my pine pitch is brittle

ozy clint · October 23, 2009, 04:18:00 AM

i hafted a stone point the other day and proceeded to test shoot. i found that the pine pitch was brittle and started to fall out. in the end the only thing holding the point on was the sinew.

i've mixed pine resin with powdered cow dung and powdered charcoal. are my ratios wrong?

Grey Taylor · October 23, 2009, 05:06:00 AM

Try adding a bit of beeswax. That will soften it up and keep it from being so brittle.

Guy

Celtic Dragon · October 23, 2009, 05:37:00 AM

Grey beat me to it. Use a bit of beeswax, here in the UK I try for a 60% resin to 40% charcoal the a bit of wax thrown in.

It really is a case of experimenting with each batch I'm afraid.

Pat B · October 23, 2009, 09:28:00 AM

The dung and charcoal are serving the same purpose(adding body to the mixture) so you only need to use one of them. Bees wax will make the pitch glue less brittle.
My mixture is about 1/3 each pitch, finely ground charcoal and bees wax(maybe a bit more pitch). You can play with the ratios to see what works best for you and in your climate.
I start with hard, brittle pitch, melt it and add the bees wax and charcoal and blend them all well. When ready I dip a stick into the mix and immediately into cold water and repeat until you have a nice size wad on the end of the stick. These "glue sticks" are handier to use and convenient to carry in your day pack for in field repair.
The cool thing about pitch glue is if the point loosens or becomes untrue just heat the stone point up a little, straighten the point and let the pitch set again...good as new!!!

PICKNGRIN · October 23, 2009, 01:44:00 PM

When I saw the thread title, I thoght you were working on a title for a country western song. LOL

ozy clint · October 23, 2009, 10:44:00 PM

thanks guys, i'll try that.

George D. Stout · October 23, 2009, 11:08:00 PM

Ahhhh powdered cow dung and charcoal....reminds me of how my boots smelled when I held my feet next to the campfire last season.

Bill Skinner · October 24, 2009, 09:45:00 PM

Beef tallow will also work. Do NOT use paraffin. Bill

ozy clint · October 30, 2009, 04:49:00 PM

bill- unable to source any bees wax in my little town, so i tried paraffin.....before seeing your post. why not?

BTW- it's still brittle. a few shots into a Styrofoam block and it is cracked and falling off, leaving the sinew as the only thing holding the point on. this is the only thing stopping me from getting some arrows together for some dead water buffalo testing.

Pat B · October 30, 2009, 05:59:00 PM

Clint, Is the pitch crumbling going into the target or when you pull it out?
You might try animal fat or veg oil and see if either will make the pitch less brittle.

ozy clint · October 30, 2009, 08:42:00 PM

just the flexing going in i'd say.

i did a search on the primitive archer forum and lard was mentioned a few times. that, i can get here so i'm going to try that in place of bee's wax.

am i just expecting to much from my pitch????

Grey Taylor · October 30, 2009, 09:19:00 PM

If you have any sewing shops in your area you could try them for beeswax. It's used in sewing to keep thread from tangling and to make it stronger. Ship chandler would be another possibility.
Beeswax is also used on the mouthpiece of didgeridoos. Maybe one of the abo galleries sells them and would know where to get it?

Guy

ozy clint · October 30, 2009, 10:06:00 PM

ahh.... good thinking grey

Pat B · October 30, 2009, 10:57:00 PM

Do you know any bee keepers?
Clint, I haft all my stone points and trade points with pitch glue. Once secured with a sinew wrap the combo holds my points well. If they happen to "break" loose I just reheat the point, set the point so it spins true and let it cool.
I shoot every arrow I plan to hunt with and have never has one loosen going into my target butt(rubberized foam) or my 3D targets. I usually only shoot them once or twice before I take them hunting.

ozy clint · October 31, 2009, 02:55:00 AM

well i found some bee's wax polish today at the supermarket. in it went and it seems to have done what i wanted.....so far. i'm about to go and haft a point now. i'll see how it goes tomorrow.

what sinew do you guys use?

i have been using wallaby tail sinew. it's brilliant! you pull the strands out of the tail and dry as normal. when dry the strands are about .9 to 1.5mm in diameter and 8" to 14" long. i don't even bash it, just chew and apply.

Pat B · October 31, 2009, 09:41:00 AM

Clint, any sinew will work but I prefer deer backstrap sinew because it is longer and simple to separate down to usable strands. I also chew it before applying. This way, no extra glue is needed as your saliva and the sinew make their own glue. I do seal the wrap after a drying period, usually with pitch varnish I make bu dissolving pitch in alcohol.