Footing a shaft

[Riley/MN]

So awhile back I got a big ol' box of arrows from Pitchy (Thanks Lenn!). Some will go to my kids & grandkids, some to Scouts, but there are a number of wooden arrows/shafts that I will probably shoot myself. The problem is that Dad is part ape, and I got his arms. That means my 30+" draw is a little long for some of these shafts.

So I got the idea of making a foot on some of the shafts. I started looking around online and everyone that's doing footed shafts are doing a footed square blank and then turning it round. My question is, can I add a foot to an arrow that is already an arrow, and how hard would it be to do so?

Thanks

[Fletcher]

It is actually quite hard to get a footing trued and cut properly.  A lot more work than I think you want.

There is actually a company that makes footers that are 5 degree tapered inside so you only need taper the
arrow and glue in. I did that for a 6'11" guy and they work great.  I have the box in my shop so will find the site and post it.

Can you post a pic of the arrows - do you know the spine and length?  Maybe we could trade.

[Riley/MN]

I had some spined that were close to long enough... they are in the 55lb range. Not sure if the rest of them are or not.

Is the gizmo you have like a pencil sharpener to taper one piece and then a drill to hollow out the other? I saw that on line, but not a price for it.

[Fletcher]

The pencil sharpener taper tool does both the nock and the point to the correct angle.
You will need this to put on points and/or add the footer.  They come in 5/16", 11/32" and 23/64" -
you need to know your shaft diameters.

The 'shaft extenders' are taper drilled to the 5 degree point angle to allow you to point taper a
shaft and glue it into the footer.  I think the footer extension only comes in 11/32" and 23/64"

[Eric Krewson]

You just need some Reparrows. These are about 4" long and have the same taper cut as the inside of a glue on field point. Taper your short or broken shaft, put a little glue on the arrow taper and slide in the Reparrow. I spin my arrow shaft on an old aluminum arrow straightener to make sure I have the Reparrow glued on true and adjust it if it has any wobble.

Reparrows page one

I put a lot of work in my arrows, wild turkey feathers, dipped and crested. Before Reparrows almost every arrow I broke became a kiddy arrow, now they go back in my quiver, saves me a lot of work.

[Fletcher]

That is right - Reparrow is the brand - I am not sure he gave you the pointer to it - if so it is a decent solution.

I checked - the pointer works

[Riley/MN]

Cool! Not as "pretty" as a traditional foot, but they otta work fine! Now to find me a fletching jig what don't require an arm or leg...

[ridjrunr]

Another way would be a two wing foot, less complicated than a four wing splice, but still requires hand plaining to finish.

[Uncle Russ]

You just need some Reparrows. These are about 4" long and have the same taper cut as the inside of a glue on field point. Taper your short or broken shaft, put a little glue on the arrow taper and slide in the Reparrow. I spin my arrow shaft on an old aluminum arrow straightener to make sure I have the Reparrow glued on true and adjust it if it has any wobble.

Reparrows page one

I put a lot of work in my arrows, wild turkey feathers, dipped and crested. Before Reparrows almost every arrow I broke became a kiddy arrow, now they go back in my quiver, saves me a lot of work.

Thanks folks, I never knew such a thing existed.....and a special thanks to Eric for showing it!

 :lt th

Keep in mind I am no bowman, not by any stretch, still yet, I love the dadburn things!
Got three longbows and an old Fred Bear Kodiak Recurve, but I learn something from you fellas every day.

Uncle Russ..

[Riley/MN]

Here is a video of a tool I found while searching - basically you make your own reparrows...



Went to their website - A guy would pretty much have to be making arrows for a living to justify that expense! (or breaking a lot of arrows...)

[Fletcher]

I agree - the total of things I would need would be over $200 TYD - that is a lot of fixed arrows.

The good news is that you could use the same wood that the arrow was made of to keep the weight the same.

Reparrow would be less for the DIY'er, but they are a hardwood and will be slightly heavier than the original arrow at
the point.  Maybe no big deal for the 'stump shooter' or occasional use.  For exact target archery I want a well matched set.

Arrow Fix would allow a wider range of 'fixer' lengths (Reparrow is about 4" or less), but I would not trust a shaft with the
repair near the center of the shaft.  More prone to breakage, but still maybe OK if the bond is very good.

As for me - broken arrows become crossbow bolts or junk (I want original wood throughout) but then again I make them
by the thousand!  Still neat to see the cool tools that are out there.  Good to know that we have choices - it is just
that some choices may not be as good as you thought when you jumped into them!  Be Wise