Working down Footed arrows

One of the more interesting modern arrow types are the footed arrows. These are arrows that have a second often contrasting piece of wood glued onto the front of the arrow. That is the so named footing.

While the practice of using fore-shafts dates back to the neolithic arrow finds. The modern style with starkly contrasting collours and decorative elements are a distinctly Victorian trend.

When making footed arrows there are a few approaches. I choose to take an existing shaft and glue a square footting onto it. That means that I need to work the footing down, so that it matches the rest of the arrow, in diameter and profile.

This is done using a plane to remove the bulk of the material, followed by sandpaper and sanding blocks on the lathe. Final adjustment and details are done using a card scraper.

As these footings have a mainly decorative purpose (not exclusively), it is important to take care to make the “wings” of the footing neat and even.

Bellow is a video that illustrates this process of working the footing down to match the remaining shaft.

I hope you enjoy that little look into the prosess of making an arrow.