"Wood" arrow trivia

[aromakr]

I thought it might be fun to see how many can answer this question.
In building a set of wooden arrows several steps must be completed to make them. There is one step that is so important that if done wrong and all the rest are done correctly, you will not get consistance in performance. However if that step is correctly executed and several of the others are done incorrectly you will get excellent performance!
What is that step?

Bob

[Jim now in Kentucky]

Spine testing

[BodarkOkie]

Does it have anything to do with the nock taper???   :confused:

[Shawn Leonard]

Hand straightening or putting the nock on the right way to the grain. Shawn

[Justin Falon]

A'hhhhh, cutting them the correct length?

[Blackhawk]

Aligning the nock with the grain.

[Tox Collector]

In my mind, spine is the most important ingredient.  However, straighting is also critical because the shaft will not fly consistently if it is crooked or warped and not straight.  Matched arrows require close weight tolerances.  Of course, if the nock [e.g. relative to direction of grain] or point [e.g. too much weight] are not attached correctly, the shaft will not fly straight.  Fletching may or may not be less of a problem but can still significantly affect arrow flight.  Each of these can impact arrow flight -- depending on how severe the issue is -- the greater the flight deviation.

I guess that with all of these potential variations and considerations producing a finely tuned and matched set of wooden arrows is a challenge.

Just my thoughts!  Tox Collector

[Walt Francis]

For me, it is properly sealing the shafts.  Without doing that none of the other steps will matter much when the humidity changes.

[Ian johnson]

nock with grain, correctly spining shafts?

[Shaun]

Do you have to straighten hex pine shafts? If so, careful straightening and sealing would come first. Then spine. Then length and weight.

Seems like many modern shelf cut bows are tolerant of variations in spine but a bent arrow will always fly funny.

[wapiti]

The nock. Self or glue on. Crooked and or poor fitting knock = poor arrow flight.

[Al Kidner]

Originally posted by wapiti:
The nock. Self or glue on. Crooked and or poor fitting knock = poor arrow flight.

IMHO this would have to be it. A very overlooked step too.

AK.

[bihunter]

My guess would be arrow weight.

[Hot Hap]

Getting the nock on straight. Hap

[madness522]

The nock and point tapers are the most important steps.  You can shoot shafts if you put a nock and point on them. They don't become arrows until you finish them and make them pretty.

[Art B]

If you're talking POC shafts here then I'll say shaft straightness at the fletch area. If you're talking hardwood shafts then I wood have to say proper seasoning time and then shaft straightness in the fletch area. And if'n you shoot 'em out of selfbows like I do then you really don't want to miss any of the above mentioned steps   . ART B

[Whip]

I'm with the nock alignment group.  Missing that small step definately would ruin any further efforts at building a good arrow.

[Rufus]

Yeppers, if it ain't pushin' and pullin' straight, it ain't goin' where ya want it to. But, if we're getting picky here, if ya don't put the feathers on the right way the thing ain't going anywhere.

[pointy sticks]

my guess is the nock.

[frassettor]

Think this rookie (me) will stick around here to learn something!