Converting an Arrow for Fishing

Since I was unable to find a fishing arrow locally I decided that I would make one myself. I headed off to YouTube and watched a ton of great videos but one that really stood out for me was from Dave Canterbury’s Pathfinder School.  He has a load of excellent videos and a great way of teaching that just works for me and makes it easy to learn. Thanks Dave!

Converting an arrow for fishing, in theory, is an easy enough project to get yourself involved in. As an added bonus, a person doesn’t require any special tools or skills to be able to pull this off! Let’s look at what you WILL need.

1) an old arrow, preferably with a removable tip but use what you have.

2) a large safety or diaper pin, remember in this case, size matters.

3) a pair of wire cutters, most pliers have them built in or even sturdy scissors would do it.

4) a swivel from the tackle box, not huge but not tiny either … be reasonable here folks.

5) some sturdy string or fishing line, I used some old 20 LB line I had sitting around.

6) depending how good you are with knots you may want some sturdy tape.

Now, let’s take a look at what we are trying to achieve here. Basically the line to the reel, connected to our swivel, needs to be able to move freely up and down the shaft of the arrow while not coming off at either end. The tip of the arrow needs to travel through the target in one direction but not the other. Seems simple enough.

Take one end of your string or fishing line and tie it securely in place at one end of your arrow shaft. If you’re not good with knots, this is where the tape comes in. After making sure one end is firmly attached to the arrow slip your swivel onto the line and slide it out of the way. Securely tie, or tie and tape, the line to the other end of your arrow avoiding any twist if possible. Double check to see that the swivel will now move freely along the length of the arrow shaft following the guide line.

Next, open your large safety pin and use your wire cutters to remove the tip and hood portions. Remove the tip from your arrow and thread it through the hole on the end of your cut safety pin. It may be a little tight but simply pressing outward on the points of the pin should open it enough to allow it to fit onto the arrow tip. Once the pin is on, simply thread the tip back onto the arrow shaft and gently bend the tips of the pin towards the back of the arrow. The pin will press closed as it passes through the target and reopen when it reaches the other side.

In theory, your fishing arrow is now ready to go!

If you want to see my quick video for this project Click Here!

Good luck and happy bow fishing to you!

JT Bear.