber bands are particularly useful since
they can easily be adjusted in the middle of a
56
round (by rolling either inwards or out towards
the tips) without losing much time. They allow
you to deal with a sudden change in the
strength of the wind without having to stop and
change boomerangs.
Weights can also be used to help stabilize the
flight. They are more common in safety round
or higher wind fast catch boomerangs.
As with MTAs, the tune is an essential part of
all fast catch boomerangs. Properly tuned,
the boomerang will barely make the required
20 meter range and fly a low fast flight that is
very accurate.
Plastics such as ABS and polypropylene tend
to be the materials of choice for most fast
catch boomerangs. Wood is still fairly com-
mon but is not used as much because it is
typically harder to tune. When dealing with
wind, heavier plastics such as polycarbonate
or PET are used. Materials such as phenolics
are rarely used except in designs made for
very high wind applications.
catch boomerangs anymore, the tips pre-
sented here will be mostly for tri-blader de-
signs.
The standard semi crude airfoil will work okay
for a fast catch but it will not be particularly
fast. It is probably your best bet if you want a
stable boomerang for use in the wind. How-
ever, if you want a really fast boomerang,
some special airfoiling may be required.
There are a few places where the airfoiling on
a quick fast catch typically deviates from other
types of boomerangs. These areas are the
tips, the leading edge, the underside, and the
center section.
The Tips
The tips are very important on a fast catch
boomerang. The tips are the portion of the
boomerang that is moving fastest through the
air when in flight so pay close attention to how
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Fast Catch and Endurance

you carve them. tune the range of the boomerang a bit better
and maintain the
On most sport boomerangs, the leading edge height easier.
extends around the tip. On many fast catch
boomerangs, the trailing edge extends around As well, the leading
the tip. This has the effect of creating a lower edge is often undercut
flight. Not all fast catch boomerangs need it to maximize lift.
and you can get the same effect through tun-
ing but on some boomerangs it is very effec- The Underside
tive. The fastest fast catch boomerangs are gener-
ally hollowed out on the underside. This has
the effect of increasing the lift while reducing
the overall weight of
the boomerang. Not a
lot of material has to
be removed for the
results to be very im-
pressive. The style of
Flies lower as trailing edge wrapped around the tip more undercut can vary
widely.
Tips that are square tend to be slower than
round tips. Square corners are also more
likely to result in a painful catch even though
the boomerang may not be moving as fast.

Cambering the underside on tri-bladers is typi-

cally only done near the tips where it has the
most effect. On some two-blader designs, the
Flies faster as tips are rounded entire underside was cambered.

On another note, it is not nec- One of the advantages to modifying a Tri-Fly is

essary to make the tips smooth. that this concave undercut is built into it al-
Rough edges create drag which ready.    You  don’t  have  to  carve  it  in  manually.    
in turn require you to throw On models where you do have to carve it in,
harder (thus speeding up your the most common ways of doing so are to ei-
boomerang) but allowing it to ther use a router, a rotary tool, or the edge of a
slow down enough to catch it. drum sander. It can be a bit tricky to do a neat
job but the results are well worth the extra ef-
The Leading Edge fort.
How you carve the leading edge can have an
effect on the speed of your boomerang. The The Center Section
bevel on the top should not cut down any fur- Carving the center portion of your fast catch
ther than in the regular semi-crude airfoil but can greatly affect the flight. The more bevel
should be cut much further back. This creates carved in this area, the faster the boomerang
less drag over the airfoil and allows you to fine will come in for the catch. You can assure

57
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Fast Catch and Endurance
yourself a nice easy catch by leaving this area
blunt. A slow end to the flight will not affect
the times you can get very much. As your
skills improve and you can handle a faster re-
turn, try beveling the center section in small
steps to increase the speed. However, too
much removed from this area will result in an
erratic flying boomerang that is hard to control.
Faster as center is carved more but also harder to control
One of the symptoms of this area being over-
carved is if you have problems with a slight,
last second, turn in at the end of the flight. If
this happens, blunt the edges of the center.
Sometimes,  if  the  previous  tricks  don’t  work,   fortable to catch. Square edges are better. In
carving in a slight amount of undercut in this
area can also help to fix this problem.
A hole dilled in the center will also help slow
down your boomerang at the end of the flight.
It can also be used as an alternative to blunt-
ing the center section as above if you have a
last second turn in issue. Be aware that drill-
ing a hole in the center will also affect the lay
down rate of your boomerang which may not
be desirable.
Wind Fast Catches
Dealing with wind in a fast catch round is very
frustrating. Relatively small changes in wind
can completely disrupt an otherwise good
round. When the wind really comes up, more
extreme measures are required if you want
anything resembling an acceptable time.
For wind, the most common approach is to
add drag and weights Drag is usually added
afterward using flaps, rubber bands, Velcro, or
the permanent modifications such as holes or
combs (still fairly rare). Weights may be
58
needed to get the range you need and can
greatly help stabilize flights. Use a slow,
safety fast catch that is reliable and make it
even  slower  to  make  sure  you  don’t  get  blown  
away.
As well, many opt to use a boomerang made
out of a heavier material such as polycarbon-
ate or PET. They tend to cut through the wind
a bit better and still allow you to get good
times. Materials such as phenolics are rarely
used as they are considered to be too heavy.
Aside from these, relatively obvious modifica-
tions, changes to the airfoils are also possible.
The most common are to use a more blocky
airfoil, thin the thickness of the material down
at the tips or to use the inverted airfoil.
The blocky airfoil is just and extra blocky ver-
sion of the standard semi-crude airfoil used on
most boomerangs. Care should be taken to
only round off the edges enough that it is com-
particular, do not round the trailing edge at all.
Take off a little material as possible. This air-
foil will make for a slow
fast catch but is very reli-
able.
I first came across the modification of thinning
down the thickness of the material near the
tips to enhance wind resistance
on a fast catch developed by Eric
Darnell. For best effect, carve a
standard airfoil then thin the thick-
ness of the boomerang at the tips
by taking material off the top of
the boomerang. The overall
thickness of the material at the
tips can be reduced to less than
half of its original
thickness.
The inverted airfoil is carved similarly as with
other boomerangs. There should be minimal
bevel on the top of the leading edge and a
small amount of under-
cut. The trailing edge is
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Fast Catch and Endurance
virtually unchanged from a normal airfoil.
Fast Catch Tuning Tips
To tune a fast catch boomerang for the opti-
mum flight, generally, it is advised to adjust for
range first, followed by accuracy the finally for
height. Any other adjustments are made later.
For adjustments to range and accuracy, use
the tri-blade tuning model from the generic
tuning tips. Be sure to mark which wing you
choose to be the lead arm and which you
choose to be the dingle arm.
Angle of attack on the lead arm is used to con-
trol the range. Twisting in positive angle of
attack will create more lift and result in a
slightly shorter flight. If your range is not quite
enough, twisting in a bit of negative angle of
attack will add a few meters to your range.
Weighting can be done to extend the range as
well. This can be done either with coins or
sometimes with just a few wraps of tape
around the tips. Ideally, the range should be
just over 20 meters.
The dingle arm predominately affects the ac-
curacy of your boomerang. Too much angle of
attack and the boomerang will cut in front of
you. Not enough and it will fly behind you. To
optimize your time in a fast catch event, you
need to adjust your boomerang so that it
comes directly to you. Not having to move in
your round will save you more time than any
other single thing you can do so really work on
accuracy.
Height adjustments are made by adjusting di-
hedral on one or more of the wings. With fast
catch boomerangs, it does not seem to make
much difference which wing is adjusted to get
the final effect. Weighting either on top or on
bottom of the wings (or combinations of on top
and on bottom) can also be used to adjust the
height of the flight. Weights on top will tend to
make it fly lower. On the bottom, higher.
Adjust the height of the flight so that it flies
59
high  enough  that  it  won’t  crash  into  the  ground  
on  the  way  around  but  low  enough  that  it  won’t  
fly over your head if your throw is off a bit.
Ideally, the boomerang should come in slightly
lower than chest level.
Drag is used to make the flight more stable
and easier to catch. Rubber bands, flaps and
Velcro are all used extensively.
Weighting is also used if stability of the flight is
an issue. Coins taped near the midpoint of
each wing will greatly help with stability.
Fast Catch Troubleshooting Guide
Flies too high
Bend negative dihedral into one or more
wing
Extend the trailing edge around the tips
Add weights on top of wings
Add flap on leading edge pointing forward
Add drag (holes, flaps, rubber bands, etc.)
Flies too low
Throw harder
Throw higher
Bend positive dihedral into one or more
wing
Twist positive angle of attack into one or
more wing
Add weight to bottom of wings
Add large flap on the bottom in the center
Not enough range
Twist negative angle of attack into the lead
arm
Add weights or move weights closer to tips
Carve back leading edge of airfoil
Add flap near leading edge on the bottom
Too much range
Twist positive angle of attack on lead arm
Undercut leading edge
Remove weights or move weights closer to
center
Flies way past you on return or comes in too
fast to want to be in front of
Add drag (holes, rubber bands, Velcro,
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Fast Catch and Endurance

flaps, etc.) Not fast enough
Enlarge holes in tips Remove weight
Drill a hole in the center Remove drag
Blunt the center section Add concave undercut
Add concave undercuts Sharpen leading edges
Use lighter material
Flies erratically Throw harder
Add drag
Enlarge holes in tips
Add weights (minor problems near the
center – major problems closer to the tips)
Blunt or undercut center section

Runs out of spin

Reduce drag
Reduce angle of attack

Doesn't make it all the way back

Remove or adjust drag (stops before it
gets all the way back)
Throw harder

Crashes into the ground halfway around

Remove or adjust drag
Add positive dihedral to one or more wing
Throw harder

Lays down too fast or not fast enough

Change design (determined by amount of
forward sweep in the arms)
Drill hole in the center

Doesn't come in straight

Add weight near center section
Add weights near midpoint of each wing
Blunt or undercut center section
Drill hole in center

Can’t  handle  wind

Add drag
Add weights near midpoint of each arm
Blunt airfoils
Carve reversible airfoil
Carve out of heavier material
Reduce chord length
Thin tips to half of original thickness

60
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
MTA
MTA or Maximum Time Aloft is a favorite
event of many competitors. A perfectly thrown
boomerang soars up into the air and settles
into a gentle hover. Perhaps it catches a ther-
mal and the boomerang eerily ceases to drop
or even begins to rise. People point as the
boomerang gently floats across the field. See-
ing a boomerang float for an extended period
of time in the air is an awe inspiring experi-
ence although it can also be quite nerve
wracking if the flight is too good (and you are
scared it might not come back down).
For newer throwers, MTA is also among the
most frustrating of all the events. MTA has
the reputation for being among the most diffi-
cult boomerangs to master. MTAs require a
very specific throw. Slightly too much layover
can have disastrous results.
Likewise, tuning is very important. Some
wooden models can have a tendency to de-
tune over time - much to the frustration of their
owners. Just the idea of having to tune an
MTA is enough to make many cringe. That is
part of the reason for the popularity of expen-
sive composite MTAs such as the Jonas or
the many models available from Georgi Di-
mantchev, Gary Villard, Manuel Schütz, Adam
McLaughlin, and David Schummy.
However,  you  don’t  need  an  expensive  com-­
posite boomerang to do well in this event. A
bit of tuning knowledge can put you right up
there with the best of them. For years, even
after composite MTAs were the norm for top
competitors, the world record was held with a
plywood model boomerang.
Although they are intimidating, MTAs are very
satisfying to master. The goal of this section
is to take some of the mystery out of these
wonderful boomerangs to make it easier for
you to get the most out of yours.
MTA History
MTA is one of the modern events. It has only
been contested since the late 70s. Originally,
MTA was known as duration. Early MTAs
61
were little more than lightweight traditional
boomerangs. Raw power often determined
who would win with scores of 15 - 20 seconds
being the top anyone could ever expect. It
was the arena for those with powerful throwing
arms to show their stuff. Design had not yet
allowed for the extended times now seen.
Sometimes, longer distance models were used
to take advantage of their extended flight. Tun-
ings and designs were top secret and often
hidden from other competitors to maintain an
edge. Fortunately, this secrecy is no longer as
much of a problem and many throwers are
more than willing to help novices get started.
The design of MTAs did not really evolve very
quickly until Ted Bailey started playing around
with  modified  versions  of  Wilhelm  Bretfeld’s  
boomerangs. In early 1985, he took design
tips from the Bretfeld design, combined that
with design features of his Bob Burwell Rip-
pah, and reversed tuning advice from Al
Gerhards on how to get boomerangs to fly low
tear drop flight paths instead of high flights.
Ted also started making MTAs out of light-
weight 3 mm birch plywood and mastered the
bend and twist tuning that is used virtually ex-
clusively to this day. The performance was
revolutionary.
Ted holds many firsts using his MTAs includ-
ing the first boomerang ever to fly over two
minutes, the first boomerang ever lost to the
sky under normal wind conditions (he lost
more than 40 more over the next 5 years) and
the first ever supercatch round. With a few
exceptions, almost all modern MTAs are varia-
tions  of  Ted’s  designs.
By 1987, the rules had to change to accommo-
date the performance competitors were get-
ting. Just to keep the competitions restricted
to the field and to keep them moving along at
a reasonable pace, a distance restriction was
implemented and MTA100 was born.
In the early 90s, Jonas Romblad of Sweden
took one of Ted Baileys designs and revolu-
tionized the MTA world again. He made an
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

MTA
ultra  light  composite  version  of  Ted’s  best  de-­ The recorded time is from when the boomer-
sign using ultra stiff carbon fiber and other ex- ang leaves the throwers hand until it is caught.
otic materials. If a drop is made or it is caught out of bounds,
the time does not count (catches outside the
The biggest advantage of this MTA over all 50 meter circle are open to the MTA unlimited
others before it is that the tuning was molded record but typically do not count towards a
into  the  boomerang  and  it  wouldn’t  change.     valid flight in competition.
He could also make the boomerang even
lighter than is possible with wooden models. A pre-determined number of throws is allowed
Jonas quickly became known for making the (usually 3 - 5). The longest time wins. Scor-
worlds finest MTAs. ing changes periodically from individual times
to combined times but the basic rules still ap-
Even now, they are still the standard for con- ply.
sistency and performance. Jonas unfortu-
nately no longer makes his fine boomerangs Setup and Scoring
and they are becoming collectors items. They The only circle requirements for this event is
are still common among top throwers in com- one 50 meter range circle (100 meter diame-
petition and will likely continue to be the MTA ter). Typically, the 50 meter circle used for
against which all others are judged until they aussie round is used. All the other lines are
all are lost to the sky. Fortunately, a few oth- not needed. Ensuring the throw and the catch
ers have stepped up to the plate and offer are both made within the 50 meter circle is of-
similar boomerangs with similar performance. ten done based on the honor system.
50 m
That  is  not  to  say  that  you  can’t  do  well  in  
competition  using  “old”  technology.    In  1997,  
the world record for MTA100 was set by Eric
Darnell in 1997 with a wood Bailey MTA. The
current world record is held by Nick Citoli with
a time of 139.10 seconds in 2010. The MTA
unlimited record was set by Billy Brazelton
also in 2010 with a throw of 380.59 seconds.
Then of course there is the legendary unoffi-
cial throw of 17 minutes 6 seconds with a
catch set by John Gorski in practice 1993.
Although many have had longer flights that
flew off into the sky, this is the longest timed
flight with a catch. If it had been thrown in
competition, it would have fit within the restric-
tions of MTA100!

Current Rules
The goal of MTA is to throw and maximize the
time before it is caught. Current rules state
that all throws must be made from somewhere
within the 50 meter circle - it does not matter
where. Likewise, the catch must be made
within the confines of the 50 meter circle.
There is no measured range requirement for
MTAs.
Three timers (two official and one backup) are
usually used with the top and bottom score
being dropped. The remaining time is given
as the time for the throw.
To speed up the event a bit, often multiple
throwers are allowed to throw at the same time

62
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
MTA
(each thrower must have the prescribed num-
ber of timers though). MTA can also be con-
tested under head to head and team formats.
Strategies for the Best Times
When throwing MTA, it is important to take
your time and mentally prepare yourself for the
throw. MTAs generally have a relatively nar-
row throwing window so it is imperative that
you throw correctly.
Watch other throwers and how their boomer-
angs perform. This can give you indications
on where the best place to throw is. It can
give clues on the placement of thermals and
how far the wind is carrying the ultra-light boo-
merangs across the field. Although there is a
certain amount of luck in catching a thermal,
paying attention to what others are experienc-
ing may increase your odds.
Other tricks for finding thermals is to look for
birds in the air riding thermals and try to take
advantage of them. Dead or brown pieces of
grass tend to create more thermals than the
cooler green grass. Throw such that your
MTA sets up directly over places where you
think a thermal might be. On cloudy days,
thermal action increases dramatically when
the sun comes out from behind a cloud.
Sometimes this is more predictable that at
other times.
Plan to use the
entire space if
the winds are up
a bit. Throw right
at the edge of the
throwing circle so
if the wind carries
your boomerang
down-wind a long
ways, at least
you have 100
meters before
your are out of
bounds.
Also pay attention to minor wind gusts by
63
watching trees in the distance. If you can
time it so your throw is launched about 5 sec-
onds prior to a gust getting to you, you can
take advantage of the extra gust for a bit of
extra lift right when the boomerang is setting
up and get some extra height.
One trick the top competitors who throw com-
posite MTAs use is to twist a tiny bit of nega-
tive angle of attack into the lead arm just be-
fore throwing. This allows the boomerang to
get higher and more likely to catch a thermal.
The twisted in angle of attack comes back out
of the boomerang by the time the MTA sets up
in  it’s  hover  so  stability  is  not  affected.
As with other events, make sure you make
every catch. A drop has a time of zero no
matter how long it was in the air. Run down-
wind as soon as the boomerang is released so
that when you turn around, it is in front of you.
Spotters are often used in windy conditions to
tell the thrower when to turn around. This al-
lows you to step forward to make the catch
rather than chasing after it making your odd of
success much greater. To milk a bit of extra
time out of the flight, catch as low to the
ground as you can without risking it touch the
ground.
When the wind is up, it is recommended to use
an MTA made out of a heavier material such
as  phenolic  so  you  don’t  get  blown  away.    Also  
tune the MTA so that it sets up way out in front
to reduce the likelihood of being blown out of
the scoring circles. This is the motivation be-
hind some of the new multi-blade MTAs.
In very high wind situations, some competitors
opt for using a trick catch boomerang just so
that a catch within the circle is ensured. A
throw of 10 - 15 seconds is still better than 0.
Variations
The most common variations of MTA is MTA
unlimited. Simply put, the restriction of having
to catch within the 50 meter circle is lifted.
MTA can be competed as independent, team
or head to head formats.
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
MTA
Another variation sometimes contested is su-
percatch. Supercatch entails throwing an MTA
and then starting a fast catch round. Catch as
many fast catches as you can before chasing
after the MTA. To count as a supercatch
round, at least 5 catches must be made with
the fast catch boomerang and the MTA must
also be caught.
A variation of supercatch is often part of the
team events at international competitions. In
the team version, one thrower launches his
MTA and the rest of the team throws fast catch
until the MTA is caught. It the MTA is not
caught, none of the other catches count. The
total number of catches for the team are
added up for the score.
Design Features
The design of most MTAs is fairly consistent.
Most have a long lead arm and a short dingle
arm.
The idea behind this design is that it places
the center of rotation such that during the
hover portion of the flight, the boomerang tries
to become a single bladed boomerang. The
effect of the dingle arm is minimized as it al-
most lines up (tip to elbow) with the path of
rotation. The lead arm on the other hand trav-
els in a path perpendicular to the path of rota-
tion thus contributes a much larger portion of
the lift. This
effect is seen
in nature in
maple seeds
that slowly
drop to the
ground spin-
ning like a
helicopter.
64
Like the MTA, the maple seed only has one
wing that quickly spins around the axis.
As the boomerang falls through the air, it also
produces  it’s  own  spin  (an  effect  known  as  
auto-rotating).    The  spin  isn’t  free  - it is gener-
ated by the falling motion of the boomerang
through the column of air. Falling faster would
generate more spin which in turn would cause
faster tip speed and ultimately, more lift which
would decrease the drop rate. Once in the
hover stage of the flight, the spin rate will
quickly reach a balance point between the spin
created by dropping and the extra lift gener-
ated by the extra speed. From that point on,
the spin rate of the boomerang should be rela-
tively consistent no matter how long it is in the
air. This is why a really long flight never
seems to run out of spin no matter how long it
is in the air.
The original design was actually conceived by
Wilhelm Bretfeld but Ted Bailey is the one who
brought  it  into  it’s  modern  form.    There  are  
other designs but the Bailey shape is the most
common.
Other designs popular among competitors are
Ola  Wahlberg’s  Snake  and  Axel  Heckner’s  
Quirl. Bulgarian Georgi Dimantchev and
Manuel Schütz have developed asymmetrical
three-bladed MTAs (the Trigger and the Palm)
designed for use when winds are up. They
drop quicker than Bailey style MTAs but make
up for it by getting very high before their initial
stabilization. They are also tuned so that they
set-up way out in front of the thrower so the
chances of being blown out the back of the
scoring circle are minimized.
Manuel Schütz has also developed a symmet-
rical tri-blader MTA that is amazingly stable. It
is almost hard to throw in such a way that it
won’t  stabilize.    The  tune  on  these  has  to  be  
very exact - even more so than conventional
MTAs. The tune is locked in place by making
them in a similar method as other composite
MTAs with carbon fiber skins covering a light-
weight  core.    So  far,  I  haven’t  seen  a  copy  of  it  
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
MTA
made out of conventional materials that flew
anywhere  near  as  good  as  Manuel’s  version.
Most MTAs are made of very thin materials. If
making an MTA out of wood, 2.5 - 3 mm ply-
wood is about as thick as you are ever likely to
go. With phenolics, 1.5 and 1.75 mm thick-
nesses are common. Paper phenolic is more
common than linen or canvas phenolics as it is
more rigid. The thin materials make them light
and reduce drag - both key components to
long flights.
Paper phenolic models tend to be heavier and
don’t  float  quite  as  well  as  lighter  wooden   MTAs is very technical and definitely not for
models. However, they offer a great advan-
tage when the wind is up a bit since they are
less prone to drift out of the circle. The also
can get much higher initially so good times are
still possible.
For the ultimate MTA, many feel that compos-
ite MTAs are the way to go. Made of stiff car-
bon fiber and other space age materials, they
are lighter and do not de-tune as readily as
wood or phenolic models.
More and more people are trying to mimic the
performance  of  Jonas  Romblad’s  composite   sics of the tune are lots of dihedral and strate-
MTAs. The basics of the construction is to
mold two shells (one for the top and one for
the bottom) and then glue them together.
Each shell has an outer layer of lightweight
carbon fiber (for rigidity) and an inner layer of
aramid fiber (Kevlar) so that breaks are less
common. The two layers of each shell are
held together with a matrix of epoxy. Before
they are glued together, the two shells are
sandwiched around alight weight inner core.
Jonas Romblad used a mixture of micro-
balloons and epoxy for the inner core of his
65
boomerangs. Other makers like David
Schummy actually leave the center hollow
while others are experimenting with other ma-
terials such as light-
weight foam or
balsa.
Composite MTAs can be made to any thick-
ness the maker wants but are generally a bit
thicker than phenolic MTAs (but thinner than
wood).
The disadvantage of composite MTAs is the
complexity of making them. Fabricating these
the beginner. Carbon fiber is also very expen-
sive so mistakes are costly from a materials
standpoint as well as the time you put into it.
The molds also have to be made very pre-
cisely. The mold has to have the exact tune
you want as once the boomerang is made, any
changes to the tune of the finished boomerang
are going to be difficult because of the non-
tunable nature of carbon fiber. It often takes
the maker a few tries before they manage to
get a good mold. However, once you have a
mold that has the proper tune, the rest is
“easy”.    Unfortunately,  even  making  a  mold  is  
beyond the scope of what can be covered
here.
The key feature of the all MTAs is the tune.
Without a proper tune, no MTA will perform
properly. The proper tune will allow for a high
flight that sets up into a stable hover. The ba-
gically placed angle of attack to maximize the
height of the flight and the stability of the
hover. Tuning can also be adjusted so that
the boomerang set up way out in front of the
thrower to ensure the boomerang stays in
bounds in windier conditions.
Most generally think that the ideal MTA is as
light as possible. This is not always the case.
Often problems in the flight can be fixed by
adding a small weight (such as a 1/4 inch dot
of lead tape). These changes can correct for
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

MTA
minor problems that occur due to improper
weight distribution of the boomerang. Weights
are typically placed on the lead arm near the
center of gravity as a starting point.
carve  tuning  your  MTA  to  fly  lower  than  it’s  
maximum potential. This would hinder your
efforts later on to tune your MTA to set up in a
high stable hover.

The other problem with trying to get MTAs too Similarly, the leading edge of the lead arm
light  is  that  if  they  aren’t  heavy  enough,  they   should extend around the outside of the elbow
are actually more difficult to throw. The lower rather than the trailing edge of the dingle arm.
limit for weight seems to be around the 14 Like the tips, if the dingle arm trailing edge
gram range (which is pretty close to the limit were wrapped around this area, the result
you can achieve with composite technology). would be a lower flight.

MTA Carving Tips

There is nothing special about carving an
MTA. The standard semi-crude airfoil works
great. Because of the design of the MTA, the
minimal drag of the airfoil is not enough to in-
hibit  the  spin.    You  don’t  need  to  worry  about  
making perfectly
smooth airfoils.

The secret to a good MTA is in the tuning.

There are a few mistakes you can make when
carving an MTA though. If you read through
the carving section, you may have noticed that
you can make a boomerang fly lower depend-
ing on how you carve the tips and the elbow
section.
Make sure that the leading edge extends
around both tips (not the trailing edge). Wrap-
ping the trailing edge around the tips would be
The trailing edge on the lead arm should ex-
tend all the way up to the elbow. Experiments
of just carving the last few inches of the lead
arm resulted in poor flying MTAs. No good
explanation for this can be given aside from
the unpredictable nature of carving around the
elbow section of boomerangs.

Carving the tips with the leading edge wrapped

around the tips will allow you to maximize the
height

The trailing edges on all airfoils you carve

should not be too sharp. If they are, your MTA
will likely be
prone to rocking
or death spirals.
Carving the tips too much will result in a lower
flight
66
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
MTA
A few alternative airfoils have been tried with
varying success. Byron Seward carved the
dingle arm of his Upside-Downer MTAs with
the trailing edge carved on the bottom rather
than on the top. The idea was that this mimics
the introduction of negative angle of attack into
the  dingle  are  so  you  don’t  have  to  worry   spray a light coat of paint on it and leave it for
about twisting it in. However, more often than
not, this modifications do not remove the need
to make some sort of angle of attack adjust-
ment on the dingle arm
so it has never widely
caught on.
Occasionally, you will also see airfoils carved
with a slight amount of camber on the bottom
of the airfoil. This is most common on the
composite MTAs of Georgi Dimantchev. It is
fairly rare on hand
carved MTAs.
Some MTAs also utilize a small trailing edge
undercut to extend the range. This modifica-
tions is used mostly on MTAs designed to set
up way out in front of the thrower (for wind ap-
plications). It will increase the drop rate during
the hover phase but this may be more than
compensated for by the outward range and
height attainable using this airfoil. Care must
be taken when carving this airfoil as too much
trailing edge undercut
can result in a non-
returning boomerang.
You can also modify the performance of the
boomerang by the finish you use. They do not
need to be sanded to a high polish to get good
results. Sanding to 180 grit is fine. Some feel
that a slightly textured surface seems to hold
the air a bit better and can improve perform-
ance - particularly on the bottom of the boo-
merang.
Actually, what I do is slightly more compli-
cated. I do
sand the elbow
area on top
smooth (220
grit) and leave
67
everything else slightly rougher.
The last technique is actually not a carving but
a finishing trick for wood MTAs. The first time
you tune your boomerang, you should do it
before it has any paint on it. After tuning,
a few days. Return to the field a make sure
the tuning is perfect. Add another light coat of
paint. This should lock the tune of the boo-
merang in. Done properly, this can reduce the
possibility of de-tuning problems and allow the
tune to remain stable for years.
MTA Tuning Tips
Tuning MTAs is one of the more intimidating
tasks in boomeranging. If you can tune an
MTA, most other boomerangs are relatively
easy. Practice and doing it yourself are the
only ways to learn how to do it.
The general tune is lots of dihedral in both the
lead and dingle arms. The lead arm will gen-
erally have slightly more dihedral than the din-
gle but that is likely due to the fact that it is so
much longer. The lead arm usually has a
slight amount of positive angle of attack. The
dingle arm may be neutral or may have a
small amount of negative angle of attack.
Dihedral on either arm should not start directly
from the elbow but rather closer to the mid-
point of the arm. The elbow region should be
left flat. The idea is to have the dihedral start-
ing from the center of gravity rather than the
elbow. Similarly, the dihedral should be added
so that it is a smooth transition over the last
few inches of the arm rather than in a single
sharp bend.
Gradual bend starts about
mid-way along arm
Bend starts about mid-way
along arm but is too sharp
Gradual bend starts too
soon beginning at elbow
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
MTA
The process presented here for tuning MTAs
follows the same rules outlined in the generic
tuning section. This is the process I use to
tune up my wood MTAs.
When learning how to tune MTAs, initially stick
with the simple shapes such as the Bailey
style boomerangs. When you change dihedral
on an MTA with swept wings such as a snake,
it can also effect the angle of attack of that
wing. Starting off with simple shapes lets you
make changes and know exactly what the
change you made actually did. Try your skills
with other designs after you have a bit of a
handle on the basics.
It is easiest to get good results when tuning
from scratch. This is because you are not
trying  to  fix  problems  that  you  didn’t  tune  into   curved part of the line represents the flight
the boomerang. Starting from scratch lets you
control each step. If a mistake is made and
some unwanted performance is accidentally
tuned in, the step can be reversed before con-
tinuing. This also lets you set what each step
looks like so when you throw another MTA that
isn’t  tuned  optimally,  you  may  be  able  to  rec-­
ognize where it is along the tuning process
and jump directly to that step.
Use the trouble shooting guide if you are close
to having the right tune or are having troubles
with  a  specific  part  of  the  flight.    If  you  can’t  fix  
the problem, it is sometimes easier to flatten it
out and start over than to try to fix a bad flying
MTA – particularly if you are new to tuning
them.
Do  not  “fix”  problems  that  don’t  exist.    For  in-­
stance,  if  it  is  flying  high  enough  but  you  don’t   during the hover and may reduce the float
have as much dihedral as you thought you
should have, adding more will not necessarily
make it fly even higher. You may end up sac-
rificing stability because you trusted what you
thought you needed rather than what the flight
told you it needed. Make each change either
to fix a consistent problem or to get a bit extra
out of the flight.
It’s  also  wise  to  do  a  number  of  throws  before   angle of attack to get
68
you decide to make a change. Make the
change  when  you’re  sure  it’s  the  boomerang  
and not your throw.
Another tip is to avoid doing anything to the
elbow. Changes there can result in some very
hard to fix problems. Try to leave the entire
elbow section as flat as possible.
If you are tuning a phenolic model, keep in
mind that typically significantly less dihedral
will be required than with wood models. They
may also be more prone to breakage during
tuning so take your time and make only small
adjustments.
A quick explanation of the pictures of the
throws in the following tuning steps. The
path of the MTA after each step is completed.
The hover stage is the screw shaped line and
obviously does not factor in drift due to wind.
Step 1 - Getting Started
The MTA throw is very vertical (no layover)
and higher than usual. When tuning from
scratch, initially aim about twice as high as you
would for an ordinary boomerang. As tuning
progresses, you can aim even higher but this
is a good place to start. Throw with medium
power but lots of spin.
An un-tuned MTA will initially fly quite similar
to a regular boomerang. It should do a nice
circle and end up in a hover at the end of the
flight.    If  it  doesn’t  turn  (goes  straight),  twist  
positive angle of attack into the lead arm. Too
much angle of attack and you will kill the spin
time. You only need enough to make it come
around or at least turn a bit in the right direc-
tion.    Don’t  worry  if  it  
sets up in front of
you. This is actually
a  good  thing  so  don’t  
try to correct for it. If
it  seems  like  it’s  tak-­
ing way too much
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
MTA
it to turn, try putting a bit of positive angle of
attack into the dingle arm as well. Once it is
turning fine, concentrate on the hover at the
end.
You want to make sure your hover is stable.
Rocking or spiraling really robs time from an
MTA flight.
A slight twist of negative angle of attack on the
dingle arm will often stabilize the hover from
rocking. A bit extra twist of positive angle of
attack into the lead arm can help ward off the
dreaded death spiral. A death spiral is where
the boomerang initially sets up but begins to
carve out bigger and bigger circles as if floats
down until the circles are big enough that a
spectacular crash results. Only correct for
this problem is you are actually getting a death
spiral – too much lift on the lead arm can rob
you of height later on.
All boomerangs are different so there are no
hard and fast rules for how much dihedral and
angle of attack you need. If yours seems to be
getting worse when you make a change or
doesn’t  seem  to  be  getting  any  better  no  mat-­
ter how extreme you get, try backing off the
change and doing the opposite. There is a
fair amount of trial and error when tuning an
MTA.
If all goes well, your MTA should now have a
flight pattern similar to that of a regular boo-
merang. The flight will not be particularly high
and  you  can’t  expect  good  times  yet  but  it  will  
have a nice stable hover.
69
Step 2 - Getting it to Fly Higher
Next thing you want to do is to get it to fly
higher. The higher it goes, the better times
you can achieve as most of the time is
achieved while the MTA is in the slow descent
stage of flight.
Start by elevating your aim until you reach the
highest throw you can do and still maintain a
stable hover at the end. Next, start bending
dihedral into the lead arm in the last half to
third of the arm. The same throw will now
make the boomerang fly quite a bit higher ini-
tially but it will seem to come back down a bit
before stabilizing. Do not worry yet that it
doesn’t  stabilize  very  high.      We  are  trying  to  
maximize the initial height gained in the throw.
Also, try to bend in as much dihedral at the
very tip (the last inch or so) that you can. For
an extra bit of height,
try twisting negative
angle of attack into
the last inch or two
of the lead arm. Too
much will reduce the
ability of the boomer-
ang to turn but you
should be able to get
away with a bit to
increase the height.
As  you  increase  the  height  with  this  step,  you’ll  
likely notice that you can aim your throw even
higher and still maintain the stable hover.
When changes no longer seem to be making
your throws go any higher, stop and move
onto the next step. If you add too much, you
may not be able to stabilize the boomerang
again.
After each tuning change, test throw to make
sure that the hover is stable. If at any point it
starts to rock or death spiral, immediately
make the required change to make the hover
stable before you try to add any more dihedral.
The adjustments made in this step were all
made on the lead arm (except for any adjust-
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
MTA
ments to correct stability problems). This goes
back to our tuning model in that we are aiming
to get the boomerang to fly high initially. In the
next step we will focus on adjustments to the
dingle arm to ensure that the second part of
the flight ends up where we want it to.
Step 3 - Getting it to Stabilize High
To  get  your  MTA  to  stabilize  at  it’s  maximum   height  you  are  getting.    Go  slowly  so  you  don’t
height, start adding positive dihedral to the din-
gle arm. Again concentrate on the last half of
the arm and the tip. As you add dihedral to
the dingle arm, the height at which the boo-
merang stabilizes will in-
crease. Eventually, the
height of stabilizing may
even be higher than your
maximum height in the
second step. It will spiral
upwards until it reaches
its maximum height and
set up into a nice stable
hover. As before, correct
any stability problems that
arise before trying to add
more dihedral.
After you have completed this step, you may
wish to go back to step two and see if you can
get a little bit more height by adding more di-
hedral to the lead arm and then to the dingle
arm to get it to stabilize higher. You can also
try twisting in a tiny bit more negative angle of
attack in the tip of the lead arm. Stop as soon
as any changes you make either have a detri-
mental  effect  that  you  can’t  correct  for  or  have   dingle arm should both have some dihedral
no effect at all. At this point, you should have
a properly flying and well tuned MTA.
Step 4 – Locking in the Tune
Now that your MTA is tuned, you probably
want it to stay that way. Most phenolic MTAs
will be fairly stable once tuned but wood mod-
els may need some extra help to make sure
they  don’t  go  out  of  tune  over  time.
Give it a light coat of paint on both sides.
Many prefer black as it shows up the best
against the sky but it is entirely up to you. The
70
paint will not only help with visibility, but will
also help lock in the tune.
Let the paint dry over night then take it out
again the next time you get the chance. On
your next throwing session, go back to step
two and try bending in more dihedral into the
lead arm then the dingle arm to maximize the
 
overdo it as you should be pretty close to an
optimum tune. When you are satisfied that
you have the right tune, give it another light
coat of paint. The two coats of paint will
greatly help to stabilize the tune.
Be sure to keep both coats of paint light as too
much paint can add significant weight which
may rob you of time you laboriously tuned in.
Tips For Specific Designs
Tips for Snakes
The throw for a Snake is a bit different than
with regular MTAs. They can handle a lot
more layover. They also like to be thrown
lower than other MTAs. The throw is more like
a high aussie
round throw
rather than a
typical MTA
throw.
Tuning for Snakes is fairly similar to regular
MTAs. Extra care should be taken to make
sure the elbow region is flat - even more so
than on regular MTAs. The lead arm and the
although the amount required can vary greatly
from boomerang to boomerang.
Snakes also like lots of positive angle of attack
on the lead arm to get them stable. Because
of the curve in the lead arm, when you add
dihedral to the lead arm, you are also adding
negative angle of attack. You need extra posi-
tive angle of attack to overcome that. Try to
add positive angle of attack in the last couple
of inches of the arm for this reason. A tiny bit
of negative angle of attack right at the tip of
the lead arm can get you a bit of extra height
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
MTA
but too much will destabilize your boomerang.
If the dingle arm has too much dihedral it will
climb very quick and not go out very far in front
of you. If there is not enough you won't get
much height.
Tips for Quirls
Quirls are renowned for the height of their ini-
tial stabilization. Great times are possible
simply because they get so high. They need a
very high, over ver-
tical throw that
many find even
more difficult than
typical MTAs.
Most of the tuning is just dihedral (and lots of
it). The required angle of attack comes the
curve of the arm and the effect that comes
naturally when you change the dihedral. As
with other MTAs, they can be prone to death
spirals if the airfoils are too profiled. Weighting
using lead tape can be used to correct this
problem.
Quirls  don’t  seem  to  do  much  until  you  get   have to twist in the angle of attack since the
really close to the right tune, then they are vir-
tually unmatched for how high you can get
them. Try to talk with an expert if you are hav-
ing problems with yours.
Tips for Palms and Triggers
Palms and Triggers probably had the biggest
impact on MTA design since the Jonas MTA.
They are not de-
signed to get the ul-
tra long times that a
Jonas does however.
They are designed to
let a competitor get a
reasonable score
when the winds
come up a bit too
much for a standard
MTA.
The way they manage to do this is by greatly
increasing the outward range and setting up
way out in front of the thrower. Palms for in-
71
stance are capable of flights out as far as 70
meters and setting up out 40 meters in front of
the thrower. If you threw from the front of the
throwing circle, it could float back 140 meters
from where it set up before you would be out
of bounds.
Both Palms and Triggers utilize a special airfoil
to help achieve the range. A small trailing
edge undercut is applied to all three wings. Be
careful when you carve this in though as even
a bit too much will result in a boomerang that
goes  straight  and  won’t  turn.    If  you  over  do  it,  
you’ll  have  to  add  positive  angle  of  attack  to  
the longest arm to compensate. If you only
apply the trailing edge undercut to the two
smaller arms, you reduce the risk of turning
your boomerang into a non-returner.
As for the tuning of Palms and Triggers, treat
the two smaller arms both as you would the
dingle arm (sadly these boomerangs are an
exception to the tuning model). Both should
end up with plenty of dihedral and a bit of
negative angle of attack. You may or may not
forward sweep of the two small arms will auto-
matically introduce some negative angle of
attack when you add the dihedral.
The long arm is treated like the lead arm of a
regular MTA. If you are not getting enough
range as you would like, you can try adding a
bit of negative angle of attack or adding a
small trailing edge undercut.
MTA Troubleshooting Guide
There are lots of different opinions on how to
tune MTAs and even how to fix given prob-
lems. A given problem may have more than
one possible correction. Each suggestion has
its place and sometimes one will work and an-
other will not. Experience and experimenta-
tion is the only way to learn how to do it.
There are very few people out there who can
look at a flight and fix the problem in one or
two  steps.    Don’t  expect  instant  results  but  be  
prepared to spend some time with each MTA
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
MTA
you tune to get it to fly right. Eventually you
will develop an eye for what is wrong and can
jump to the correct tune quicker.
In some cases, it may actually be faster and
easier to stop, flatten out your MTA and start
over again from scratch (this can particularly
be the case if the elbow region of your MTA is
warped – slight twists in the elbow area can
have some very strange effects and it can be
very hard to identify and correct problems).
If  you  can’t  get  it  right  no  matter  what  you  do,   Add positive angle of attack to the dingle
try contacting an experienced thrower to help
you. If you can attend a competition, there are
usually many throwers more than happy to
give you a hand to get your boomerangs flying
right.
Any problem you try to correct should be con-
sistent before you try to fix it. MTA problems
are often just throwing problems. Remember
to minimize layover (release should be near
vertical for most MTAs) and aim high. For
learning how to throw an MTA, try to get your
hands on one that is already tuned. Tuning is
much  easier  when  you  know  you’re  throwing   Floats out of bounds
correctly and consistently.
Does not get high enough
Aim higher
Throw with more spin
Add more dihedral to the lead arm
Twist negative angle of attack into lead
arm tip
Add small weights to underside of tips and
elbow (use lead tape)
Gets high but comes down a bit before stabi-
lizing
Add dihedral to the dingle arm
Reduce dihedral to lead arm slightly
Lays down before the maximum height is
achieved
Throw with less layover
Reduce dihedral on lead arm
72
Sets up behind you (or not far enough in front
of you)
Adjust throwing direction relative to the
wind
Reduce angle of attack on the dingle arm
Reduce angle of attack on the lead arm
Add small weights (try lead arm first - use
a ¼ inch dot of lead tape)
Goes  straight  and  doesn’t  turn
Add positive angle of attack to the lead
arm
arm
Reduce dihedral in the lead arm
Seems to fly perfect but sinks too fast
Reduce angle of attack on one or both
arms
Experiment with turbulators
Climbs too high, stalls, and crashes down
Reduce angle of attack on the lead arm
Throw with less layover
Throw with less power
Add a tiny amount of drag (small rubber
bands)
Adjust throw to wind direction (throw either
more into the wind or more off the wind)
Reduce height by reducing dihedral
Add small weights near center of gravity
(use a ¼ inch dot of lead tape)
Add trailing edge undercuts to get the boo-
merang to set up further in front of you
Will not stabilize
Throw lower
Reduce dihedral of lead arm
Reduce dihedral of dingle arm
Adjust angle of attack on the dingle arm
Add small weights (use a ¼ inch dot of
lead tape)
Check that elbow area is flat
Blunt trailing edge
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

MTA
Rocks or destabilizes during hover
Try throwing using the other arm (choosing
dingle or lead seems to have a greater ef-
fect with MTAs over other types of boomer-
angs)
Aim lower
Reduce throwing power
Adjust angle of attack to dingle arm (may
need positive or negative angle of attack
depending on the situation – negative an-
gle of attack is more common)
Reduce dihedral to lead arm
Reduce dihedral in dingle arm
Experiment with turbulators
Add small weights (try lead arm first - use
a ¼ inch dot of lead tape)
Check that elbow area is flat
Blunt trailing edge

Goes into a death spiral (may stabilize first

then work into at death spiral)
Try throwing using the other arm
Reduce power of throw
Aim lower
Add positive angle of attack to the lead
arm
Add positive angle of attack to the dingle
arm
MTA may be over-tuned – reduce dihedral
on one or both arms
Blunt trailing edges
Experiment with turbulators
Add small weights (try dingle arm first - use
¼ inch dot of lead tape)
Check that elbow area is flat
Blunt trailing edge

Loses spin
Check  to  make  sure  you  aren’t  twisting  the  
MTA on release
Sharpen leading edges slightly
Reduce angle of attack to the lead arm
Reduce angle of attack to the dingle arm

73
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Trick Catch/Doubling
Nothing really shows off the skill of a thrower Current Rules
quite like the ability to do well at trick catch. The object of trick catch is to perform a pre-
Top competitors expertly tracking the flight and determined set of trick catches in order. Each
catching it under their leg or behind their back catch has a set number of points awarded if
can make it look so easy. completed. The highest total score is the win-
ner. The current list of trick catches performed
Aside from the obvious acrobatics and flexibil- in competition are:
ity required to make these catches, you need a
boomerang that flies very predictably. If you Right hand clean
have ever tried doing trick catches with an un- Left hand clean
predictable boomerang, you know it can be Right hand eagle
very frustrating. To be successful at trick Left hand eagle
catch, you need a bit of strategy, planning and Behind the back
a properly performing boomerang. Under the leg
Tunnel
Trick Catch/Doubling History Foot catch
The history of trick catch goes back to the first One hand behind the back
competitions. Instead of trick catch, consecu- One hand under the leg
tive catch was contested. Everyone lined up Hackey catch
and threw at the same time. It was spectacu-
lar to see but had a certain amount of mayhem Doubling entails combinations of these
to it as well. People were gradually weeded catches.
out when they made a drop. The last thrower
to not drop their boomerang was declared the The boomerangs must make the required
winner. range both when thrown alone and as doub-
lers. You must maintain control of both boo-
However, under good conditions, many could merangs  until  both  are  caught  (i.e.  you  can’t  
throw all day and never miss a catch. So, to catch the first boomerang, then toss it to the
make things more interesting and limit the time side and catch the other one).
of the event, more challenging catches were
added to make it more difficult. There are now The point system used for scoring changes
a standard set of trick catches that the com- periodically so check with current rules for
petitor must complete. A list of official trick points awarded for each catch.
catches is given in the current rules section.
Setup
Just to add an extra bit of difficulty, doubling Required circles are one 2 meter throwing cir-
was added. Doubling entails throwing two cle and a 20 meter range circle. At least three
trick catch boomerangs tuned to have similar range judges and a center judge (for foot faults
flight patterns. A trick catch is done on the first and tracking scores) are required. All throws
one to come down followed by a different trick must be made from 20 m
catch with the second one. Doubling will chal- the 2 meter circle
lenge your throwing, and tuning ability even and have a range of
under good conditions. at least 20 meters.
Foot faults, short 2m
The current trick catch record was set by range and missed
Manuel Schütz in 2004 with 390 points. The catches all constitute
current consecutive catch record is held by a score of 0 for that
Haruki Taketomi of Japan with 2251 catches. throw (if one boomer-
ang is short during

74
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Trick Catch/Doubling
doubling, both are considered short). rocking or changes in direction during the
hover. If the hover rocks a bit or makes you
The points awarded for each catch and the run, you will likely not be at the top of the
sequence has changed a bit over the last few game in trick catch. You want your boomer-
years so check with current rules for points ang to be as predictable as possible. If you
awarded for each catch. As of the writing of know exactly where the boomerang will land, it
this book, this was the order and scoring for is easy to get yourself set up for the catch.
trick catch/doubling.
Ideally, the hover will be as straight as possi-
Single Boomerang Sequence Score ble with no S-ing or rocking so that it is very
1. Left hand clean 2 predictable. How quickly it drops is a matter of
2. Right hand clean 2 preference. Some people like to have lots of
3. Behind the back 3 time while others can get set up quickly if they
4. Under the leg 3 know exactly where to position themselves so
5. Eagle catch 4 don’t  need  as  much.    The  best  trick  catch  boo-­
6. Hackey catch 6 merang    I’ve  thrown  dropped  like  a  rock  but  
7. Tunnel catch 6 landed exactly where you expected it to. It
8. One hand behind the back 7 made trick catches easy even though you did-
9. On hand under the leg 7 n’t  have  a  lot  of  time  to  prepare  yourself  for  the  
10. Foot catch 10 catch.
Subtotal: 50
Always try to keep your boomerang in front of
Doubling Sequence Score you. This allows you to keep your eye on the
11. Behind the back/Under the leg 3+3=6 boomerang and step forward to make the
12. Hackey catch/Left hand clean 6+2=8 catch rather than chasing after it trying to
13. Tunnel catch/Right hand clean 6+2=8 catch a boomerang that is moving away from
14. One hand behind the back/one you. To make this easier, it is best to tune
hand under the leg 7+7=14 your boomerang so that it does not make it all
15. Foot catch/Eagle catch 10+4=14 the way back to you but rather lands in front of
Subtotal: 50 you. In low wind, tune
your boomerang to land
Total 100 2-5 meters in front of
you. In higher winds,
If all the catches are made in a single round, tune it to land even fur-
the thrower is allowed to continue throwing ther ahead so that if a
starting back at the start of the throwing se- gust pushes it back a
quence. They can keep scoring points until bit, it is still in front of
they make a drop. you.

To speed up the event, trick catch can be run For doublers, the outsider should come down
with tandem throwers throwing at the same a few seconds after the
time however this is fairly rare. Trick catch insider. This will give
can also contested under head to head and you time to locate the
team formats. outsider and set yourself
up for the catch after
Strategies for Trick Catch/Doubling grabbing the insider.
The key to doing well in trick catch is to have a Ideally, the outsider
boomerang that sets up properly. Ideally, the should be even further in
boomerang should have a stable hover with no front of you than the in-

75
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Trick Catch/Doubling
sider so you can step into that catch as well
(not too far - just a couple of meters).
Variations
Trick catch is also contested under head to
head and team formats. However, the most
common variation of trick catch is GLORP. It is
played almost anytime more than a few throw-
ers get together.
Unlike regular trick catch, there are no re-
quired catches. Everyone lines up in order of
how long they have been throwing boomer-
angs. The person with the least throwing ex-
perience throws first and makes the trick catch
of their choice. Everyone must then follow and
perform the same catch. If the catch is
missed, a letter is assigned. Last person to
have all five letters wins. In true boomerang
fashion, the honor system is used to determine
if all catches are valid or not. Everyone is en-
couraged to push their limits, be creative and
have fun.
Didier Bonin from France has identified over
80 trick catches often seen in games of
GLORP. Even with this number of choices,
there always seem to be new catches being
made up on the field any time a game is
played.
Another alternative is called suicide. This is
when as many throwers as are on the field line
up and throw at the same time. It is quite a
sight to see - particularly at larger competi-
tions. People drop out of the next throw when
they miss a catch. Often catches of increasing
difficulty are introduced as the game pro-
gresses. The last person not to make a drop
wins.
Design Features
Most trick catch boomerangs used today in
competition are tri-bladers. They are more
stable and easier to catch than most two-
blader boomerangs. Current competition mod-
els tend to be made out of thin composite ma-
terials such as G10 or phenolics. There are
also very good models available in plastic or
76
wood but they seem not to be as common.
This is likely because it is harder to get range
with the lighter materials without resorting to
weighting.
Most trick catch designs typically have the
wings swept slightly rear-ward – particularly
near the tips. This advances the rate of lay
down and allows the boomerang to set up into
a hover quickly.
To control the speed of spin and the hover,
drag (usually holes or flaps) is used exten-
sively. Holes near the tips are used to slow
rotation so that catching is easier. Holes or
drag near the center are used to reduce rock-
ing in the hover and reduce forward motion.
Doublers have a number of design character-
istics of their own to be aware of. Starting with
a fairly typical trick catch design, there are
slight variations between the insider and the
outside.
The outsider generally has slightly longer
chord length than the insider. This provides it
with better hover as well as extends the range
due to the fact that the additional material
makes it heavier. When weighted, the weights
on the outsider tend to be closer to the tips
than on the insider and place on the bottom.
Weights on the insider are generally placed on
top. Similarly, flaps are often put on the top of
the insider and on the bottom of the outsider.
To enhance the separation between the two
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Trick Catch/Doubling
boomerangs, the insider may have additional fine boomerang. They will even work with no
drag (more flaps or holes), less overall weight airfoiling at all but slight changes in the tune
added and the wings may not be swept back will wreck their perform-
as much. ance. A little bit of airfoil-
Insider ing is required for a user
Weights on top friendly trick catch boo-
Weights closer to center merang.
Holes in tips and center
Reduced chord length
Another variation for trick catch airfoils actually
Outsider resembles a long distance airfoil. There is sig-
Weights on bottom nificant undercutting along the trailing edge.
Weights closer to tips Boomerangs made with this airfoil can get very
No holes high. This airfoil requires lots of positive angle
of attack to compensate for the low lift airfoil.
Tuning tends to be a bit more tricky than with
the reversible airfoil.

Trick catch boomerangs tend to like having

lots of drag. You will notice that the leading
edge of most of the above airfoils are square.
They are only rounded enough so that it is no
Trick Catch Carving Tips longer actually sharp. Rounding over the lead-
There are lots of variations of trick catch air- ing edge too much will make your trick catch
foils. Some such as Chet Snouffer use what boomerang prone to rocking or S-ing out.
appears to be a pretty standard airfoil. How-
ever, this is likely largely due to the fact that he It is also important not to wrap the trailing edge
uses relatively thick material (4 mm wood). around the tips of the boomerang. Carving the
The extra drag of the thicker material allows trailing edge around
for a fully profiled boomerang to work well. If the tips is a carve
you choose to carve a standard airfoil on your tuning trick to get
trick catch, minimize the amount of round-over lower flights. If you
on the leading edge - particularly if you use carve your tips in this
thin material. way, you are making
your boomerang fly
A relatively common airfoil for trick catch boo- lower than you need
merangs is the reversible airfoil. With this air- to and likely are con-
foil, you can throw the boomerang either side tributing to rocking.
up. Often with this airfoil, a trick catch boo-
merang thrown upside-down will fly like a relay A hole in the middle will help to reduce rocking
boomerang (like a 30 meter fast catch). This and drifting but may also make it drop faster.
is my personal favorite airfoil for trick catch This may not be a bad thing so long as the
boomerangs. boomerang drops in a
predictable manner. It
If you choose to carve a trick catch out of thin may also be beneficial to
composite material like 2mm G10, linen or get better separation be-
paper phenolic, you can actually get away with tween doublers or to re-
even less airfoil than shown in the above dia- duce drift due to wind.
gram and rely on only the trailing edge bevel Beveling the underside of
or the leading edge undercut and still have a the hole in the center

77
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Trick Catch/Doubling
may help get more stable hovers however,
when using thin material, this effect is rela-
tively small.
A hole will almost definitely be required if you
over-carve the center section. You should
purposefully make sure to leave the center
section as square as possible. This is particu-
larly important on an outsider as you probably
don’t  want  to  add  a  hole  that  would  make  it   soon as it is thrown. The dingle arm should be
drop faster (and give you less time to catch it
after the insider). Minimal rounding over is all
that is required. Leaving this area square will
also help reduce drift and rocking.
Holes in the tips will slow the spin slightly to
help make catches a bit easier.
Trick Catch/Doubling Tuning Tips
The general idea of the flight you should be
aiming for is for the boomerang to circle
around, set up fairly high and out in front of
you, and come down in front of you. This al-
lows you to walk forward and keep your eye
on the boomerang as it hovers down to you.
High is good but too high and you risk getting
blown away. You only really need enough
time to allow you to set yourself up for the
catch. Only you can decide how much time
you need.
Some makers advocate a tuning in which all
three arms are given a slight amount of dihe-
dral. Depending on how the boomerang was
carved, this can work very well. That being
said, I have had better luck using the tuning
model used throughout the rest of this book
when tuning trick catch boomerangs.
If using the tuning model, it is very important to
78
mark which wings are tuned in which way.
Changes made later can lead to unpredictable
results  if  you  don’t  keep  track  of  how  you  bent  
each wing.
First, adjust for range by adjusting the angle of
attack of the lead arm. Normally, a bit of posi-
tive angle of attack is required. Also give the
lead arm some dihedral so it will get high as
bent up until the path of the boomerang contin-
ues upward until the hover sets up. This proc-
ess is done using almost the exact same pro-
cedure as when tuning an MTA.
The overall tune has positive angle of attack
and dihedral on the lead arm, positive dihedral
(but not as much as the lead arm) and a small
amount of negative angle of attack on the din-
gle arm and the third arm neutral.
To correct minor rocking in the hover, a little
extra negative angle of attack twisted into the
dingle arm may help. Alternately, drag (rubber
bands, flaps or Velcro dots) can be added.
A Velcro dot or large flap in the center section
on the bottom seems to put the boomerang on
a pillow of air that it rides down on. If you pre-
fer a quicker drop, drill a hole in the center.
These will also help to keep your boomerang
in front of you as drag added to the center will
reduce forward motion.
If range is a problem, add weights in the form
of coins (generally two pennies and a dime or
three pennies) taped onto the wings. To get
more range, move them closer to the tips.
For a higher flight or if tuning an outsider of a
double pair, put the weights on the bottom. If
you want a slightly lower flight or are tuning an
insider, put the weights on top of each wing.
Holes in the tips will slow the rotation a bit and
make it easier to catch. Similarly, flaps or rub-
ber bands at about the midpoint of each arm
will also help in this regard.
When tuning doublers, first tune one boomer-
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Trick Catch/Doubling
ang then the other before throwing them to-
gether. After they are both flying fine, throw
them together. The one that is flying further
and lands second is the outsider and the
shorter range one is the insider. Decide which
one flies better and leave it alone. Try to tune
the other one to match the firsts flight.
Optimally, there should be good separation
between the two and the outsider should float
a few second longer than the insider. Despite
the different flights, both boomerangs should
land relatively close to one another.
Spins too quickly to be easy to catch
Drill holes in tips
Blunt leading edges
Add drag around midpoint of each wing
Does not fly high enough
Add positive dihedral to lead arm
Add weights on bottom
Add positive angle of attack to lead arm
Does not stabilize high enough
Add positive dihedral to dingle arm
Add weights on bottom

Generally speaking, the insider will have more Hover rocks or is instable
flaps or holes, a center hole and weights on Add drag (holes in tips or flaps)
the top to get it to have a shorter hover. Blunt leading edges
Weights should be at about the midpoint of Add drag to center (flap or Velcro)
each arm. The outsider generally has fewer Drill hole in center
holes, less drag, and a longer hover. If
weighted, the weights will probably be on the Does not make range
bottom and slightly closer to the tips than on Twist negative angle of attack on lead arm
the  insider  to  extend  it’s  range  a  bit. Add weights
Make out of heavier material
One tip for increasing your chances of making Throw harder
a good doubler set is to make more than one
set at a time. Tune a series of boomerangs so Too sensitive to wind
they all fly well but without regard to how well Add drag
the fly in comparison to one another. Throw Add weights
them all not trying to match them up - just let Make out of heavier material
them land where they will. Pick up pairs that
landed close together and use these as a Not enough separation during hover
starting point for identifying matched doubler Add weights on top of insider, bottom of
sets. Throw the pairs together to see if they outsider
are a good match and have good separation. Add drag to insider
You can also try testing them in different com- Reduce chord length of insider
binations with each other. You will often get Increase angle of attack on lead arm of
lucky and get a matched pair right away and insider or add negative angle of attack to
save yourself a lot of tuning headaches. If the lead arm of outsider
pairs still need a bit of work, you can go back Throw harder
and tune them to overcome whatever prob-
lems they may have. Doublers click or do not separate after throw
Throw with a small
Trick Catch Troubleshooting Guide clump of grass be-
Does not land in front of you tween boomerangs
Adjust throwing angle in relation to wind Offset grip of insider
Add drag in center and outsider
Drill hole in center Throw harder
Add positive angle of attack to dingle arm

79
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Relay
Relay is the boomerang version of similar
school-yard relay games. Teams are picked
and race against each other in a head to head
manner. When the race starts, the throwers
sprint to the throwing circle and throw their
boomerang. They generally must make two
catches before running back to tag the next
team member. Each team works its way
through the pre-determined number of rounds.
The first team to complete the entire round
wins.
Generally speaking, when people refer to re-
lay, they are referring to the version involving
throwing a 30 meter boomerang.
History
Relay is one of the root games of the team
competitions at the Boomerang World Cham-
pionships. As it relies on a team effort, it is
ideal for matching the skill of the throwers of
one country against those of another. Due to
the number of variations possible on the relay
theme, records are not typically kept for these
events.
Relay is also very good for involving new
throwers in competition. Many find being part
of a team is less intimidating than trying to
compete against seasoned throwers.
Current Rules
As mentioned earlier, there are numerous
variations to relay games. The most common
involves teams of either two or four throwers.
The throwers must sprint 10 meters to the
bulls-eye circle and throw a 30 meter boomer-
ang. The boomerang must go the required
range or it must be thrown again. The boo-
merang can be caught anywhere (depending
on the situation, the catch may not be re-
quired). A second valid throw must be made
from the bulls-eye and after being caught, the
bulls-eye circle must be tagged before sprint-
ing back to tag the next team member. The
team generally goes through two rotations to
complete the round.
80
Setup and Scoring
The requirements for relay are a starting gate
(generally at the 20 meter circle), the 2 meter
bulls-eye circle and the 30 meter range circle.
Spotters are required to ensure range is met
and a head judge
is needed to settle
who completed
the round first. If
only two teams
are present, no
stopwatches are
required but if
more teams are
present, they are
a good idea for
determining the
fastest team.
Strategies for the Best Times
To be effective in relay, you need to complete
two catches as quickly as possible. Use
something that is very accurate since you lose
more time by running all over the field to make
your catch than by having a slower boomer-
ang. Take your time to make a good throw
rather than rushing it and having to chase after
a bad throw.
Variations
The most common variation of relay is team
endurance. In this variation, each team mem-
ber sprints to the throwing circle, throws one
minute of endurance then sprints back to tag
the next member of the team. If there is still
time on the clock when the last team member
gets back to the starting line, the first thrower
can sprint back to the throwing circle and
throw until any remaining time runs out. The
team with the most total catches wins.
Design Features
Almost any 30 meter boomerang can be used
for relay. Boomerangs specifically designed
for relay are generally essentially 30 meter fast
catch boomerangs. To get the extended
range, they are often made out of heavier ma-
terial such as phenolics or are weighted.
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Relay
Carving and tuning tips are the same as for Flies erratically
sport or aussie round boomerangs although Add drag
some of the tips from the fast catch section Enlarge holes in tips
may be useful if you are throwing a quick tri- Add weights (minor problems near the
blader. center – major problems closer to the tips)
Blunt or undercut center section
Relay Troubleshooting Guide
Flies too high Runs out of spin
Bend negative dihedral into one or more Reduce drag
wing Reduce angle of attack
Extend the trailing edge around the tips
Add weights on top of wings Doesn't make it all the way back
Add flap on leading edge pointing forward Remove or adjust drag (stops before it
Add drag (holes, flaps, rubber bands, etc.) gets all the way back)
Throw harder
Flies too low
Throw harder Crashes into the ground halfway around
Throw higher Remove or adjust drag
Bend positive dihedral into one or more Add positive dihedral to one or more wing
wing Throw harder
Twist positive angle of attack into one or
more wing Doesn't come in straight
Add weight to bottom of wings Add weight near center section
Add large flap in center section on the bot- Add weights near midpoint of each wing
tom Blunt or undercut center section
Drill hole in center
Not enough range
Twist negative angle of attack into the lead Can’t  handle  wind
arm Add drag
Add weights or move weights closer to tips Add weights near midpoint of each arm
Carve back leading edge of airfoil Blunt airfoils
Add flap near leading edge on the bottom Carve reversible airfoil
Carve out of heavier material
Too much range Reduce chord length
Twist positive angle of attack on lead arm Thin tips to half of original thickness
Undercut leading edge
Remove weights or move weights closer to
center

Flies way past you on return

Add drag (holes, rubber bands, Velcro,
flaps, etc.)
Enlarge holes in tips
Drill a hole in the center
Blunt the center section
Add concave undercuts

81
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Long Distance
How far you can throw and still get a full return
is the name of the game in long distance.
Ideally, your boomerang will fly out an incredi-
ble distance, slowly rise slightly and turn, and
dive back towards the line from which it was
thrown. Spotters in the field track the boomer-
ang to measure the distance if went while
spotters at the throwing line check to make
sure the return was valid.
Although it requires power, finesse is also im-
portant since technique is critical. Catching in
long distance is not required and usually not
recommended. It makes no difference in your
score.
Because of field requirements and a few other
factors, long distance is generally not included
in regular tournaments. Special tournaments
or an entire day event at larger tournaments
are dedicated to this event when it is run. A
small tournament of a dozen or so throwers
can take all day if only a couple of rounds are
contested.
Distance is probably the most awe inspiring of
events. Jaw dropping distances are possible
with modern designs. Modern competitors
often break 100 meters during tournaments
with the top throwers exceeding that mark by a
wide margin.
Long Distance History
Long distance is one of the most recognizable
events. It is one of the very few events ever to
regularly be featured in record books and the
maximum distance capable of a boomerang is
often a point of interest to new or non-
throwers.
Distance has many references through out the
history of boomerangs. Mention of the incredi-
ble distances achieved by aborigine throwers
were mentioned in some of the very first refer-
ences to boomerangs ever recorded by the
western world. James Cook, one of the dis-
covers of Australia and one of the first non-
aboriginals to see a boomerang in action esti-
mated their flights to be in excess of 300 feet.
82
However, based on existing examples of abo-
riginal boomerangs, these figures are likely
nowhere near the actual range of the boomer-
ang. Few existing old aboriginal boomerangs
have a range of more than 30 meters.
It is unlikely that the range was actually meas-
ured with any accuracy. It seems that many
early feats with boomerangs were often exag-
gerated.
During the 1930s, legendary thrower Frank
Donnelan claimed to have thrown a boomer-
ang over 100 yards. Again, there is question
about the validity of this throw since how it was
measured is not clear. Some references make
it sound like the path of the flight was meas-
ured rather than the outward distance. It is
also unknown if the boomerang made a full
return.
It  wasn’t  until  1972  when  Herb  Smith  of  Sus-­
sex England made a carefully measured and
recorded throw of 108 yards (98 meters) that it
was clear that distance was not an event of
hearsay. Herb used a heavily weighted tradi-
tional boomerang of his own design to set this
first official record.
The event of long distance was quickly revolu-
tionized with the development of the hook
shaped boomerang. These boomerangs were
typically quite large, asymmetrical designs with
the lead arm being slightly flared outwards.
This design dominated this event unchal-
lenged for years. As technology improved, the
switch from wood to more exotic materials
such as paper phenolic and fiberglass was
made. The shape was refined but not drasti-
cally changed. They were big, heavy and re-
quired a lot of strength to throw. The world
record was held for years with a large hook
design called the Challenger III.
Early record holders in the discipline of dis-
tance include Bob Burwell, Al Gerhards, and
Larry Ruhf.
In 1998, the face of long distance was again
revolutionized. A couple of new designs that
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Long Distance
were lighter and easier to throw than the large five throws in a round.
heavy hooks were introduced. The world re-
cord quickly was bumped to 155 meters by Setup and Scoring
Manuel Schütz throwing a Pathfinder then The setup for long distance is a 40 meter line
months later to 174 meters by David over which the boomer-
Schummy throwing a Buzzwhip. Even that ang must pass. There
incredible distance did not last long. Manuel are line spotters at ei- Field spotters
Schütz shattered the distance record in 2000 ther end to make sure
with a phenomenal 238 meters with a full re- the boomerang
turn using a Voyager. To date, he is the only crosses the line on re-
person to throw over 200 meters and he has turn. A 2 meter circle
done so on numerous occasions. is drawn at the center
of the line. The
Not surprisingly, the hooks that dominated the thrower launches from
sport in the 80s and 90s have been virtually the back half of that
completely supplanted by the newer designs. circle. The line judge is
Voyagers and Buzzwhips are easier to throw in charge of watching
and go farther. They typically weigh less than for foot faults and 2m
half that of the Challenger style hooks. If you measuring from the
40 m line
were to attend a long distance tournament to- throwing line.
day,  there  probably  wouldn’t  be  an  old  style  
hook on the field. Field  spotters  (competitors  who  aren’t  throw-­
ing) arrange themselves in a rough V forma-
Current Rules tion out from the throwing line so they can get
Long distance is pretty simple. You launch an accurate line on the boomerangs flight.
you boomerang from a 2 meter diameter semi
circle. You are allowed to run up into it for the Assuming the throw returns across the throw-
throw  but  you  can’t  cross  the  throwing  line  - ing line to make it a valid throw, the head field
even after the throw has been released. The spotter is guided
boomerang flies out and on the return must into the point
pass over the throwing line. If you step over where there is
the throwing line or if the boomerang does not most agreement
cross the throwing line, the throw does not on where the
count. You can catch the boomerang if you maximum dis-
want so long as you do so behind the throwing tance the boo-
line  but  you  don’t  get  any  extra  credit  for  it.     merang achieved
was. Valid throws
The distance is measured by spotters ar-
ranged on the field who tri-
angulate the head field spot-
ter to the point of maximum
distance. The throwing line
judge (also known as the
head spotter) measure off
each other with laser range
finders until they give Not valid throws
matching results (within 1 The head field spotter and the head line judge
meter). The distance is re- measure off each other with laser range find-
corded. Typically you get ers to determine the range.

83
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Long Distance
Strategies for best score
Simple. Use a great boomerang, throw hard
with just the right amount of layover. If you run
into problems, add more weight to your boo-
merang (long distance enthusiasts will tell you
adding more weight fixes everything). For
more details, go buy the book LD by Tibor
Horvath and Lorenz Gubler.

Design features
Modern long distance boomerangs are typi-
cally made from a composite material such as
G10, G11 or carbon fiber. Typical thickness is
in the range of 2 - 3 mm. The most common
type of design currently used is a question
mark shape. As of writing of this book, the two
most common designs were Buzzwhips and
Voyagers or minor variations. They may or
may not be weighted.

Airfoils are generally quite sharp with lots of

trailing edge undercuts. The more trailing
edge undercut there is, the longer the potential
of the boomerang. For beginner long distance
throwers, the upper airfoil is recommended as
a good place to start. As your skills improve,
you may choose to become more aggressive
with your airfoils, eventually settling on an air-
foil that is verging on symmetrical. Many of
the top long distance boomerangs have airfoils
similar to this. However this comes at a cost
as too much and the boomerang will be unsta-
ble and more difficult to
throw without significant
tuning to compensate.

84
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Performance Boomerang Gallery

A great accuracy boomerang made by Michael

Girvin. It was originally designed as a fast
catch but is too slow by today's standards.
The entire underside is cambered. Notice the
weight taped on the lead arm. Holes were
drilled (roughly) in the dingle arm and the el-
bow. The model is the Rad German.

Another accuracy boomerang made by Chet

Snouffer out of a polycarbonate Tri-Fly. Chet
uses the inverted airfoil on this model. It is
Chet’s  variation  of  Eric  Darnell’s  Stubby  de-­
sign.

This accuracy boomerang also uses the in-

verted airfoil. It was made by Gary Broadbent.
Notice the weights on each arm for tuning.
Gary carved it out of an ABS Tri-Fly.

This accuracy boomerang was made by John

Cross. Notice the Velcro in the center and the
flap on the leading edge of one arm to ensure
a low flight. It is carved out of a polypropylene
Tri-Fly.

85
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Performance Boomerang Gallery

A great accuracy boomerang made by Andrew

Cross out of a polycarbonate Tri-Fly. Andrew
used traditional airfoils on this model as op-
posed to an invertible airfoil. Notice the extra
rubber bands for drag. It is a copy of Eric
Darnell’s  Stubby  model  - the same model Mike
Forrester used to score a 49 in accuracy. This
boomerang is also a good choice for a windy
fast catch round.

This boomerang is a Slowdown made by John

Cross out of 3 mm polypropylene. It is one of
the few models specifically designed for the
accuracy event. The designer is Adam Müller
of Germany. Flight is a 20 meter teardrop with
virtually no hover at the end. Like its name
implies, this one slows down a lot by the end
of the flight.

This accuracy boomerang was made by Tony

Butz of Australia out of 4 mm wood. Airfoils
are very blunt and blocky. Each tip is weighted
to ensure it makes the required range.

This boomerang is actually an old fast catch

design by Winfried Gorny called the Hawk-
wind. Too slow and difficult to catch to be
used for fast catch today, it makes a great ac-
curacy boomerang. This one was made by
Will Gix of the US out of 4 mm wood. Notice
the airfoiling at the elbow to turn this boomer-
ang into a psuedo tri-blader.

86
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Performance Boomerang Gallery

The Tornado is an excellent accuracy boomer-

ang made by Adam Carroll - probably out of
ABS. Lots of holes makes it stop on a dime
and drop like a rock. It can handle a surprising
amount of wind and like it should be, is very
accurate.

These two boomerangs were made by Mark

Legg for the aussie round event. The upper
one is known as a Longarm and the lower is a
Hummingbird. Both are made of 3 mm linen
phenolic and easily go out the required 50 me-
ters.

The top of these two boomerangs is made by

Eric Darnel. It is one of his few models not
based on a modified Tri-fly. It is made of 3
mm linen phenolic. The lower was made by
Larry Ruhf and is typical of the sharp V shape
he tends to favour. It is made of 4 mm ply-
wood. Neither can make a full 50 meters but
make for a very safe 40 meter round.

This boomerang is another by Adam Carroll

called the Blast. It is tiny compared to even a
Tri-fly but has small weights and trailing edge
undercuts that allow it to go a full 50 meters.
Made out of 3 mm plastic (probably ABS).
Works best with a bit of wind and a strong
throw. It lives up to its name.

87
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Performance Boomerang Gallery

The famous Phenolic Sunshine by Michael

Girvin of the US. Notice the coin taped to the
lead arm to extend the range to a solid 50 me-
ters and the flap near the elbow on the dingle
arm for tuning. Made out of 3 mm linen phe-
nolic using intentionally roughly carved airfoils
to enhance the drag. At least one of these (or
a  copy)  should  be  in  everyone’s  competition  
kit.

A modified polycarbonate Tri-Fly for aussie

round use by John Cross. Small weights
made of lead tape are on each arm. Only the
leading edge of each arm is carved (only
rounded over). Range is about 40 meters.

Two of the fantastic Windeater series by

Volker Behrens of Germany. The top one
(Windeater I) is one is made out of 3 mm G12.
The lower is a Windeater II made out of 3 mm
paper phenolic. These work great in other ma-
terials such as 2.5 - 4 mm paper phenolic or
thinner G10. Range is 50 meters. These boo-
merangs are also considered to be a staple of
many competition kits.

This odd little pseudo tri-blader boomerang is

a Buzzy made by John Cross out of 3 mm pa-
per phenolic. Range is about 40 meters.

88
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Performance Boomerang Gallery

These two boomerangs sport the half blade

extension on their elbows. The top is an Ad-
vantage designed by Georgi Dimantchev and
made by John Cross. The lower is a Farout
made by Pierre Kutek of France both are
made out of 2.5 mm G10. Weights and holes
in the tips allow these boomerangs to be solid
performers although their range is only about
40 meters.

This boomerang is the Atlas by Georgi Di-

mantchev. Range is about 40 - 50 meters.
Notice the holes in the elbow area for stability
in the wind. Also note the grooves in both the
lead and dingle arm. Made out of 3 mm paper
phenolic. It is slightly smaller than most aus-
sie round boomerangs.

These fantastic aussie round boomerangs

were made by Adam Carroll of Australia. Both
make a solid 50 meters. Notice the coin taped
to the lead arm for tuning of the Ayr. A simple
looking boomerang that really performs. Every
serious thrower should have one in their kit.
The lower boomerang is known as a Bambino
and looks like a mini boomerang but will sur-
prise you with its performance. Both are made
of 3 mm paper phenolic.

Two great aussie round hooks made by Bob

Burwell of Australia. These are two of the few
non-weighted wooden boomerangs that are
capable of doing 50 meters. Made out of 6
mm finnish birch plywood. If you prefer the
feel of a wood boomerang, you should defi-
nitely have one of these. Bob recommends
throwing using a three finger grip over a pinch
grip.

89
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Performance Boomerang Gallery

Two variations of the Buzzard designed by

Fridolin Frost of Germany. The top is an origi-
nal made of 4 mm paper phenolic complete
with rubber band and a flap for tuning. The
lower is a Slim Buzzard by Georgi Dimantchev
made out of 3 mm phenolic. The design
makes a great sport boomerang if made out of
4 mm wood. Range is 50 meters for both.

This is the DeVe by Ola Wahlberg of Sweden.

Made in 3 and 4 mm paper phenolic, they
have been a vital part of many competitors
aussie round arsenal for many years. John
Anthony held the world record of 95 point in
aussie round using this model for years. The
lead arm is carved with significant trailing edge
undercut to extend the range without needing
a weight. Notice the coin on the dingle arm for
tuning.

This fantastic aussie round boomerang was

designed by Didier Bonin of France. It is
called the Elixer and shown are two variations.
It incorporates such advanced features as
trailing edge undercut on the lead arm to help
extend the range without weighting and the
dingle arm depression at the tip to aid in the
grip and enhance the return. The area around
the elbow is thinned down from 4 mm to 3.6
mm. Makes a beautiful 50 meter flight.

Two of the many variations of the Fantasy se-

ries by Georgi Dimantchev. Both are made
out of 5 mm wood and weighted in each tip
and in the half arm at the elbow to extend the
range to 50 meters. Notice the sandpaper on
the dingle arm tip for extra grip.

90
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Performance Boomerang Gallery

This boomerang is a Fuzzy. It was originally

designed by Axel Heckner as a fast catch but
can be modified for aussie round. When made
out of 4 - 5 mm wood with large weights in the
tips and the elbow, it will fly like a 50 meter
fast catch. This design is actually a tri-blader
in disguise as the elbow region is carved with
an airfoil as well. This example was made by
Fridolin Frost. These are another staple in the
kits of many top competitors.

A modified Oregon Hat made by Doug Du-

fresne of the US. This model is a very popular
sports boomerang. The example shown will
do 50 meters without any weights but it needs
a bit of wind for a full return. Notice the odd
airfoiling on the lead arm. It is made out of 6
mm wood (sports models are made out of 5
mm wood or are strip laminated).

An interesting variation of the omega. This

small boomerang was made out of 2.5 mm
paper phenolic by John Cross of Canada. It
uses the invertible airfoil so is like two boomer-
angs in one. Depending on which side is
thrown facing the thrower, a high elliptical or a
low round flight is possible. Range is about 40
meters.

These two boomerangs are variations of the

Adhemar De Montiel designed is by Jean-
Marie Gachon of France. The top one
(renamed a Whisper) was made by Morri Mohr
out of 3 mm paper phenolic. The lower is a
miniaturized version made by John Cross. Tip
to tip span is only about 9 inches. The dingle
arm is weighted. Made out of 4mm wood, the
range is close to 50 meters. The full size
model is usually made out of 4 mm paper phe-
nolic or 5 mm wood and can have a range of
up to 70 meters.

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This hook is an easy throwing 50 meter boo-

merang. It was designed by Roger Perry of
Australia. This one was carved by John Cross
out of 3 mm linen phenolic.

This hook was made by David Schummy of

Australia. Made out of 6 mm wood, it is sur-
prisingly easy to throw. Needs to be thrown
with lots of layover. Even though it is not
weighted, it has a range of 50 meters.

This boomerangs is the Wicked Stealth made

by Abo Steve Conaway. Range is 50 meters.
It is made out of Stealth material - a special
composite Steve has made specifically for
him. It is basically G10 with a thin layer of car-
bon fiber in the middle for added stiffness.

This is the Flying Fox by Roger Perry of Aus-

tralia. This wood hook is almost standard
equipment in Australia. Made out of 6 mm
wood. With a coin taped to the bottom of the
lead arm, the range is 50 meters.

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Two V designs by Adam Carroll carved out of

3 mm paper phenolic; a Kick Ass and a Vic-
tory. Both will do 50 meter boomerang but the
Kick Ass is ore reliable in varying conditions.
The weight on the lead arm helps keep the
range comfortably over 50 meters.

The Binghi by Peter Byham was used exten-

sively by the Australians in early international
competitions and can still hold its own. It take
weights to get over 40 meters nicely or if un-
weighted, makes a great sports boomerang.
This one is made out of coachwood plywood.

Pierre Kutek of France makes some of the

most nicely finished boomerangs around.
They almost make you want to not throw them
in fear of damaging the jewel-like finish. Of
course they fly great too. Made out of carbon
fiber the Typhoon CF makes the most of the
iridescent nature of carbon fiber. The Nabab
below it is made of thin G10 but is also fin-
ished exceptionally.

This is the Bidexter by LMI Fox. Originally de-

signed by Christian Jabet, this model can be
thrown with either hand depending on the tun-
ing. Made of heavy black plastic and weighted
with large brass weights in either arm, this is a
serious boomerang.

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Two variants of the Slein design by Niels Jen-

sen of Denmark. The top is plastic and the
lower is wood. The wood version is weighted
using coins embedded in the tips and the el-
bow flush with the bottom surface of the airfoil.

Three very fast German made two-bladed fast

catches. Makers are left to right; Volker
Behrens, Axel Heckner (Fuzzy), and Fridolin
Frost (Merlin). All have extensive concave un-
dercutting. During the late 80s and early 90s,
these would have been essential equipment.

Three more examples of two bladed fast catch

boomerangs. These were made by Doug Du-
fresne (FC II), Ted Bailey, and Michael Girvin
(Rad German). The FC II is strip laminated
out of lightweight wood to be lighter (and
faster) than a comparable plywood version.
The Bailey model is very similar to the one
John Flynn used to break the 20 second bar-
rier for the first time.

The last of my historical two-blader fast cach

boomerangs. Top is by Fridolin Frost and the
lower is by Ted Bailey. Again, extensive con-
cave undercuts are used on both.

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This boomerang is a Prana fat catch by Mark

Legg.    It  is  made  of  4  mm  plywood  and  doesn’t  
have the common concave undercuts. Holes
in the tips help to slow it down enough so you
can catch it.

This is a modified Renner by Axel Heckner.

Still fairly rare in North America, Renners are
more common in Europe. Each tip has an in-
teresting swirl type pattern molded into it to
help  provide  a  solid  grip.    I’d  expect  to  see  
more and more of these on the competition
circuit as an alternative to modified Tri-Flies.

These  are  three  of  Eric  Darnell’s  Advanced  

Fast Catch. Each is made out of an ABS Tri-
Fly. They are probably among the most com-
mon fast catch boomerangs seen at tourna-
ments. The world record of 14.60 seconds is
held with this design. The speed of the boo-
merang can easily be increased by extending
the trailing edge around the tip. Every compe-
tition kit should have a version or two of these
in it.

These two fast catch boomerangs are made

out of 3 mm polypropylene or ABS by Adam
Carroll of Australia. Very fast even without
concave undercuts due to the relatively low
overall drag. Left is the Fireball and on the
right is a Velocity.

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This small fast catch trainer is made by Tomas

Carter of the US. It has an excellent flight and
is suitable for those new to the fast catch
event. Since it has no holes, it does not re-
quire as hard of a throw as most other models.
Made out of 4 mm wood.

A  variation  of  Eric  Darnell’s  Advanced  Fast  

Catch design made by world record holder
Adam Ruhf. Weighted to get it to fly 20 meters
and to stabilize its flight. It is very quick.
Made out of an ABS Tri-Fly.

A SE 3 by multiple world champion Chet

Snouffer. Chet offers this model in a super
fast version that has extensive concave under-
cuts (shown) or a tamed down version with
holes drilled to slow it down. Made out of 4
mm wood.

The FC 3 by Doug Dufresne. Another very

fast boomerang. There is a small flap on one
arm to slow it down for an easier catch. Each
arm has a small area of concave undercutting
near the tip. Another fast catch made out of 4
mm wood.

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Another boomerang by Georgi Dimantchev.

This fast catch is called a Wind Factor and as
the name suggests, it is designed for use in
wind. It is weighted, loaded with holes, and
has grooves on the upper surfaces to help with
control. Made out of 3 mm ABS.

This odd looking fast catch is carved from 4 - 5

mm polypropylene and is great in the wind.
Thicker than most fast catches, it is very slow
but very stable. It could also be a good choice
for accuracy. Small weights are attached onto
each arm. Made by Christian Meyer of Ger-
many.

The Ice Runner by Fridolin Frost. Another

very fast boomerang made out of 4 mm wood
although it was also available in 3 - 4 mm
polypropylene. It works very well when carved
out of 3 mm ABS as well. Most feature con-
cave undercuts of some kind - Fridolin experi-
mented with numerous variations of chamber-
ing on these boomerangs.

This fast catch was made by world champion

Manuel Schütz. He has broken the 20 second
mark using this deceptively simple design.
There are no concave cambering on the un-
derside but all leading edges feature signifi-
cant undercutting. Made out of 4 mm wood.

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A modified polypropylene LMI Fox Skyblader

for fast catch or endurance. A bit slower than
other models but very stable. Notice the
roughed up tips and weighting to help stabilize
the flight. Unmodified, Skybladers make ex-
cellent fast catch trainers. A couple of holes in
the tips can really make a difference in their
performance and start to let you see the po-
tential of this design.

This is one of the number of fast catch boo-

merangs that Volker Behrens makes. Made
out of 4 mm wood, it is the fastest model he
makes. It does not have any cambering on
the underside but features relatively sharp air-
foils and loads of undercutting on the leading
edges. A glove is recommended for this
model since it comes in really quick.

A sample of the Gelfast by Michael Girvin of

the US. Due to minimal drag, this one is very
quick for the entire flight so you might opt for a
glove when throwing this model. The leading
edges are extensively undercut but not sharp
as on some other models. It often needs a bit
of weight to make it get out the entire 20 meter
range. Made out of 4 mm wood.

This fast catch has an interesting history. It

was actually designed to be the insider of a
doubler pair. Put in the hands of Gregory Bisi-
aux and with extensive tuning, this model was
used to hit 15.03 seconds for the world record
in 1992. This one was made by Eric Darnell
out of a polypropylene Tri-Fly.

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A simple yet effective fast catch made out of 3

mm ABS by John Cross. Based loosely on
Georgi  Dimantchev’s  Wind  Factor  but  without  
all the extra drag.

The Stubby by Eric Darnell is probably the

second most common of the numerous Tri-Fly
variations available. A bit slower than the Ad-
vanced Fast Catch, it is one of the top choices
when winds are a bit too tricky for a super fast
model. This one is made out of ABS.

This odd looking fast catch is a Legs by Mi-

chael Girvin. It is one of the very few fast
catch boomerangs made out of phenolic mate-
rial. Notice the weights and the large flap in
the center to help with stability.

This variation of the Tri-Fly was designed and

carved by John Cross. It is basically halfway
between the Advanced Fast catch and the
Stubby by Eric Darnell. It has a more stable
flight than the Advanced Fast Catch and is
faster than a Stubby. The tips have been left
rough for extra control in the wind. Carved out
of an ABS Tri-Fly.

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A copy of the famous Bailey MTA made by

Will Gix. Larger than many other MTAs but
very stable. Made out of 3 mm wood. The
world record for MTA100 was held for years
with a model similar to this. This is the design
that revolutionized the world of MTA.

The mighty Jonas MTA. This MTA is the most

sought after MTA in the world. Only about 350
of these were ever made and they are the
standard against which all other composite
MTAs are measured. Carbon fiber and aramid
outer shells surround an inner core of micro-
balloons. Very lightweight at only about 18
grams. Lighter versions were sometimes
made as light as about 14 grams. The current
record for MTA unlimited is held with this
model. It is still common with top competitors
despite its now collectable nature.

Ola  Wahlberg’s  Snake  is  one  of  the  most  

popular MTAs available. They tend to be the
top choice when winds are too stiff for plywood
or lightweight composite MTAs. Top is a full
size Snake made out of 1.75 mm paper phe-
nolic. Bottom is a scaled down version called
the Baby Snake is made out of 1.5 mm paper
phenolic. These are also very common with
top competitors.

The Quirl, designed and made by Axel Heck-

ner of Germany, is one of the only MTA boo-
merangs that does not follow the basic Bailey
style of design. Quirls tend to drop faster than
other types of MTAs but make up for it by get-
ting very high initially.

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Didier Bonin of France makes some excellent

boomerangs and his Zenith MTA is no excep-
tion. Made out of thin paper phenolic, if can
float almost as good as a wooden or compos-
ite model. This model was used to set the
French MTA record.

This composite MTA was made by Georgi Di-

mantchev. Notice the use of turbulators on the
lead arm. Very stiff and lightweight. The bot-
tom of this model has a slight camber near the
elbow area. The carbon fiber used in this
model has aramid fibers woven directly into it
to yield a snakeskin like appearance.

This odd looking MTA is a Golem II by Kendall

Davis. Great time are possible with this one
and it is becoming more common at tourna-
ments. Made out of 3 mm wood.

This is a sample of a composite MTA made by

David Schummy of Australia. Rather than fill-
ing the inside with lightweight materials such
as micro-balloons, David actually constructs
these so that they are hollow. Like the Georgi
Dimantchev model above, the carbon fiber
used in this model also have aramid fibers
woven into it.

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A pair of phenolic MTAs by Adam Carroll of

Australia. These are tuned to set up way out
in front of the thrower so are good in slightly
elevated winds. Models are the Oxygen (top)
and Skyrocket (bottom). Highly recom-
mended.

This odd looking MTA is a Palm. Originally

designed by Manuel Schütz, this one was
made by Mark Legg. Like the above boomer-
angs, it is designed to set up way out in front
of the thrower. It can handle more wind than
most other MTAs.

Although  this  boomerang  doesn't’  even  look  

like what most have come to expect an MTA to
look like, it is nonetheless a very good MTA.
Made by Manuel Schütz using a similar proc-
ess to the Jonas MTA, it uses a carbon fiber
skin over an ultralight core. Getting the tuning
right on a triblader MTA is very tricky and
since this one is made with carbon fiber, the
tune is already set for you. It is an amazingly
stable MTA. The most common wind MTA at
top competitions.

Last  of  the  MTAs  is  Manel  Schütz’  take  on  the  
MTA made famous by Jonas Romblad. His is
made in a similar fashion although has a slight
camber on the bottom surface. The perform-
ance of this one matches that of a Jonas in
every respect. These are becoming more
common at tournaments as Jonas MTAs are
getting too valuable to risk loosing to the sky.

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The  number  of  variations  of  Eric  Darnell’s  Tri-

Fly seem endless. To the left are four varia-
tions carved for the trick catch event. Modifi-
cations range from just bend and twisting to
thinning of the center section to radical re-
shaping of the outline. Top choices for materi-
als are generally polypropylene, ABS, or ny-
lon.

This trick catch is a Mobius by Fridolin Frost.

Although this one is made out of 4 mm wood,
versions made out of 2 mm paper phenolic are
excellent for competition use. This design is
considered by some to be the standard on
which most other designs are based.

A set of doublers made by Abo Steve

Conaway. Notice the insider has holes and
flaps to make it come down quicker than the
outsider. This set is made out of thin G10.

An unusual sight. These doublers by Chet

Snouffer are one of the very few sets still
made out of wood. Chet is an expert on carv-
ing good doublers and continues to frequently
use wood doublers in competition. Weights
are on the bottom of the outsider and on top of
the insider.

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A set of doublers by Michael Girvin. This de-

sign is a variation of his wood Carlota design.
This set is a bit unusual in that holes and ath-
letic tape wrapped around the center on the
insider are used rather than flaps. Made out of
2 mm linen phenolic.

This great flying set of doublers is made out of

very thin (1.5 - 2 mm) G10 by Torsten Fredrich
of Germany. Holes and a Velcro dot are used
on the insider. The outsider has small weights
taped onto the bottom. Notice the chord
length of the insider is smaller than that of the
outsider.

A set of paper phenolic doublers made by

Gunter Moller of Germany out of 2 mm paper
phenolic. Weights are on top of the insider
and on the bottom of the outsider.

An odd looking set of doublers made by the

innovative Mark Legg of the US. The center
section of each of these boomerangs is wider
to facilitate hacky catches. The center section
of each boomerang was also left completely
square. Made out or 2 mm paper phenolic.

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This trick catch was made by Adam Carroll of

Australia out of 3 mm ABS. Carved using the
reversible airfoil. If inverted, it can be used in
the relay event.

This trick catch was made by John Cross out

of 2 mm G10. If you look closely, you can see
how much material was taken off for the air-
foils. The airfoil used is the reversible airfoil.

Another set of doublers made by Chet Snouf-

fer. This set is made out of phenolic material
and is suitable for higher winds than his wood
models. The design is based closely on the
Mobius design.

This doubler set was made by Christophe

Dautriche of France. Made out of 3 mm poly-
propylene and weighted to ensure the required
range is met. Notice the notch in one arm to
be used as a trigger while throwing.

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This trick catch is a wood Carlota by Michael

Girvin. Made out of 4 mm wood. This boo-
merang is also considered by many to be one
of the standards of design for trick catches.

This trick catch was made by John Cross out

of 2 mm linen phenolic. If you look closely,
you can see the minimal airfoiling used. The
airfoil is the reversible airfoil.

This set of doublers by Michael Girvin is more

typical than the set featured earlier. This set
uses flaps for tuning on the insider. Made out
of 2 mm linen phenolic.

Another trick catch boomerang made by Mi-

chael Girvin called the Quad. This four-blader
is made out of 4 mm wood and is weighted to
extend its range to 20 meters.

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This polypropylene trick catch is carved using

the airfoil featured on page 77. Extensive trail-
ing edge undercut makes it difficult to impossi-
ble to determine if this is a lefty or a righty
without either throwing it or checking the tune.
It also makes it flight particularly high so you
have lots of time to get underneath it for the
catch.

This boomerang was inspired by the Mobius

design and turned into a quad. Carved out of
3 mm polypropylene, it needs to be weighted
to get out 20 meters but it is very easy to
catch. Carved and designed by John Cross.

This boomerang is an Overcross designed by

Adam Müller and carved by Tibor Horvath.
Intentionally carved roughly, it requires a hard
throw and can be used in higher winds than
some other models. Notice the use of slots
and combs to help with stabilization. Carved
out of 4 mm nylon.

When winds are up, most trick catch boomer-

angs can get blown away. The Bellen Wind
Dancer by Michael Girvin is the boomerang of
choice when nothing else can handle the wind.
Made out of thick 6 mm wood with lots of holes
for drag and extra control in the wind.

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This quad flies like a 30 meter accuracy boo-

merang. Holes, weights, slots and combs are
used to help tune the flight. Made by John
Cross out of 3 mm ABS. Based on the Early
Bird design by Adam Müller. It is a great
choice for the relay event.

This relay boomerang was made by Ola Wahl-

berg of Sweden out of 2 mm paper phenolic
with fiberglass skins on either side. The range
is 30 meters. It flies like a 30 meter fast catch.

This very odd looking boomerang was de-

signed by Mark Legg for the relay event.
Carved out of a PET Tri-Fly, the range is about
30 meters and is very accurate. Only the
“elbow”  arm  has  any  airfoil  carved  on  it.    The  
other two arms only have angle of attack
twisted into them.

This relay boomerang is an ABS version of

Fridolin Frosts Wind Goblin. Although this one
has a standard airfoil on it, this model also
works well with an invertible airfoil. If an in-
vertible airfoil is used, this boomerang can be
used as a trick catch boomerang when thrown
upside down. Made by John Cross.

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This relay boomerang is a modified carbon

LMI Fox Skyblader. The carbon models are a
bit heavier than polypropylene or ABS ver-
sions. The flight is very stable and predict-
able. Aside from holes in each tip, no modifi-
cations to the stock boomerang were made.

This boomerang was carved by Eric Darnell

for either relay or for safe aussie round use.
With the weights taped on each arm as on this
example, the range is 40 meters. Without the
weights, it still goes 30 meters. Only the lead-
ing edge of each arm of this polycarbonate Tri-
Fly are cut back and rounded over.

This boomerang is the carbon fiber Phoenix by

Stephane Margurite of Canada. The upper
surface is dimpled like that of a golf ball. This
model takes a very specific throw and per-
forms like a 30 meter fast catch. It is con-
structed using a similar method to that used by
Jonas Romblad for his excellent MTAs.

This very nice relay boomerang was made out

of 5 mm wood by Will Gix. It is weighted to
maximize performance.

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This page features a number of North Ameri-

can made sport boomerangs. Boomerangs
featured are by Michael Girvin (Gel Boomer-
angs), and Colorado Boomerangs.

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This page features a number of North Ameri-

can made sport boomerangs. Boomerangs
featured are by Chet Snouffer (Leading Edge
Boomerangs), Kendall Davis (Master De-
signs), and Doug Dufresne (Outback Boomer-
angs) .

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This page features models by T.W. Smith,

Steve  Conaway  (Abo  Steve’s  Boomerangs),  
Dave Hughes, and William Watts.

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Below is a selection of plastic boomerang

models available including ones by Eric
Darnell (Turning Point Boomerangs), LMI Fox,
Rangs, Ben Ruhe, a plastic copy of the Binghi
boomerang and a small German made plastic
boomerang called the Pegasus.

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Here is a selection of boomerangs by Austra-

lian makers. To the immediate left are a se-
lection of boomerangs by Adam Carroll. Be-
low are boomerangs by Bunny Read
(Wycheproof), Sam Blight (Rangs), Peter By-
ham (Binghi) and Dave Martin. At the bottom
are two boomerangs by Rod Jones whose
boomerangs have become fairly collectable.
In particular, the Peregrine hook is sought af-
ter because of its near legendary performance.

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The boomerangs featured here are some sport

models by Volker Behrens (Bluestar Boomer-
angs) of Germany. He was well known for his
many longer range models. At the bottom is a
great flying boomerang by Pierre Kutek of
France. Despite the pointy edges, it is not
nearly as scary to catch as you might guess.

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This page features a few boomerangs by Herb Smith. Boomerangs made by Herb Smith are
cherished by collectors and are particularly popular among distance enthusiasts as Herb Smith
was a pioneer in the distance event and many of his models are capable of extended ranges of
over 60 meters. During the late 70s and early 80s, Smith boomerangs set the standard for fin-
ish, decoration and performance. Herb Smith was also known for the huge number of models
he designed. He is sometimes referred to as the man who re-invented the boomerang because
of his innovative contribution to design. He was also among the first to experiment with com-
posite materials such as paper phenolic and weighting boomerangs to extend their distance.

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Herb Smith Boomerangs are not only coveted

by collectors but also widely copied. Included
are examples of copies by Dan Neelands,
Steve Conaway and John Cross.

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Included on this page is a range of boomerangs for

the distance event. To the left is a series of boo-
merangs showing the evolution from the Quirl by
Axel Heckner, through the Pathfinder (designed by
Manuel Schütz made by John Cross), into the ulti-
mate distance boomerang, the Voyager by Manuel
Schütz. The world distance record is held by
Manuel Schütz using his Voyager design. It is an
amazing 238 meters with a full return. At the bot-
tom, the difference between the old style hooks
and the more modern distance boomerangs can
easily be seen. Makers include, David Schummy,
John Cross, Tibor Horvath, and Dan Neelands).

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At the extreme other end of the spectrum are

indoor boomerangs These generally have
ranges of less than 3 meters. These are great
if you want to practice your tuning skills or trick
catches and the weather outside is nasty. You
never have to leave the living room to have fun
with these. They are generally made of light-
weight foam or light plastic.

Next we have a selection of short range, back-

yarder type boomerangs. These are designed
for use in small spaces and generally have a
range of under 10 meters. They are generally
made out foam or styrene and are very easy to
tune. They are very lightweight and easy to
throw. They are aimed at younger throwers
since they do not offer much risk for injury if a
bad throw is made. For this reason, they are
often used at school demonstrations.

To the right are some pocket boomerangs that

are so small that they can be carried with you
wherever you go. The largest of the bunch is
less than 9 inches tip to tip. The tri-blader in
the center can even be folded up into a
smaller size. The small size of these boomer-
angs  doesn’t  compromise  performance  
though. The two-bladers have ranges of 20 -
40 meters.

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Art boomerangs are made to be fully functional

art. They not only look amazing but also are
fully functional boomerangs. They are often
one of a kind creations and are often custom
designed. Sometimes, they offer exotic lunar
or space motifs such as the one to the left by
Volker Behrens. Others take ordinary objects
out of everyday life and transform them into a
flying creation. The art on the boomerang to
the left by Alan Scott Craig features three coy
swimming together in a swirling motion.

The attention to detail and the cleverness of

the design of many art boomerangs is impres-
sive. Although generally not fantastic perform-
ers, they show just how far you can push the
design and still have a fully functioning boo-
merang.

Siegfried Stiller of Germany is another prolific

boomerang artist. His creations include nu-
merous variations of fish, birds, and other ani-
mals. The two boomerangs to the right feature
some of his work. He is probably best known
for his mushroom creations such as the one to
the right. Similarly, the detail in the wolf is
amazing. The basset hound below is a sam-
ple of the excellent artwork of Pat Cardiff of
the US.

120
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S

Performance Boomerang Gallery

There are those that choose to make boomer-

angs from scratch out of fancy hardwoods
rather than sheet stock material. Their efforts
are generally rewarded with fine examples of
boomerangs that showcase their craftsman-
ship.

To the top left is a feather laminated boomer-

ang by Oscar Cuartas of Columbia featuring
layers of exotic South American hardwood ve-
neers. Below that are a trio of natural elbow
boomerangs made of holly, yew and ash by
Jay Butters of the UK whose craftsmanship is
simply outstanding. Below that is a selection
of fine lap joints made by John Cross out of
materials such as fiddleback mahogany, curly
walnut, flame maple and spalted box elder.
Lastly are strip laminated boomerangs made
by Dan Neelands, John Flynn, Pat Steigman,
John Cross, and John Cryderrman

121
P E R F O R MA N C E B O O ME R A NG S
Suggested Reading
The number of books written on boomerangs is
quite limited. Many older books are out of print
and due to the limited number of copies
printed, are very difficult to find. This section
outlines some of the ones that you might be
able to find that are definitely worth your time
to track down. This list is not a complete list of
all boomerang books written, only the ones I
have found to be particularly good.
The Ultimate Boomerang Book
Michael Siems, 1996
This is probably the best English language
book available on the topic of boomerangs.
This book is the English translation of a Ger-
man book (Die Neue Bumerang Mappe). It
has excellent sections on throwing, theory and
weighting. It also has lots of top notch plans.
If you made copies of all the boomerangs in
this book, your competition kit would be fairly
well stocked. Highly recommended.
Boomerang, How to Throw, Catch and Make
It
Ben Ruhe and Eric Darnell, 1985
This great book is unfortunately out of print but
it is relatively easy to find used copies for sale
on the internet. It originally came with an Eric
Darnell Poly Wizard Pro-Fly. Written in 1985,
some of the information is a bit dated but it still
has lots to offer. In particular, it shows a nice
snapshot of the state of competition before the
major breakthroughs in MTA and before tri-
bladers were allowed. Lots of interesting mini
biographies of legendary throwers. The intro-
duction to carving your own is among the best
written.
The Boomerang Book
John Cassidy, 1985
This book was also written in 1985 and came
with its own boomerang (the Skyturn). It is
also out of print but again it is fairly easy to find
used copies for sale on the internet. A light-
hearted look at boomerangs. It has an excel-
lent science and theory section and a wonder-
ful gallery of boomerangs at the end. Like the
Ruhe/Darnell book, the introduction to carving
is also very clear and easy to understand.
122
About Boomerangs, Americas Silent Sport
Kelly Boyer-Sagert, 1996
This book focuses on the prominent US boo-
merang personalities who were at the top of
the competition circuit. Light on practical infor-
mation if you are wanting to learn how to throw
or tune but still quite interesting.
L’Essentiel  du  Boomerang
Didier Bonin and Olivier Duffez, 2001
This French book is worth tracking down even
if  you  don’t  speak  or  read  any  French.      The  
pictures alone are worth the price. Even when
you  can’t  read  the  captions,  the  ideas  they  are  
trying to represent are clear. This book will
give you lots of new ideas and probably help
your understanding on the fundamentals of
boomerangs. It has probably the most in depth
theory  section  available  short  of  Felix  Hess’  
doctorate investigation. Lots of excellent plans
and a wonderful gallery section for inspiration.
LD
Tibor Horvath and Lorenz Gubler, 1998
This book is the only book devoted to a single
type of boomerangs - namely long distance
boomerangs. It came out just before the major
revolution of the LD world in 1998 (literally
weeks before the introduction of the Buzz-
whip). Although the technology featured in it
was out-dated almost by the time it was writ-
ten, it still features an impressive amount of
useful information. It has since been updated
and  is  interesting  reading  even  if  you  don’t  
throw long distance. Lots of plans for large
long distance hooks. Your best bet to get a
copy of this book is probably to contact the
authors directly.
Boomerangs, Aerodynamics and Motion
Felix Hess, 1975
This is the legendary doctoral dissertation on
boomerangs that described the physics in-
volved in the flight of a boomerang. You can
sometimes find it through inter-library loan at
universities. If theory is your thing, you owe it
to yourself to try to find this. Heavy on math, it
is  not  for  those  who  can’t  follow  a  technical  
document.
Performance Boomerangs

Troubleshooting Chart

on
rn
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nd

retu
arou

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rt
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s to
rt

tanc
t sta

e nd
n

ss
full
t sta

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at e

rang

rd to
stop
nge

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way

esis
gh a

tabl
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t
wa
wa

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h

t ma
h ra

s ha
g

ugh

but

ot s
s on

nd r
o hi
o hi
o lo
o lo

pi n
st
muc

s no
urns
eno

s pa
er n
uire

es s
r wi
s to
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she

Doe

Req
Poo
Hov
T oo
Flie
Flie
Flie
Flie
Cra

Flie

Los
Not

Ret
Solution
Positive dihedral to lead arm x x x
Negative dihedral to lead arm x x
Positive dihedral to dingle arm x x x x
Negative dihedral to dingle arm x
Positive angle of attack to lead arm x x x x
Negative angle of attack to lead arm x
Positive angle of attack to dingle arm x x x x x
Negative angle of attack to dingle arm x x
Drag on lead arm x x x x
Drag on dingle arm x x x
Weight on lead arm x x x x
Weight on dingle arm x x x x x
Undercut lead arm x x x x
Undercut dingle arm x x x x
Undercut outside of elbow x x
Undercut inside of elbow x x
Extend trailing edge around lead arm tip x
Extend trailing edge around dingle arm tip x
Cut back lead arm leading edge x x
Cut back dingle arm leading edge x
Cut back top of inside elbow x x
Cut back top of outside elbow x x
Smooth airfoils x x x x
Blunt airfoils x x x x
Weight in center (triblader) x x
Drag in center (triblader) x x x
Weight on top x x x
Weight on bottom x x
Drag on top of leading edge x x
Drag on bottom of leading edge x
Drag on top of trailing edge x x
Drag on bottom of trailing edge x
Drag on top x x
Drag on bottom x x
Round leading edge x x
Round trailing edge x x
Blunt leading edge x x x
Blunt trailing edge x x x
Undercut trailing edge slightly x
Page 123
 About the Author

John Cross has been making and throwing

boomerangs since about 1985. He attended his first
tournament in 1997 and has since competed in
numerous international tournaments including three
World Cups. John has held Canadian records for
Long Distance and MTA unlimited.

John works as a chemical application specialist for an

international oilfield chemical company. He lives in
the small town of Devon just outside Edmonton,
Alberta with his lovely wife Kathryn and two sons
Austin and Spencer. His other interests include
playing and making guitars.

Copyright, John Cross, 2003, 2012