Hey Guys and Gals,

Just acquired a JO JAN arrow fletcher for $45.00. Does anyone know anything about these? I am going to start fletching up some arrows soon. Do you all have any lessons learned tips and tricks with this specific jig? Is it right or left helicoiled? Thanks for any help.

apply teflon tape ... 3-Rivers last time I looked.

That looks like Right Helical, I shoot left and just looked at one of my arrows. I bought one off the auction site years ago, it was OK. I sold it and wound up with 3 Bitz's, and when I quit gluing and started taping I sold two of those.

That one you have is left helical.

The bottom part where the nock goes is adjustable for 3 and 4 fletching (just look at the indents).

Place some type of tape on the blades of the clamps so if by chance glue builds up you can tear it off. Also, on the tape mark [with a marker or something] where you would place the feather.

To set it up, place an arrow in the jig with a feather on the clamp. Unscrew to wing nuts just enough to get left and right movement. Place the clamp in the jig on the arrow and adjust left and right accordingly so the base of the feather is flat against the shaft. When you do that, tighten the wing nuts and mark that location with a marker.

Also, mark each clamp for its slot (clamp 1 for the first slot, etc).

The hardest part is setting it up to the appropriate adjustments. After that, just place the glue or tape on the base of the feather, attach it to the shaft, let it settle for a bit then rotate and repeat.

Also, it's cheaper to buy a complete new rig of clamps rather than 6 separate clamps.

Enjoy.

I rub some vasoline on the parts of the clamps that touch the fletching bases. Keeps the glue from sticking. Also, measure out and draw a little mark on the clamps where the nock end of the fletch will go. Keeps everything consistent.

Oops....correction right helical.

Have several and they work fine for adjusting to fat and skinny shafts. I mark the clamps on a very old one for different types of arrows where I want the back of the feather. They can be slow to set up, or I'm slow, so take your time initially, but once set, they are great for fletching half a dozen at one time. Just need to be sure to check your feather touching the shaft uniformly when gluing, but this is the case for all fletchers. Good luck - I bet you will like it.

With feathers I donot push the quill all the way down to edge of clamp. Let the weight of clamp do that when you put clamp into jig. I also marked the clamps 1- 6. Also I marked the clamp where the back of feather goes. Keeps things even up. JoJan has a website, I believe instructions for jigs are there.

Fletching helical on the 'slim' arrows such as Easton axis is difficult. On Axis type arrows I have better luck using the straight fletch clamp offset slightly to give you the helical spin. Also I smear some snow-seal on clamp edges to prevent glue from sticking to clamp. JMO. Newt

When your setting up fletcher only glue up one feather at first. Then take it out and see that you like it. Then have at it. Also don't forget to add a drop of glue to each end of quill on finished arrows. Do you know how to properly prep shafts before fletching?

It is right helical.

I apply was on the lower part of the clamp ( inside, outside, edge) to keep glue from stick to clamp. Neutral shoe polish/ was, butcher's was, or rub a candle on it.

There are two adjustments to it. A front and back screw, which allows you to put the amount of offset/helical on the fletching. You don't need a lot of helical/offset. Put an RH feather in a clamp ( no glue), and a shaft in the jig. Set your initial adjustment so you have both the front and back edge of the glue-able edge of the feather fully in contact with the shaft. If in doubt, go a bit on the conservative/"less offset"/"less helical" side. Tighten your front/back slide screws. Done.

After set up, consistency is the key. Make sure all the rear ends of the feathers are at the same mark (there is a notch on the jig as a universal set point). I place the feather so it is just past the notch, then I use my thumbnail so slide it up to that notch.

When placing the shaft, make sure it is seated fully into the nock. If it is not, your feather placement will be off front/back a bit.

Make sure all six insert are the same, and placed properly. Insert one way, and you index with 3 positions. Pull out and place 180 degrees, and you index 4 positions. Probably want to start with 3 position indexing.

I usually start with the cock feather as first to glue on. I set the shaft position in the jig so I can see the arrow specs as I look at the cock feather ( ie "2016"). This is just my personal preference. For uniformity and ID.

Gluing. I use Saunders NPV or Fletch-tite platinum (no, I haven't had any issues with it). A drop about 1/4" from front and back of quill, then drag spread across the edge to get full, light glue coverage. Place clamp ( double check shaft /nock is fully seated into indexing bushing-but don't pop out index button by pushing too hard).

I cast bullets. I have lead ingots from a Lee ingot mold that makes 1 lb and 1/2 lbs ingots. I place a 1/2 lbs ingot between the clamp fingers for more weight. That's just me.

Get all six feathers done, let set 30 min or so, and remove clamps, rotate shafts, and repeat.

I number my clamp to the jig with a Sharpie permanent marker (1-2-3-4-5-6 on clamps, AND jig position) for uniformity.

I like to load all six feathers in the clamps first, getting the front-back position all set. By placing the feathers in the clamps first, your glue tube flow stays fresher, compared to feather clamp- then glue. That's just my preference.

I like using my multi-Jojan. Just don't need max helical/ offset (focus on full base contact to shaft for100% glue contact, and keep nocks fully seated in the index bushing).

It is enjoyable. You'll come up with your own preferences as you use it.

after placing clamp w/feather loaded on jig use exacto knife point to push feather tight against shaft... no air space between feather and shaft

"was" should be "wax"

We need edit option

I do all of what is said above, and the last thing is what Dale said above insures a perfect seated quill.

I had a set up like that and sold it and bought a Bitz set up with 6 jiggs, but i actually got just as good results with the Jo- Jan and they are a lot cheaper.

Good advice above. I have used my Jo Jan for about 35 years at least. I put a small number 1-6 on my arrows near the nock to match the number of the clamp it was fletched on. I have found that it helps when I need to replace a feather to use the same jig slot.

If you need wax or Teflon tape on you clamps, your USING WAY TOO MUCH GLUE !!!!!

Bob

I have one with straight clamps. I have it set up with slight offset, wax the clamps and it works well for vanes on arrows I shoot with my compound. I have a Bitz set up with right helical I use for feathers on arrows I use with my trad bows.

I actually prefer the JoJan. One thing I have found helpful is to file a small notch on the clamp where the end of the feather goes, so I can get it in the same place every time. As you are placing the feather on the shaft, apply slight pressure to the clamp to insure that it is seated firmly.

There’s some good advice here - much of which I really needed!

I’m new to this myself and still learning, so maybe someone will point out a fundamental error in my process.... But when it comes to setting up for right/left.... I definitely do better by ignoring everything except how well I can get the curve of the clamp to match the shape of the shaft. That may leave me with more offset than is at all necessary, but I’m willing to put up with that as long as I get that whole quill seated properly.

You’re probably lucky to have 6 matched clamps - I traded for mine and ended up with a Clamp Salad - which is GREAT, because I can work with any feather that I happen to get a deal on, but also a Right Royal Pain in the Arse, because I can’t just set it up once and forget about it… Not that I really could anyway, because of 2 kinds of carbons and probably 3 sizes of aluminum and two or three sizes of wood .....

So now I’m thinking that it would be really smart of me to be sure to set up some index marks for each shaft diameter that I’m working with.... and also to fletch up a lot more shafts at any one sitting

One of the reasons I dislike the Jo-Jan is because it has WAY too much helical in the clamp. On woods or large size aluminum your probably OK, but smaller diameter shafts will be a problem. Granted I haven't use a Jo-Jan in 40+ years but I'm sure that is one of the reasons I sold mine. Another dislike is the way the jig is built the top of the clamp has a way of lifting up while the glue is drying, because gravity is what holds the clamp in place on the shaft and all the weight shifts to the lower portion of the clamp.

Bob

I use mine very little. All good advice. Bob is right about the top of the clamp lifting, thus not putting uniform pressure on the feather. I solved that by using pins. Once I saw it lift, I put a pin between the clamp and the quill. It Pushed it down to hold until glue dried. Bob also is right about too much helical-there is a feather ball flying-slowly-down range Compared to other fletching combinations. I saw an old arrow in the local Archery shop where the fletch was helical to the max, but the fletch was less than half inch-don’t know how it worked

What tape works best? Seems like some tapes will stick more than metal and you’ll want to clean the residue off when you change the tape. I’m guilty of using too much glue on mine.

I use two jo-jans, one for left wing and one for right wing, I have them set up the same. They are simple to use with a few things to watch for.To get the quill laying flat on 1918s, I have the top bracket slid about a 3/4 quill's width to get the feather to catch air to the left on the top for left wing, to the right for right wing. I have the bottom receiver bracket set about the same to the right for left wing and to the left for my right wing fletcher. When I lightly press a feather loaded clamp down, I support the arrow to keep it stable in the receiver. With this setting you will find that the bottom hen feather when fletching left wing for a right hand bow and right wing for a left hand bow that the bottom hen feather with three fletch will be pointing straight down. I like to keep my arrow nocking point as low as possible shooting longbows with split finger. To remedy thisI turn the nock 1/8 turn to the left, counter clockwise for left wing and clockwise for right wing, then tack it in place on the outside edge witha bb sized spot of hot melt. After fletching and to realign the nock to the arrow grain and turn the lower hen feather into the corner of the arrow rest, I rotate the arrow 1/8 turn, counter clockwise for left wing and clockwise for right wing. I also have a sharpened popsicle stick to tuck the lead edge of the feather, they sometimes like turn out from under the clamp, once again adding a bit of pressure to seat the feather securely. What you pictured is the right wing. If you are shooting a right hand bow, no additional rotation will be required with three fletch, but if you are shooting a longbow right hand and like to feel the arrow on your index finger, you may want to not have a coarse leading edge on the quill, trim and add a drop of glue. You asked for tips about Jo-Jan, Bob offered criticisms, but those things he mentioned can be dealt with easy enough. Personally I like to put a bit of spin in the arrow, they do not fall from the sky like everyone suggests. Years ago when shot with sights, arrow drop from a good helical did not need to be addressed until well back from the target, according to pin placement when comparing straighter fletched arrows. I prefer tapered wood arrows, 11/32 and 1918 alluminums for all longbow bows from 50 to 58 pounds, I adjust spine requirements with head weight and adapter type, screw or one piece for the aluminum arrows. Oh, I also double check to make sure the feathers are seeated and not squirreling out at the tips. I like to have the feather clearing the edge of the clamp by 1/32" I have a dulled pocket knife to get that slight clearance. If a feather has too thick of a quill i have a simple feather book and a flat piece of 80 weight sand paper to thin it. Keep one clamp for each arrow and each slot from start to finish. See? Simple, anyone can do it. I have fletched hundreds of dozens of arrows with mine for the local gang.

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