Hey guys, I'm looking to do some bowfishing with my selfbow with wood arrows and I was wondering if anyone has ever made or has any ideas for some cheap, easily made fishing tips that I can glue on wood shafting.
Thanks yall!
Cam
There are several very good reasons that most fish arrows are sold fiberglass.
1. Durability - wood arrows cannot withstand the punishment a ten pound fish can deliver.
2. Penetration - one needs the weight to help penetrate a foot or two of water and then the fish.
I am sure there are other reasons, but these are the two main ones.
I know you asked about wood arrows, BUT...
I have tried aluminum arrows but there not heavy enough to go in the water with much force on the deeper fish . you need the fiberglass to get the penetration from the water refraction ..
that plus the fiberglass come wit hthe point for $5 and up
Phil
I would have to agree with the opinions posted so far. I have been doing quite a bit of bowfishing lately, and, although where I go you can find quite a few opportunities at fish that are breaking the surface (no need to go through a lot of water to get to them), a wood arrow would just not hold up to pressure put on it by a fighting fish.
Well thats a bummer guys. Thanks for your input anyway! I made up some short, stout willow arrows, so I wouldn't have to watch my POC's snap when that carp takes off like a rocket. I just wanted to know what the thoughts were since I hated to see a fiberglass arrow on my osage selfbow.
Thanks again, everyone!
Cam
Shoot small fish, less than 10 pounds, in shallow water and wood arrows with broadheads will kill them quick. I shot about 20 of them one day with the same ash arrow and broadhead. You will have to wade to them a lot of the time.
I would say a ash arrow would hold up, if you want to remain true to wood. As far as a homemade head, I would think some piano wire barbs fitted into a regular glue-on field point would do the trick. Your going to have to cut your line each time to force your arrow all the way thru to get the fish off. After awhile of this, a fiberglass fishing arrow wont look so bad.
I knew a guy that would use dimestore wood arrows (like anyone can find them anymore) he would drill a hole through the metal point then glue in a piece of wire coathanger about 21/2 inches long with about 1/4 inch on one side and the rest out the other, he would bend the short side in a U along side the arrow shaft to attach the line the long side was bent to make the barb. He would walk the banks of a lake or river and shoot fish, which means shallow fish, and usually less than 5lb'ers.
buy them DA. there not expensive, and if you determined to shoot wood, just buy the points and glue them on...
but there IS a reason that they use fiberglass, it better...
use thicker rivercane.
take a wire coathanger and straighten it out....
take out all the inside nodes , and fill it up from the nock end with as much play sand as you want for weight....
then take some wadded up newspaper with gorilla glue or tb2-3 and push down so it "caps" the sand in tight.
then usewhatever fish point u like.
i like primitive tackle.
your shots are usualy not too far so keep your arrows long and heavy, no fletching, cause with all that weight forward and a string attached a little behind the tip..the string that follows keeps the nock end fairly straight in flight...for fish, its just fine.
just use about 20-30 feet of that dacron hand trolling line..attach behind point , run back about 12 inches and put a half hitch in , then do the same all the way back and bam. yer fish hunting with the natives.
jamie
ill be using the cane setup a with a little different method of getting the fish arrow/dart out to them.....hahaha.
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I used to make cheap bowfishing tips. I used a regular glue on field point. grind a shallow groove where the point is still solid steel in front of where the tqper stops inside. I uses some stainless welding rod and silver soldered the rod in the groove, the piece of rod was about 1 1/2 inches long and welde so the excess was back past the back of the point. then bend the wire out slightly. This single barb is great for smaller fish like carp and gar.
When you glue it to your shaft drill a small hole sideways through the point and "peg" it on to keep from loosing it .
Ron