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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Greetings All,<BR><BR>Recently a few folks have had
their combat arrows fail inspection because<BR>their shafts were too long.
This has prompted several people to ask the<BR>question of "How exactly are the
length of combat arrows measured?"</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>When we look to the SCA Missile Combat Rules for
the answer we find:</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><EM>"Maximum allowable draw length (bottom of the
nock slot to just behind </EM></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><EM>the blunt) is 28 inches."</EM></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Most people can understand <EM>"28 inches"</EM> and
the <EM>"bottom of the nock slot"</EM> is pretty clear but the point that people
seem to have trouble finding is <EM>"just behind the blunt". </EM>Where
does the blunt end and the shaft begin? </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>For manufactured blunts like Thistle Missiles or
Baldar Blunts this isn't a problem but for modified Markland styles of arrows
like the Ansteorran War Quarrels or UHMW cored blunts it isn't quite so
simple. Does the blunt end at the rigid stop inside the blunt or can we
allow for the sloping tape or cone behind the rigid stop? </DIV>
<DIV><BR>When the Society Archery Marshal, Sir Jon Fitz Rauf, introduced and
approved UHMW cored blunts on Fiberglass shafts he wrote:</DIV>
<DIV><BR><EM>"The maximum draw length of the arrow is twenty eight inches from
the bottom<BR>of the nock slot to the bottom of the blunt. But your shaft will
be longer<BR>than that, by the length of the shaft that is inside the blunt and
whatever<BR>extra taping may be at the base of it, as well as the length of
shaft in the<BR>nock."</EM></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>The text makes it pretty clear that we are allowed to account for the
sloping tape or cones behind the blunt when accounting for shaft length.
Be reasonable. Don't run some alternate colored tape 10 inches up the
shaft and try to count that as the "extra tape behind the blunt".
Once the acute angle of the tape behind the blunt has ended and/or the overall
diameter of the shaft+tape is a half-inch or less start
measuring. <BR> </DIV></FONT>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><IMG alt="" hspace=0
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<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>As Sir Jon's text mentioned your actual shaft is likely going to be a
little longer than 28 inches. A Classic Baldar Blunt has about 1.25" of
shaft inside the blunt. For UHMW cored blunts you are going to have at
least 0.5" of shaft inside the UHMW core and probably another 0.5" or 0.75" of
sloping tape behind the blunt. However, when you glue on a nock or an
Asgard APD you are going to add about 0.25" to the length even if they are fully
seated.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>When constructing your arrows make sure your double-check the length to
assure that they will pass inspection.<BR></DIV>
<DIV>In Service,<BR><BR>HL Eadric Anstapa<BR>Kingdom Archery Marshal,
Ansteorra<BR></FONT><A href="mailto:archery_marshal@ansteorra.org"><FONT
face=Arial
size=2>archery_marshal@ansteorra.org</FONT></A><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR></DIV></BODY></HTML>