For whatever reason I have been traveling down the road that lighter and faster is better. I wanted the flattest trajectory possible to reduce the potential for misjudged yardage, plus the fact that I prefer a 1 sight pin set up for hunting. I figure an ideal kill zone to be 6", which gives me 3" above and 3" below the line of sight in which to make a killing shot out to 35 yards. I accomplish this with my one pin set at 30 yards. BobCo and others posts in the push come to shove thread made me stop and take a look at things, and here's what I found.

Currently I'm shooting a 332 grain arrow at 318 fps, which is producing a ke of 74. But when it impacts the target 35 yards away, the ke has dropped to 51. Most likely more than adequate with a well placed shot, but who's to say? At midrange my arrow is 3" high, and at 35 yards it's 3" low. A good hunting set up.

Based on the telephone poles BobCo is flinging, I figured for and forumlated to see how my bow should respond at 8 grains per pound , well, really 7.74, after I adjusted the weight to gain back speed lost due to my measly 28" draw weight . I figured this 542 grain arrow should move along at 276 fps, and produce 92# of ke upon release. 92#! When it hits the target 35 yards away, it's still producing 72# of ke! Quite a bump from the 51# above. So, what was the trajectory loss?

1", up or down. At midrange, I should be 4" high, and at 35 yards 3.9" low. Easily corrected by adjusting my pin from 30 yards to say 25ish, and holding a few inches high on a 35 yard shot, which would be rare anyway.

It's got me thinking, big time. Less wear and tear on my bow, quieter release, gaining a potload of momentum and ke, I can't really see what I'd be giving up, can you?

It doesn't solve my thinking of which type of head to use, but with on target perforance of 72# of ke at 35 yards, should be a moot point, provided the head chosen is quality and reputable.

I see new arrows in my future