Reed Arrows

My good friend Trapper Jon asked me to bang out a couple of arrows for him to go along with a "primitive" looking bow that he aquired in a trade.

here are the pics of one of the arrows, it has a reed shaft with a fire hardeded Oak point which would be good for use on birds or fish.

the fletchings were pidgeon feathers i picked up on the street. for the bindings I used agave fibers held in place with plant latex.

the fletchings are in the style of the cherokee or my Aeta Negrito friends.

prior to inserting the tip into the reed shaft i coated it with raw pine pitch then lit it on fire with my bic lighter and inserted it into the shaft.

The Nock , I reinforced with a willow plug which i cut off even with a joint in the shaft. I glued this plug in with raw pine pitch.

to straighten the shaft I used my snaggle teeth in the style of Ishi and got them reasonably straight.

the other arrow is similar but with a broad head made from a flattened spoon.I simply took 2 flatware spoon I found while walking around, and pounded them flat with my ball peen hammer. I sharpened the edges by grinding them on a wet rock. My friend Matt, finished them off for me on a grinder.

Tomahawk - Scouts Out!