I have noticed that when I crown dip my nock tapered shafts then go to glue the nock on they don't fit as well as I would like. That little bit of paint makes the taper just large enough that the nocks don't seat perfectly. Oh, they glue up ok. Just not as perfect as if I just stain and then glue.  Should I be setting the angle of the taper a little more acutely? What do you guys do?

Once I have the final finish on my arrows I use the pencil type taper tool or my buddies wood chuck tool and put the original taper back on the nock end.  That way the nock glues up true to the shaft.

Snag, I use a set of "Dipping Nocks" I remove them after the paint drys. I just put them on hand tight and they come off ok.

Mark

I dip before tapering.  If you use power sander to taper, scrape or cut the paint off the end of the arrow first so the paint doesn't clog the sand paper so badly.  Also, sometimes the crown paint and nock leave a wood gap when the nock is glued on that's when I just put a cresting line there to cover it.

Since I do at least a rear taper on all my shafts, I taper my shafts down ever so slightly past 5/16" so the nock goes just a TINY bit past the end of the nock taper. Then, after I dip everything, I re-taper my nock tapers and the nocks should go on perfectly flush now, since the extra buildup of finish and paint has made the shaft a tiny bit thicker.
DesertDude's idea is something I'm going to try though! You don't find paint builds up at the base of the nock? Do you do the same thing with finish?
Craig

If I'm dipping woodies in a color dip, I first dip in clear then taper. Then I only need a thin coat of color. But there is a small build up. I think in the end that resanding the nock taper might be the best way, then touch-up the dip.

Both ways require another step.....

Mark, I like the "dipping nock" idea.

I either recut/resand the nocks after dipping, which isn't terribly easy to do if one is using tapered shafts, or I mask off the nock tapers before dipping. Time consuming,but it works.

Yeah, mask off or re-cut tapers. I have had problems gluing nocks to paint/finish. Bare wood gives a much better bond.

I just don't like getting the paint in my sanding wheel. I would prefer taping off the taper, which I have done, or using a nock to dip with.
I use Rustoleum to crown with. It is a little thicker than some paints. I have tried thinning it down...not very successful. With using DUCO cement the nocks glue really good to the Rustoleum. It kind of melts the two surfaces together.

Snag, I've never worked with Rustoleum, but I use Fletch-Lac on my shafts and I found that if I keep the paint REALLY thin and use multiple coats, (typically one white and two of the crown color), it works out pretty well.  I also think Fletch-Tite on Fletch-Lac makes a strong bond--at least, that has been my experience....

snag,
Thin your Rustoleum with Penetrol...I can get it very thin and it makes for an extremely smooth coat.
Craig

Thanks for the tip Craig. Wouldn't have thought of that! Does that effect the drying time?

snag,
It's dries pretty good overnight, and I re-coat overnight, but I usually give it 24 hours before I crest or seal over it. I actually use quite a bit of Penetrol to get the consistency I like.
Craig

snag,
you are a master arrow builder so nothing I can tell you bud.... However, I do what moeboe does. I sand after cap dip on my woodchuck and if I show a little bare wood at the nock / cap dip intersection I simply crest a double line there. I like a double line there anyway. Lots of really sharp looking arrows have a double line there.

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