Fletching 1/72 Scale Arrows

17Feb
by patmcf

Well my fine followers I just have time to post my last blog from good old Melbourne town before I depart for the country in a few days.

In between the entire hullabaloo that’s goes with moving house I was only able to finish some figure painting of the last guys and girls to go onto the next Fantasy diorama.  I was going to post some photos but after lining up some four hundred or so figures, not one box but both boxes fell off the shelf!! You can imagine how jumbled they ended up, so I packed them up as they were and decided to fix them up at the other end!

After that mishap we were put in lockdown again due to the virus and the planned excursions were shot down.  Over here you can’t go out unless you need food or medicine, oh and for some strange reason booze! What to do eh!

In the meantime, I had left out some material to make arrows however one problem is that when you do figures with bows you are going to need arrows.  Well I tried to make my own, but cutting your own fletches is not easy.  Luckily I did find some fellow who laser cuts them with a little tag so I tried them out on the last castle extension that had the archers at the butts and they worked really well.  So I put them on my Xmas list and the good wife gave me six sets.

So it was off to fletching I went, it’s a bit fiddly and not that exciting so what do you do when you fletch?  Bingo, you listen to IRO’s podcasts of course, and with the Tech Advisor back with us, I was able to get her to rig me up and so away I went.  I have to say it was a great idea.  I would imagine most of you have been doing so for the last year, just call me slow, but if you haven’t, its interesting and sometimes very funny, so try it out folks, you won’t be disappointed.

Well I have posted some photos of my fletching that may be of interest to anyone that may wish to use these little 1/72 scale arrows. Each set contains enough fletches to make twenty arrows and a length of copper wire; I must say I haven’t used the wire as I prefer to stick them on half ml steel wire rods, painted and cut to 12 ml lengths (that’s roughly the length of the arrows on the figures).  I use tweezers and super glue to stick them on and with a steady hand and practice its gets pretty easy.

Anyway thanks to you all for you best wishes during the move and hopefully I can settle in, set myself up and whip up the next dio! And do my first post from the countryside. Until then keep safe folks.

43 thoughts on “Fletching 1/72 Scale Arrows”

  1. imperialrebelork

    Wow mate fiddly work right there. Pity we didn’t get a chance for a catch up before you take off to the country. I envy you mate. My end plan is to move as far away from people as possible haha. I like people but on my terms. Thanks for the shout out too mate and I’m glad you’re enjoying the show.

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  2. theimperfectmodeller

    Nice work on the Fletching Pat and I hope the move goes well for you all. IRO’s podcast is fun and he is very good at it but probably best we keep that to ourselves 😉. Safe trip mate and hopefully Tech Advisor will get you wired up at the new place as soon as possible. 🙂

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  5. Dave Stone

    Interesting way of doing arrows and as you say Pat a lot quicker than making your own. Hope when you unpack the boxes there is not too much damage ( guessing the air was blue by the above comment !)
    Hope the move goes well and this lockdown doesn’t slow up the proceedings too much.
    IRO’s podcasts are great but I find when I put them on, I get no work done as I’m too intently listening ! LOl

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    1. patmcf

      Thanks Dave, Wasn’t impressed but I feel that’s what happens to us all , and like all good modellers we laugh or swear and except it as our lot . IRO ‘s pod do have that effect don’t they , lucky I wasn’t able to connect to them while I was still gainfully employed😉. They have lifted the lockdown as from tomorrow so it looks like clear sailing from here on mate , so fingers crossed all will go well and I will be see able to add to the teams interesting posts, cheers mate !

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  8. John@justneedsvarnish

    Nice work on the arrows, Pat! 🙂 I think my fingers are a bit too clumsy to try them though! Here’s hoping the move goes OK and your soon blogging from the new place! One of the reasons I don’t listen to any podcasts is that I’d never get anything done while trying to listen intently (I just can’t multi-task)!

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    1. patmcf

      Thanks John I am fortunate to have small fingers 🤣🤣and yep it will be good to settle in and get back to bogging some more. It’s funny that , I can listen to the blog but can’t have a radio going 🤔.

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  9. Marvin

    Fleching arrows? Crazy stuff at that scale – I’d struggle to handle the idea of just the arrow shafts – far too fiddly! I don’t know how you’ve done it but it looks great.

    And did I see some gnomes…? 🤔

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    1. patmcf

      I think it’s called insane perseverance 😅😅😅no mate it’s not as hard as it looks , the guy that designed them was clever enough to leave a wing on the so you are able to attach them quite easily. I suppose that’s the price I have had to pay for straying so far from my original Nappy theme🤔😉🤓

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  13. Mark A. Morin

    Safe travels Pat and wonderful detail to see on those arrows. Looking forward to seeing your dio with that much detail. Glad you at least have IRO’s podcast to keep ya sane – plus booze of course. I just thought – that means you’ve actually now heard my Massachusetts accent if you heard my interview back a ways!

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  15. Azazel

    Best of luck on the move Pat – and the recovery of the boxes as well! 😡
    As IRO said, a shame we never got to catch up before you left, but 2020 just keeps on going, doesn’t it? And fletching on those tiny arrows? You’re truly a madman! 🙂

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    1. patmcf

      Thanks mate , yep the old virus had certainly put things on a head , this time last year I was planning my 65th now I have cancelled my fairwell/66th😡but I consider these only minor compared with the horrors some have suffered. You are right only some one mad would spend his time fletching on 1/72 scale 😅😅😅

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  16. Kuribo

    The arrows look great and they always say that making things from scratch is best so I’m sure you’ll be glad you put the effort in. I hope the move goes well and the lockdown doesn’t prove to be too much of an inconvenience. What a crazy world we’re living in!

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  17. Ann

    That is a nice detail going to all of that effort on the arrows. I’ve seen many miniatures where there is an archer pulling back their bow and there is no arrow in it at all. Your archers not only have arrows but extra swanky fletching too! I think in games the formation should get a +1 or something for either being elite or having magic arrows, depending upon the game.

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      1. Ann

        When you are done with all of those archers, like the mighty Spartans of old your opponents will say when you unleash your clouds of properly fletched arrows, “Then we’ll fight in the shade!”

        Unlike the mighty Spartans of old, your opponents (of course) will be full of false bravado and will secretly take a -1 check to their morale saves….

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