Make Your Own Arrow Case in 4 Steps

On long-distance hunts and regular jaunts to my local deer woods, I like to have plenty of practice and backup arrows at hand. To keep them organized and safe from damage, I built an inexpensive tube that will handle the roughest ride in the back of the truck, as well as the worst that any airline baggage handler can throw at it. Here’s how to build your own:

1. Buy a 3-foot length of 3-inch-diameter schedule 40 PVC sewer pipe with a flared end from the plumbing section of your local hardware store. Get one basic end cap for the bottom of your arrow tube and one threaded cap (with cleanout adapter) to fit on the flared, top end, which will provide the opening for loading and unloading your arrows.

1. Next, visit your archery shop and ask for a pair of the foam placeholder disks that arrow companies use to ship arrows. Your shafts will fit perfectly into the disk’s round slots (see above), and the disks fit perfectly inside the PVC tube. If your shop pro doesn’t have any, the local hobby store should have foam disks you can cut slots into with an X-Acto knife.

3. Measure your arrows and cut the PVC tube to accept them, with 3 inches to spare. The easiest way is to align the point of the arrow with the flared end of the pipe, add 3 inches, and then make the cut. The best way to ensure a square cut is to use an electric miter saw, but a hacksaw will do the job.

4. Sand the rough cut edge with 120-grit paper until smooth, and clean off any debris. Glue on the end cap with PVC cement, then slide your shafts (held by two foam disks) into your new arrow tube. Finally, screw on the threaded end cap—which renders your holder waterproof—and you’re ready for anything.

Adding It Up
Here’s what I paid: Three-foot section of schedule 40 PVC pipe, $3.79; regular end cap, $2.29; threaded end cap (with adapter), $6.28; PVC cement, $2.97.
Total: $15.33 plus tax.

Illustrations by Steve Sanford.