Best Left Handed Boomerang

Do you want to get in on the fun with boomerangs but find that the one you borrowed or bought doesn’t seem to work for you? If you’re a left hander it may just mean that you’re using a rang that’s not designed for you. Boomerangs are very much designed for a specific handedness, so using the wrong one will most likely mean hours of frustration trying to throw and catch one the way you’ve seen experienced players do. That’s why we’re here to first guide you in finding the best left handed bomerang for experience and skill level, show you how they work, and how you should throw one.

Are There Left and Right Handed Boomerangs?

Yes, both right and left-handed boomerangs are available in the market to provide accessibility to all kinds of users. However, left-handed ones are difficult to find and not all makers have lefty models.

Keep in mind that, because of its airfoil shape, a right-hander is unlikely to be able to properly throw a boomerang that is designed for left-handers and vice versa. If a left-hander can only throw with his left arm, then he must do so with a left-handed boomerang.

However, although rare, there are a few boomerangs that are ambidextrous and can be used by both right and left-handed people.

How to Tell if a Boomerang is Right or Left Handed

A left-handed boomerang is designed and constructed to make it spin in the opposite direction to a right-handed boomerang. While using a left-handed one, you even have to grip and throw it in a manner opposite to how right-handed users do it. To differentiate between the two models of boomerangs while purchasing one, throw both and see the result: a left-handed boomerang, thrown with the left hand, will soar in a circle in a clockwise direction while a right-handed one, thrown with the right hand, will do that in an anti-clockwise direction.

Best Left Handed Boomerangs

Colorado Boomerangs Left Handed Easy Returning Boomerangs

The Bumblebee series is specifically designed for left-handed boomerang beginners. The Blue Bumblebee and Red Bumblebee Boomerangs are two of the newest additions to Colorado Boomerangs’ left-handed lineup. They are made up of heavy-duty plastic, which makes it more flexible and harder to break but works best in low to moderate wind speeds.

It can even float on water, and due to its 4-wing design, is one of the easiest to return boomerangs available. The flexibility also allows you to lift the tips a bit to increase its returnability. The bright blue or red color choice enhances its look and visibility in the air or grass and is great for teens and adults of all ages. It has a wingspan of 10 inches and you can expect a flight distance of 25-30 meters.

There is also a glow-in-the-dark version available if you want to play at night as well and that one can even be enjoyed by kids as young as 8.

Colorado Boomerangs Lefty Carbon Fiber Composite Boomerang

This Colorado Boomerangs composite carbon fiber molded model makes it quite rare in the boomerang world. It is slightly heavy but highly durable and easy to manufacture to precise specifications for perfect spins. It is great for anyone 13 years and above and will go to a 35 to 40 yards radius.

Colorado Boomerangs Left Handed Aussie Fever Wooden Boomerang

This Aussie Fever Wooden left-handed boomerang is handcrafted in Australia and designed by the famous former Australian Champion, Roger Perry. It is pretty lightweight, making it easier to throw and great for people from 10 to 72 years. Its flared wing design ensures that it handles breeze at the beach very well. It returns with a distinctive hovering descent, which makes it an extremely easy boomerang to catch.

It has a wingspan of around 13 inches in length and a flight range of about 30 to 40 meters. It is a classic and has been a top-selling boomerang worldwide for over 20 years, making it a great novelty gift for left handers.

Olaian Soft Left-Handed Boomerang

The Olaian soft left handed boomerang is made of 100% foam polyuetherane, which makes it easy and safe to catch even for children as young as 8. It is a three-bladed model with a flight range close to 50 to 65 feet. The blades of the boomerang are narrower and the curve makes it easier to catch. The shape of the blades influences the trajectory and rotation speed of the boomerang. As a result, it is easier to use.

How do Boomerangs Work?

Boomerangs are aerodynamically shaped hand-thrown tools that are designed to fly. They follow a circular path and then come back to the thrower. Initially, they were only V-shaped, but manufacturers started to come out with different shapes and styles with time.

It is the arrangement of the arms and the airfoil shape that makes boomerangs fly. Once thrown, the boomerang spins at an incredible speed (around ten revolutions per second), creating a lifting effect, which allows it to fly the same way airplanes do. Like a gyroscope, the boomerang’s axis also makes a cone in space because of the external torque applied to it, which ensures a circular flight path for the boomerang.

Another essential thing that you need to keep in mind to make a boomerang fly is the throw. While throwing a boomerang, you should hold around the end of one wing in such a manner that the curved side of the boomerang is towards you. Now keep the boomerang straight (vertically) with you holding the bottom of the lower half.

A slight incline outwards may be necessary depending on the design of the boomerang and wind conditions. If there is wind, then the boomerang should be thrown between 30 degrees and 90 degrees to the left of the wind if you’re throwing a left-handed boomerang with your left hand.

You throw the boomerang with an overhand motion, similar to a pitcher throwing a baseball or a fisherman casting a line. However, a boomerang needs to spin, so you need to add a snap to your wrist upon release.

Throughout the throwing action and release, the boomerang will stay nearly vertical. It will travel outwards still spinning vertically. It will eventually fly horizontally with its flat side down as it rolls over (clockwise for a left-handed boomerang) and almost hovers back to the thrower. It is safely trapped between open hands, like a sandwich, when it returns to the thrower at chest height.

The throwers who play for fun enjoy playing a simple game of catch with the boomerang. However, people who want to try competing or participating in competitions have the liberty of choosing from a wide range of events, viz. precision (where the boomerang is supposed to return as close as possible to the launch point) and endurance (where you are supposed to make as many catches as possible in a period of five minutes).

How to Throw a Left Handed Boomerang

Using a boomerang is not an easy task, no matter how effortless the professionals make it look. Like any other sport, it takes a lot of practice and experience to master the boomerang. Here’s a short guide for beginners when it comes to throwing a boomerang.

One thing to note here is that all the following steps are for throwing a left-handed boomerang. Right-handed throwers must always throw to the right of the wind blowing in, and for them, all the steps below will be the same except that they should be mirrored. The arm of the boomerang that you grasp in your hand is referred to as the dingle arm, while the arm pointing towards you is known as the lead arm.

The Grip

The unpainted flat surface of the boomerang should be against your palm, while the painted curved surface should be against the thumb. One of the most important parts of throwing the boomerang is to make sure to let it spin instead of just throwing it in the air.

Layover and Release Angle

Layover is quite critical since a good layover will let the boomerang have a controlled flight. Although the aim is to keep it off the ground, it should not be thrown too high or thrown sidearm. Hence, the boomerang must be thrown no more than 45 degrees from vertical and released at a slight upward angle while aiming at the treetops.

If the release angle is too low, it will suddenly climb high into the air at the end of flight, and then fall straight to the ground and possibly break. Get closer to the vertical when in high winds. While this is the standard for hobby boomerangs, other models of boomerangs require different degrees of layover. Therefore, you must consult your guides or find more information about the type of model you use.

Throw Zone

You need to determine the direction and velocity of the wind and then throw the boomerang 40-60 degrees off the wind, depending on the model of the boomerang you are using. While right-handed users should throw to the wind’s right, left-handed users must throw them to the left of the wind.

If the boomerang lands in front of you, you should try throwing more into the wind, but if it lands behind you, the boomerang must be thrown more off the wind. When it’s calm, the boomerang must be thrown with a little more layover, which will cause the flight to be more elliptical. If the wind is high, the boomerang should be thrown with less power and layover to achieve a circular flight.

Throwing Motion

As mentioned earlier, you must let the boomerang spin instead of just throwing it into the air. The turn of the boomerang should not be initiated with the throw, and you should let it turn itself by just snapping your wrist upon release. If the boomerang is thrown too hard, then the flight will not be circular or elliptical and if it the throw is too soft, the boomerang will not make its way back to you.

The Catch

You must use your wits while attempting a catch and should not try doing it when the boomerang is flying towards you at a very high speed. Hence, you must be familiar with the boomerang’s flight path, which takes a lot of time and experience to master.