"Arrow" Season One Build

Tvayumat

Well-Known Member
I, like many others it seems, have become enthralled with this new re-imagining of the Green Arrow. I started off building the bow and have since started working on a costume to go with. Feel free to follow along, comment, or ask any questions!

--==The Bow==--

As I watched season one the first time, the prop that kept jumping out at me every time it got camera time was his bow.

With that in mind, after the information surfaced here on the RPF that the base bow had been found (and was affordable) I went ahead and ordered one!

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The Ragim Matrix Jr. 48" bow arrived at my door just about the same time pinder91 was starting "The Definitive CW Arrow Thread". Any remaining doubt was expelled as soon as I had it in hand. This is *the* bow, limbs and all.

The Definitive thread is a wonderful resource, and helped me identify all the nautical fittings I needed to order.

1 pair 6" Sea-Dog polished brass strap hinge
1 6" Sea-Sog stainless steel straight chock

With these parts ordered I set to work removing the red lacquer finish from the bow riser. It was slow going at first when I was using 60 grit by hand, but after I remembered how rough the finished item was going to look anyway, I switched to a dremel with a sanding barrel attachment. Results were yielded much quicker.
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At this point I ordered myself a woodburning pen to burn the mysterious symbols into the bow, and while I was waiting fabricated up some kid, drunk, and con-safe replacement bow limbs out of fiberglass and some epoxy putty.

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It was mostly an experiment making flexible things out of fiberglass mat, and it worked out pretty well. It has barely any tension but still looks the part and can be fully drawn safely in a crowd of drunks or elbow-height children.

While waiting for things to arrive I experimented with weathering and staining the wood. Several failed experiments using vinegar/steel wool and sanding the riser back down *did* give me some fairly believable wear marks in any case.

After trying a lot of complicated answers, I decided to go for the ultimate shortcut and use Minwax combination wood stain and finish. Since it is an oil based stain, I wanted to do all my burning in advance, lest I immolate my new bow.

The following images are what I used to copy the symbols from the most direct high res pictures I could find. The remaining panel I did freehand, but by the time you do these ones you will recognize the repeated patterns enough to freehand this stuff, trust me.

Riser1.jpgRiser2.jpg

I sized these images to the actual size of my riser, printed them out, and used carbon transfer paper to move the pattern on to the wood.

For the woodburning, all I can advise is go slow. The standard wedge shaped burning tip makes a very sharp line, so I switched to a slightly rounded stylus tip and that seemed to look more like the texture of the symbols from his bow.

This is a good project for a first timer like me, because if your burning is a little uneven in areas it just adds to the flavor! (I also snuck my initials in to one of the panels as a signature)

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In the above image on the right you can also see some of the areas where I was testing the Minwax "Classic American" stain that I ended up using.

With the woodburning done, I stained the riser and, once it had set, applied sandpaper to a number of areas to lighten the stain unevenly and get a good weathered effect.

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---=== Strap Hinges ===---

The Hood's bow has three pieces of 6" brass strap hinge attached to it. One is strapped down to the riser as an arrow rest, and it has a single brass hinge loop in the center. Two more hold the limbs to the riser, and are the opposite hinge plate as the arrow rest.

All three pieces can be acquired by purchasing ONE PAIR of the Seadog 6" polished brass strap hinge. In fact, you'll have one extra arrow rest piece when you're done.

I made this diagram to show how to get the hinges apart. Cutting was done with a Dremel rotary tool w/ metal cutting disc and a hand drill. Any time I was drilling these pieces I clamped the plate between two blocks of wood in a vice.

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Cut the central pin on either side of the center piece and separate the two hinge plates. Tap out the loose sections of the pin and drill out the remaining solid section of the pin.

With the hinge pieces separated, I cleaned them up and picked out the arrow rest I wanted to use.

After choosing good locations for the arrow rest and chock, I glued the rest in place with a few dots of Titebond II, and once it wasn't moving around I set about tying it to the riser with Tandy brand artificial sinew, de-waxed in acetone.

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In the above image you can also see the mods needed for the bow limb strap hinge pieces.

In order to fit the 8mm screw hole, the hole closest to the hinge pin itself needs to be widened by drill. I used a 5/16" standard bit.

The other trick was fabricating the screws shown above. I was totally unable to source 8mm metric brass cap nuts locally, so I got a pair that were 5/16" standard, filled them with JB weld, and basically screwed them tight to an 8mm threaded rod until the threads crossed and meshed.



---=== Painting the chock ===---

After a good deal of back and forth discussion with pinder91, I landed on buying the Seadog 6" stainless straight chock and painting it to match the one on the SDCC bow as close as possible.

Here is a picture of the bare stainless chock being positioned. Note that I used a pocket knife to gouge a little "pocket" for the tip of the chock to rest in.

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So I...

- Roughed the surface with 150 grit
- Painted the whole thing with a light coat of Rust-oleum bright metallic brass
- Applied strategic scrapes through to the steel
- Washed the entire thing a few times with varying amounts of brown ink

and got...

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Not *totally* pleased with the final outcome, but it's pretty good, and I plan on revisiting this piece later.


---=== Bowstring ===---

I noticed early on that some of the only green that appears on the bow is actually on the bowstring itself.

View attachment arrow-green-arrow-10.JPGView attachment arrow-green-arrow-07.JPG

So I started looking in to buying a custom bowstring, learned a bunch of nomenclature I didn't know before, and landed on a very simple answer:

Painting the string makes WAY more sense than buying a custom one.

With that in mind, I chose Angelus brand green leather/vinyl paint for the body of the string, mostly because I wanted to be sure the paint would dry strong and flex with the string when drawn. The finish turned out just about perfect for me.

The thread in the middle of the string and on the ends is a nylon cord wrap of some kind, so brown fabric paint was used.

The small, black marker (I believe placed as a way to quickly nock the arrow without looking) I did in a small length of black hemp cord that I superglued in place.

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If I were making this as an actual bow that I wanted to fire, I probably would go to a little more effort on the bowstring.

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Time is growing short, and thankfully the bow is complete for the most part. I picked up the Brooks antique brown bar tape, thinking I was being clever, but now after going through an extensive acetone weathering process on this stuff I'm pretty sure pinder91 is right about it being the honey colored tape. Oh well, I plan on revisiting the details later on, and I have more stuff to build!

Finished the leather wrap and threw down two more sinew wraps. Fairly pleased with the look for now.

--==The City Costume==--

I absolutely love the costumes in "Arrow". Honestly, I'd do them all if I could, but I get ahead of myself. One step at a time!

I'm taking this build slow and financially cautious. After my last costuming adventure with Dredd 3D the costuming budget is tight.

On December 30 I ordered the Arrow costume available on Amazon from Janecosplay. Made of faux leather, apparently made to your measurements, and looking to be a decent facsimile of all the important parts of the city costume for only $160, I figured that as a worst case scenario it could serve as a patterning base for my own work. The turnaround time was only 14 days from placing the order to the package arriving at my door.

Normally I would be *very* reluctant to order an entire costume sight unseen on the internet, but it had nine glowing reviews and the price was right.

The costume itself is, I would say, worth the money. Most of the major details are a little "off" but they are decidedly present, some smaller details are unfortunately missing. The material is a bit darker than I'd like, but that could be fixed with vinyl paint, and since I intend to use this as a base for upgrading to leather in the future, it doesn't bother me in the short term.

After all, Dallas Sci Fi Expo is in only a month, and I need an Arrow costume to wear!

As for the measurements, they actually did a pretty decent job of hitting the numbers I gave them. The sleeves and pant legs are both long and a little baggy, but that is nothing that can't be fixed with a sewing machine.

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After a thorough inspection, my list of mods to get done in the short term are:
- Shorten legs and sleeves
- Tighten legs and sleeves
- Replace velcro waist closure with a proper hook
- Dull down vinyl shine
- Install suspender anchors
- Install foot loops (these make tucking into boots SO much easier)

The costume also included a hood, which is pretty good, sturdy, made of a decent material, but unfortunately quite small. You'd have to have a tiny head for this thing to fit. With that in mind I'll be making a new hood using the one sent as a general base with some modifications toward accuracy.

It also included back, hip, and arm quivers but they are woefully inadequate. Floppy constructions of stitched black vinyl.

The good news is that the belts for the back and hip quivers are perfectly serviceable, so I'll be recycling them.
 
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Re: "Arrow" Season One Bow build

Looks great :thumbsup I have just started to watch the first season I'm 6 eps into it so far and I love it. Do you mind if I ask where you got the bow? I've had a search here in the UK (unsure where your located) and can't find the right one, I've found what appears to be the model but the piece where the bow limbs join the handle is wrong :/ I'm terrible at searching the net lol, I look forward to updates :D

EDIT: just found he definitive thread, and answered my question although the sites were advertising the 48" it must have been showing pics of the 54" :/
 
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Re: "Arrow" Season One Bow build

Thanks, guys! I've been really pleased with how it is turning out.

I went ahead and updated the build with the strap hinge details.

Drac, it looks like you got it figured out, but it's very likely they are just showing the wrong picture. If in doubt, send them pictures of both and ask them to confirm they are selling the model you want.
 
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Re: "Arrow" Season One Bow build

Drac, it looks like you got it figured out, but it's very likely they are just showing the wrong picture. If in doubt, send them pictures of both and ask them to confirm they are selling the model you want.

Just to add, I contacted the US importer/distributor for Ragim before I ordered back in October. They confirmed that the 48" has no limb pockets. They're only on the longer bows.
 
Re: "Arrow" Season One Bow build

Thanks, guys! I've been really pleased with how it is turning out.

I went ahead and updated the build with the strap hinge details.

Drac, it looks like you got it figured out, but it's very likely they are just showing the wrong picture. If in doubt, send them pictures of both and ask them to confirm they are selling the model you want.

Definatley will do :D
 
Re: "Arrow" Season One Bow build **UPDATED 1/13/14**

Hello all! I'm fairly new to this forum, but like so many others, I am infatuated by the new CW Arrow show, due in no small part to my being a longtime fan of the comic character and archery itself. With Tvayumat's permission, I'll be posting some workouts based on the show here for you guys! Tvay will be expanding this thread to include his costume build, so why not build your own superhero body to go with the outfit? Surely the ladies will love it! Also, just as a quick side note, some of these workouts I found online. I researched them and have tried them out myself, so I know they work.
So, without further ado, I present:

The Arrow Workout(s):

Now, I know Stephen Amell has said in several interviews that he hardly ever (if he even touches them) lifts weights. Most of what he does is body manipulation, like "weird pull-ups", because manipulating your body weight is a true test of FUNCTIONAL strength (not to mention, looks great too!). But, there are some exercises you can do with weights that will work the same type of muscle, provided that you do the motions with proper form.

The first workout, and the one I would recommend for beginners, looks like this:
Monday
Chest/Triceps/Abs
Incline Dumbbell Press - 4 sets/6-8 reps
Flat Dumbbell Press - 4 sets/10-12 reps
Weighted Bar Dips - 3 sets/8-10 reps
Overhead Tricep Extension - 4 sets/10-12 reps
Hanging Leg Raises or Ab Rollouts - 3 sets to failure

Wednesday
Legs/Calves
Rack Pulls (pins set slightly below knee) - 4 sets/5 reps
Dumbbell Bulgarian Split Squat - 4 sets/8-10 reps per leg
Single Leg Leg-Press - 2 sets/15 reps
Weighted Hyper Extension - 3 sets/8-10 reps
Calf Raise (any variation) - 5 sets/12-20 reps

Friday
Back/Biceps/Abs
Weighted Pull-Ups - 4 sets/6-8 reps
Bent-Over Barbell Row - 4 sets/6-8 reps
Barbell Curls - 3 sets/8-10 reps
Alternating Hammer Curls - 3 sets/10-13 reps each arm
Hanging Leg Raises or Ab Rollouts - 3 sets to failure

Keep in mind, you don't HAVE to do this M/W/F, those are just the easiest days to do it. Just try to workout 3 days a week, but don't do them back to back. Give your body some time to rest. I know this doesn't look like much, but trust me, it'll work. I took my girlfriend, who weighed about 105 at the time, with me to the gym, and in about 2 months she gained about 10 pounds of muscle. The key to this workout is to do the exercises with as much weight as you can safely handle, and try to increase what you are lifting each week.

This next one, I don't really know who designed it, but it's really well done. I've tried this one as well, and have only recently changed my workout from this as I started to plateau pretty badly.
Arrow-Inspired Workout.jpg
It's a little small here, but if you have trouble reading it, you should be able to save it to your computer and view it full size. If you still can't read it, PM me and I'll write it out for you.

The last actual workout I have to share is not actually an Arrow based workout, it's based on Sam Fisher from the Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell games. However, the way the workout is done, I think it's actually closer to what Oliver would do on the show, because it's mostly body weight exercises.
Cardio
Level 1: Walk at a brisk pace for thirty minutes. Shoot for 2 miles traveled by the you're done.
Level 2: Start working jogging intervals into your running. Run for 2 minutes, walk briskly for 8, repeat until your 30 minutes are up.
Level 3: Run at a good clip for thirty minutes. Shoot for sub-8 minute miles.
Level 4: 5 miles of running, at a sub-7 minute pace. Finish with as many hill sprints as you can.

Strength
Level 1:
3×10*Pull-ups(palm facing away) Chair assisted if necessary.
3×10 Chair dips
3×10*Kneeling push-ups
3×10 Body weight squats
3×15 Seconds wall sits (put your back against the wall and sit like you’re sitting in a chair with your knees at a 90 degree angle bend, hold it)
3×15 Seconds Planks
3×15 Seconds Kneeling half push-up holds(go down halfway and hold it)
3×5 Seconds clenched pull-up holds(Go to the “top” position of a pull-up and hold it)
Level 2:
3×10*Pull-ups(palm facing away)
3×10 Chair dips with 5/10/15 lb weighted backpack(work your way up in weight)
3×10*Push-ups
3×10 Tuck jumps(squat down, jump as high as you can and pull your knees to your chest)
3×30 Seconds wall sits(put your back against the wall and sit like you’re sitting in a chair with your knees at a 90 degree angle bend, hold it)
3×30 Seconds Planks
3×20 Seconds half push-up holds(go down halfway and hold it)
3×10 Seconds clenched pull-up holds(Go to the “top” position of a pull-up and hold it)
Level 3:
5×15*Pull-ups(palm facing away)
5×15 Chair dips with 5/10/15 lb weighted backpack(work your way up in weight)
5×15*Push-ups
5×15 Tuck jumps(squat down, jump as high as you can and pull your knees to your chest)
5×45 Seconds wall sits(put your back against the wall and sit like you’re sitting in a chair with your knees at a 90 degree angle bend, hold it)
5×45 Seconds Planks
5×30 Seconds half push-up holds(go down halfway and hold it)
5×15 Seconds clenched pull-up holds(Go to the “top” position of a pull-up and hold it)
Level 4:
5×15*Pull-ups(palm facing away) with 5/10/15 lb weighted backpack(work your way up in weight)
3×10 Towel pull-ups(hang a towel over your chin-up bar, grab onto each end with either hand, do pull-ups)
5×15 Chair dips with 20/25/30 lb weighted backpack(work your way up in weight)
5×15*Push-ups*with 10/15/20 lb weighted backpack(work your way up in weight)
5×15 Tuck jumps(squat down, jump as high as you can and pull your knees to your chest)
5×60 Seconds wall sits(put your back against the wall and sit like you’re sitting in a chair with your knees at a 90 degree angle bend, hold it)
5×60 Seconds Planks with 20 lb backpack
5×60 Seconds half push-up holds(go down halfway and hold it) with 20 lb backpack
5×15 Seconds clenched pull-up holds(Go to the “top” position of a pull-up and hold it)
5×15 Seconds clenched towel pull-up holds.

Now, this workout does have a schedule. It doesn't matter what day you start it (why not today?), but you should ideally follow this:
Day 1: Strength
Day 2: Cardio
Day 3: Rest
Day 4: Strength
Day 5: Cardio
Day 6: Strength
Day 7: Rest
So, if you started on Monday, like I did, Wednesday and Sunday would be your rest days.

Those are the workouts I have, but you could also incorporate some of these ideas that I pulled from my own knowledge and directly from the show itself (these are for strength):
Push Press
Deadlift
Dumbbell Bench Press
TRX Rows
Chins
Kipping Pull-ups (you can substitute these for the salmon ladder :cool)
Leg-Raise Bench Press
Power Clean
Bench Press
Squats w/ Dumbbells
TRX Atomic Push-ups
Barbell Deadlifts
Upside-Down Hanging Crunches
Rope/Chain Climb
Cross-Body Cable Pulls
Under-Overs
One-Arm Push-ups
Body Lifts

If you have the access to the right equipment/facilities and the proper training, you can also do (and these will work cardio as well!):
Dual Stick Escrima Training
Dual Stick Escrima Sparring
Wing Chun Wooden Dummy Sparring
Knife Disarm/Attack Sparring
Punch/Kick Mitts (or Heavy Bag)


For agility training, you can either stretch, do yoga, Parkour (without flipping everywhere, that's free-running :p), or even archery!

Also, please remember to be as safe as possible while doing training of any kind, ESPECIALLY combat! Use proper form, and start slow to build your technique. A good rule of thumb to remember is this: First comes technique, then speed, then strength. All of these workouts, even just the "weight lifting and strength" ones, will work cardio as well if you do it right! Remember to keep a proper diet as well, otherwise, you're basically just canceling out all your hard work.

Now, get out there and save the city!
 
Re: "Arrow" Season One Bow build **UPDATED 1/13/14**

First post updated with costume information.

Thanks for the workout program, Chris92!

I'm starting my Arrow workout circuit today, time to get good at pull ups!
 
Re: "Arrow" Season One Build *Pic heavy* *Updated 1/14/14*

Whoop, starting to fill the first post up with pictures! Costume build continued here...

Tonight I got to work replacing the small , disappointing black vinyl quiver I was sent with something a little more robust.

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Using the quiver from SDCC and a few screencaps as reference, I picked out a suitably sized piece of cardboard and set to work.

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A few hours, scraps of fabric and applications of glue later...

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Matching shades of green is going to be a long process, so for now I'm not worrying too much about which shades I'm using so long as they aren't completely clashing.

Spending my evening tinkering with the hip quiver and the belts to get the right fit. Should have some good progress to show through the weekend.
 
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Re: "Arrow" Season One Build *Pic heavy*

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Well thanks to the Episode 11 preview, I may have to go ahead and start directing some energy toward looking like Slade Wilson...
 
Re: "Arrow" Season One Build *Pic heavy*

Only a few things got done over the weekend, mostly finishing the quivers and arranging all the straps and buckles. Fits and fully adjustable, couldn't help but do a little posing.

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Also did some patterning on the hood with scrap material. Making adjustments before the final version. The hood needs to sweep back and expose my face from the nose down, but right now it just covers my face! Still, very pleasing for a rough by-hand draft.

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Re: "Arrow" Season One Build *Pic heavy*

Your back and hip quivers look great, Tvayumat! How durable/actually usable are they, out of curiosity?
 
Re: "Arrow" Season One Build *Pic heavy*

Your back and hip quivers look great, Tvayumat! How durable/actually usable are they, out of curiosity?

Thanks! I am pretty pleased with how they turned out, since I put them together from things I had on hand.

The answer to your question on both is durable enough for a first run. They are usable in the sense that I can draw arrows from the back quiver and store shorter ones in the hip quiver without damaging either one.

Back quiver is water resistant, but could be crushed pretty easily. Hip quiver is sturdy enough but suffers from my sloppy hand-sewing.

Once I have the opportunity to revisit the shoulder and waist belts I'm probably going to remake the quivers in different materials.
 
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Re: "Arrow" Season One Build *Pic heavy*

Hi, Awesome build so far! I actually live in Dallas and will be going to the SFX. I was also trying to put together an Arrow costume and was going to do the same thing you did - order the "base" suit from overseas and modify it, but I was unable to do it in time so I'm trying to build my own from scratch haha. Do you happen to have the pattern you used for the hood? I need to make one of those too so if you have a pattern or rough shape of the hood that would be awesome! Also, I'm looking for detailed pics of his right arm sleeve. There's a bright green "lining"? or something there but I can't figure out what it is. I was thinking maybe it was some kind of material to make it stretchy and easier to move in but I don't know for sure. Any ideas? Let me know if you can help! Thank you and keep up the great work!
 
Re: "Arrow" Season One Build *Pic heavy*

First of all, welcome to the forum!

Thank you very much for your compliment!

At the moment I am in the middle of the hood patterning project myself. First prototype pattern left something to be desired, but when I've got something workable I'll happily send you whatever I can.

I'm not sure what material you are talking about on the right arm sleeve. To my knowledge, both jacket sleeves are identical. I know that he wears a green leather arm quiver on his left forearm for his flechettes, could that be what you're thinking of?

View attachment arrow-green-arrow-12.JPGView attachment arrow-green-arrow-05.JPG

I'll be dressed as the vigilante all Saturday at the Dallas Expo, hunt me down and we'll talk Arrow.

Hi, Awesome build so far! I actually live in Dallas and will be going to the SFX. I was also trying to put together an Arrow costume and was going to do the same thing you did - order the "base" suit from overseas and modify it, but I was unable to do it in time so I'm trying to build my own from scratch haha. Do you happen to have the pattern you used for the hood? I need to make one of those too so if you have a pattern or rough shape of the hood that would be awesome! Also, I'm looking for detailed pics of his right arm sleeve. There's a bright green "lining"? or something there but I can't figure out what it is. I was thinking maybe it was some kind of material to make it stretchy and easier to move in but I don't know for sure. Any ideas? Let me know if you can help! Thank you and keep up the great work!
 
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