bolt length questions
 

I have a PSE Rattler crossbow and comes with 17" bolts from the factory, and i broke all of them. I can't find ANY 17" bolts online except for ebay but im not shure of the quality of the bolts on ebay so i dont want to go that route. I called cs and hey said 20" bolts could be shot out of it but it would be a little weaker cause of the extra weight. My questions are....

Is there a site where I can buy some high quality carbon or aluminum 17" hunting bolts? If there arent any I will need to get the 20" bolts, can someone direct me to the lightest 20" bolts there are? Sorry for all the q's I want everything to go right on my first hunt with the crossbow. Thanks:)

RE: bolt length questions
 

If you go to Horton's web page you can get 17" aluminum from them. They are 325 grain with 100 grain tip so you need to make sure that it not below your recommended min arrow weight. Also if you buy some regular good carbons or aluminum in 20" you should be able to go to any shop and have them cut down for not much money.

RE: bolt length questions
 

so they can cut down some bolts to make them the length you need?

RE: bolt length questions
 

Also would those Horoton 17" bolts be a good choice for hunting?

RE: bolt length questions
 

The 17's will work fine, probably a little light on the KE side, but will do the trick for whitetail at least. They used to be a standard issue for Horton and I killed my first couple of deer with them. But like I said above you need to find out your CB's minimum arrow weight,to light of a arrow and you can have a dry fire effect.

RE: bolt length questions
 

Yes, any shop that makes arrows can do this with no problem. If your new at this try not to do alot of fishing, just get a proven CB arrow like a gold tip, Horton arrowor a 2219 and have it cut down. Don't try andexperiment on your first CB experience and then end up discouraged in the end.

RE: bolt length questions
 

thanks for the awesome help! I will be hunting hogs with my CB. I will figure out my CB minnimum bolt weight, but I am most likely to get some 20" ones and get them cut down.

RE: bolt length questions
 

For hunting hogs you might wanna try the 20" for more weight [k.e.]. Fixed blade rather than mechs. Most arrows have a weight per inch, I think my carbons are 8.1 gr per inch. Looks like w/ them you would be 24 gr heavier. there's a formula that's real accurate that says your fps changes 1 fps for every 5 gr arrow weight change. Looks to me you are only looking at 5 fps for 20" arrows if carbon, you get the point, so you can figure your own out if alum. Hogs are tougher than whitetail imho.

RE: bolt length questions
 

so with 20" carbons im looking at 305 fps? that good enough for me! these are the broadheads I am going to be shooting

http://www.americanbroadhead.com/index.shtmlI am shooting the pro 100's

RE: bolt length questions
 

I'm guessing you are kinda new at xbows, so if not, please don't feel offended. The b-heads you posted the link to have some terrible test results in two places that I can think of. You can either do your own tests, read the tests others have posted, or try the tried and true stuff the guys here use. Most importantly, you have to see how what ever you choose works on yourbow/arrow combination. What works for one setup doesn't always hold true for the next guys. I never meant to imply you would get over 300 fps outta a Viper, just what arrow changes does to what velocity you are getting now. I think you added fps instead of subtracting. And, that only applies to MY carbons, they all are different.

Edited to add: I just googled your bow, it's 165# pull, but no info on the weight of those 17" arrows. You really need to know that soyou know the minimum weight you can go to, or like Hotburn said earlier, possible partial dry fire. Once you know the weight you can calculate what changes [heavier] will do to your ADVERTSED fps. Hope this helps ya some!!