From a good friend of mine--best finish I've used, cheap, easy, and everything is available at the hardware store.
Tom Kiessling's process for making wooden arrows using the
epoxy/acetone finish.
1) First thing I do is stain shafts. I usually use aniline dyes from
Gray Ghost Archery, but any stain will usually work. I only stain
to where the stain and crown will meet.
2) After stain dries, using 0000 steelwool to remove any raised grain,
then stain again if necessary to achieve desired color.
3) If I don't have any epoxy formula made up, I use the following
procedure for that.
*I purchase Devcon 2-ton epoxy and a can of acetone from Wal-Mart
in the paint section. I use a 4 ounce jar (baby food or mason
jelly jar) to squirt the entire contents of epoxy in to. I then
completely mix the 2 epoxy parts until clear. I then add 1 ounce
of acetone (1/2 jar) and stir until the epoxy appears to have
dissolved and looks only like acetone remains. I then fill the
jar with acetone and stir again for a few seconds.*
4) Applied one coat of epoxy as described next.
*Always wear chemical resistant gloves, I use the blue Nitrate cloves
that the tools trucks (Snap-On, Mac) sell to local automotive and
diesel garage mechanics. I use small cotton rags from t-shirts.
Hold arrow at nock or point end, make one long continuous swipe
from end to end. Then rotate shaft 180 degrees and do again. (Do
not attempt to double wipe on same side, the rag will stick to
the first coat).
5) After epoxy dries, check for raised grain. Remove if needed.
6) Apply a second coat of epoxy.
7) I will mark the shafts for my crown. I use 2 inch masking tape
at the crown line. I then spray the crowns on, (I usually use Krylon
enamels, and usually 2 coats will be enough). **If you are going to
use fluorescent colors, always spray a basecoat of white first.**
8) After crown dries, apply cresting lines (Testors model paints work great).
9) After crown and cresting are COMPLETELY dry, spray or brush the
crown and crestings with a thin coat of Min Wax Water Based
Polyacyrlic (blue can). I prefer to brush mine on while shaft is in my
crester. (I use an Arrow Specialties crester).
10) After poly dries, apply second coat.
11) After letting poly dry an hour, apply first coat of epoxy over
entire shaft. Make sure to check wiping rag for paint residue
after first arrow to insure that acetone is not attacking cresting
and crown. If paint is being attacked, crest the arrow if
needed, and give another coat of poly over all arrows. Some
paint will show up from the nock end where there wasn't any epoxy.
12) If all is ok, I will usually put on 5 to 7 coats of epoxy,
make sure to smooth out finish very lightly with 0000 steel wool
between all coats.
13) I then set nocks using Duco cement, and mount feathers with either
Bohning Fletch Tape or regular super glues (not the gel stuff).
I prefer the tape. This makes for easy feather repair if needed.
Make sure to remove any excess epoxy from the nock taper first,
the cement will stick better. I do this with the small blade of my
pocket knife.
Topic: Need Help with arrow finish (Read 458 times)
