# How do you use an Arrow Straightener Correctly?



## salizex (Sep 10, 2003)

I'm reposting my question here. In the general area it got pushed down so fast I doubt anyone will get to it...

I've just bought a used arrow straightener and would appreciate any tips on how to best go about straightening aluminum arrows.

Thanks,

sam


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## GARedNeck (Sep 22, 2005)

Dont waste your time with it. You will never get the arrows as staight as they need to be. I tried one many, many years ago and it was a waste of time and money IMO.


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## PA.JAY (May 26, 2004)

i read on here somepeople have great success with them ! i guess you got to know what your doing.

TTT FOR YA!


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## shoff14 (May 2, 2005)

Arrow straightners do work. It really takes some time though and you have to learn to read the dial correctly. Aluminum has a high yeild point so you will have to remember to go past the 0 point as the arrow will creap back a lot. You can also read up on Griv's method he uses with new arrows. I have never did that though. You can look on his blog for it.


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## GARedNeck (Sep 22, 2005)

PA.JAY said:


> i read on here somepeople have great success with them ! i guess you got to know what your doing.
> 
> TTT FOR YA!


Well, obviously I didnt know what i was doing!!


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## PA.JAY (May 26, 2004)

calm down :thumbs_up patience is'nt one of my strong point either !
peace !


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## hooks (Mar 22, 2005)

GARedNeck said:


> Dont waste your time with it. You will never get the arrows as staight as they need to be. I tried one many, many years ago and it was a waste of time and money IMO.


Ditto.


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## AKDoug (Aug 27, 2003)

Before I started shooting carbons I straightened hundreds of dollars worth of aluminum arrows. It's really easy to do and I got great results. You simply find the high spot and press down. Not much to it, but the only way to learn is to do it.


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## karday (Aug 20, 2002)

Arrow straightening is somewhat of an art. Honestly I just learned my supports are movable. I have one I got years ago from Bowhunters Warehouse and had great success with it. If the arrow gets dented it will not fix it. Moving the arrow supports together will enhance the amount of bend effected witht he lever. This aircraft aluminum has a strong molecular memory so after straightening you will have to let it sit for 24 hours before checking again.

I tried to straighten a severely bent arrow and after 30 minutes I decided that it was better suited as a tomato stake. Minor bends no problem double bends are a science project. With the advent of carbon arrows which only exists in two states straight or broken, the straightening aluminum arrows has become a dying art. With accuracy getting tighter it is doubtful any one will shoot a straightened arrow in a competition. Unlikely a hunter will trust a trophy to a straightened arrow. Guess by default this means straighteners are a thing to check straighteness only not to restore it.


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## salizex (Sep 10, 2003)

Well, I have a straightener on the way and no way of returning it, and since GRIV and others still straighten their arrows I'm going to give it a shot, something productive to do while watching TV.

It does seem like it is a bit of an art to do this, which is why I was asking for some pointers.

Thanks for the advice.

Sam


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## dchan (Jun 29, 2004)

The price of used x7's is so low now I can't not buy them to use for the kids shooting. Take's me about 3-5 minutes to straighten slightly bent arrow. 

It's a lost art so much so that many shops I've been to lately don't even keep an arrow straightener around. Before the shop owner I used to go to retired I managed to aquire one of his Covy arrow straightener and use it almost exclusivly. I managed to find another one on ebay so now I have 2. I modified one so it works even better. I'll take a picture of my straightener and post it when I get a chance. It's not a dial indicator unit but It's fast and I can probably get most arrows straight enough that it won't put you out of the x ring at 30 yrds. With the compound the arrows still grouped in 2" groups at 40 yards.

It takes patience, a steady hand and good eyes but it's very satisfying to get an arrow straight.


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## dchan (Jun 29, 2004)

*duh..*

I posted the image to someone else before so all I needed to do was remember where it was.


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## stringshoota (Nov 28, 2004)

*straighten aluminum arrows*

Does any one take out the point insert and look down the inside of shaft to see spirals? If the arrow is bent you can see an imperfection in the consistansy of the spiral mark.Some times its tough to spin an arrow by blowing on feathers.This is just a quick test before you get back to a dial indicator.


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## DwayneR (Feb 23, 2004)

How to STraighten Arrows:

First of all...Find a GOOD arrow and get the correct reading from your meter on the diameter of the arrow. If it reads on the average of 24 (or whatever) that is the number you should shoot for. Realize you will NOT get 24 throughout the whole arrow... you will get 24 +- 3 or 4. (or maybe a little less).

1. Roll your arrow on a flat surface and see how *many* bends that you can see. A arrow will sometimes have 3,4, or 5 bends....(kinda like a twist with a bend). Find the BIGGEST bend, and take note of the "top" of the bend. (You can mark it with a erasable pencil if you want.

2. Note the "Length" of the bend. The two "set" plains will go at the end of each of the bends....If the bend is to big, then you will have to put the set plains about 2/3 the way up both sides of the bend.

3. If you notice, the "Meter" will have the Largest value at this point (if you twirl the arrow between the two Set plains. Squeeze or bend this part of the arrow past the "level" and allow the arrow to spring back into place. (This is the trick to straightening.)... You will get to know how much to "bend" after a few practices....

4. Twirl (rotate) the arrow (don't change the arrow in the set plains) in place.... You will see the meter go up and down. Twirl until you find the highest point, and press again. Do this until you have put the arrow back to the correct meter reading (which is the diameter of the arrow, which is the diameter of the arrow, nomatter where you twirl/rotate it). (like 24).

5. Roll the arrow on the table and find the second biggest bend and repeat steps 1-4.

6. Now the fine tune....place your Set Plains about 1/4 of the arrow apart. *NEVER* place the TIP of the arrow, or the pile on the rollers. Allow about 3/4 of a inch from either end of the arrow to hang over. Spin your arrow and do steps 3 - 4.

7. Scoot your arrow down 1/4 the way and do step 6, 3 more times.

8. Do step 7, with 1/3 of the arrow...


Realize that you will *never* get the arrows to have a perfect meter reading...But when you take it off the straightener... your arrows will roll just as flat as a whistle.... Nice and true...straight...And YES I will definitely use *MY* straighened arrows for *any* game out there.

I have straightened arrows that were like a bow...with more than 5 inches of bend in them. Some as much as 8 or 9 inches. The key to straightening, is to not overdo the bend, as to cause a "buckle". If a buckle happens (even a slight buckle) Toss the arrow. There is only one exception to this rule... If the buckle happens within the first couple of inches of the pile, then use your arrow for a squirrel arrow... and have fun....

Dwayne

PS: In time, you can skip many of these steps...I can usually straighen a arrow in about 3 to 5 min...That includes chatting, and helping others.

PPS: do NOT, (I say DO NOT) attempt to straighten ACC's and other Carb/Alum arrows... You can straighten them, but you cannot see the breaks that exist inside the shafts. I have taken ACC's, and given them a slight bend, to have them break in half at the point of the bend.


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## strcpy (Dec 13, 2003)

I straighten arrows all the time, can't see any difference in my scores, in fact with a little work many end up spinning better, according to the dial, than the arrows from the factory. I can, in a few minutes, usually get arrows back to the +-.003 to .006 down thier full length. I can't say if I'm particularly skilled at this or not, but I am capable of reading the dial and doing that little bit of math so I can tell if it is straight or not.

The little rollers are movable, I begin with them pretty far apart. I then place the arrow into the straightner as far to one side as possible and spin it finding the highest spot and press down on it. I then move the arrow an inch or so over and repeat until I get to the other end. I then shorten the space between the rollers and repeat until the arrow is straight. Usually takes a few passes and the rollers end up being a few inches apart, sometimes particular bend will take quite a bit of work.

Usually you will have a length of straight arrow, don't bend on it - just where the dial shows it is bent. Plus do not over bend on the arrow, the idea above is that the bend is more of an albow type bend and needs to be moved across the whole thing a little at a time. After doing a few you will start to get the hang of it and know when to move the rollers in, make another pass on the arrow, and how hard to push for the bend. Start with nice single bends in the middle of the arrow and work up to harder ones, sharp, close, bends in multiple planes can be VERY hard to straighten and end up taking moving the rollers around quite a bit.

I've seen many other techniques out there, as long as it ends up being straight and makes sense to you - do it. There is no right or wrong way as long as the arrow ends up straight.


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## DwayneR (Feb 23, 2004)

Hello strcpy,

S>>I straighten arrows all the time, can't see any difference in my scores, in fact with a little work many end up spinning better, according to the dial, than the arrows from the factory<<

Yep! I know what you mean! I will put my straightened arrows up against a factory arrows, anytime. I have placed them on a glass top table, and spun them right down the glass...not one bit of difference between it and factory arrows.

I used to shoot Alums, then I switched to Carbs. Now, I am back to Alums for good. Carbs are fine... don't get me wrong, but Alums are much more durable, easier to work with, and much safer in my books.

Dwayne (Yeah, I know.. the *old* die hard Alum archer..)


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