How Do You Make An Arrow Fletching Jig?
The fletching is what makes an arrow an arrow so the jig to jig to apply the fletching must be extremely accurate as well. This jig is extremely easy to make and takes only about an hour if your taking ur time. Plus it only costs about 10$ to make if you dont already have the materials.
You Will Need:
- A "chip clip" (the clips you use to seal an open bag of chips) preferably 6 inches or longer (you can find these at any grocery store usually around $ 2-5) I suggest buying 2 or 3 of the same size incase something happens to one.
- x2 1/4-1/2 inch pieces of wood 3-4 inches wide by 5-6 inches tall
- 1 piece of wood cut as long as your "chip clip" minus the thickness of your pieces from #2 (ie if my pieces are 1/4 inch each and my chip clip is 6 inches long my piece should be cut 5 1/2 inches long) and as wide as your pieces of wood from #2, this piece should be 3/4 inch thick or thicker
- a hack saw or jig saw
- a drill or a dremel
- wood screws 1/2-1 inch long
- wood glue
- sand paper 80-150 grit will do
- pencil and markers
- tape measure or ruler and a protractor (optional)
- a scrap of wood 2 inches long and 1/8 to 3/16 thick no more than 1/2 an inch wide, or a door shim.
Start by taking your 2 pieces of wood from #2 and measuring the center, length wise (vertically) and drawing a line in pencil.
Measure 2 inches down the line and make a mark. Measure the thickness of your chip clip and divide the measurement in half.
From your center line measure that divided distance over on each side of your line giving you the thickness of your chip clip perfectly centered.
Draw a box using your division lines and your mark 2 inches down.
From your bottom line measure 3/16 of an inch down on your center line. Now connect the 2 bottom corners of your rectangle to this center mark forming a triangle at the end of your rectangle. This is the slot that holds your arrow shaft and the retangle is the slot for the chip clip aka your clamp to slide into.
Now cut out the rectangle and triangle EXTREMELY carefully.
Repeat this process on the second board from #2 and sand both until they are relately smooth to the touch and round the corners so you do not risk stratching your arrows.
Take Board #3 and sand the top and bottom (when holding the board vertically).
Drill or dremel 2 holes in both of your boards from #2 on the side opposite your slots. These holes should be a tiny bit smaller than your screws and should be half the distance away from the edge as board #3 is thick (if my board #3 is 3/4 inch thick then my holes should be 3/8ths from the edge). These holes should also be in about equal thirds on the board (1/3 from the edge and 1/3 from eachother)
Put a strip of wood glue on the top and bottom edges of board #3 and screw the #2 boards on either end, taking care that everything is square.
This is your jig! Now you have to mark it so that your fletchings are equal distant away from each other.
Choose one end of your jig and place your protractor on the point of the triangle. Now mark out the angle of either thirds or fourths ect. (I have never seen more than 5 fletchings on an arrow but you can try if you like). If you choose to mark more than one ie. you want thirds and fourths just make sure you use a different color. If you do not have a protractor you can use an already fletched arrow or something divided into thirds or fourths already (I have used the plastic circle piece that come in pizzas with 3 legs before).
Take your scrap piece and sand it or cut it to a fine taper (turning your piece into a large triangle) or cut the shim to meet the dimentions on #11.
You are now done. Your arrow must have a knock already attached to fletch it and before you begin fletching wedge your wood piece from #11 in the knock. Then simply place your shaft in the triangle and turn the shaft until the wood piece is even with one of the lines you drew, clamp your fletching evenly in you chip clip and place a thin line of glue on the grove of your fletching, lower the chip clip into the slots until it is touching your shaft. Some glues need some pressure to apply properly to do this put 2 loose rubber bands around your jig before you begin fletching, put your shaft through the rubberbands and after applying your glue stretch them around your chip clip then place it in your slots. I also like to put a tighter rubberband around both ends of my jig holding down my shaft so that it can’t move while im fletching. After fletching one fletching turn your shaft so that the wood piece in your knock rotates around to the next line (this turns your shaft perfectly one thirth or fourth ect. so that all your fletchings are evenly spaced). Make sure that you leave an inch or more between your knock and your fletching and that it is consistent among all your arrows, I like to measure and mark my arrows in pencil before fletching.
If you are working with delicate feathers or you find that the chip clip is messing up your fletching, cover the teeth of the clip with duct tape and/or take the sping off the clip and bend it a tiny bit weakening it.
Archery is a sport of inches. With a barrage of factors affecting any given shot, it behooves the archer to gain as much control as possible. This means stinging the bow appropriately and fletching the arrows. Fletching is the art of affixing the feathers (whether actual or vinyl) to the end of the shaft. After all, by not fletching, the arrow is little more than a miniature spear. Fletching is what gives an arrow it’s range. Rather than invest in an expensive fletching jig, you can try this simple trick and spare yourself the cost. Step 1 Measure and mark off the mid-point of the wood plank. Step 2 Drill a 1 inch hole through the marked mid-point. Step 3 Using a hand saw, saw through the center of the newly drilled hole. This will yeild 2 6-inch planks of wood with a U-shaped, notched end. Step 4 Mark the 3/4-inch wood board, allowing the two planks to stand parallel at either end. Step 5 Stand both planks, in turn, on the marked edges of the wood board and screw in place. The end res
