Shooting board????

[Deerhunter21]

I think i asked this a long time ago.... but i really need to make a shooting board to plane arrows down.... Im almost out of rivercane and i want to make some poplar arrows but i have no way to round the arrows into a dowel. I have a hand planer.... do i even need to use a shooting board or is there another way? all i want is to be able to make some hunting arrows for this year.

[Pat B]

Russell, A simple board can be made for holding square stock while you make them into dowels by cutting a "V" groove down the length of a board with a stop at the end. The "V" groove will hold any diameter shaft so you can plane the corners off of square stock. I guess you know you plane off the 4 corners of the square stock then the 8 corners and finally sand them smooth. Chucking the shaft in an electric drill and use sand paper to smooth out the shaft.

[Deerhunter21]

how would i put the V groove into it? i got a bandsaw and a table saw although i would like to avoid cutting it in half and putting it back together

[Don W]

take a look at mine https://www.diy.timetestedtools.net/my-first-self-arrows-shafts/

Its just two boards with one edge chamfered. If you have a table saw just cut a 45 on one corner, if not use the hand plane., then screw or glue them together.


It's possible to do them right on the benchtop, but it's a pain in the butt.

[Hawkdancer]

Russell,
You can tilt your table saw to 45 degrees and the height to 3/8", make the first, then flip your board and make the second cut.  Of course, you have to make sure you have everything lined up properly.  Set your fence an d keep your fingers out of the way! (lol. Make a few practice cuts on scrap wood to be sure you have it right.  use a 36' piece of hardwood,  if you have it.  You can also do it by making the 45 degree cut in two pieces and fit them together.
Hawkdancer

[Gimlis Ghost]

Many, many, years ago I ran across an article on a Medieval method of mass producing arrow shafts.
They used a thick iron plate with a hole punched through it in a manner that left a sharp raised ridge around the entrance hole. Sticks were split from boards and forced into the hole then drawn through, excess wood was just peeled away by the raised ridge and the sticks came out round and uniform in size.
I suppose the method was also used to make dowel rods and pegs.

[archeryrob]

I just used to use a thumb plane on one hand and lay the straightened shaft on the work bench and shave it like that. It was easier to roll and take it off evenly, IMO. Spine test and geta  few pounds high and sand it the rest of the way to the proper static spine.