what is the best sealer to use for woodies

I have been using Minwax clear polyurethane. It seems to work pretty good, and then user turtlewax liquid car wax to make'em slick.

Helmsman Spar Urethane.  I straighten, stain, 3 coats of Helmsman with a gasket system, crest, 3 more coats of Helmsman with gasket system, fletch with duco.  This has worked well for me for some time.

Dave

4Coats of Helmsman brushed on with a sponge brush, then furniture paste wax rubbed in with 000 steel wool. Impervious to water but makes white dip paint look creme color.

Tom Kiessling's process for making wooden arrows using the
  epoxy/acetone finish aka  Massie Finish.


1) First thing I do is stain shafts.  I usually use aniline dyes from
  Gray Ghost Archery, but any stain will usually work.  I only stain
  to where the stain and crown will meet.

2) After stain dries, using 0000 steelwool to remove any raised grain,
  then stain again if necessary to achieve desired color.

3) If I don't have any epoxy formula made up, I use the following
  procedure for that.
 
  *I purchase Devcon 2-ton epoxy and a can of acetone from Wal-Mart
  in the paint section.  I use a 4 ounce jar (baby food or mason
  jelly jar) to squirt the entire contents of epoxy in to.  I then
  completely mix the 2 epoxy parts until clear.  I then add 1 ounce
  of acetone (1/2 jar) and stir until the epoxy appears to have
  dissolved and looks only like acetone remains.  I then fill the
  jar with acetone and stir again for a few seconds.*
 
4) Applied one coat of epoxy as described next.
 
  *Always wear chemical resistant gloves, I use the blue Nitrate cloves
  that the tools trucks (Snap-On, Mac) sell to local automotive and
  diesel garage mechanics.  I use small cotton rags from t-shirts.  
  Hold arrow at nock or point end, make one long continuous swipe
  from end to end.  Then rotate shaft 180 degrees and do again. (Do
  not attempt to double wipe on same side, the rag will stick to
  the first coat).

5) After epoxy dries, check for raised grain.  Remove if needed.

6) Apply a second coat of epoxy.

7) I will mark the shafts for my crown.  I use 2 inch masking tape
  at the crown line.  I then spray the crowns on, (I usually use Krylon
  enamels, and usually 2 coats will be enough).  **If you are going to
  use fluorescent colors, always spray a basecoat of white first.**

8) After crown dries, apply cresting lines (Testors model paints work great).

9) After crown and cresting are COMPLETELY dry, spray or brush the
  crown and crestings with a thin coat of Min Wax Water Based
  Polyacyrlic (blue can).  I prefer to brush mine on while shaft is in my
  crester.  (I use an Arrow Specialties crester).

10) After poly dries, apply second coat.

11) After letting poly dry an hour, apply first coat of epoxy over
   entire shaft.  Make sure to check wiping rag for paint residue
   after first arrow to insure that acetone is not attacking cresting
   and crown. If paint is being attacked, crest the arrow if
   needed, and give another coat of poly over all arrows.  Some
   paint will show up from the nock end where there wasn't any epoxy.
   
12) If all is ok, I will usually put on 5 to 7 coats of epoxy,
   make sure to smooth out finish very lightly with 0000 steel wool
   between all coats.

13) I then set nocks using Duco cement, and mount feathers with either
   Bohning Fletch Tape or regular super glues (not the gel stuff).
   I prefer the tape.  This makes for easy feather repair if needed.  
   Make sure to remove any excess epoxy from the nock taper first,
   the cement will stick better.  I do this with the small blade of my
   pocket knife.

I use Pro-Fin from Whispereing Wind Arrows.

I have been using Tru-oil.  Stain your shafts, buff with 00 steel wool, apply tru-oil with your fingers ( I wear latex gloves ), after drying a day or so, buff with 00 steel wool.  I usually do 3 coats of tru-oil.  If you nick a shaft or shoot one alot into 3-d targets and wear the finish off near the point, just rub some on with your fingers.  I'm thinking about trying some Watco Danish oil.  Its a stain and sealer in one.  This isn't just a finish but actually penetrates the wood.

I use 'Raptor Dip' from raptorarchery.com

I go to the local hardware and buy either Min-wax or Formby's tung oil finish. I wipe it on with a rag and let it dry in between coats about a couple hours. 3-5 coats should do it.

I was dipping 2-3 coats after staining,cresting,ect.I've gone a simpler route now and just get the spray poly from the local Ace Hardware.I can spray 4-5 coats inthe amount of time it takes to dip and dry once.Still the same process for staining,cresting,ect.but the spray poly is much less of a headache(literally)than dipping sealer.

thanks guys those are alot of good ideas

Mix 70% min-wax oil based poly and 30% paint thinner dip and let dry and dip again. Usually overnight is best. Use duco tp fletch. Legolas is probably best but way to much work and not really neccesary. I have lost woodies in Dec. and they sat out in snow and rain until April and they are still shootable. Shawn

Dave, What kind of paint do you crest with under the Helmsman?

Eric

I see that you are in Michigan so I use either Odds N Ends enamel from Walmart or the Krylon enamel at Meijers.  

Dave

Thanks Dave!

Here is another twist on the Spar Urethane.  I stain and then wipe on 2-3 coats of high gloss from a can.  Then I spray a mist coat of the same from a can of satin.  I spray from far enough back that I get a slight textured effect.

If I want to use a analine dye or other stain that wants to run with the finish, I spray over it with a light coat of high gloss before the wipe on coats.

Been using the Watco Oil for over 20 years,stain and penetrating finish in one product. Rub on one thick coat,let dry overnite and your ready to fletch. When you taper the ends you can see that it penetrates about 1/16 of an inch. Fletchtite or Duco to fletch.

Draco, do you have any problems with the field points coming off? What glue do you use for the points? Thanks.

God bless,

Jose

I just use 3 coats of wipe-on poly