How to Know If a Branch Is Good for a Bow & Arrow?

Make a homemade bow and arrow to introduce youngsters to archery and wilderness survival skills. Showing them how to bend the branch to make a simple bow, string the bow and nock arrows gets the youngsters into the project with a hands-on approach. To make the bow a snappy and useful tool, use branches that have spring and bend. If you use a dead branch, it will snap before the arrow is even halfway drawn. A small branch provides little propulsion.

Instructions

    • 1

      Seek out young trees and saplings and find a branch between 1/2 and 3/4 inches in diameter. East coasters should search for yew, ash, or hickory. Westerners should look for young mahogany, ash and willow. If you are not sure how to identify these trees, use a good guide book such as the Audubon field guides or the Peterson guides (available in Eastern and Western Forest copies.)

    • 2

      Cut a branch approximately 5 1/2 feet in length. A green branch, from a living sapling or young tree and between 1/2 and 3/4 inches in diameter, will work best.. The key here is to use green branches that have bend and pliability to them.

    • 3

      Locate straight branches that are between 1/4 and 1/3 inches in diameter to use for the arrows. Cut the branches for arrows at 3 to 4 feet in length. Ideally, you want branches that have no taper, keeping a consistent diameter all the way down the shaft. Hardwoods are the best for arrows. Find green branches. Dead branches may shatter or snap upon impact with the targets. Use green branches such as willows or ash.

    • 4

      Scrape the bark off both the bow and arrow branches. Don't peel the bark off like you would with vegetables. Instead, shave it off with a sharp knife and draw the blade slowly up toward you, shaving the bark off the branches. As you peel the bark off, look for moisture under the bark and a fresh "green" scent. This indicates a good branch for the bow and arrows.