Dumb arrow question

[walkabout]

i would guess that it would spine test higher, being dense. Similar in comparison from poplar to ramin dowels. I have footed poplar dowels with red oak dowels, and i think there was a small change in spine but it would depend on the length of the footing. If you could accurately read the grain on ipe you could make a few shafts and try them out, or just use them for footing. either way depends on the particular pieces you have available, and how the grain is. ramin 5/16 dowels usually spine in the 40-45 range for me,while poplar at 5/16 spines in the 30-45 range depending on footing and taper. i have a poplar dowel that is 3/8 with an oak footing that spines in the 75 lb range although it is pretty short, im expecting it to spine about 45-50 when its finished. it all depends on the particular wood and length i think,along with diameter. personally i feel better about footing with harder woods than using them for shafts, as they may be hard to straighten. also, if you build a hardwood shaft and it snaps in half all that works gone, whereas a footing you just put on a new footing. also helps with the weight forward.

[Don Stokes]

Loren, you have to compare the density to the bending strength to see if it will make good arrows. If a species is heavy and has a relatively low bending strength, the arrows will be very sluggish.

[Ragnarok Forge]

Be very careful working with Ipe.  It is highly toxic and has caused a lot of bowyers a lot of health problems.  Lots of other dense woods that will work for footings.

[Loren Holland]

thanks guys, i am really interested in making some cane arrows, but since i am currently working on a BBI as a going away gift for my Colonel, i thought about the Ipe

BTW, Ragnarok, i went to Mountain View HS way back when before i moved back to TX, small world

[Innocente]

man this is an excellent thread.  always plenty of bowery threads, rarely arrow threads around here, i didn't know ANY of this info.

i make mine from poplar and oak dowels, the oak is heavier and seems way more sturdy.  i break a LOT of arrows out shooting, and i break about 10x more poplar than i do oak.  

dumb question of my own:
i don't know how to tune my bow, and i just barely understand this spine stuff.  i'm shooting my latest 2 projects, a 50# fiberglass longbow and a 50# hickory selfbow, both have 1/4" arrow shelves, what spine is likely more appropriate?  the 30# poplar spine or the (probably) 50# ish oak spine? (using 5/16th dowels)

[walkabout]

you might want to try some arrows spined around 40-45#, although 45-50# might be ok too. generally you match arrow spine to your bows weight, but bows that are without a shelf cut in or ones that have shallow shelves you use a lighter spine for the arrow to bend around the handle. to get the right spine just use a higher spine dowel and then chuck it in a drill and sand till it comes to the spine you want.

[Mike Most]

My experience with a heavier wood, I used osage, for footing shafts, and have found when at 3D shoots, (missing the foam)     Osage is darn neer indestructable when fired into rocks. The comparison would be to POC which invariably breaks 1-3 inches behind the BOP in a similar endurance test.        

Mike

[walkabout]

id like to try some osage footings, next time i can im gonna buy some stock to make some . then again if i buy osage itll likely be a stave:p lol

[Roy from Pa]

IPE really messed me up, for a month I was under a doctors care. But  it doesn't affect everyone. Sitka Spruce is another good arrow wood. I have bought sitka spruce boards and they made great arrows. I cut them into 3/8th square blanks and used a hand plain and sand paper  to turn them into arrows. I have a thin metal hole gauge  that I use to get my diameter after I use the hand plain to get them fairly round. Just start at one end and slide the gauge  down the shaft. When it get's tight, pull it back off and sand that area a little. Then I keep going on down the arrow shaft.. Takes about a half hour to make 1 arrow with hand tools. But it's a lot of fun building your own arrow with hand tools.