Speaking of OCD...I also mark a line 3/4” up on my wraps so that all my fletching bases contact the shaft at the same distance up...and I put a broadhead on (numbered the same as the shaft) before fletching and align the vanes with the blades. Might not make an actual difference, but definitely contributes to the mental side!! You didn’t mention which helical you use and why. Any preference?
Excellent! I had no idea about the process. You did not show the insert for the broad head / field point attachment. I assume the same as the knock insert?
Thanks Trail. Solid build process. Why not spin each bare shaft first and cut the end that wobbles most? I've found that most bundle of shafts don't always have the straightest part in the center. I shoot GoldTip also. If the shaft doesn't wobble I cut a bit from each end. Most of the rest of your process is what I have wandered into from constantly spinning for best straightness and consistent target weight. #OCDArrowBuilding 👍
That's a fair question. I've done that in the past and I think it's sound, but the reason I have chosen to do it differently now is because I think it's more important to have every arrow cut at the exact same length than the potential slight gain in straightness for a few arrows What I mean is that doing it the way I do, I set the length and cut all 12, then I set it again and cut all 12. I then have twelve arrows cut exactly the same length. If I am moving the length around, cutting more from one end of some or perhaps all the length from one end to cut out wobble, I'm moving my jig around and I'd often get ever so slight differences in length. On my saw, and most saws, I think it's hard to ensure you get every arrow the same length if I'm moving it around. That's my train of thought. I'm more concerned that my arrows weight the same and I'll get six to eight really straight arrows cutting from both ends. That's my train of thought anyway.
Trail, are these your personal hunting arrows? I was curious on why you don’t run brass up front? Great video, very informative on how to properly build and do things the right way! Thanks!
No, although I shot pro hunters for many years. They are still one of the straightest, toughest, easiest to tune arrows out there. I am shooting the platinum pierce arrows now, I do like the small diameter on the pierce arrows. I'm regards to the brass inserts, I'm not s huge proponent of really high FOC. I prefer something in the range of 10% to 13%. Seems to be the sweet spot for me, more than that and things get finicky. I want an arrow to be in the 430-450 grain range, fly 285-290 fps and hit the mark. I'm not shooting 75 or 80lb...I'm shooting 65 to 68lbs, at a 30" draw....so this is the best combo of weight and speed for me.
Trail Kreitzer thanks for the response! That’s a good point that you made about the FOC concept. I’m sacrificing speed right now to shoot a 490 grain arrow for maximum penetration but I’m only shooting 65 lbs at 28 inch draw. Basically a trial and error thing for me but we are going to see how it pans out this year! Thanks for the info!
I do some bare shaft tuning, typically with a few arrows out of the dozen to see where the tune on my bow is. Once I have that, I'll fletch them all and practice with them. Ultimately the most important thing to me is broadhead tuning. I'll shoot every arrow with a fixed blade head out to 60 plus and I'll nock tune each arrow. If I have a flyer, that I can't nock tune out, I'll kick it out of the dozen. That's my personal process.
I love this. Thank you proves my point that being OCD is a prerequisite for a bowhunter.
thanks for the info, made some comment no one ever mention, thanks
Methodical 👌🏽 appreciate the attention to detail!
Thanks for showing your way
Speaking of OCD...I also mark a line 3/4” up on my wraps so that all my fletching bases contact the shaft at the same distance up...and I put a broadhead on (numbered the same as the shaft) before fletching and align the vanes with the blades. Might not make an actual difference, but definitely contributes to the mental side!! You didn’t mention which helical you use and why. Any preference?
Excellent! I had no idea about the process. You did not show the insert for the broad head / field point attachment. I assume the same as the knock insert?
Thanks Trail. Solid build process. Why not spin each bare shaft first and cut the end that wobbles most? I've found that most bundle of shafts don't always have the straightest part in the center. I shoot GoldTip also. If the shaft doesn't wobble I cut a bit from each end. Most of the rest of your process is what I have wandered into from constantly spinning for best straightness and consistent target weight. #OCDArrowBuilding 👍
That's a fair question. I've done that in the past and I think it's sound, but the reason I have chosen to do it differently now is because I think it's more important to have every arrow cut at the exact same length than the potential slight gain in straightness for a few arrows
What I mean is that doing it the way I do, I set the length and cut all 12, then I set it again and cut all 12. I then have twelve arrows cut exactly the same length. If I am moving the length around, cutting more from one end of some or perhaps all the length from one end to cut out wobble, I'm moving my jig around and I'd often get ever so slight differences in length. On my saw, and most saws, I think it's hard to ensure you get every arrow the same length if I'm moving it around. That's my train of thought. I'm more concerned that my arrows weight the same and I'll get six to eight really straight arrows cutting from both ends. That's my train of thought anyway.
Aside from the initial cost of equipment, how much saving is there build your own arrows compared to off the shelf arrows and custom arrows?
Trail, are these your personal hunting arrows? I was curious on why you don’t run brass up front? Great video, very informative on how to properly build and do things the right way! Thanks!
No, although I shot pro hunters for many years. They are still one of the straightest, toughest, easiest to tune arrows out there. I am shooting the platinum pierce arrows now, I do like the small diameter on the pierce arrows. I'm regards to the brass inserts, I'm not s huge proponent of really high FOC. I prefer something in the range of 10% to 13%. Seems to be the sweet spot for me, more than that and things get finicky. I want an arrow to be in the 430-450 grain range, fly 285-290 fps and hit the mark. I'm not shooting 75 or 80lb...I'm shooting 65 to 68lbs, at a 30" draw....so this is the best combo of weight and speed for me.
Trail Kreitzer thanks for the response! That’s a good point that you made about the FOC concept. I’m sacrificing speed right now to shoot a 490 grain arrow for maximum penetration but I’m only shooting 65 lbs at 28 inch draw. Basically a trial and error thing for me but we are going to see how it pans out this year! Thanks for the info!
How bout you build/tune your bare shaft arrows before putting on vanes...
I do some bare shaft tuning, typically with a few arrows out of the dozen to see where the tune on my bow is. Once I have that, I'll fletch them all and practice with them. Ultimately the most important thing to me is broadhead tuning. I'll shoot every arrow with a fixed blade head out to 60 plus and I'll nock tune each arrow. If I have a flyer, that I can't nock tune out, I'll kick it out of the dozen. That's my personal process.