Cutting and arrow to length and using wraps

[BKhunter]

Hey All,

I am going down the arrow building and tuning hole and had a question. I have been reading about bare shaft tuning and that you should cut your arrow a little longer and then trip the back end of the arrow until it is tuned and flying properly. If I plan on using a wrap won't this alter the flight of the arrow once added after it is cut to length? I am completely new to arrow building but really want to understand the mechanics and how to tune to get better arrow flight. Thanks for any suggestions.

BK

 

[TJ]

All shortening the arrow is going to do is increase spine, (spline). You can test that by reducing your bows draw weight if that is your issue.

I wouldn't use bare shaft tuning for that purpose. Bare shaft tuning is generally going to test center shot, cam lean, maybe cam timing, and rest height.

All presuming your from and grip are consistent.

 

[doverpack12]

Hey All,

I am going down the arrow building and tuning hole and had a question. I have been reading about bare shaft tuning and that you should cut your arrow a little longer and then trip the back end of the arrow until it is tuned and flying properly. If I plan on using a wrap won't this alter the flight of the arrow once added after it is cut to length? I am completely new to arrow building but really want to understand the mechanics and how to tune to get better arrow flight. Thanks for any suggestions.

BK

Just wait to add the wrap until you determine the length you want. I would shoot all arrows as bareshafts through paper anyway and turn the nocks until all shafts are a perfect hole with no tear. This gives you a chance to work on your form and shot execution at the same time. I typically pick an appropriate spine arrow cut to the length I want for weight and spine from archers advantage or on target 2. Then I install insert with weights and then nock tune my bareshafts. Mark the arrow for nock position with a silver sharpie then wrap and mark the wrap right next to the nock. This will make sure you don’t loose the orientation of the shaft that is tuned consistent with your other shafts. Your bow will have to be tuned properly to do this so it all kind of happens at once. I might have to make a tiny adjustment for Broadheads after this but usually not.

 

[BKhunter]

Just wait to add the wrap until you determine the length you want. I would shoot all arrows as bareshafts through paper anyway and turn the nocks until all shafts are a perfect hole with no tear. This gives you a chance to work on your form and shot execution at the same time. I typically pick an appropriate spine arrow cut to the length I want for weight and spine from archers advantage or on target 2. Then I install insert with weights and then nock tune my bareshafts. Mark the arrow for nock position with a silver sharpie then wrap and mark the wrap right next to the nock. This will make sure you don’t loose the orientation of the shaft that is tuned consistent with your other shafts. Your bow will have to be tuned properly to do this so it all kind of happens at once. I might have to make a tiny adjustment for Broadheads after this but usually not.

I am not sure what you mean when you say mark the nock position and then wrap right next to the nock. Can you clarify?

 

[Beendare]

Perfect assembly is critical.

Those carbons right off the saw have a crummy end....best to put them on a jig and finish the ends perfectly square and smooth. I use a homemade jig with 220 sandpaper that sands the ends perfectly square/smooth. Then you can chamfer as needed for the individual BH's.

Spin check all hunting arrows to confirm concentricity- zero wobble.

I weigh them all too...but in reality a few grains either way doesn't make a difference....spine inconsistency is a much bigger factor. [though the Axis have been extremely good about that in the last 10 years or so]

Then I shoot the numbered arrows for groups. [from a BH tuned bow of course] If I get one that consistantly doesn't group, its due to spine inconsistency...and I can turn the nok 90 deg...or turn and refletch...that usually solves it. I've seen the rare bird that doesn't and I toss it.

You could also go though a process with a spine tester before fletching to confirm spine consistency. Its slow and time consuming. I find that shooting them for groups is a lot faster solution since there are so few that are off.

Then I use a Fixed doc BH thats easy to touch up and it goes right in my quiver. Its a confidence booster KNOWING that each and every one of those arrows flies perfect to exact POA.

If you test your arrows, eventually you will find one in ten....one in twenty....that flies poorly. If its a guy that doesn't meticulously assemble his arrows....the number of ones with poor flight goes WAY UP.

I work too hard for a good bowhunting shot to leave it to chance......YMMV

 

[theCaptain]

All very solid information. I too am going down the rabbit hole of building my own arrows. The process that Beendare and Dover suggested are very helpful.

 

[Ucsdryder]

I floated my shafts in soapy bath water this year and marked the spines. They were spot on and I didn’t have to nock tune at all. YouTube it. I also spun my full length shafts and cut from both ends. Was it necessary? I don’t know, but my finished arrows spin great and group great. It was very labor intensive.

 

[doverpack12]

I’ve also spun my arrows on a spine tester without and weight bund on the arrow to find the straightest part. What I found is with 0.003 straightness arrows and lower grade it absolutely makes a difference and is worth finding the straight part. Sometimes it’s one end or the other and sometimes it’s the center. What we don’t know when we look at a new shaft is which end was the outside end of a much longer shaft that was cut down. The runout happens primarily at the ends of that longer shaft the arrows we buy are cut from then they are sorted into tolerance lots at the factory.

Any arrows with 0.001 straightness it hasn’t been worth finding the straightest section because it usually won’t matter they rarely get any better than just cutting off one end to square and then taking the rest off the other.

I will agree with Beendare that the confidence you have knowing you’ve put the arrow into the center of your target countless times before when you are about to shoot an animal is unrivaled.

 

[Beendare]

Dover brings up a good point about the better quality/straighter arrows tending to be more consistent.

I've never done the floating for spine thing....and it seems to me I read that it isn't a good way to test for Spine.

The beauty of shooting for groups with numbered arrows is it tells you whether there is ANY issue with your finished arrows...pretty nice to know I think. Guys that just screw on heads and hunt are going to have some arrows that don't fly to POA....and the % bad ones is directly related to arrow assembly and tuning.

A guy can make that % failure zero.

 

[Brendan]

I've never done the floating for spine thing....and it seems to me I read that it isn't a good way to test for Spine.

It doesn't always work. You're measuring the heavy side of the arrow, not the stiff side, and I've seen tests that show they're not always the same.

I personally am pretty OCD about it. I buy 001" arrows, and measure runout at each end of the arrow before cutting an inch or two off the worst end, then repeating until its at the length I need. Then I spine test, then install inserts and fletch. Spin test next, anything that doesn't spin true becomes a practice only arrow. Then group test, but at this point I can't remember having an arrow that won't group and out shoot me.

 

[jlaner0408]

I’m glad I’m not the only one that has borderline obsessive compulsive disorder when it comes to building my arrows

 

[BKhunter]

It doesn't always work. You're measuring the heavy side of the arrow, not the stiff side, and I've seen tests that show they're not always the same.

I personally am pretty OCD about it. I buy 001" arrows, and measure runout at each end of the arrow before cutting an inch or two off the worst end, then repeating until its at the length I need. Then I spine test, then install inserts and fletch. Spin test next, anything that doesn't spin true becomes a practice only arrow. Then group test, but at this point I can't remember having an arrow that won't group and out shoot me.

Brendan,

I hear people talk about cutting length off the back until it is proper length and flys right. Can you describe that process and why it is useful. That leads into my initial question on if you add wraps do you do this after?

 

[Brendan]

Brendan,

I hear people talk about cutting length off the back until it is proper length and flys right. Can you describe that process and why it is useful. That leads into my initial question on if you add wraps do you do this after?

We're talking about two different things.

The process I was describing above is to produce the straightest possible arrow.

When people talk about finding the "proper" length arrow, what they're really talking about is finding the right dynamic spine to give you the best flying arrow.

There are multiple ways to do this, but iteratively shortening the arrow iteratively stiffens dynamic spine. The idea is to test at different lengths to see what flies best and gives you the best groups.

Look up John Dudley / Nock On TV's "HIL Method" for a good explanation, but pretty sure he uses bow poundage to achieve the same thing.

Tip / Insert weight can also be used.

 

[Brendan]

Also, I haven't found wraps to make any difference in bare shaft flight when I test.