HOW TO CUT YOUR ARROWS – NOTES
Always check the blade is undamaged before cutting arrows. Wear protective eyewear and use a vacuum attached to the arrow saw to prevent you inhaling carbon dust.
STEP 1 – SET ARROW LENGTH
Make sure the arm of the arrow cutter that determines the length is fully secure and you can’t move it.
STEP 2 – ADJUST BLADE DEPTH
You should use the adjustment on the side of the arrow cutter plate to adjust the depth that the blade will cut to. You can see this demonstrated in the video. Obviously you should do this with the arrow cutter turned off.
STEP 3 – LOCATE THE ARROW
Locating the arrow is a lot easier if you put a pin in the back of the arrow. I do this even when I’m not shooting pin nocks. You must obviously make sure you are cutting to the correct length.
As you cut the arrow you need to rotate it. If you don’t use the pin it can be quite easy to roll the arrow around in the locator without realising it.
STEP 4 – CUT THE ARROW
Slowly push the arrow shaft into the blade whilst rotating it. You should rotate it in the same direction as the saw blade. In this video you can see this demonstrated as the top of the arrow rotates away from the blade.
Continue rotating the arrow for a short while after it is fully cut, and as you pull it back out of the blade area.
STEP 5 – DE-BURR
Use the de-burring tool on the arrow saw to remove the aluminium burr on the inside of an A/C arrow. Only remove up to 1/4 of the aluminium wall thickness with the de-burring tool.
STEP 6 – GLUE THE POINT
Hold the point with your fingers, if it gets too hot to hold then it is too hot to put in the arrow and you risk damaging the arrow.
Always use Easton hot melt. Melt the glue first and apply it onto the cold point. Make sure to fill the grooves of the break off point as you can see demonstrated in the video, and only glue the end of the point. However, do apply a reasonable amount of glue.
Now, quickly heat the glue and put the point in the arrow. Rotate the point round multiple times as you do this.
Finally, push the arrow lightly into a piece of wood to make sure the point is fully inserted. Set the arrow aside and allow it to cool.
STEP 7 – GLUE THE PIN
Hold the pin with a pair of pliers. Make sure to hold it by the collar and not by the part where the nock will locate. You don’t want to scratch the part where the nock goes.
Follow the same process as glueing the point. Melt the glue first, and then lightly heat it before putting it into the arrow. Rotate the arrow as you insert it and press it against a piece of wood again to make sure it’s fully in.
It doesn’t matter too much what hot melt you use for the pin, so I normally save the Easton hot melt for the points.
Allow it to cool.
STEP 8 – REMOVE THE GLUE
Once the glue has cooled slightly, it should become firm and cool enough to touch. You don’t want it to be completely cold and rock hard is it will be really difficult to remove. You should be able to remove the glue by scraping it lightly with a fingernail away from the arrow shaft.
It’s quite satisfying to get a nice doughnut shaped piece of hotmelt. An indicator you let the arrow cool down just the right amount.
Always scrape away from the end of the arrow shaft. Do not scrape up the arrow shaft. If you do this it can peel the carbon layers off the arrow like a nice ripe banana.
Do the same for the pins if you have them. Now it’s time to test your arrows.
THE ARROW DROP TEST