Once you have all your materials together, and have collected all the data on the boys who are crossing over, it's time to make your plaques.
Arrows
Before you make the arrows, you need to know:
1. What rank they joined scouts (eg Tiger, Bear, Wolf or Weblos)
2. Whether they earned any gold or silver points as a Bear or Wolf
3. How many activity badges have they completed as a Weblos
Once you have collected this data on each boy, you can paint the arrows.
You need the arrows, masking tape in various sizes, paint, paintbrushes, a sharpie pen, a plate to put the paints on and some water for washing brushes.
To paint the arrows:
1. Tape some masking tape around the nock of the arrow and write the boys' name on the tape
2. Using the data on each boy, start taping the arrow. The green tape is used between each rank, and the 1/8th" tape is used between gold/silver points and between activity badges. In the example below the scout earned their Tiger, Bobcat, Wolf, Bear, Weblos, 8 Weblos Activity Badges, and their Arrow of Light.
This picture shows the three stages of painting - the bottom example is a taped arrow, the middle is a completed arrow and the top arrow has been painted but still has the tape on the arrow.
Each rank is 3/4 inches long, and each gold/silver point and activity badge is 1/4 inch long.
The only except is the Arrow of Light, which can be up to 3 inches long.
Each arrow will look different according to what each boy achieved.
Tip: You may find it easier to draw the arrow out on paper first. If possible have someone check that you have taped the arrow correctly.
3. Paint the arrows. If time permits, do a second coat. I found that yellow and orange were critical for a second coat and looked even better with a 3rd coat. Do not paint the yellow Arrow of Light until as late as possible as the boys could complete an Activity Badge after you have painted. If this happens, use fine grit sandpaper to remove the paint and add the extra gray Activity Badges.
The Plaques
1. Using a fine grit sandpaper, sand the plaques until they are smooth to touch. You can do this before or after the Arrow of Light has been engraved on the plaques.
2. Once the plaque is smooth to touch and the Arrow of Light has been engraved, you may stain the plaque. We elected not to stain our plaques, giving the wood a natural look.
3. Paint the wood using the Polyurethane. It needs 3 coats of Polyurethane, with a drying time of 2 hours between coats. The instructions say that you do not need to sand in between coats unless the drying time had been over 24 hours, but I found the wood didn't feel as smooth after the first coat, so I used an Ultra-fine grit sandpaper between coats.
4. Once the paint is dry, you may attach the brass plates. These come with a self-adhesive backing and just stick on the plaque.
5. Next the brass hooks need to be prepared. They are too narrow to hold the arrow, and need to be widened using needle nosed pliers.
6. Center the arrow on the plaque to determine where the brass hook will be placed. Mark this position on all plaques.
7. Drill a hole in the plaque, and then screw the brass hook into the plaque. We found that the hook would snap if a hole was not drilled.
8. Place the arrow into the brass hook, and then use the needle nosed pliers to tighten the hook and hold the arrows in place.
