Arrow Wrap Fletching Preparation
- 1). Find and cut a suitable arrow shaft. Ideally, this will be a hardwood of some variety. The shaft should be as close to perfectly straight as you can get it. For beginners, some varieties of cane can be used; look for pieces a little bigger than 1/4-inch in diameter.
- 2). Strip the bark from the arrow shaft and allow it to cure (dry out). You may want to use this drying period to straighten the shaft using weight and a vice. Skip this step if you're using cane.
- 3). Decide which end of your shaft will be the head and which the nock. Use your knife to cut a quarter inch deep V-notch in the nock end and a notch between 1/2-inch and 1 inch deep on the head end. Make the head notch as straight as possible, and as wide as the base of the head you intend to use; you may wish to use a jigsaw or band saw. Ideally, the head and nock should be aligned with one another.
- 4). Cut off the quill tip of the feather and two inches of the feather end; make sure you only cut the stem at the feather end. Split the feather along the stem to produce two fletches.
- 5). Put the arrow shaft in a vice with the nock and head notches vertical. Two inches from the nock end, apply three small drops of glue at one inch intervals and then place one of the feather halves (or a pre-made plastic fletch) on the glue. Repeat this for the opposite side of the arrow, then allow both fletches to set for 10 minutes.
- 6). Trim a half inch of feather from the front and back of both fletches, leaving the exposed quill behind. Wrap the exposed quill using your choice of thread (silk is traditional), using a small dot of super glue to bind the thread in place.
