Trick arrow - How did someone do this?

[Eric Gustafson]

Now you might not beleive this, but I actually examined one years ago. I had taken a picture of it, but do not know what happened to that. The arrow shape was made of 1/4" x 3/4" pine. The ring around the shaft was made of copper. As I examined it, there were no signs that the wood had been split and reglued. No evidence that the wood had been compressed and then expanded. No deformation in the copper ring, it was perfectly round with no marks on it at all.

I never forgot this cause I wondered how it was done? Any one have any clue?

[Steven Beam]

i would say the ring was split then brazed back together and polished out to look seemless.

[Mike Golka]

The wood is steamed and then pushed through the ring. I've seen the same thing done with a glass bottle. A hole is drilled in both sides of a bottle and an arrow inserted through the bottle.

Mike

[Eric Gustafson]

i would say the ring was split then brazed back together and polished out to look seemless.

The ring was not polished. It was


The wood is steamed and then pushed through the ring. I've seen the same thing done with a glass bottle. A hole is drilled in both sides of a bottle and an arrow inserted through the bottle.

Mike

Perhaps this is how it was done, but the copper ring was just a piece of soft copper tubing that barely fit over the shaft. I would have thought it would have deformed the copper even if the wood was more pliable.

[David Epperson]

Mikes got it.
I did the same thing with acrylic. Heat to plastic state, compress, put through orifice, reheat to expand, final finish to resquare anything that took a permanent distortion. Not real difficult at all.

[David Epperson]

Perhaps this is how it was done, but the copper ring was just a piece of soft copper tubing that barely fit over the shaft. I would have thought it would have deformed the copper even if the wood was more pliable.
Quite possibly there was another ring outside the copper during the arrow insertion. Similar to a shaft collar, removed later.

[David G Baker]

Have you ever tied a pencil into a knot using steam? It is amazing what can be done to wood with steam.

[Eric DeSilva]

The immediate thought that occurred to me was flatten the ring--make it into an oval--it would have the same cross-sectional area, but would be the same width, so a lot longer. Then, slide arrow in, and work the ring back to round. If the pine is 1/4" by 3/4", then the front "cross section" has an area of 3/16 sq in., = 0.1875 sq in. A ring with a 1/4" radius has cross section larger than that. So, if you had a 1/2" diameter ring, you would have 1/8" of play on both sides, which should look pretty tight...

[jason lambert]

Put the ring around a small tree wait 100 years for it to grow cut the section and chisel away the wood ;)

Sorry, Had to say it.

[David Epperson]

I think you mean perimeter, the cross sectional areas don't vary linearly, perimeter does. But otherwise correct. A 1/4 x 3/4 arrow "head" would have perimeter of 2" (Without steaming and compressing it) so the smallest copper circle that could be formed to fit over it would be larger than 2"/Pi -or about 11/16" inside diameter.


One other thing is that copper has a fairly large coefficient of thermal expansion. So getting the copper hot and allowing it to expand will also help in the accomplishment.

[David Epperson]

Put the ring around a small tree wait 100 years for it to grow cut the section and chisel away the wood ;)

Sorry, Had to say it.

Put it around a limb shoot and you won't have to wait as long. :D

[mike holden]

Okay,
Saw this in a book of tricks to do with wood.
Soak the wood in water over night, compress the arrowhead in a vise, drop the collar over the arrowhead, and give it a day or two to uncompress and dry.
A few swipes with a plane to remove the vise marks and Voila!

The book had it going through a bottle, but any hole smaller than the arrowhead will do, although there must be some lower limit.

Mike

[Jon Lanier]

The tip of the arrow is boiled in water.... then compressed in a vise over nite. Next day put the arrow threw the copper. Re-boil the tip of the arrow and sand enough to take away any appearance of the boiling.

I did the same for this pencil trick. Except I boiled the end of the wood, Compressed it over nite, drilled hole, put pencil in... re-boiled end to expand... sand.

[Chris Yarish]

The tip of the arrow is boiled in water.... then compressed in a vise over nite. Next day put the arrow threw the copper. Re-boil the tip of the arrow and sand enough to take away any appearance of the boiling.

I did the same for this pencil trick. Except I boiled the end of the wood, Compressed it over nite, drilled hole, put pencil in... re-boiled end to expand... sand.

What kind of wood did you use for the pencil trick?
When you say "boiled in water"....did you submerge the whole block, or just the to-be-compressed end? How long do you boil it?

[Eric DeSilva]

I think you mean perimeter, the cross sectional areas don't vary linearly, perimeter does. But otherwise correct. A 1/4 x 3/4 arrow "head" would have perimeter of 2" (Without steaming and compressing it) so the smallest copper circle that could be formed to fit over it would be larger than 2"/Pi -or about 11/16" inside diameter.

D'oh! Of course. To think, I was a mathematics major. Must remember, think more, type less...

[Lee Schierer]

Here's another variation of the arrow through something.

http://www.puzzleworld.org/PuzzleWorld/puz/img/arrow_through_apple_1.jpg

[Al Killian]

Take a paice of wood and steam it. Next press it in the vise and let it set for a fes hours. This way the wood will hold it shape. After it is thru you can resteam it and the wood will return to its oringnal shape.