How to make a Prop Bow and Arrow

A bit of cardboard and electrical tape goes a long way towards a bow and arrow. Here's a simple how-to for your next epic fantasy costume, whether its Legolas Greenleaf or Katniss Everdeen.

[@skittydelicious]

Perfect! This is just the video I needed! I'm in a play and we are each responsible for our own costumes, and I'm playing Katniss for a little bit in it.

[@brittanyjennings4236]

This bow looks great for costuming. I feel better prepared to make a silver bow for my Artemis costume.

[@marisolvelazco3668]

Brittany Jennings OMG IM MAKING HER TOO!!

[@marisolvelazco3668]

Lee S I’m making Artemis too

[@Cheese-rd3jz]

Omg I'm making Artemis too!!

[@agentkayisgay6035]

Omgs this is literally the reason I'm on this video

[@wandering.mongoose]

Solidariry y’all, I too am doing this

[@FairladyZ2005]

Thanks for doing this video. Best prop arrow tutorial I've seen yet. Pen tips and erasers, wouldn't have thought of that.

[@karaboutyou9336]

I am trying to make one for my Tauriel costume, this is super helpful!

[@bojanapetrasinovic1064]

Heyy let me know how you did it, I want to make one to. :D

[@caitlinsgonecrafty1754]

I've looked at a lot of videos for this purpose, yours is by far the best. Thanks for making the video

[@ekgeml]

This is perfect for my daughter's Leoglas costume! Thank you!!!!!

[@lunaluvable1]

OMG your a genius! Now my sister and I can finally cosplay kagome and kikyo properly! Thank you!!!!!

[@qianadaltonb6374]

Thank you sooooo much for this! I was able to make my own arrows and they look great!

[@christinaweiss586]

❤thank u, cause other ppl think we all have table saws lol

[@aghasttoad6916]

This could not possibly be more exactly perfect.

[@len5630]

It's 5 years late, but thanks for the vid, I am planning on doing a Beautifly Bow

[@savannaheck5571]

The fact that I was looking for a video just like this and this was extremely easy to understand

[@caril.9384]

This is great! My cast is performing The Hobbit, and we will be using bows and arrows (not sure if we will actually be shooting or not)! Thank you so mcuh

[@richboysepicadventures3920]

your the best bow and arrow maker ive seen good job AND SUPER COOL BOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@coe7936]

Thank you so much this is totally going to go with my Alec lightwood costume

[@noiamnotaweasley3920]

Thank you so much! I'm working on revamping my Merida cosplay, and the bow I have probably isn't allowed at the convention I'm going to.

[@ItsBritneyBitch1]

Omg I've been searching for this video for a year now, thanks for the awesome tutorial!!

[@ermqs]

I've never tried making my own prop before so this was a good starting point ty!

[@welcometomycar3903]

Sprite: Thank you! This really helped with my cosplay for Longshot from Avatar the Last Airbender!

[@monicalawhorn2485]

Wonderful. Now I have a starting point for my daughter's Merida bow. Thank you.

[@randomencounters]

Why, Encounterers? Why aren't you watching this video and becoming Green Arrow?!?

[@aidanmcguire3160]

I'm SORRY AJ!

[@geoffberesford]

An excellent method for making this 'prop' for the stage, but aren't you forgetting the safety factor here? What is to prevent an actor from accidentally letting go of the arrow while in the act of pointing it at someone? In such a case, what is to stop it from hitting a person in the audience too? I need a tip for making it look convincing while the prop itself is incapable of harm. If you can suggest a secure method I could adopt for my Robin Hood play while still making it look convincing, I would be most grateful. Thank you.

[@kenzieatherton3641]

If you take the pencil eraser notch off, your actors won’t be able to likely fire any arrows as it won’t be balanced on the line but you can still act like you can by pulling the cord back like you were gonna loose it. Granted this is advice that’s probably 11 months late 😅

[@kenzieatherton3641]

And you can replace a metal tip with a foam one that you glue on as well

[@geoffberesford]

@@kenzieatherton3641 Much thanks for the 'tip'!

[@ttotheaffy]

Thank you so much, this is exactly what I was looking for!

[@nabishi1913]

i needed this for my merida costume. thanks! you helped me alot

[@darklordofsword]

Is there a way to make a bow with more shape, like a recurve bow?

[@mabelmathew2605]

this is so freaking cheap and easy so thanks :) this is gonna work well with my Artemis cosplay also love the cheesy 2014 edits and music xD

[@aaron-eg3rf]

Gonna use this for my Allison Argent cosplay , thanks a lot !

[@catloon]

im cosplaying as connor from assassins creed so thanks so much for this prop video! btw can u put the steps and the things we needed in the description? that'll help me :)

[@themooshmosh]

Any suggestions on how to transport the bow for traveling to conventions and such??

[@warrior-yp7tm]

Thanks for it. I have fancy dress comatition and I needed it. Once again thank you

[@Piggyhero6]

Tbh the arrow looks like an og nerf.

[@Ace_Ang]

Oh my gosh yes. Finally I've been waiting for this. 👍👍👍👍😃😃😃😃😃😃😃💛💛💛💛

[@billiesgirl]

KATNISS EVERDEEN COSTUME

[@kendallbaldi7591]

IM KATNISS EVERDEEN I VOLUNTEERED FOR MY SISTER NOW I NEED A BOW AND SOME ARROWS

[@billiesgirl]

Kendall Baldi mee tooo

[@soobinsno.1]

well then may the odds be ever in your favour, Miss Everdeen. ;)

[@kseniakudrina1]

Sameeeeeee I'm going as her for halloween 😂

[@teribite]

XD thanks prop master i was hoping you'd come out with because i have to craft a bow and arrow for my knight hood presentation

[@chazz5560]

You listed Green Arrow AFTER Katniss Everdeen? Seriously?

[@kairos6294]

!! The reason why it didn't shoot correctly is because you need a shelf on the bow. The bow is made up of different parts and the shelf is one of the vital ones! But since this is a prop it doesn't matter. Thanks for the video :D

[@monicalawhorn2485]

Shelf? Can you explain further please? I'm planning a bow and arrow for my daughter's Merida costume and I know she'd love for it to shoot properly.

[@Charley-rz3hl]

@@monicalawhorn2485 the shelf of a bow is a small ledge the protrudes from the handle, it is also called an arrow rest. You lay the arrow across it when you draw back and it allows you to keep the bow level with minimal effort. You also need to offset the handle towards the side of the hand you hold the bow with. This will cause the arrow rest to be in front of the drawstring instead of it being off the the side, then the arrow can fly straight forward instead of skewing off in another direction.

[@sophiathornton8584]

Really good :)

[@hobfestdankside3459]

can you make a list of the materials i can't hear you properly

[@cillasvilla]

0:40 start

[@xbow3335]

Need this for a play that I’m in…it’s Tommorow and I have no idea what I’m doing

[@LuisCabrera-ll5rn]

if I were to cut a little notch on the side would the arrows fly farther ?

[@monicalawhorn2485]

What is craft cord? Like the plastic stuff for making lanyards?

[@walkiriae.727]

Am I the only one watching in 2017

[@kingdomkeycrafter]

0:07 Link...

[@chazz5560]

They didn't mentioned him because his principal weapon is the Master Sword... I guess..

[@breedsauce101]

can you do a sword ?

[@thepropmastershandbook1505]

+breedsauce101 I'll think you'll like the month of March.

[@chunkitmak1920]

remove the feather to make it shoot better

[@papasmjordeig]

what!? mahn u r dumb. do zah exact opposite. fletchings are there to make da bow shoot arrow go fasteh and straighter.

[@shadowreiter699]

How much farther?

[@rdty9251]

Chun Kit Mak its a prop

[@papestar1]

Katniss Everdeen Foreverdeen

[@varntokodus9650]

Does the bow actually work? Squirrels have a bad tendency to get in my garden and i've been making arrows in preparation for summer but i don't know about my bow yet.

[@thepropmastershandbook1505]

+Varntok Odus the bow works as well as we demonstrated at the end of the video. We did manage to make an arrow fly forwards, but that's about it. I think we got it to fly about 5 ft or so.

[@varntokodus9650]

+The Prop Master's Handbook ok thank you

[@MrRockee5]

+thepropmaster do you have to put woo in the middle

[@thepropmastershandbook1505]

It depends. Since my pieces weren't one solid piece, but two duct taped together, I needed the extra stability. If you can find sheets of cardboard long enough to not have to resort to that, it might hold up without the ruler. I tried building one without something sturdy in the middle, with remarkably poorer results.

[@nerdygirl1018]

I only have 20" cardboard *cries*

[@miciarokiri5182]

How long would you suggest making it for an 8 year old? He is 44" tall

[@thepropmastershandbook1505]

Hayley Rodgers well, My bow is four inches shorter than I am, so maybe 40 inches?

[@miciarokiri5182]

Awesome, thanks!

[@allefcavalcante6537]

Can someone list me the itens, please? I can't hear him very well(because i'm not a native speaker). I really want to make it, but i don't know these materials so much and even the names of those. Can someone do this for me, please??

[@dianneesposo7002]

Same

[@noname-te5ip]

30 inche pieces of cardboard Ruler Duck tape Brown electrical tape Dowel rod Small hand saw Craft cord Hot glue gun Aluminum tap Pointer eraser caps Ball point pen Poster board Exacto blade Panister (i dont know what he said but that's what it sounded like) or something similar

[@lovejoymonton369]

dout rod? am I hearing correctly?

[@thepropmastershandbook1505]

+Lovejoy Monton dowel rod

[@PhilomathJ]

Dowel tod

[@sebastianescobedo4057]

I AM ARTEMIS!

[@sebastianescobedo4057]

***** YEAH!!!!

[@thepropmastershandbook1505]

***** Prop Katana--Mid June

[@nanashineko3501]

omg he's so cute

[@thefixerer]

Link

[@barole6365]

Can you make a crossbow

[@bellaann7643]

What is the electrical tape for?

[@PhilomathJ]

It is what makes it brown on the out side

[@jayantjoshi5642]

PLEASE MAKE SPIDERMAN MASK

[@JonThrawn]

Can you please do a video on a crowbar?!?

[@thepropmastershandbook1505]

+Jonathon Branch great suggestion, It's on my list.

[@kaylajaimistockwell3744]

how long did you make the arrows? :)

[@thepropmastershandbook1505]

+Kayla Jaimi Stockwell 28 inches.

[@kaylajaimistockwell3744]

awesome thank you! I didn't hear that bit hahaha :) if i made the bow to be thinner in the middle to simulate hawkeye's bow a little better, would it still work as well? I'm thinking about using a dowel rod (i think that's how you spell it) for the middle of the bow to help simulate the taper in his bow

[@thepropmastershandbook1505]

+Kayla Jaimi Stockwell should be fine as long as there is something in the middle.

[@sandrapena4461]

can u make a prop Freddy Kruger claws

[@flippy101mph9]

I use my props as toys

[@freakshow834]

HI PROP MASTERS CAN YOU MAKE A CROSSBOW

[@anjalivikas3134]

can you make hand cuff

[@thepropmastershandbook1505]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/d2LHc5-jl71sqLM

[@bibba5495]

fletchings are in the wrong place.

[@yaykailee]

Can you use Styrofoam?

[@thepropmastershandbook1505]

+Kailee Nguyen instead of cardboard? I don't think it would support any stress on the bow string.

[@yaykailee]

The Prop Master's Handbook I don't plan to use it, just for a Halloween prop

[@thepropmastershandbook1505]

+Kailee Nguyen I guess it depends on the type of Styrofoam. Personally, I think Styrofoam is brittle material to work with, and I'd be nervous about moving around with it. Maybe some heavy duty industrial styrofoam, but I'd still be nervous.

[@yaykailee]

The Prop Master's Handbook I meant foam board

[@thepropmastershandbook1505]

+Kailee Nguyen hmmmm, foam board might have more give that Styrofoam, but I'm still not sure I'd trust it not to crack. But, half of what I do is experimentation, so I'd say try it, and let me know if it works!

[@potato1d346]

0:30 a what?

[@shivangilal7521]

do a prop machine gun

[@sherryflicker201]

Yay! He uses Katniss everdeen

[@TheTHXMINECRAFT]

thing only shoots like 4-5 feet XDDDD

[@HILLSIDECOMICS]

dunkin donunts its called a prop for a reason

[@TheTHXMINECRAFT]

:P

[@emilylilies8551]

hAwKEYE

[@KrisvanLaar]

cheap way of making a bow, didn't know it would work

[@chrissywhite22]

You can't even shoot properly with it

[@noiamnotaweasley3920]

Chrissy white It's a prop bow, to be used for costumes. Conventions are kind of strict when it comes to weapons.

[@chrissywhite22]

Yeah!! You are right! I feel so damn stupid right now😂😂

[@sanjaysiva7693]

poda

[@clone7538]

Lame