How to win fish and influence wildlife, attachment of the AH-1 arrowhead.

shotgunner11

shotgunner11

Joined
Dec 17, 2005
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I've been spending quite a bit of time with the AH-1 arrowhead as of late and I've tried quite a few different methods to attach it to a spear. After quite a few failed attempts I landed on a system that seems to do a pretty good job of securing it with as little as possible in the way of work and resources.

So here we go:::

Here's the tools I used.

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Of course, my sapling is only 4 inches long for demonstration purposes but you get the point.

First, you'll need your sapling. I tried a few different sizes and lengths and came to the conclusion that a thumb thick trunk seems to be the best compromise between strength, weight and availability.

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Next is to put a notch into the point end of your shaft right across the center. For this I used my Leatherman saw. I also used SAK saws which work a bit faster at this as they're thicker. I like to make the slot slightly narrower than the thickness of the AH-1 to allow a tight fit.

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I like to make this slot deep enough so the ass on the Izula ant is right at the tip of the spear. That gives you plenty of meat for attachment but still leaves the prongs of the arrowhead well exposed to act as hooks.

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Next up is the most important part. I use a few twigs, slightly thicker than the width of the slot on either side of the arrowhead shaft. I cut a slight angle at the end of these that interface with the "nubs" at the bottom of the shaft of the arrowhead. A picture is worth a thousand words.

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Once the sticks are firmly set into the slots on either side of the arrowhead, you can begin wrapping. Ths can be done any number of ways but this one has worked for me. I used paracord guts and or fishing string bith with good results.

Through the hole in the arrowhead and make a loop to one side.

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The loose end forms a tag end and the bottom of the loop needs to be exposed after you finish your wrap (you'll see!)

Continued...
 
you then take your long end and wrap to your hearts content. Make sure its nice and tight.

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(piss poor wrap for illustration purposes only). Then pass the end of your wrap through the loop you left exposed at the base of your wrap and pull on the tag end you left exposed at the point end to pull your wrap end under all the wrapping. You can then trim off the excess to make it nice and neat.

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Last thing to do is to trim the twigs flush as to leave as much room as possible for the hooked ends to do their job and you have a completed spear.

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I've yet to have one of these come apart on me due to the tightness of the wrapping, the slots in the twigs that grip the "nubs" and the loop of string through the hole as a secondary retention method "just in case".

Good luck out there! The frogs tremble in fear now when they hear me coming.:D
 
That is looking allot better then my try :thumbup:.
I`ll think i will give this method a shot this weekend! Thanks allot Mike!
 
That's a really great idea of using the small twigs against the butt of the shaft to secure it!

One idea I had mentioned when the AH-1s were first introduced was to have a bigger "T" at the bottom of the arrow, almost like a push-dagger style. I think it would give a lot more grip to the head if you're using it as a striker, or it allows for better security when binding it as a spear.
 
lazerboy2000 said:
That's a really great idea of using the small twigs against the butt of the shaft to secure it!

One idea I had mentioned when the AH-1s were first introduced was to have a bigger "T" at the bottom of the arrow, almost like a push-dagger style. I think it would give a lot more grip to the head if you're using it as a striker, or it allows for better security when binding it as a spear.
Click to expand...

Agreed, then again that concept isn't new-it's been used on flint, obsidian and glass arrowheads and spearpoints for millenia.
 
lazerboy2000 said:
One idea I had mentioned when the AH-1s were first introduced was to have a bigger "T" at the bottom of the arrow, almost like a push-dagger style. I think it would give a lot more grip to the head if you're using it as a striker, or it allows for better security when binding it as a spear.
Click to expand...

That would work well in this particular application but if you wanted to use it as a true arrowhead, with a skinny shaft, the protrusions would get in the way.
 
Wow....looks good! I haven't had a chance to order some of these yet but I will have to refer back to this thread when I do get them! Thanks for posting!
 
You could use some sort of traveling knot and insert a "twist stick" to ratchet it down a bit, too - might be easier on the hands!
 
I think I'm going to have to get one of these. Seems like a lot of fun to mess around with. Plus it's so small you could pack it with your gear, and I am sure the day would come when you'd be glad you did.
 
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