anyone notice grain-weight differences?

Greg / MO · 07-31-2006, 07:44 PM

I was at a Bass Pro Shops in Omaha, NE over the weekend and picked up one of those US Bowhunting digital scales for around $50 or so...

I'll probably be like the guy who shot his bow through a chrono for the first time; everything was always great until he actually knew what his bow was shooting!

So here's the reason for the post: I broke it open today, and laid six different brand-new three-blade, 100-grain Muzzys on it. Four of them were 97, one was 98 and the other was 95.

A group of NAP Spitfires (again, 100-grain) were all 96 grains. My 100-grain Rocket Aeroheads were 94, while a group of Cabela's Lazerstrike mechs were 98.

Anyone else notice differences like this -- and more importantly, fluctuations in the same head design?

My 100-grain field points were 94 grains, by the way.

Thoughts?

mobow · 07-31-2006, 07:46 PM

Greg, do those need to be calibrated?

Greg / MO · 07-31-2006, 07:52 PM

I looked at that... There is a methodology for calibrating them, but I would think that's only if it got out of whack, so to speak.

Regardless, that wouldn't account for the differences. Let's say it was three grains off... then, ALL of them would be three grains off, but equal with all the rest.

mobow · 07-31-2006, 08:06 PM

Hmmmm....I dunno, but you've peaked my curiosity. I'll be weighing all my Stingers at the shop this weekend.

Rob/PA Bowyer · 07-31-2006, 08:12 PM

Me too Greg, I just bought one myself but haven't opened it up yet...I'll have to start weighing things.

demoIL · 07-31-2006, 08:14 PM

I weighed my new Montec 100's and they were all 103.. Consistant anyway...

wayomic · 07-31-2006, 08:23 PM

Yep, they are "estimated" weights on most of them.
I had a pile of feild points get all mixed together so when I sorted them with my reloading scale they were all plus or minus a few grains from the "ideal". Some are worse than others, and some types (companies) are more consistant than others.

nodog · 07-31-2006, 08:33 PM

Yep thunderheads vary between 5-8 grns. heavy. Fp's are usually right on and muzzy's are 3-4 heavy. Nap said it was because the parts to make one come from different places. They sent me a hat

If they are estimated weights I think that should be posted on the package. I've never seen an admision of it.

Greg / MO · 07-31-2006, 08:53 PM

Well, it's already proving itself useful then...

If things vary a bit, I can now sort through them to find the most consistent and -- in the case of field points and broadheads -- items that match up the most closely.

Rick James · 08-01-2006, 06:20 AM

I have the same scale and we have a expensive reloading one at the shop and the cheap one weighs in the same every time as the expensive RCBS at the shop. I have also noticed differences like this with some heads. Slick Tricks all seemed to be dead nuts on though. PDP brand field and glue in points all seem dead on too which is why I shoot these and the gold tip glue ins when I can. I haven't weighed my rage slip cams yet but plan to soon.

Sometimes the different weight heads could be useful though especially when using a lower grade arrow shaft that has 2-3 grain tolerance differences. Pair up the right head w/ the right shaft and then you have all arrows within 1 grain of eachother.

Edit - If you want to test accuracy of your scale a nickel almost always weighs exactly 5 grams. Make sure to switch it to grams though.....