Who Grows Their Own Shoot Shafts?

[ncpat]

I was thinking again about the arrows I am about to make. These will be 1/4 inch, very light, for my daughter's 20 lb bow. I had been thinking I'll have to use factory nocks as a 1/4 dowel or limb leaves little nock left if I slot it. But might it work if I split and inch or so down the middle with a knife, a clean split, soak in hot water then open a nock of sorts that way? Keeps the thickness but with a V split. I could then use a small file to square the V just a little and could wrap under the split with heavy thread. Has anyone tried this?

[Pat B]

You would be better cutting in self nocks and wrap below with sinew.

[ncpat]

You would be better cutting in self nocks and wrap below with sinew.

That would take about 1/8 inch out of a 1/4 (2/8) inch shaft. Wouldn't that be a very weak self nock? Maybe I could make a sleeve from a .25 shell casing and cut nock then, smoothing edges down?

[Pat B]

If the arrow is tuned to the bow and shooter and flies well all of the pressure is on the bottom of the nock and not the sides. the sinew wrap will prevent the shaft from splitting.
  You could also flatten a small section on both sides of where the nock will be and add small flat pieces of wood, horn, etc to creat a nock. You will have to round the edges. Some flight shooters use the method because their arrows are so small. Dan Perry did an article in a past issue of PA about building flight arrows and used this method.

[ncpat]

I saw 2 interesting shrubs at Home Depot today. Sweet olive and recurve ligustrum (interesting name). Both have fairly straight shoots that seem sturdy enough. Has anyone seen or tried these? A friend also let me cut some shoots from his yard, unknown variety. Just shoots from the ground. 

[ncpat]

If the arrow is tuned to the bow and shooter and flies well all of the pressure is on the bottom of the nock and not the sides. the sinew wrap will prevent the shaft from splitting.
  You could also flatten a small section on both sides of where the nock will be and add small flat pieces of wood, horn, etc to creat a nock. You will have to round the edges. Some flight shooters use the method because their arrows are so small. Dan Perry did an article in a past issue of PA about building flight arrows and used this method.

Good point. I will try self nocking. Speaking of flight archery, I never found much through the years to read on it. Never heard of anyone in my neck of the woods doing it. The few I heard of tended to be out west, as I remember.

[bubbles]

I cut some butterfly bush that I found growing wild (i think it's an invasive), just to see if it would make a good arrow.  Unfortunately, I de-barked it to get it to season quicker and ended up with big checks all the way down to the pith.  It seemed pretty dense, and even with the checks seemed like it would make a good arrow. This was about a 1/2" round (I always cut my shoots big and reduce them down in 1/16"ths and check spine from 3/8" down to whatever spine I want)  I tried to break it and ended up with this:

Took a lot of strain and all of those splinters  slowly popped one by one, instead of one big break/snap like most woods.  I was pretty impressed.
Would probably make a good arrow and and bow as well, if you can find it big/straight enough.

[randman]

Yeah Bubbles that stuff is tough and durable And they only get woodier and stiffer as they season. Never had any check but I always leave the the bark on for a while as they dry pretty fast anyhow. Mine are usually about 3/8".

I've always wondered about it makin a bow since I've seen some pretty big stuff (mostly in peoples yards) and some amazing bows out of shrubs. Haven't tried it though.

[Pat B]

NCPat, sweet olive is probably autumn olive(Illiagnus [sp]) and the legustrum is the botanical name for privet. You probably already have lots of both already growing you. Both are invasive exotics.  I know privet will make very good arrows but don't strip the bark until they are completely dry.

[ncpat]

I cut some butterfly bush that I found growing wild (i think it's an invasive), just to see if it would make a good arrow.  Unfortunately, I de-barked it to get it to season quicker and ended up with big checks all the way down to the pith.  It seemed pretty dense, and even with the checks seemed like it would make a good arrow. This was about a 1/2" round (I always cut my shoots big and reduce them down in 1/16"ths and check spine from 3/8" down to whatever spine I want)  I tried to break it and ended up with this:

Took a lot of strain and all of those splinters  slowly popped one by one, instead of one big break/snap like most woods.  I was pretty impressed.
Would probably make a good arrow and and bow as well, if you can find it big/straight enough.

At least the broken one will make good kindling and tinder for the fire next winter. LOL

[bubbles]

Haha, Butterfly bush - the 5 second feather stick.

[Thesquirrelslinger]

LOL:)

[ncpat]

I saw a few references here & elsewhere to crepe myrtle shoots being good. Has anyone tried them much?

[Hillbilly]

I have planted river cane, hill cane, arrowwood Viburnum, sweetshrub, American hazlenut, silky dogwood, and some others that make good shafts. All are easy to grow. I have also coppiced sourwood saplings before to get a supply of shoots. Road banks that are cut every couple of years, and logged areas are also good spots to collect shoot shafts.

[Hillbilly]

NCPat, white pine and tulip poplar both make excellent split/dowelled shafts. the tulip poplar shoots are not very good, but split poplar wood makes great shafts. You don't need a doweling jig, you can hand-plane them easily with a small thumb plane that you can get at Lowe's for about $6. I even plane down most of my shoot shafts to adjust diameter and spine. Here is a matched set of shoot shafts from a dozen different species: sourwood, silky dogwood, arrowwood viburnum, witherod viburnum, sweet shrub, buffalo nut, chinese privet, bush honeysuckle, hazelnut, salt cedar, multiflora rose, and white ash.