Bareshafting woodies. Need some help.

[Bladepeek]

I'm really glad to see Surewood Shafts a sponsor here and just ordered my first ever set of test shafts. I have a "D" shape bow that really cries out for woodies.

My question is:  How much will finishing and sealing the shaft stiffen it? Can I bareshaft test the set without finishing or sealing them; then order a dozen to finish and expect the shaft to react the same after finish. By finishing, I mean stain, crown dip and crest and then seal them.

[Lil Okie]

I'm curious to know this too!

[Marc B.]

My experience with bare shafting wood is limited but I haven't really seen a difference between bare vs finished on the few sets I've done.

[Charlie Lamb]

Find the perfect shaft for your bow and adding finish, et al, will mean nothing to it's performance.

[snag]

I would add that getting a few for bareshafting before ordering a dozen finished arrows is not a bad idea. I do this with my own personal arrows. You're just concerned with matching spine with tip weight and length of arrow or bop measurement.
Like Charlie says the finish is not a factor.

[Bladepeek]

Thanks guys. A little advice from those who have "been there" does wonders for confidence. Really looking forward to building my first set. It will definitely be something new for me. The last "woodies" I shot were some dime store (remember them?) wooden arrows for kids bows.

Ron

[Fletcher]

I have never been able to measure a spine difference by putting a finish on a shaft, but if you get a little carried away with sanding the shaft, that can drop spine by a couple of pounds pretty quick.  For this reason, plus to protect the shaft, I would recommend finishing the shafts as you would your regular arrows.

I also suggest caution when bareshafting with wood shafts.  Bareshafts tend to fly sideways and wood shafts can break or crack when hitting a target that way.  If you bareshaft, carefully inspect each shaft after and before each shot.  I much prefer to paper tune with wood.

[Bladepeek]

Good point Fletcher. I have seen some carbon bare shafts stick pretty sideways in the bag. I've never paper tuned, but now might be a good time to try that too.

Ron

[Bjorn]

Like any other skill once you have done it a few times it is no longer hit and miss, bareshafting is like that too; I can't remember the last time I had a shaft impact sideways let alone break in a target; and there is no reason to have it happen to you either. Do the calculations first and confirm by bareshafting. Just like punching holes in paper; bareshafting is simply a matter of confirming your math.