Making a crossbow arrow is a bit more difficult than making a regular longbow arrow. The reason being that you will have to make your own shafts, nocks, and points. The good news is that there are many different types of materials to choose from. You can make them out of wood or metal, but they will all require some type of preparation before they can be used in your crossbow.
Making Crossbow Arrows Out Of Wood
This is one of the easiest ways to make crossbows because you don’t have to worry about any metalworking or heat treating processes. All you need is some wood and a basic tool kit.
Gather your tools and materials.
A crossbow with a string that can be threaded with an arrow. You can use any type of crossbow, but the easiest to use is a one-handed crossbow as it only requires one hand to load and shoot. If you have a two-handed crossbow, however, you can use that as well.
A piece of wood or plastic (1/2″ thick or so) that can be cut into an arrow shape with a handsaw or jigsaw and sanded down smooth.
A piece of wood that can be cut into a notch for the string to rest in (1/2″ thick or so). This should be slightly longer than the width of your arrow shafts so that it rests on top of them.
Some glue (wood glue works best) or epoxy resin to hold everything together securely when shooting.
Cut the wood to correct size.
You need to cut a piece of wood that is about 3/4″ thick, about 28″ long and about 1/4″ wide. The length should be based on the draw length of your bow. Most bows have a maximum draw length of 28″, but some bows have a longer maximum draw length. If you do not know what this number is, then measure from the tip of your middle finger to the end of your elbow.
Use a saw to cut the wood into an arrow shape. You will want to make sure that the grain of the wood runs down the center of your arrows so that they are stiffer (this is called spine). If you are using plywood instead of lumber, then you may want to orient it so that its grain runs perpendicular (90 degrees) to its width rather than parallel (45 degrees) with its width as shown in the diagram above.
Sand down any rough edges or splinters on your arrows. Once they are cut out and sanded down, they should be smooth enough for use in shooting without causing any more damage or splinters on impact with an object or person being shot at with them.
Join the pieces together.
Use a small amount of glue to hold the crossbow arrow in place.
To make this project a little easier, I recommend using super glue or hot glue. If you use super glue, it will dry instantly, which will help keep your fingers from getting stuck to the pieces.
If you choose to use hot glue, be sure that it is not made for fabric. In addition to having a lower melting temperature than regular hot glue sticks, it also has a lower setting temperature (the minimum temperature at which it will stick). This means that if you use regular hot glue sticks on fabric, they may not stick at all!
Shave the edges of the arrow.
A crossbow arrow needs to be shaved down for the best performance. Use a utility knife to shave off about half an inch from each side of the arrow. This will make it lighter, which will make it go faster, which will help it fly straighter.
The feathers on the end of your arrows can be cut down to size as well. You want them long enough to stabilize your shot and make sure that there’s no extra drag on the end of your arrow, but you don’t want them so long that they’re getting caught up in brush or trees or anything like that. Cut off any excess fletching until you get down to about an inch or two at most — just enough so that when you shoot through the air there’s nothing getting in the way and slowing down your flight path.
Sharpen your broadhead tip and cut grooves into it so that blood flows more freely when you shoot an animal with one.
Straighten and balance the arrow.
The next step is making sure that your arrows are balanced. What this means is that if you were to drop the arrow from a certain height, it would fall in a straight line. You can make sure that it does this by using something called a spinner beam. The spinner beam is used by placing the arrow at the top of the beam and spinning it around until it stops on its own.
If it doesn’t work, try rotating the arrow 90 degrees with respect to how it’s currently positioned on the spinner beam. If that doesn’t work, then rotate 90 degrees again and try again!
Making crossbow arrows can be easy with these steps.
Making your own arrows is a great way to save money, get exactly what you want and have a unique set of arrows that can be difficult to find. You can easily make crossbow arrows with just a few tools and supplies.
The first thing you’ll need is an arrowhead. There are several types available online, but if you want something more custom, you may be able to find someone who sells them at local events or shows.
Once you have your arrowhead, it’s time for the shafts. You can purchase them online or at your local lumberyard. If you want something unique, try using bamboo as the shaft material. Bamboo is strong enough for use as an arrow shaft, but flexible enough to bend without breaking when shot from your crossbow.
A bow and arrow can be some of the most dangerous weapons out there. That is why you should only make them if you can follow the proper steps in how to make a crossbow arrow.