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  • David Petersen
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      Post count: 2749

      What Jason said. I use point glue for the inserts, and hot-melt for screw-in adapters. In both cases, esp. with the points and adapters, it’s critical to clean both parts before gluing, with rubbing alcohol or acetone (use a q-tip to get down inside the shafts and points). Vodka would probably work (for cleaner, not glue) but I don’t keep the stuff around. 😛

      David Petersen
      Member
        Post count: 2749

        Mike — Fletcher (Rick Stillman) of The Feathered Shaft is making these up for me. Shafts are single-tapered 23/64 Sitka spruce, fletched with 4×3″ (not A&A). I used test shafts to determine the proper spine for my 53# Shrew at 85# for the 300 Tuffhead. In order to keep the weight down to not much over 700 grains total, it took a while for Rick to collect a batch of shafts with low weight and the required spine, and even then he got only 9. It appears FOC will be 20-21%, which may be about the highest possible with wood and not that shabby. The whole battle is to find wood with high enough spine without killer weight. If these shafts perform as expected (based on shooting test arrows), I’ll put in a standing order with Rick for more of the same, as he’s able to collect them. I’m thinking, without any real knowledge, that perhaps a new generation of compressed shafts could be the answer to higher spine without excess weight, for greater FOC. Dave

        David Petersen
        Member
          Post count: 2749

          I am among the relative few who have had a chance to field test the relatively new Tuffhead. Shot plumb through a nice bull elk last year; he went only 15 yards before going down and was dead in as many seconds … and he walked rather than ran that 15 yards as if he was only slightly spooked, not having felt a thing as the magic lazered through his chest. Those were 225s with carbon shafts. This year I’ll be shooting the 300s with wood shafts. However, you don’t necessarily need that kind of head weight for all game, like typical small whitetails, IMHO. If you’re shopping for lighter heads my advice is to stick with the same basic characteristics manifest in the Tuffhead: high MA (long and narrow, which the VPA lighter heads are NOT), single bevel, steel hardness 50-54 for an ideal combo of toughness and sharpenability. For turkey this spring I’ll be shooting the same heads I used with impressive results for Coues whitetail this past winter: STOS 145s custom ground to single-bevel from blanks. STOS should be encouraged to offer single-bevels in the 150-175 mid-weight zone … and/or Tuffhead should be encouraged to make a lighter model, if that’s possible, which I doubt as a certain steel thickness is necessary to provide strength and a nice wide bevel shelf, the engine that produces torque.

          David Petersen
          Member
            Post count: 2749
            in reply to: Thanks, Dave! #28349

            Thanks Robin, and tradbow friends. It’s good to know that I may have made at least as many friends as enemies while playing moderator. 😈 Trouble was, as time went on, I had gotten compulsive about this site and was spending hours a day at it and “fretting” way too much about details … hours I really need to be working to supplement my (anti)Social (in)Security income, or walking in the woods, etc. This same thing happened a couple of years ago when I resigned as Trout Unlimited’s CO public lands conservation director and as CO BHA chairman — the work had taken me over and was diminishing the rest of my life, so time to step back, relax, let the blood pressure normalize … and go hunting even more. I’ll always be an enthusiastic tradbow member, so you’ll still be plagued with my opinions from time to time, but I need to get things back in balance. With very few exceptions, you guys have been an absolute joy. Some of you have become good friends, and almost all of you have earned my deep respect. This is easily the most polite, thoughtful, intelligent and therefore fun hunter’s website in existence and I’m sure Webmother Robin, with your ongoing help, will keep it that way. Some of you may not know that across my three years as moderator, Robin twice had to delete my posts. 😛 Cheers, and big thanks. Dave

            David Petersen
            Member
            Member
              Post count: 2749

              What? I’ve not been “a regular guy”? 😆 Seriously, thanks, Joe. Nothing really has “changed with TBM,” I had just gotten compulsive about this site and was spending hours a day at it … hours I really need to be working to supplement my (anti)Social (in)Security income, or walking in the woods, etc. This same thing happened a couple of years ago when I resigned as TU CO field director and as a BHA leadership volunteer — the work had taken me over and was diminishing the rest of my life, so time to step back, relax, let the blood pressure normalize … and go hunting even more. 😀 I’ll always be an enthusiastic tradbow member but need to get things back in balance. And with very few exceptions, you guys have been an absolute joy. Some of you have become good friends. This is easily the most polite, thoughtful, intelligent and therefore fun hunter’s website in existence and I’m sure Webmother Robin, with your help, will keep it that way. Sometimes, the good guys do win. Dave

              David Petersen
              Member
                Post count: 2749
                in reply to: Arrow Speed #64010

                Phantom — I guess I missed why you want to shoot darts at such speeds?

                Shadow — welcome aboard!

                Dave

                David Petersen
                Member
                Member
                  Post count: 2749

                  Hammer — You obviously are cheating! 😕 (Can you please tell me how you do it so I can try it here in CO?) 😛

                  David Petersen
                  Member
                    Post count: 2749
                    in reply to: String Material #63696

                    Welcome to tradbow.com, Jockey. Troy’s info is solid. Will you be making your own strings, or buying them?

                    David Petersen
                    Member
                      Post count: 2749
                      in reply to: Hunting Knives #63694

                      Hammer — Well, just as a guy can’t have too many great knives and bows, we can’t have too many knife threads. I’m wondering though about the, I assume, ceremac sharpening rods attached to the sheaths of the two bigger knives. I’m thinking, from limited personal use, that they take up a lot of space on your belt for a tool that has very limited use, namely final touch-up after resharpening. Or will those rods bring an edge back after, say, 20 minutes of sawing away at an elk cape? Just cirious.

                      This motivates me to break out a few of my old favorites and snap a pic.

                      David Petersen
                      Member
                        Post count: 2749

                        Carbons (with 225 Tuffheads and brass inserts) 780 grains

                        Woodies (sitka spruce with 300 Tuffheads) about 800 grains

                        David Petersen
                        Member
                        Member
                          Post count: 2749
                          in reply to: Meat grinder blues #62944

                          Calgarychef — Welcome here. The world needs more good chefs. Dave

                          David Petersen
                          Member
                            Post count: 2749
                            in reply to: Sheds #62942

                            The earliest I’ve seen elk shed here is mid-March; not quite there yet. And I’ve seen big bulls with antlers as late as late April. Don’t know about mule deer as they don’t winter here — they’re all in town. 😆

                            In any event, turkey season for me is a triple treat: hunting turkey, sheds, and morels. I’m also curious to investigate the remains of winterkilled elk, which always (when enough evidence remains) are unrecovered fatalaties of rifle seasons, headed downhill until they drop.

                            David Petersen
                            Member
                              Post count: 2749

                              Welcome, Dave. You might also try Owl Bows (see their ad in TBM, along with other makers of selfbows). I would think you will find lots of good selfbows for less than that. But remember, these bows are purely organic, like you and me, and it’s not “will they break” but “when,” which makes commercial marketing very risky for the makers. Which is not to say that a good osage selfbow won’t last a lifetime if not abused. I happily own one such, but alas, not one I built myself. Dave

                              David Petersen
                              Member
                                Post count: 2749
                                in reply to: A&A Fletching #60230

                                Steve — Nobody “gets hammered” here except sideline critics with a compulsion to needle us, like broken records, for furthering the Ashby revolution, without having tried it themselves. I’ll bet someone will have some good leads on what’s happening with your arrow flight. Could be you are under-fletched for your FOC, as you suggest, but I’m not the one to know.

                                On a related point, I have some test arrows from Fletcher, Sitka spruce with 4×2″ fletching, not A&A, with a 300 grain head up front. They fly beautifully and the only difference I can see from my standard 3×5 setup is increased quietness. If I can figure how to re-adjust my fletching jig for 4-fletch I think I’ll switch. If nothing else the smaller feathers are less visible to game.

                                I’m curious to hear what the guys have to say about your problem.

                                David Petersen
                                Member
                                  Post count: 2749

                                  Jason — “What I shoot more accurately” is an Ashby set-up.” Like daddy used to say, don’t knock it if you ain’t tried it.

                                Viewing 15 posts - 1,246 through 1,260 (of 2,570 total)