Ive heard this mentioned many times in these forums and Im just wondering what it means?

CS slingshot is simply building the Oracle while researching code of laws .. you time the completion of Oracle to the time of completion of the research of COL, once you get COL and complete Oracle, you take Civil Service as free technology. This is best accomplished with one of the financial civs (added $$ = more beakers = COL isnt such a daunting tech early on. Other civs can do it too given enough cottages and a cooperative AI, however financial civs are still best to attempt it.

CS = Civil Service.
Slingshot = trick used to gain a free tech (using the Oracle, Liberalism or a Great Person).

There are many more slingshots you can make in the game, but the CS slingshot is probably the most famous. It normally doesn't work on very high difficulty levels because an AI will complete the Oracle before you can finish researching Code of Laws.

I use the oracle to get metal castings and their forges.

I use the oracle to get metal castings and their forges.

With Beauracracy civic (available with CS) and a cottage spammed capital you can research metalcasting amd many other wonderful things faster .. and build things faster too :p

Thats true. If I could guarantee I would be able to get CS then I would most likely do it. But it is far from a guarantee.

I would much rather get Metal Casting, jump to top of the tree and get the culture techs, and the free artist. Then race to liberalism, and get military tradition and cavalry. At this point I can conquer the world. I usually get domination victorys in the 1400's-late 1500's. On Monarch.

If I tried to research COL on my own and pray I can get CS through the Oracle it would hurt my tech lead as I race to Liberalism. Its a big risk IMO.

I would rather use the Oracle to get CoL. That way I get a religion and courthouses to fund my new empire. It's even more powerfull if you get the pyramids, as you can then have an amazing specialist economy.

An alternative CS slingshot is to use Oracle for CoL, avoid masonry, get polytheism or meditation (whichever you missed on the way to priesthood) and when you get a Great Prophet burn it to research 90% of CS.

An alternative CS slingshot is to use Oracle for CoL, avoid masonry, get polytheism or meditation (whichever you missed on the way to priesthood) and when you get a Great Prophet burn it to research 90% of CS.
I'll have to try that!