You Need the Right Arrows and Broadheads
Arrows and broadheads are one of our most important pieces of equipment and there is no one size fits all. Choosing the correct arrows and broadheads are extremely important and what we choose is very specific to our particular bow setup. Borrowing some arrows from a buddy or picking up an old pack of broadheads out of the discount bin can lead to a lot of frustration or worse, a lost animal. Let’s take a closer look at some the key factors in choosing the right arrow and broadhead combination for our bows.
All about Spine.
Most new archers are not very familiar with the concept of arrow spine or actually how important it is into choosing the correct arrow. In its simplest form arrow spine is how much flex the arrow has in it and arrows need to flex a certain amount to fly and group well. Arrow manufacturers are generally measuring the static spine of the arrow, which is when they hang an 880 gram weight in the middle of a 28” arrow and the amount the arrow sags is the spine of that arrow. For example, if an arrow sags down .5 inches the arrow spine is .500. The lower the number the stiffer the arrow, a 340-spine arrow is stiffer than a 500-spine arrow. Many people confuse this and to make if more difficult many arrow manufacturers use their own spine ratings instead of the actual static spine. When possible always use an arrow selection chart from the arrow manufacturer, many can be found online and are simple to use. Using these charts and talking to your archery pro will give you a really good idea of what arrow spine is correct for your setup. Check out the two below here.
https://www.goldtip.com/Resources/Spine-Chart.aspx
https://carbonexpressarrows.com/pages/shaft-selector
Knowing our correct arrow spine is just the beginning; we need to decide what we want our arrows to do. Arrows come in all different configurations, with each one promising to improve this or that and make you more accurate and be easier to tune. What we really need to figure out is what we want the arrow to do. I have arrows that I use for hunting deer, bears, and other thin-skinned game and I have arrows that I use to hunt elk and moose, each setup offers certain advantages for its intended purpose. For example, my deer hunting arrows are Easton Hexx shafts that I fletch with 3 blazer vanes and use 50 grain brass inserts and 100 grain broadheads. The finished arrow weight is 382 grains and they shoot at 301 FPS (feet per second) out of my Bowtech Reign 6. For deer hunting I use a Black Gold Ascent single pin sight that I set for 25 yards and with that arrow set up I can shoot between 15-30 yards without having to aim off. Yes I get a bit of drop and 30 and hit a little high at 15 but it’s not enough for me to worry about and I keep all my shots to 30 yards or less. I find this setup gives me the finished arrow weight I want for deer and bears while maintaining the speed I need to keep a flat enough trajectory to shoot a single pin sight. Now this wont be the perfect set up for everyone but for my particular setup it meets all my needs. My Elk and Moose setup looks a little different. I chose to shoot an Easton 4MM Injexion Full Metal Jacket arrow with AAE Pro Max Vanes in a 4 fletch configuration and a 100 grain broadhead. The small diameter shaft with a little extra weight is my choice when it comes to big game like elk and I chose the 4 fletch because I find it controls fixed blade broadhead flight a little easier than a typical 3 fletch. The finished arrow weight is 432 grains which shoots 286 FPS out of my Bowtech Reign 6, this setup gives me plenty of hitting power and more than enough speed to use a 3 pin sight. For elk hunting I use a three pin sight since I may be faced with shots longer than 30 yards and I don’t have a flat enough trajectory to use a single pin.
Now I understand that not everyone can
afford to have two different sets of hunting arrows and setting up a retuning a
couple times a fall can be a bit of a pain and is time consuming. If I could
only choose one setup I would use my elk setup, if it’s good enough to shoot
elk it will be more than good enough for deer and bears.
The Business End of the Arrow
I don’t think there is more controversy or differences of opinion than when it comes to choosing broadheads. I have literally had two customers in the store, one telling me how amazing a broadhead was and the other telling me what a piece of junk it was, side by side at the same time. People who don’t recover animals often think their broadheads are to blame, a lot of “perfect” shots have been made on animals that were never found. The only thing I know for sure is that if you didn’t recover the animal you don’t know exactly where you hit or what happened, unless you have video to look at. I haven’t seen many deer get a hole through both lungs that lasted very long. There are advantages and disadvantages to both fixed blade and expandable broadheads and I have personally used both types with great success. I prefer expandable broadheads, like the Grim Reaper or Wasp Jak Hammer, on my deer and bear setup because they are easier to tune at faster speeds and they cut large holes. Deer and bears I find to be pretty easier to shoot through so I don’t worry about and expandable loosing energy on impact. For my elk and moose setup I like small fixed blade broadheads, like the Steel Force Phathead or G5 Striker, because they have no moving parts and are more solid for a larger animal resulting in better penetration. For anyone shooting a modern compound with carbon arrows I would not recommend large fixed blade broadheads. Faster bows with thin carbon arrows are generally more difficult to get good broadhead flight, not impossible but when a compact fixed blade design will do the same job why give yourself the headache. Whichever broadhead style you choose make sure you buy the best ones you can afford and always take the time to practice and tune them up well before hunting season opens.
Hopefully now you’ll have the information you need to put together the right arrow and broadhead combination that will bring you success this fall.
Remember if you need any help choosing your equipment give us a call, email, Facebook Message, or Instagram DM and we will be happy to help you make the right choice.