Self nocks

daryush · Post by **daryush** » Mon Apr 13, 2009 9:01 pm

Hi all

I'm looking into custom arrows for a horsebow (fibreglass). Does anyone know if you can use self nocks whilst riding? I would have thought it would be pretty much impossible as the arrows would keep falling off, but I might be wrong.

Also is there a speed advantage with self nocks as compared with clip-on plastic ones?

Thanks!

jonR · Post by **jonR** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 2:07 am

Only cut the nocks a shave more than string size and a lttle deeper.
Jon R.

Stephen Selby · Post by **Stephen Selby** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 3:53 am

No problem. Make sure the nock has a slight bulb profile on the outside so that the forefinger will draw it back with the string. While riding, create some tension against the string with the bow-hand forefinger and middle finger before drawing.

A tight fit of the nock on the string is not a good thing. If the arrow hangs on the string, it should be possible to make it fall with a light tap.

Bede · Post by **Bede** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 6:13 am

Most Manchu arrows I have seen have self nocks.

Chaka Zulu · Post by **Chaka Zulu** » Sun Sep 20, 2009 8:56 pm

I understand that some of the horse archers who conquered half the known world managed without plastic nocks...

Patrick Menzies · Post by **Patrick Menzies** » Mon Sep 21, 2009 5:45 pm

I think he meant more the capacity of the arrow to snap onto the string somewhat. Certainly some horse archery nocks were designed to snap on.
It is easy enough to make self nocks that can snap on.
Just dip the very tips of your nocks in waterproof glue and build a bead on each side. When it dries it will snap perfectly onto your string and let you have the benefits of a commercial nock.

Peter Dekker · Post by **Peter Dekker** » Thu Oct 01, 2009 10:43 am

I share Bede's observations that most Manchu arrows, even those of the emperor, had pretty simple self-nocks.

Some paintings show nocks that slightly grip the arrow. This can be relatively easily done by drilling a hole in the arrowshaft where the bottom of the nock will be when looking at the arrow tip-down. One can then use a fine saw, such as those Japanese saws, to cut the nock. A file can finish it to a nock that only very lightly grips the arrow.

When applying pressure to the side with the index finger, be sure to wrap the self-nock with something or it may split, especially with the relatively thin shafts we use nowadays. Chinese arrows often reinforce the nock with bark, raw-silk taken directly from the cocoon or ray-skin for this purpose. I've tried birch-bark, it looks nice but it is not strong enough for this purpose.

Many military arrows didn't have any wrapping, but they are huge and probable the sheer thickness of the nock end kept it together even under pressure. The strings are so thick (often 5-6 mm) that they couldn't split the nock either.

-Peter

Bede · Post by **Bede** » Fri Oct 02, 2009 1:22 am

With the exception of Turkish arrows, all the old Asian arrows I have examined had straight sided nocks. The clip-on properties of Turkish nocks were probably, in my experience, more important for use with the siper rather than on horseback. It should also be pointed out again that they did not fit the string tightly like modern plastic clip on nocks.

It is a modern myth that the arrows used by horse archers clipped onto the string, except for the Ottoman Turks. A good fit on the string with a straight-sided nock with slightly bulbous sides will be sufficient for most horse archery.

Lord Ruthven · Post by **Lord Ruthven** » Fri Oct 02, 2009 5:52 am

Hello all

Peter Dekker wrote:Some paintings show nocks that slightly grip the arrow. This can be relatively easily done by drilling a hole in the arrowshaft where the bottom of the nock will be when looking at the arrow tip-down. One can then use a fine saw, such as those Japanese saws, to cut the nock. A file can finish it to a nock that only very lightly grips the arrow.

This is exactly what I am doing with my arrows. I then make a bandage with sinew or linen thread just below the nock. Until now, not a single nock has splitted.
For shafts I use pine, 9 mm in diameter with nock area which expands to 10 mm.

Alexander