Repairing A Broken Arrow

[brennivs - tony drake]

I have been repairing a lot of our amunition that we use in our displays Plumbata, sling staff, two new Pila and Arrows;

Lots of Arrows repaired;

Now I had a few that where broken half way up the shaft, the fleching was perfect so I thought to splice two arrows together to make one :grin:

I dont know if anyone has tried this but I thought to give it a go :dizzy:
Regards Brennivs :lol:

[brennivs - tony drake]

I have used a piece of bamboo, I found this a good sheath to hold the two parts together;

I filed down the the shafts as in photo to fit inside the splint;

Glued the sections together;

once set removed the excess and smoothed down;

Now I dont know if this will stand up to shooting or even go in a straight line :oops: but If it works I have a few more I can fix this way. I will be able to try this at Binchester bank holiday Monday along with my new sling staff not in photos. I will give you a review thats if it does not fly in a complete circle :lol: :lol:
Regards Brennivs :lol:

[Jonathan Fletcher]

Best way to repair arrow shafts is to foot them, like a snooker cue:

File the broken fletch end of the arrow shaft into a wedge about an inch or two long.
Cut a corresponding slightly longer notch into the end of the pile bearing shaft.
Push the wedge into the glue containing notch, splaying the sides of the (pile end) shaft with the wedge.
Wrap tightly with elastic bands until the glue dries.
Strip off the rubber bands then sand the shaft down to a neat finish.
Strong as new and good for shooting if you assemble it straight.
Just a bit shorter if you are splicing one arrow, as long as you want it if you are making one from two.
Any other way that I have tried has failed, leading to the same broken arrows.
Something in a surname!
Picture to show what I mean is here http://sjaqua.tripod.com/footed08.JPG

[ryddragyn]

The center of the arrow is where the most flexing occurs upon release. If you shoot that arrow out of a heavy enough bow there is a strong likelihood it will break at the repair joint, and possibly cause injury. There are many documented cases of arrows splitting in half and puncturing the hand holding the bow. I would make that arrow a wall hanger only, just to be on the safe side.

[Medicus matt]

What Ryddragyn said.
Having seen what happens when a defective arrow shatters whilst being loosed and the relative cheapness of arrow shafts (the amount of time you spent repairing it is probably worth more than the value of the thing), the only thing I'd use a broken one for is kindling.

[brennivs - tony drake]

Thanks for your thoughts. As safety is paramount I will test the arrow out first, our bows are not high draw weight. Will report back
Regards Brennivs :lol:

[Crispianus]

What Ryddragyn said.
Having seen what happens when a defective arrow shatters whilst being loosed and the relative cheapness of arrow shafts (the amount of time you spent repairing it is probably worth more than the value of the thing), the only thing I'd use a broken one for is kindling.

I would agree not recommended, use a new shaft....

[Jonathan Fletcher]

Footing an arrow with a differing coloured wood for the pile end of the shaft is considered a mark of quality and as it takes some skill I can see why (and why footed arrows are very expensive). A footed arrow and, similarly, an arrow repaired using this method, is perfectly fine to use; accepting that the repair will be closer to mid shaft where the arrow flexes most during the loose, not a problem unless you are looking at warbow draw weights.

[Crispianus]

The simple answer is Safety First........


;-)

[Crispvs]

When I break an arrow I apply a simple rule. If it is simply the head which has been broken off and the rest of the shaft is still fine, I just tidy up the broken end and stick on a new head. If the shaft is damaged further down I opt for safety and bin the arrow. As has been mentioned already, new shafts are cheap and I would not relish the thought of splinters being embedded in my hand with the force of a 38lb (in my case) bow at full draw. hock:
If the fletchings are still good, I carefully strip them off with a sharp blade and re-use them on the new shaft.

The methods demonstrated above for repairing damaged shafts are artfully done and admirably ingenious, but I would still be very cautious. The thought of splinters buried in deep puncture wounds and lacerated hands is not one I find appealing.

Crispvs

[brennivs - tony drake]

Reporting back, I had no problems with the arrow used a 60lb recurve fired it approx 30-40 times direct into the ground, into a shield board, penetrated through, high into the air and general fireing. I thought my repair was sound and the arrow took quite a bit of abuse so it was a success. However I did a bit of looking into it and found recomended on archery forums a jig that recuts the shaft and glue both pieces back together.
Regards Brennivs :lol: