RE: Arrow building...
 

I just cut my first 2 carbonsa few nights ago. I got tired of ordering cut shafts that aren't straight.

Cut 1" off of both ends then spun the arrow to see if either end wobbled. If the nock end wobbled I cut another 1"and check for wobble. If no wobble I did my finish length (28.25") offof the insert end. I then wrapped and fletched then and both arrows spin better than any of the ones I ordered. Yes, it's took a little longer to do that but at least I know I have good arrows. I then used the G5 tool which is well worth the money.

I've been using Goat Tuff for inserts since the beginning of the year. You do not have a lot of time to push the insert in like you do the longer setting epoxy. However, you can shoot the arrows soon after the inserts are put in.

RE: Arrow building...
 

When cutting the arrows, how long should the shaft from the broadhead to the rest? Is one inch normal?

RE: Arrow building...
 

LOL Roscoe, I ran a lathe in my younger years, it would work good though

RE: Arrow building...
 

There would be a minimum distance that you could have the broadhead from the rest and that would be for safety reasons. But, as far as I am concerned, there really is no maximum distance the broadhead should be from the rest (within reason). The length of your shaft should be determined by what you are trying to do with the arrow. Right now I am shooting an arrow with a shaft length of 30", the overall arrow with fieldtip is 31 1/4". When I put a Muzzy Phantom broadhead on it, it gets a little longer. The length helps balance out the spine stiffness so that the arrow shoots correctly out of my rig. I could have used an arrow with a weaker spine and it would have ended up being shorter but then I couldn't have achieved the weight and FOC that I was looking for.

Before making an arrow you should have an idea of the tip weight that you want to use, the fletching you want to use, the total arrow weight you are trying to achieve and the FOC you are trying to achieve. Then, depending on the draw weight you will be using you buy a shaft with a spine that is close and cut it to the proper length. Put the arrow together and it should shoot relatively well and then you can make minor adjustments (raise/lower the rest, increase/decrease the DW)to your rig to compensate for the variables in the arrow.

There is probably stuff I left out and hopefully others will chime in.

RE: Arrow building...
 

brucelanthier has pretty much summed up what you want to do. Arrow length is a tuning factor. Doing what the typical person does - cut as short as they dare shoot with a broadhead - you eliminate the opportunity to use arrow length to fine tune the spine, FOC or total arrow weight of your arrows. Without using arrow length adjustments, you make it much more difficult to get that perfect flying broadhead.

My drawlength is a bit under 29" and although I have shot a few arrows in the 28" range, but most end up between 30" and 32" in length, depending on what I needed to get the spine exactly where I wanted it.