The sling is juat a thin sued leather and it does not seem very sturdy. I have 9 months to get the rifle ready for deer season, my first mission is to develop a load. I need to see if it preferes sabots, minnie-iball, or patched round ball, with BP, Pyrodex or Triple 7. The barrel has a pretty tight 1-28 twist so I'm guessing PBR won't work to well. Once I find the load the scope goes away and it becomes an open sight rifle. Then I can worry about slings, powder horn, and possibles bag.