Not a scorchingly popular subject but when you need one there just is not a real substitute for them.

Was going for a wasp the other day and the plastic just broke off the entire head, brittle. Now we are getting cold snaps that necessitate putting our plants inside and the fly's just come right on in at the same time trying to escape the same cold weather.

The problem is, they cheaped out on the wire they make the handle from and it bends like soft butter when you try to use it. Swing it gently enough that it doesn't bend and guess what? You can't hurt a fly with it.

I got about 10 years out of the last one I ever found that was worth a damn, a Black Flag branded fly swatter. You could bend the wire if intent upon doing so, but not just by using it with the wrist flip for quickness that has always caught them before they take off so effectively. It took me forever to find it before and a google search tells me the cheapest I can get one of those is for about $30 if you can believe that. There is also a trend toward telescoping handles. That sounds even weaker on the bending and breaking issue to me.

Before I see 10 pictures of that Bug a salt thing pop up, lets not go there. Are there any usable fly swatters left out there that work?

Lehmans Hardware sells a heavy duty leather swatter. 8 bucks.

No joke, but the Bug A Salt has been the best fly "swatter" I've used. The blast of table salt is so fast that the fly can't dodge. You can blast them from 2-3 feet away, and they don't even see you coming.

Several years ago I picked up one of those electric fly swatter tennis racquet things from Harbor Freight. It was like $2 on sale so I figured what the hell. Turns out it's been a reliable, great solution for killing bugs inside the house. Not just flies, it's dispatched wasps, Yellowjackets and hornets as well. Something about the metal grid that they don't see coming at them and once they touch it, the zap is enough to kill the flies dead. For the bigger bugs its enough at the very least to hold them till you can get them out of the house and shake them off the racquet.

Interesting. I don't think I've ever purchased one in a store. The ones I have are promotional items I got from some businesses over the years. I might need to look into an upgrade.

Enoz Sergeant Swat Flyswatter

I bought the 3 pack so each of my family could murder some annoying ass flies. That was 2 years ago and they've held up fine. Just like the metal ones found at the store, just a bit heavier duty. I think there is room for improvement but it does the job without snapping in half after hitting a fly.

I gave up on normal swatters years ago. Get a badminton racquet. They work very well.

Take a look at: https://www.garrettwade.com/re...-fly-swatter-gp.html

quote:

Originally posted by mutedblade:
Enoz Sergeant Swat Flyswatter

Enoz is the way to go, but their old fashioned mesh/screen style swatter is the best of the lot. Black screen with a light colored border. Supposedly, the fly perceives the black screen as a "hole" and tries to fly through it. Bam. They work very well. The plastic ones, the fly tries to fly out from under the thing.
 

 
The product at Garrett Wade, posted just above, are of the same design.

quote:

Originally posted by Aeteocles:
No joke, but the Bug A Salt has been the best fly "swatter" I've used. The blast of table salt is so fast that the fly can't dodge. You can blast them from 2-3 feet away, and they don't even see you coming.

lol I bought one of these for Mrs DF a couple of years ago. She. Loves. It. Now she goes on bug hunts. It's great fun and gets the job done every time. Wasps take two shots though. One brings it down and the second takes it out.

I have to swat only three or four flies during the season here, but I agree that the old traditional design made with window screen material are far superior to the plastic ones.

Yep. Tough to beat the old school style, with window screen pad and metal wire "clothes hanger" grip.

quote:

Originally posted by LBAR15:
Several years ago I picked up one of those electric fly swatter tennis racquet things from Harbor Freight. It was like $2 on sale so I figured what the hell. Turns out it's been a reliable, great solution for killing bugs inside the house. Not just flies, it's dispatched wasps, Yellowjackets and hornets as well. Something about the metal grid that they don't see coming at them and once they touch it, the zap is enough to kill the flies dead. For the bigger bugs its enough at the very least to hold them till you can get them out of the house and shake them off the racquet.

Those are fun to play with.

I've got cats, they are pretty effective. If a bug comes in I pick up Gray (better hunter than Black) I show him the bug, then set him down. Four birds with one stone, I don't have to play with him; he gets exercise; gets to act out on instincts; and he eats the bugs, so no clean up.

I too often use the Feline bug intervention and disposal system.
Problem: When the bug is airborne, so is the cat and chaos results.

Once we went electric, we've never gone back. Such a satisfying pop when you get them.

Fly swatters are a necessity on board a sailboat. Sail though a cloud of black biting flies and you can't have enough of them around.

I think most plastic swatters I've used are a little too heavy and a little too stiff. They tend to squash the prey, and it gets a little messy. Classic screen design does the job.

I had the job of cleaning the family flyswatter as a kid. It was messy.

A coworker of mine makes these: Arrow SWAT

JP

Bug a salt. They are literally a blast!