# Question: Arrow marking for wings/vanes



## hwjchan (Oct 24, 2011)

Using a mechanical pencil would work, I'd imagine. A tri-liner does have a substantial amount of space for marking, but I wouldn't know if it's any better than the E-Z Fletch. I've never had to mark my Nanos, the lines are already on them.


----------



## Chris RL (Oct 30, 2011)

Harrison, hello!
Yes, I'm sure it would.

The fellow who owned the arrows before me marked the positions with a silver marker though - and now I'm starting to clean the last traces of the marks away as I clean and re-fletch, I'm looking to find a system that works just as well as the one he used, whatever that might be.

I'm starting to think cocktail sticks dipped in silver marker ink...


----------



## archerynooblol (Nov 6, 2010)

I just bought an EZ Fletch. Why would you want to mark the shaft? For Single vane spot repairs?


----------



## hwjchan (Oct 24, 2011)

Are you trying to attach Spin Wings or Elivanes? Or are you trying to glue on vanes/feathers? If the former, then just use a mechanical pencil. They don't need to be as permanent as the lines on Nanos are to give you lines to place mylar vanes. If you're trying to glue on vanes/feathers, then you don't need to bother marking them.


----------



## icehaven (Nov 30, 2010)

+1 for mechanical pencils, or slightly dulled wooden pencils. also, an ultra fine red sharpie works too. not as well as pencil but it's surprising how well red sharpie shows up on carbon


----------



## cc46 (Jan 22, 2005)

actually, my sharpie ran dry and used a plain old yellow school pencil the last time I needed to mark a line.


----------



## Chris RL (Oct 30, 2011)

Yeah, maybe just a white or yellow pencil, just with the tip made skinny.
It's just to guide to the spin wings' positions as I repair them in the field individually.
I'm using spin wings but also altservices mylar wings.

And just to be clear, I usually use the EZ fletch jig to glue on my son's Blazer vanes. On my own arrows, I'm just using the jig to mark reference lines on the arrows for where my double-sided-taped spin wings go. 

I don't use the jig to attach the spin wings, I do that by eye, using the reference lines as guides.


----------



## archerynooblol (Nov 6, 2010)

I see. Thought you were using glue. Maybe as per suggestions previously, get the lead from a mechanical pencil. I think they should sell a diameter thick enough not to break in your hands, but thin enough to fit through the jig.


----------



## Chris RL (Oct 30, 2011)

yeah, but that's black on black. How do I get that sexy silver thing going? 
(no, more like - how'd s/he get that sexy silver thing going?)


----------



## skunklover (Aug 4, 2011)

A pencil works well, that is how I do the lines for spinwings.

Red sharpie shows VERY well on carbon.

For silver, look for a fine point Sharpie PAINT marker. They will leave a good, shiny silver line.


----------



## agillator (Sep 11, 2011)

I use a tri-liner with a metallic silver Sharpie. Works well and provides excellent visibility. 

Unfortunately there is no "ultra fine" metallic silver sharpie, only "fine" which makes a wider line than necessary, so I apply the vane along the edge of the line (rather than _on _the line) which provides a precise reference. The tri-liner does get silvery as a result of the sides of the sharpie point sliding against it.

I usually pre-tape spin-wings and carry some with me for field application. The sharpie mark is tough enough so that you can bring along an alcohol wipe, clean up any residue from the damaged spin-wing without losing the sharpie mark, and apply the field replacement with no problem.

If you want to protect your investment in the EZ-fletch you might try shaping the tip of a metallic sharpie with a utility razor to see if you can make it fine enough to fit, but still retain enough stiffness for a good line.


----------



## Chris RL (Oct 30, 2011)

Aqullator, hi

I think that this was the magic combination I found on my arrows. 

The silver lines weren't extra fine, but I just used the edges of the lines to guide my wing placements. 

So think it's the Tri-liner that's the missing piece of my puzzle, since I've gone through maybe half a dozen wings per arrow now and the lines are only now fading away from all that alcohol wiping.

Yeah, the thing about the EZ-fletch is that the vane grooves aren't just very skinny, they're also very deep. I'd have to shave away maybe two inches on either side of the sharpie's nib (well up into the plastic shell and probably above the felt line) to allow it to fit.

No matter, I'll still be using the EX Fletch for my son's Blazers anyway.

Thanks again!


----------



## agillator (Sep 11, 2011)

Chris-

You might want to check out the Spigarelli Spin Fletcher too. The tri-liner, in addition to having a base and three hinged arms also has six little red plastic bits you need to fit on the arms as well as a piece to mate your nock with the base. It is not the sort of device I would bring into the field. Though I have never seen one in the flesh, much less used one, the Spigarelli appears to have far fewer parts. 

In this thread there is a picture of Seattlepop using the Spigarelli to apply spin-wings (without even drawing a line).


----------



## icehaven (Nov 30, 2010)

agillator said:


> Chris-
> 
> You might want to check out the Spigarelli Spin Fletcher too. The tri-liner, in addition to having a base and three hinged arms also has six little red plastic bits you need to fit on the arms as well as a piece to mate your nock with the base. It is not the sort of device I would bring into the field. Though I have never seen one in the flesh, much less used one, the Spigarelli appears to have far fewer parts.
> 
> In this thread there is a picture of Seattlepop using the Spigarelli to apply spin-wings (without even drawing a line).


I have a spigarelli spin fletcher. so very hard to use. it doesn't adjust well to different sizes of arrows, and is essentially for x10's only. anything larger has a hard time getting inside. I would never recommend it to anyone. I have had multiple sets of arrows, a couple small a couple big, and i have yet to use the spigarelli fletcher. it's just so inconvenient. (also beware, the spigarelli spin fletcher only works with one size of spin wing)

On the other hand, i extremely recommend the beiter tri-liner. While it does have more parts that could get lost, it works on everything from x10's to large indoor arrows and you can draw longer lines for applying longer spin vanes (such as eli vanes). My club owns one and everyone uses it for spin wings. It also really helps to have the little red length indicators so that you can consistently mark the arrows (the tri-liner holds the arrow by the nock, while the spig spin fletcher holds it by squeezing the shaft. so you can never be sure the lines are the same on every shaft)


----------



## TexARC (Mar 5, 2003)

There are also X10 arrow wraps that have the lines as part of the wrap, works a treat and makes it very easy to replace a single vane without "stripping down" the shaft. Jason McKittrick used to make/sell them, I think he supplies/supplied Lancaster with the ones they sold/sell.

I also recommend the yellow/blue spinwing holders from Beiter. You can actually preload a taped vane in each, put them in your quiver pocket, and after a little practice using one, REPAIR an arrow ON THE LINE and continue shooting in mere seconds, if you are out of spare arrows. Each one has two little pegs to help you align the vane perfectly parallel, and you don't HAVE to perfectly 120 degrees from the others. And another little hint - If you are prone to clearance issues, you actually WANT to make a slightly bigger than 120 degrees gap so you can keep that broader gap closest to the plunger for a hint more clearance...


----------

