Primitive Archer
Main Discussion Area => Arrows => Topic started by: Diligence on March 25, 2010, 12:01:38 am
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When I first found PA, I did a lot of searching for information before posting questions. I thought this sticky would be a good way to share some of what I found regarding blunts, and this post is intended to show methods of making various blunts and small game points.
All the photos are saved with the Authors forum user name, but the descriptions below are thrown together from various posts on PA. If you are the author and want credit, let me know and Ill revise the post.
edit to add......I need to point out, I did not personally make all these points. Rather, this is a collection of photos from PA, and it shows other folks hard work. All I did was compile the data.
Cheers,
J
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Good General Advice from Hawk:
I hunt a lot of small game and game birds with handmade arrows. I can honestly say that although most anything tied to a shaft will kill if the shot is perfect. However the shot is not always dead on with a small and sometimes moving target. So I would encourage you young guys to shoot broad heads at everything you hunt. You can make points from wood, bone, steel, and stone, even plastics that will kill quickly and humanely. We owe it to the prey we hunt to kill as quickly and cleanly as possible. Hope this helps brothers
Hawk
Cartridge Casing Blunts:
.357 casings with the primers knocked out and a small nail put in it
a .38 cartridge case over the end of the shaft, drilling holes through it at right angles to each other, and then epoxy pieces of welding rod through them
38 or 357 or a sized and cut down 30-30 brass into the pan of a powder scale and dribble small bird shot until the weight is about 150 Grains and quick pass through a propane torch flame and I have a throw away blunt.
38 or 357 case fits perfectly on an 11/32" shaft, .30 carbine brass fits 5/16", and with cane, .30/30 or .30/06 hulls with the neck cut off often fit.
homemade judos w/ .357 cases on 11/32 shafts with finishing nails for arms, then put the empty case and pieces of nail in my reloading scale and snip bits of lead into the pan till it weighed 125 grains then glued the whole works on w/ the lead inside the case, they work but as someone else said they bend and you are constantly straightening the nails.
.38 cases with a finish nail installed into the shaft and bent back to make a barb.
Grind a notch on the nail near the center, then insert it into a hole thru the casing
put the casing and nail on a powder scale and add lead shot until it all weighs 125 grains.
Heat it with a propane torch, the lead melts, flowing into the primer pocket and solidifying around the notch in the nail shank, keeping it from pulling out.
center punch them at three or so places to hold them onto the shaft.
Miscellaneous:
bleeder blades or small trade points out of steel banding material (like from construction sites) or old table knives
wooden lattice work (ala Ishi)
Abenaki-Penobscot style wooden blunts (carved into the shaft or added)
blunts from horn, or bone
hand forged sickle points (wicked!)
field points from duplex nails with the point cut off and brazing material added for weight (see Little John Photo)
use a 16 penny nail, braze a glob of brass onto head of nail and grind to shape while spinning with electric drill. About 125 grains.
16D double headed (or duplex) nails. Grind off the primary head to form a point, the secondary head abuts the end of the shaft. The finished point came out to 145 grains at about 2-1/2" long
concrete nail points (see photo from Welch2)
Nutters:
Often considered one of the best small game points is the "nutter"
Simply thread a 3/8" hex nut on the taper at the point end of your shaft and add a bit of super glue just for giggles. Not very primitive but very effective!
The nut will help keep the arrow from burrowing under the grass or leaves somewhat, but not like a judo or similar homemade point.
Try to find the largest(OD) 3/8" nut you can or maybe even a wing nut
Use two 3/8" nuts, and they weigh 160 grains, just like my field points
From Minuteman:
Use toothed washers (see photo) which grabs the grass and keeps the arrow from snaking underneath and getting buried.
It'll stand the arrow up good in taller grass and makes an awful tearing sound when it hits stuff.
Another cool thing is that with the larger nut , two toothed washers and the 1- 1/4" drywall screw it brings the weight up closer to a field point
The nut is just a regular 5/16" nylon bushing nut, taper the tip of the arrow a little until it screws on tight.
Then pilot a hole for the drywall screw, slip the washers onto the screw and insert it into the end of the shaft
The little washer keeps the larger one centered on the screw.
very little tapering that needs to be done - Just enough to get the threads started .
Presenting the TARANTULA current King of Blunts
Thanks to Nomadic Pirate:
The history taken from one of Mannys posts:
The first mongoose I killed was with a Judo and the head made a bloody mess of the poor critter and didn't even killed it.
then I started using all kinds of different points, the Adder behind a field point, blunts, broad heads, casings, tiger claw, and Judo again, but none of them covered all the angles
the mongoose is a tough little bugger and they took all my arrows down the holes with them, I was hitting lots of them but never retrieving one.
I tried HTM blunts and 3/8" hex heads, and bingo, I was killing them on the spot, the only problem was that when I missed most of the time was a lost arrow.
Some did good work by killing by shock, but not having the capability to stop themselves so they where easily lost. The other ones would either leave a screaming animal with a gory mess, or have the critter run away with the arrow never to be seen again
I had these blunts at the house that had real bad flight characteristics so I never used them, one day I was looking at one, and I saw it, like when you look at a tree and see the bow inside.
So the TARANTULA was born, this head has all the best characteristics for a small game stumping head in one
the design slows it down in flight, almost working as a flu-flu losing velocity after 20 yards or so
It's unbreakable, cheap, and very easy on wood shafting in rocky terrain
delivering awesome shocking power that kills small game even with marginal hits
incomparable stopping quality in tall grass
this head is very back quiver friendly
The How To:
Start with a bludgeon small game blunt
get some casings or regular steel blunts
with a knife cut out the pie shaped wedges and bingo you have the TARANTULA
match it in weight to your broad heads
½ of a 38 casing will give you a 125gr
full 38 casing 150gr
100gr steel blunt 190gr
you can even add a bleeder blade, or a nail, or a wood screw thru the middle before putting the head over the blunt or 38 casing...now thats flexibility
Now on to the photos:
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more photos
edited to add a link to RAWHIDE points....very interesting!
http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,23169.0.html
Edit to add a link to Alligator Gar Fish scale arrowhead
http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,22292.0.html
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more photos
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more photos which show the Tarantula by Nomadic Pirate
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more photos
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Editted to add broad head templates from MadCrow....
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Thanks Jaye. Lots of good information compiled here. 8)
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AWESOME!!! Thanks for compiling this!!
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Great info.
Should show anyone that you can make a blunt arrow head out of things from home and not have to buy them in.
Thanks for your time.
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Very Nice! 8)
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Good God man, what an arsenal !!! You have a lot of time involved there. Alot of great tips. Thanks for sharing.
Chasing Crow
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I love this idea. I wonder if we could do the same for quivers as well??
I always see quivers that I think one day I will make one of them, then forget who made it or what part of the site that I saw it???
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ikes! I like the crea :)tivity :)
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Just saw this. You did good, Jaye.
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Wow nice pileOheads Im going to try a few this year!
Thanks,
AA
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I like it, thanks for taking the time to do this ! :)
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Great info. thanks :) :)
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Now that's ingenuity.
Thanks for all of your work puttin this all together.
Ron
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:owow :o
very cool looking small game points Small game bewar
Kolton
i'm going bowhunting with my longbow
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Great job putting all this together some great info
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thanx for doing this i just made a 40S&W casing blunt that i found in my yard lol ;D
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http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=18715.0;attach=32707;image
Is that a 38 spl casing behind the arrowhead? How is that constructed? Slide the case down the shaft mount the head and epoxy it into place??
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Sure looks like it. I've made some bunnybusting points like that one. The blade is made up of any heavy sheetmetal you have on hand, just saw a thin slot in the base of the casing with a hacksaw. Slip the sheetmetal into the slot and hit it with a touch of solder. You don't even need to taper the shaft, slide it in square with some epoxy in the hole and call it good!
Mine didn't have such a long point, more of a right angle on the two cutting edges, though.
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i am defiantly going to have to try the tarantula this year. had the same problem as you with squirrels
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got a small pile of spent shells and gonna make some blunts. anything i shld know about removing primer. any precautuions?
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If it's a "spent" case it's harmless. Just knock it out with a nail and hammer.
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(http://i878.photobucket.com/albums/ab346/sadiejane9/arrowheads-homemade/DSCN8334.jpg)
(http://i878.photobucket.com/albums/ab346/sadiejane9/arrowheads-homemade/DSCN8336.jpg)
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Diligence asked that I post this here as well.
3/8" poplar dowels from Canadian Tire - $1.00/ea
Acorn nuts from Home Depot - 49c/ea
Duct tape fletching - almost free :)
=super cheap stumper
(http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t253/cbergerman/640/P1010855.jpg)
(http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t253/cbergerman/640/P1010854.jpg)
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Love the use of camo tape for theat "Woodsy" effect. I think I'd stay with the usual silver stuff so I could FIND THEM!
the Acorn nuts are a great idea, too
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Ive only used .223 casings and 410 shells for heads, very interesting, must try this as soon as i get more shafts :D
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Young Bowyer - I did a bit of a how-to here if you want more details:
http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,25724.0.html (http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,25724.0.html)
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Thanks man those look nice, never tried the duct tape fletchings :) only seen it on wilderness outfitters channel on youtube gonna make some stumpers now
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Deer antler, with bike spokes (or nails) glued in to act like judo points. I use the ones with duplex nails on bamboo arrows. With wood arrows I just drill out the antler.
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barrage-man, i like those antler blunts. thanks!
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Very interesting assortment and great ideas, thanks for sharing
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Anybody got any pics of fishing arrows? ???
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Someone asked me to post these...
(https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/405026_3557007838041_1058088323_3228947_416104948_n.jpg)
(https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/545990_3557008438056_1058088323_3228949_892975366_n.jpg)
(https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/581413_3557008198050_1058088323_3228948_533163170_n.jpg)
(https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/398344_3557012598160_1058088323_3228960_784807215_n.jpg)
3" pieces of all-thread, sharpened on one end, tapered to fit in the boo shaft on the other end, drilled a hole at an angle to the tip and bent a finish nail through it. then ground the threads off the center " and drilled a hole for the string to tie on.
You can kinda see the angle of the nail and the center holes. I havent tried them but I'm not too confident in the design...
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i know most of these heads are home made but my and dad like to take a glue on field point and flatten it down to the first step with a file then cut a grove straight down the center and insert a small triangle of blanding steel and fix it with JB weld. make sure to have to point of the banding steel flush with the tip of the point. This way when you hit a squirrel head cuts right through and wont allow for him to pull it out. but also if you hit a tree limb high up your arrows tend to bounce out and just fall down to you. we have tried alot of diffrent configurations but this works the best so far. our bows are tween 50 and 60 lbs. if you are worried about punching through a squirrel with a lighter bow just make the blade channel smaller forcing the triangle more towards the tip of the point.
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I realise this is an old post but id love to make the tarantula some how without purchasing anything
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Any chance to get this post updated? There are pics that do not open and I'm interested in the fishing heads. Thx!
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Any chance to get this post updated? There are pics that do not open and I'm interested in the fishing heads. Thx!
I second this, many pics do not work.
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Ive been having a blast bunny hunting. Sometimes though my arrow breaks on pass throughs and/or misses. Going for the tarantula!
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Does this count? just messing about with some fatwood. Personally I think that if I hit a small game animal with this point, it would do the job. The 45 degree grain running through it probably isn't the most ideal way for it to be running. The white rings are much softer. Perpendicular and it could be manipulated into growth rings.
Pretty amazingly tough stuff though. I can not break it with bare hands. It could be worked down to being cleaner and smoother but I felt I had it close enough to take some pictures of it.
I think this stuff could make some pretty acceptable blunt or sharp points. If nothing else they will get a fire started when you can't find any dry kindling.
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I use1/2" PEX plugs, from the plumbing store. They cost about $0.40 each, and slip right on the shaft. I also cut the head off a 3/8" bolt and chucked it in my redneck lathe (drill clamped in a vise) and spun it while filing down the threads until I could screw the PEX plug on snugly. Then I mount the plug and spin that while I file the edge sharp. When you are done, it looks kinda like a trumpet, with a flat leading surface and a sharp gouging edge all around.
Theswe work AMAZINGLY on rabbits and grouse.
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Post some pics Springbuck. We'd love to see what you've made!
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Hello everyone,
I'm new to the forum, though I've been reading it for years, so thanks to you all for sharing your knowledge. Here is a pic of my usual small game/stumping blunts. I use a screw driven backward into the end of my natural shoot shafts. I also add a small washer for extra weight and electrical tape around the very end of the shaft, which prevents splitting. It costs only pennies, and I've never had one break or split on me after years of using this type of point.
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Nice.............. keen idea
DBar
Oh ya .....welcome, hope to see more of your work
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http://www.hardwarestore.com/1-2-brass-pex-plug-701953.aspx
Sorry, they block me posting pics directly at work. basically, just slip this over a shaft. If you file that rim a bit, you can make a sharper edge on the blunt all the way round.
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http://www.hardwarestore.com/1-2-brass-pex-plug-701953.aspx
Sorry, they block me posting pics directly at work. basically, just slip this over a shaft. If you file that rim a bit, you can make a sharper edge on the blunt all the way round.
I didn't file these at all but I did add some heat shrink tubing.
(https://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5710/23695718741_ecfbc96c2f_c.jpg)
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Sucks that the attachments on the first post are gone... I want to make blunt arrows for target shooting (having them bounce off)
This sounds good, it's just like the "nutter" in the OP? And what were they doing with the planing? Barreling? Tapering the point so the nut would stick in?
http://www.huntingnet.com/forum/small-game-predator-trapping/117201-cheep-squirrl-rino-arrows.html
The tarantula sounds nice though. Wish there still were pictures. I might also go with a normal large bolt and PEX.. though I think that'd bury itself too much
This also seems very nice http://paleoplanet69529.yuku.com/topic/33550
I'm not sure of what would be best for bamboo. Could just put a peg in if it's hollow, treat tonkin like wood.
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Just bringing this back to the top in case the admins want to re-sticky it.
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Thanks.Some nice effective simple blunts shown.Here's mine.Dogwood shafts with a 20 gauge shotgun shell.More than does the job.I think they mass weigh over 800 grains....lol.
(https://i.imgur.com/oJhFub9.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/DZiYdaI.jpg)
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Ed, those are the high brass type shells?
Hawkdancer
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I don't know.Never heard them called that.They are just cheap center shot 2 and 3/4 inch regular shotgun shells far as I know.The plastic bee bee casing is thrown away.The brass just put on there to protect the wood head from rocks and such of course.All I know is a body blow from them immobilizes the squirrels and cotton tails here.They are not too practical or advisable to shoot at 3D targets making big deep dents and I'd hate to get hit in the center of my back.....lol.Pretty sure they'd bust a vertebra or a shoulder blade.
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Those look like they would do the trick!
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They certainly look effective! The "high brass shells" are generally heavier hunting loads, and magnum loads, pheasants, waterfowl, etc.; "low brass" are target, skeet, etc. I will have to check my cache and junk shell bag for some usable empties. We make a habit of picking spent cases wherever we find the, so I have plenty!
Hawkdancer
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I see...about the brass height.Don't think I've ever bought trap & skeet loads then I guess.All of the blunts I've seen displayed will do a damn damn really.There fun arrows for stump shooting too.
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What size shoots do you start with? 20 ga. Is about .62 cal or so. Do you fletch with a standard 3 feather? Or a 4 or more?
Hawkdancer
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A person will need to start with thicker than normal shoots of course or be picky about the kind harvested.While harvesting a person will see that all shoots are'nt the same in their taper.I'll harvest ones that fit the brass nicely.With the arrow a shade longer of 3" or so I increase the thickness just on the last 3" on the tip end.Looking sort of bulbous.The rest of the shaft is spined to the bow and the normal thickness I like it.Helps to harvest a lot of shoots pick through the ones that suit ya.
Fletching is just your standard 3 feather fletch.