Making/hafting tradepoints

[woodsman1031]

Hello,

  I am about to make some tradepoints and I am curious is there a reference point where you put the side slots or holes for tying it on a shaft? I am using 5/16" dowels. Is there any particular way to wrap it ? I am thinking I would cut a slot in my shaft and then wrap the trade point in and then saturate the artificial sinew with epoxy. Is there a tutorial on this somewhere that I havent been able to find? Do I sharpen the back of the tradepoint so it will pull from the target easier? This all looks extremely dificult to do correctly. I can make a knife from a saw blade so I know I can make a decent tradepoint, but I am lost as far as connecting it to a shaft. Also what would be a good tradepoint weight?

I appreciate any help.

Tommy

[Pat B]

Tommy, What I would do is cut a slot in the shaft and fit the point. Then mark where you want holes or slots, remove the point and make the holes or slots. I use pitch glue to haft trades and stone points then wrap with sinew or thread set in glue. With the pitch glue if the point becomes loose or gets out of alignment I can heat it a bit , straighten and its ready to go again once cool.  Pat

[madcrow]

Here are a few that I made.  The points on the left are from an old handsaw.  The top points weigh 190 gr. and the points with the holes weigh 175gr.  I ahve seen some that did not have holes because the slot was not deep.  Others like mine, have holes because I cut a deeper hole.  It seems to make a stronger joint when glues up.  I put the holes close enough so that a little bit of it is under the shaft, less chance of the steel wearing through the sinew.

[woodsman1031]

PatB,

  What kind of thread do you use other than sinew? Is it some type of specialty thread? It would be great if I could use the same type of thread to wrap the knock area.

Madcrow,

  I think I know what you are saying about hole placement. You are saying that when the trade point is in the shaft you only see part of the hole. Does that allow the trade point to move? I like the idea because the string or whatever is not streatched out across such a wide area. It appears that the string would not be worn near as much. What do you tie them on with? I noticed that you only have 1 side sharpened, does that work well with low poundage bows?


Can yall post some pictures of wrapped tradepoints please?


Thanks

Tommy

 

[welch2]

I cut notches in the sides of the tang (3 -4 on each side) for the sinew to grip with a chainsaw file.Glue them in with pine pitch and charcoal ,Then sinew wrap with hide glue.



You can see the notches in the tang on this fishing point.


I bevel / sharpen both sides ,never tried just one bevel.



Ralph

[JackCrafty]

My tradepoints weigh about 120 grains.  I make them out of large nails or steel rod.  I just flatten the steel with a hammer to about 1/16" thick, tapering it from the tip (thinner) to base (thicker), and grind to shape with a bench grinder.The tang is about 2/3 as long as the body and I cut shallow ridges into the sides of the tang so that the sinew or thread grips the trade point and prevents movement.  I taper the tip if the arrow shaft and shape the tang to match this taper exactly...except the tang is about 1/32" wider.  I cut a slot into the tip of the arrow shaft with a scroll saw and glue the trade point with hide glue or fish glue.  I then wrap the point with sinew or cotton thread (soaked in glue)...going past the base of the point by 1/2" or so.  My points are about 3/4" wide.  If you're making hunting points, they need to be 7/8" (or more) wide in most states.

This picture shows two trade points made from nails, glued with fish glue, and wrapped with sinew.
These arrows have been shot at least a hundred times each (sometimes into the ground) with no problems other than the occasional straightening of a bent tip.

[Pat B]

Tommy, The thread I use is silk from 3Rivers. I use it to wrap points, nocks and feathers...and on bows. I have also used artificial sinew for all of these. When I use thread or art sinew I use super glue to set them. For sinew I chew the sinew first until soft then wrap. Your saliva and the sinew makes its own glue. When dry I seal with pitch varnish.     Pat

[madcrow]

I use artificial and real sinew, upholstery thread, I have even used fly line backing.  I sharpen only one side because it acts more like a chisel and gets more rotation and penetration.  That single bevel seems to pull the arrow in when it makes contact.

[Pat B]

Here are a few of my arrows with trade points. The top arrow is red osier and an Art Butner trade point. The second arrow is bambusa with an Art Butner trade point. The third arrow is an Art Butner river cane arrow with foreshaft and my trade point and the last is a salt cedar arrow with my trade point.
   Some of these are hafted with pitch glue and some with epoxy...some wraps are silk and some are sinew.

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[Pappy]

I just put a slot in each side to where the metal left in the center is about as wide as the shaft
I plane to put it on. It seems to be working for me.Some of the guys were worried about them
busting out the shaft but I rapped them down the shaft below the head about an inch and so far
I have taken 4 deer with this set up with no problem.This one is around 160 grain.They were made
from band saw blade that are 50.000 thick.
   Pappy

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[theguywitheyebrows]

an old, informative thread with value deleted...hmmm....i get the photobucket thing, but why delete pictures? were they subject to whatever change allowed the others to be removed from photobucket's share list or whatever?

[archeryrob]

I half mine very similar to Madcrow, but only use one hole and a couple pieces of shredded leg sinew. Once that sinew dries its not going anywhere unless it hits a rock.