First arrow!

[Chicknlady]

I finally got one arrow done ( )!  I figured I'd try to go thru the whole process before going into major production... and of course all sorts of questions were popping into my mind as I worked!

I tried my chicken feathers, but they're just too short and flimsy for what I wanted.  So I broke into my turkey feather stash, and made them 5" long.  These big long feathers have lots of curl still, and even though I trimmed the quill right down and sanded the bottom of the vane flat and perpendicular to the feathers, the fletches still tried to point in odd angles on the shaft when I was glueing.... any advice out there??  BTW  I used artificial sinew and super glue... the glue was a mess... got it done, it turned out OK, but will try something else next time.  I'd like to try pine pitch glue.

The broad-head was a last minute whimsy.  I needed something for a point, and the idea seemed cool for a first arrow.  My son was so excited that I just about filed his face when I was filing the head in the vice!     I was afraid to taper the shaft too much on the broad-head because of the pithy center (rose).  What do you guys do??




Not razor sharp, but this one will probably only see a hay bale before I lose it...  I hate to paint this one orange!



Haven't shot it yet, will try tomorrow if I can get my courage up!

[bryan irwin]

cool arrow looks like it will do the job

[bubby]

try stripping the feathers, i think there is a build-a-long in the how-to's, Bub

[Pappy]

Cool arrow,very nice.Make sure on the feathers that you are using all right or all left wing on the same arrow. How does it fly ?
   Pappy

[Scowler]

Your first arrow looks ALOT better than my first arrow. 

[Sparrow]

You nailed it Lady !   If your spine is good,you should have a first rate arrow there. I don't use super glue. I generally tie down the front of the fletches (As you did) and leave a good bit of stripped quill sticking out the back,tie down the back with thread,back towards the knock and not where I am tying down with sinew(Just as you did)(Not too tight yet),get the feathers laying just so,put the pitch under the feathers usually with a wood sliver (like a flat toothpick),pull them back tight and tie in the sinew right behind the feathers.Let dry.Take off thread.Trim off excess quill and taper it with the knife,then sand it smooth and paint all the wraps with hide glue.I like to seal the wraps against moisture too, with a thin coat of pitch.
My rose shafts are not too pithy and they have been drying for years so I don't have too much problem at the taper, I use stone heads and the pith is generally all removed to where it ends up in the point and I can have a pointed tip tapered right into the rock. Gluing it in with pitch and coating the sinew with pitch generally toughens everything up good too.

[Chicknlady]

Sparrow, what you suggested sounds just like what I want to do.  That's great, thanks!

I don't feel right using the super-glue, and even the artificial sinew, and want to move away from the more man-made stuff...   I've mentally marked in my mind several pines nearby that are all gobbed up with pitch, and have been reviewing different techniques and ingredients on-line.   lol, one thing leads to another, another skill to try to develop! 

Hoping to get a chance to shoot the new arrow tonite!

[Chicknlady]

Just shot that new arrow, and it was AMAZING.  I was almost afraid to try it, just because I was nervous that it would royally stink...  lol, it did GREAT, maybe eveb better than my old aluminum arrows!

The rose shaft I had selected for this first arrow was also the heaviest of the dozen shafts I have prepared, about 60# more or less on the spine tester, and has very little taper... the average diameter is just a smidge over 3/8".   I put the big end at the point, and the smaller end at the nock.   The last shot was the best... NO wobble in any direction, "straight" as an arrow into the hay bale!    I know, I realllllly need to work on my form..............

The broad-head is about 100 grains.  Two problems... one, the fletches are too long for my bow (brace height??), and two, the back of the broad-head catches in the hay bale when I pull it out.

[Carson (CMB)]

chknlady, sounds like you are on the right path.  That is one heck of a first arrow.  I definitely encourage you to pursue the hide glue, pitch, and real sinew over the other stuff.  Maybe you would want to trade some chickens for hide glue, pitch/wax mix, and some backstrap sinew.  I rememeber seeing people mailing chickens out of the San Angelo, TX Post Office all the time.  Sparrow has described a real good method of fletching.  And like Bubby said, try stripping the feathers of the main quill, starting at the top, pull on a pinch of feather until you get to split from the quill, carefully work it down the length of the quill stripping feather and a paper thin base away from the main quill.  Might  practice on some of your chicken feathers first.  Another tip is to rehydrate older feathers with a moist paper towel in a ziploc bag with feathers in a warm place for several hrs.   Keep it up!