Duplex Nails as Field Points

[Diligence]

Just a quick "double thumbs up" to the home made duplex nail field points posted earlier by Bushbow.

I've been shooting them in my bamboo arrows, and they are the cats meow!.....the club's 3D and paper targets do not rob me of my field points, they come out easily and they work just great.

I'm not even sure that I will ever use glue-on field points again - that's how much I like them.  They do take at least ( ) 5 minutes to make and install, but it's worth it.

[aero86]

i like them too.  get a grinder and you can make lots more quickly!

[Bushbow]

Diligence I am glad to hear they worked out for you. I too, would never go back to a tapered glue on steel point for bamboo. After several months of shooting bamboo arrows, I have had many of the tapered steel points get snapped off. None of the nail points have broken off. I did have one hit a steel posted that basically shattered the bamboo. But I would call that excessive.

Chuck S.

[Diligence]

Good to know.  Like you, I haven't been wrapping the shaft either.  Just drilling a hole to suit the nail diameter and using hot glue stick to put it in place.  I also use a counter-sink bit to very slightly bevel the inside diameter of the shaft.  This seems to allow the nail to settle into place nice and firmly.

We'll see how they hold up.  I've been meaning to make up some with adder points --- using sharpened wing nuts.  Figured they might make good little judo points.

J

[agd68]

You guys have any nail points  pull out of the shaft?

[Diligence]

I have not had that happen to me.

To attach the points I run a glue stick (from a glue gun) through a candle flame, and wipe the melted glue onto the nail shaft.  Then when I think I have enough on there, I run the nail with glue on it thru the flame to melt it all again....and slide it into position, hold for a few seconds and I'm done.  Some glue will squeeze out near the nail head, but with a firm pressure I can get the nail to seat properly.  Then I just peel off the extra glue.  My predrilled hole in the shaft is just a bit larger than the nail shaft.  On some of my nail heads, I sanded a flat spot along the whole nail shaft first, with the intention of making a good glue joint.

I noticed that some of the duplex heads do not have the nail shaft centered to the head, this results in a point that is not in-line with the arrrow shaft.  So, after initial placement into the arrow shaft, if there needs to be an adjusment, I hold the point into the candle flame and heat it up a bit, just enough to allow me to twist the nail to the best position.

To address the little "lip" that is formed when the duplex head is a larger diameter than the shaft, I simply rotate the shaft on my sander to smooth down the "lip" without cutting into the shaft material.   This also slightly tapers the actual head of the nail (the part that sits against the arrow shaft) and makes a nice smooth transition between duplex nail head and shaft which offers no resistance when in the target.  Unlike my field points which always seem to need to be pulled hard out of my club's targets (and often get eaten by the 3D targets), the duplex arrows slip out easily.

Short question Agd68, but a long answer....lol 

[Bushbow]

I have found 5 minute epoxy to be the easiest to use. It gives you the work time to rotate the nail for the best center. Super glue works too, but it sets up too fast. I have not had any pull out, even after hitting a tree. That goes for hot melt, epoxy, and super glue.

[jonathan creason]

Made up a few of these today.  Man, I really wish I had tried earlier.  Much, much easier than tapering.

[Bushbow]

The more I use them, the more I like them. WAY less likely to break off the end like a tapered steel point.
Chuck S.

[hillbilly61]

Can someone show how to make them? Please!!

[Fred Arnold]

I've done up a few with 16D just for weight purposes and 357 mag casings. Takes me longer than 15 minutes but they are the cats meow!!!!

[Bushbow]

Hillbilly61, here is the video showing how to make them:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HNYQhCoOUl4
Chuck S.

[hillbilly61]

 Thanks Bushbow. That was a good video. So easy even a caveman could do it I reckon I'll stop and get some nails tomarrow and try to make a few.,

[jonathan creason]

The only downside I've found to them is the HD I went to only carries the duuplex nails in 5# boxes.  I should have enough field points to last me for a good long while.

[Diligence]

As a quick note, one thing I've done lately with the shaft of the nails is to create a couple of flat spots along the length of the nail shaft.  Just touched the shaft to my sander a couple of times.  These flat spots really grab the hot melt glue I've been using and seem to create a really solid "seat" for the nail/glue/boo.

J