A sling is the holster of the rifle world — it retains the weapon, frees the hands, and enables transitions. But a sling that cannot disappear when you don’t need it becomes a snag point, a comfort problem, and a hindrance during vehicle work, bag carry, or any environment where the rifle must stay tight to the body. The T.Rex Slick Sling exists to solve exactly that problem: it is a stripped-down, unpadded two-point sling built for maximum stowability and minimum interference, without sacrificing the adjustability and security that a fighting sling demands.
Design Philosophy: Minimum Profile, Maximum Utility
The Slick Sling is the unpadded counterpart to the T.Rex Padded Sling. Where the Padded Sling adds a ~1.5″ mesh comfort pad for extended carry under load, the Slick Sling strips that away entirely. The result is a sling that weighs just 2.18 oz (62g) and folds virtually flat against the receiver and stock. This is not a compromise for shooters who spend most of their time carrying a rifle at the ready or staged in a vehicle or bag — it is the better tool for those contexts.
The low-profile design matters most in three scenarios:
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Bag and vehicle staging. A bulky sling bunched around a rifle in a go-bag or truck creates snag points on the draw. The Slick Sling stows tight enough that the rifle pulls cleanly from confined spaces. This directly supports the Vehicle EDC and staging concept of keeping a rifle accessible but unobtrusive.
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Folding-stock platforms. On rifles with folding stocks — side-folders, the Sig MCX, the ACR — a padded sling bunches at the fold point and can prevent the stock from locking. The Slick Sling’s flat webbing clears the hinge.
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Concealment under plate carriers. When a sling runs beneath a plate carrier or chest rig, extra padding creates pressure points and bulk. Slimmer is better.
Hardware and Construction
The Slick Sling uses ITW Nexus hardware and Mil-Spec A-A-55301 solution-dyed webbing — the same spec used across serious military sling applications. Solution-dyeing means the color is baked into the fiber rather than applied as a surface treatment, so the webbing resists fading and maintains color consistency over hard use.
A deliberate design choice is the use of tri-glides on each end rather than built-in QD cups or HK-style hooks. This means the sling can attach directly to a stock slot, M-LOK rail slot, or any loop-through mounting point without requiring the user to purchase additional QD swivels. For users who prefer QD swivels or Clash Hooks, those can be added at either end — the tri-glide accepts them. This is covered in depth in QD Swivel and Hard Point Mounting and Sling Mounting Hardware and Methods.
Hardware is minimized to a single triglide at the front of the sling body. This reduces the metal and plastic sitting near the shooter’s cheek and chin during shooting. Slings with heavy buckles or spring-loaded adjusters at the front create hotspots that interfere with stock weld and chin weld — the Slick Sling avoids this by using a fabric pull-tab for the main adjuster instead of a metal spring-loaded system. The trade-off is marginal: the pull-tab is slightly slower to index than a metal tab, but it is more reliable (no spring to fail), slimmer when folded, and silent.
Configurable Throw Direction
Like the Padded Sling, the Slick Sling supports both standard throw and reverse throw adjustment:
- Standard throw: Pull the adjuster toward you to tighten. This is the most intuitive setup for most shooters.
- Reverse throw: Push the adjuster forward to loosen, pull back to tighten. Some shooters prefer this because the tightening motion mirrors pulling the rifle into the shoulder during a transition.
This configurability is not common on most slings. The throw direction is set during initial threading of the webbing through the tri-glide — it is not something that changes on the fly. Choose one, train with it, and leave it.
Sizing and Initial Setup
The Slick Sling ships with generous webbing length — approximately 66.5″ maximum usable length — to accommodate large-framed shooters, precision rifles, and long guns. Minimum usable length is approximately 35.5″ with 8″ of adjustment remaining, meaning most average-sized shooters will have significant excess webbing after initial fitting.
The correct procedure is:
- Thread the sling through your chosen mounting hardware at both ends.
- Double-back the webbing tail through the tri-glide after threading. This is a critical security step. Under dynamic movement, sweat, rain, or blood, webbing that is only single-passed through a tri-glide can creep loose. Double-backing locks it.
- Adjust to your body size with the rifle in your primary carry position.
- Trim the excess webbing and heat-seal the cut end with a lighter or heat gun.
Do not skip the double-back step. A sling that fails under stress is worse than no sling at all.
Sling Keepers
The Slick Sling ships with two bungee sling keepers (one tan, one black) made of shock cord with a simple toggle clasp. These wrap around the sling and rifle, binding the sling flat against the weapon when it is not deployed. The keepers hold the sling tight enough that it does not flop or snag, while the toggle allows rapid deployment — pull the toggle, and the sling falls free for immediate use.
Proper keeper placement keeps the fire control group fully accessible even with the sling stowed, so the rifle can be fired from a bag or rack without deploying the sling first. This is particularly relevant for home defense staging where a rifle may sit in a quick-access configuration.
When to Choose the Slick Sling vs. the Padded Sling
The Padded Sling is the better choice when:
- You will carry the rifle slung for extended periods (patrol, long movement, all-day training classes)
- The rifle is heavy (20″ barrel, LPVO, suppressor, PEQ — the weight adds up)
- Comfort under sustained load is the priority
The Slick Sling is the better choice when:
- The rifle lives in a bag, vehicle, or staged position most of the time
- You run a short, light carbine (10.5″–14.5″ builds) where total weight is already low
- You need maximum stowability on a folding-stock or ultra-compact platform
- The sling will run under armor or a chest rig
Many serious practitioners own both and swap based on context — the tri-glide attachment system makes swapping a 30-second task.
The Sling in the Broader System
Understanding two-point sling philosophy is prerequisite to getting the most from any sling. The two-point configuration is the standard for fighting rifles because it secures the weapon at two points of contact, allows hands-free carry, supports transitions to sidearm, and enables supported shooting positions. The Slick Sling is designed exclusively as a two-point sling.
A sling is also a training tool. Drawing from retention, transitioning to pistol, and shooting from slung positions are all skills that degrade without practice. These integrate directly into rifle drills and positional shooting work. A sling you never train with is dead weight.
Finally, the sling is one layer in the coherent loadout — it connects the rifle to the shooter, and the shooter to the rest of the kit. Getting the sling right means the rifle is always where it needs to be: in your hands, on your body, or staged for immediate access.
Products mentioned
- T.Rex Slick Sling — Unpadded, low-profile two-point sling for maximum stowability
- T.Rex Padded Sling — Padded two-point sling for extended carry comfort