Hi all, well I made my first set of rivercane arrows and like the way the fly out of the longbow, however the natural goose feathers I put on are not staying, falling off after a few shots. The cane is natural (no sealer or finish) and the fletching glued on with Bohning Fletchtite.
Thoughts or suggestions??
Duco
I wrap mine on with sinew, and use a little hide glue to keep the from slipping while wrapping.
I cheat a little and use fletching tape. If I want them to look Primitive I will wrap them with sinew...Duco will work if you want to glue them on.
Yep sinew wrap the front and rear of the feather and hide glue or Duco or fletch tape. Clean the shaft first.
I've use Fletchtite on river cane before, but lightly sanded area to be glued first to improve adhesion. It seems that the outer layer on cane can be some hard stuff to make glue stick to.
Doco,and Artificial sinew like Magnus described or dental floss.
If you do not get the rind off or cleaned, it will be hard for any glue to stick. IMO
I have lightly sanded cane to clean them up then coated with wipe on poly. Feathers glued with Bohning and they have stayed on so far.
Thanks for the quick feedback everyone. I think I may pick up some duco or the 527 to try. I havent tried the traditional 'thread' or sinew wrap, but may go that route for extra security.
It was fun making the cane arrows, just want the to fly now!
Duco
Get you some real sinew. Chew it and wrap the ends of the fletching. It will tighten extremely tight. You may develop a touch of slack, but feathers will not come off . . . just keep them dry.
I agree with WDE. Cane arrows are just supposed to have real sinew. There is also the safety factor of a sinew wrap next to the nock. I put a coat of tru oil on the cane and when it is good and dry, dull it with steel wool. I then use Duco, and wrap the leading edge of my feathers with sinew.
Thanks guys. I finally aquired just enough sinew to back a maple selfbow I have been working on. Is the artificial sinew ok? Certainly cheaper than real sinew online. I asked around to hunters in the area for sinew but never received any replies.
Yes the artificial is ok to use. I was taught to seal the sinew whether real or artificial with some super glue or Duco. I use Duco. Keeps it in place. Clear fingernail polish works too.