Homemade Fletching Jig

[longbow9497]

I have come up with a fletching jig design I like and thought I would share.

I have been fletching arrows for about 40 years now and started with Jo Jan single jig with straight clamp so I could use left or right wing feather fletch offset.

I was rather disappointed that it didn't have any indexing marks, detents or anything to line up the nock holder and tip end support so that left and right hand offsets were the same and that when changed from left to right or right to left then back that the offset was the same. I could get them close but not exact even using a previously fletched arrow as a guide.

Also, it got a little tedious fletching a couple of dozen arrows with a single fletching jig. I was making arrows for myself, my wife, and my kids.

So, after about 20 years of frustratingly slow fletching and me being too cheap to buy a multi fletcher or at least several jigs I decided to make my own. They were pretty simple and crude, but they worked as well or even better than the Jo Jan, were repeatable if I changed wing then back, and they cost almost nothing. I made six fletching jigs. They handled 11/32" and 5/16" shafts just fine. I could offset about 1.5° with them and I had good arrow flight, so these got used for many years with good success.

Then I started using bamboo shafts that are very small diameter, and my jigs didn't like them, plus due to the small diameter the ends of my 3 ¾" fletch were hanging of the shafts bit. Of course, longer fletch would be worse. The glue filled in and pulled them down, but it wasn't ideal.

I made a new set of straight clamp jigs to suit the smaller shafts as well as my larger 11/32" shafts and they worked better but I decided that I needed a helical jig so that the fletch wrapped around the shafts, and no overhang, so set to work trying to design a simple helical jig.

I came up with a design and made a prototype that worked but it had rigid clamp plates so required left and right hand helical clamp plates which were difficult to make exactly the same. They were probably close enough for practical use, but I decided to use flexible clamp plates and in the end that worked out very well. Just a twist as they are seated in the slots, left wing or right wing, and they form a perfect helix.

Since there is a lot of partial or misinformation on the internet about helical fletch, I wasn't sure exactly what helix I wanted. I read about 3° to 5° helixes but that doesn't describe a helix. A straight clamp is offset to the centerline of the arrow by "X°" so a simple angle is enough, but a helix is a pitch and so just "X°" isn't enough information. It is a rotation over length like a thread pitch. I read that Bitzenberger uses 11° helix but again, 11° over what length? Well apparently, after much digging it is 11° over 4" fletch so a little over 2.5°/1".

I made my jig to provide 1.5°/1" and 2.5°/1" since there was room to do it. The 1.5°/1" is very close to my old jigs straight 1.5° offset fletch and the 2.5°/1" matches my recently acquired Martin helical jig almost exactly. From what I understand the Martin jig is a plastic knock off of a Bitzenburger jig. The Martin jig was given to me after I had built my helical jig.

After testing a couple of prototypes, I "refined" the jig a bit and made two for myself. I can fletch faster with two of these jigs than I can with six of the old single jigs.

The jigs work perfectly and are absolutely repeatable. It puts all fletch on at once, there is no slop unlike the Jo Jan and Martin jigs and it will fletch both left and right hand.

The shafts are centered and held tightly by collets, and collets can be made to fit any standard arrow shaft diameters. I have collets that work for 23/64" to 5/16" and 5/16" to ¼".

Here are some pics of the parts and the fletching jig in use:


All the parts


End plates left wing (flip over for right wing)

 

End plates right wing (flip over for left wing)


Assembled jig






 Assembled for right wing @ 2.5°/1"


 Long clamp plate with fletch positioned


 Short clamp plate positioned and clamps installed


 All fletch in clamp plates


 Nock end collet installed

 
Shaft slid into jig and tip end collet slid onto shaft (tip end collet to be seated in tip end disk)


 Nock aligned with line on nock end plate for cock feather orientation


 Glue on quills and clamps all installed


 Completed fletched arrow

I normally four fletch and used my short shield cut feathers for this arrow. I didn't have any larger 4" to 5" fletch handy. So if you are wondering whu the small fletch that is the reason.

The benefits of this jig:
•   The arrow shaft is centered and no slop
•   Any size arrow shaft can be used with appropriate collets and/or shim paper/tape
•   The clamp plates form a near perfect helix
•   It will fletch left or right hand and up to 6" long fletch (fletch length can also be pretty much anything by altering the length of tie rods and changing disk rotation to provide the helix desired)
•   It will work with feather fletch or vanes
•   At least two options for helix can be used for one jig
•   It is relatively easy to make, though I have a lathe to turn things like collets and end plates.

I like the jig but then I designed and made it. It can be made fairly easily with basic tools for the DIY guys.

The materials are inexpensive, and parts can be made by 3D printing, CNC machining, water jet cutting, maybe laser cutting, using templates/jigs, hand making from a drawing.

I used templates printed from a 3D model lightly glued to the plywood then cut slots with my bandsaw, turned disks and collets on my lathe, and drilled holes using my drill press. Nothing too fancy.

For a commercial version the tie rods should be turned and threaded to suit whatever length (mine are 6" face to face), wing nuts should be replaced with knurled nuts or plastic knobs with inserts. Disks can be plastic, hardwood plywood or aluminum.

For my use what I have is good enough as is. I don't need fancy as long as it is functional. On that note, I should mention that the clamp plates are made from old roof flashing, which is 24 ga. aluminum, because I had some. I would have liked to use 22 ga. aluminum but there is none available locally and I don't need a 4'x8' sheet of aluminum so I used old corroded and stained roof flashing.

What do you think? If anyone is interested in making one I can provide templates or drawings no charge.

I am wondering if there is a commercial market for it.

Would you buy one? How much would you pay?

[Bowsey Wails]

Nice looking jig. Cabelas had one similar way back when, as well as someone else. Maybe Herters? Yours however seems to offer more options. Both LW and RW by flipping discs is great. Excellent work!

[longbow9497]

Thanks for the kind words!

Yes, I posted this on another site and apparently Herters bought out the rights for a Hawkeye jig that looks like it has die cast "ends" that are adjustable for straight clamp offest. Herters sold them for a while but I had not found them in my searches.

Hoyt and Ben Pearosn apparently also offered similar jiogs but again I had not seen them. I believe all are sraight clamps so you can fletch straight, offset left or offset right. They seem to have an adjuster and I am guessing a slotted plate that rotates.

I suspect they would be pretty pricey if made today. Having said that I was introdsuced to the VMP fletching jig which is a very nice looking jig but a single fletching jig and at $350 so not cheap!

My goal was for the DIY guys and possibly to sell if there is a market. I am prety sure they could be produced for a sale price of under $100.

I have no problem sharing the design if people want to build one for themselves.

The only tricky bits to make for a DIY types are the collets. I have a lathe so drill the rod then put it on a mandrel to taper then cut the slot. The taper is a 5° taper and not critical so they could probably be made using a drill press or clamped hand drill and filled to make the taper.

I have had disks and collets 3D printed as well and they turned out quite nicely and look better than my manually lettered plywood prototype. However, my crude(ish) prototype does a good job of fletching for me. Anyway, just looking to share and get some feedback on what people think.

Thanks for responding!

[Tim Finley]

When I seen your fletcher I thought of the Herters I still have one .Its very much alike .

[Burnsie]

I ordered something similar from Cabela's many years ago - I ended up sending it back and getting a Bitz.
If I had your plans back then, I might have given it a go - it looks great!