RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

This has gotten very interesting. Without getting too long here I'd like to add a remark or two.

I, too, wonder why guys will spend upwards of $1000 on a bow and then scrimp on arrows, that being what does the actual delivery of a broadhead. All the bow is is a launchpad for the arrow.

And I agree that the average guy wouldn't be able to tell the difference between .006 and .001, but maybe, just maybe that's one of the things that keep him just average. I know that years ago I was just average. Then I got some better equipment and shot better. All this did was light a fire under my butt. One thing led to anothr and I was buying better equipment, because it is true that you can only expect so much performance from a piece of gear. So, it really gets to be a question of desire, too.

How good do you want to get? Sometimes getting something new and better instills more confidence so you just automatically turn the brain up a notch. And that leads to better shooting. And then you want to learn MORE. The big vicious circle.

Gibblet, didn't mean to ruffle your feathers too bad. If you are wrecking the arrows the way you explain then you haven't learned to shoot a different spots. I know I've wrecked many just the way you describe. Then figured out that it's much more economical to have several bullseyes to practice at. Good luck to you.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

One point that Len made that no one else seems to be picking up on is the difficulty of tuning with arrows that are not straight.

Accuracy = Consistency

If you are starting with an advertised range of .006" +/- the range of inconsistency is going to be much worse than that of the more expensive arrows.

The cheaper arrows are not all .006" off of straight. You would think that will be a range from .001" to .006". Unfortunately, the tolerance is “plus or minus”. So the possible total run out is twice that and you may have an arrow with a total run out of .012". But there will also be arrows that that are straighter, maybe much straighter. You just don’t know.

You may be able to get your bow tuned for the best arrow in the batch, but it is not tuned for the worst arrows in the batch. Tuning doesn’t always improve accuracy but it does improve downrange kinetic energy. From the same bow one arrow will fly well and give you a pass-through. Another arrow will corkscrew and not give you the pass-through. I think we owe it to the animals we hunt to kill them as cleanly and quickly as possible. When your arrows have a possible inconsistency of .012” you are not going to be able to do this.

Someone said that there have been a lot of animals killed with arrows that are not straight. This is true. But how many were just wounded that would have been killed cleanly with better equipment?

Accuracy = Consistency

Like Len, I don't believe the advertising claims for straightness. However, I do think that most manufacturers put more care into the more expensive arrows.

We don't always get what we pay for, but when the best is less than double the cheapest, I'm willing to pay it for both target and hunting. I'll save much of the difference by doing my own cutting and fletching.

One other thing - the Wal-mart arrows are built in Korea and China. I'd rather buy American.

Len, have you ever had one of your customers send arrows back to the manufacturer because they didn't meet the advertised specs?

Allen

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

As I said befor I shoot .002 bemens. my friend jims wallmart arrows grouped just as good as my $90 dz arrows:{ Allso as good as many outhers:{ I donot like wallmart [union carpenter here]. I am much happyer going to a REAL bow store.TRY asking a wallmartion a question on spine stiffness :D You will never find one.

I have broaken 2 arrows on elk. They where broaken by the leg coming back and snaping them off.Allso have had this with deer. With jims JUNK wallmart arrows he kills a elk and many deer every year and I have never seen him break an arrow.If any thing they may get bent if they where not a full pass though.

I am for buying GOOD items to hunt with.BUT I think in this mans question was is the .006 good enough to hunt with. If you do not have the money to spend you can still shoot very good with way less tolarances than .001.I think a lot of people are more woried about pride than telling the man the truth.Yes they may be a very very little bit better will you beable to tell NO.

The man asking did not say if he was a newbee in bow hunting or if he had every thing and was just wondering if he could inprove.I got the tought he is new to bow hunting,and telling him he HAS to get the best to shoot good is not right.

I loose 2 dz arows a year dew to the fact I shoot everthing[yotes grouse rabbits and even a few deer].
I still buy the good arrows, NOT becouse they are better for the reasion I thought they shot the best from my bow.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

I'm with Straightarrow ! You guys can talk all you want ......while your shooting field points !

But you put some fixed blades on and then see what happens !!!! ;)

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

a very fine point. well said.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

From what I gather from everyone is........if it shoots straight, shoot it......

.006 or .001 means nothing when it is stated from a manufacturer (as Len pointed out with his "bad" batch from the factory). Arrow construction is the most important thing. HOW the arrow is put together (epoxies, carbon quality, etc.) is at least as important as straightness.

I've shot Snuffers on .006 arrows and on .003 arrows and not had a bit of problems grouping out to 60-70 yards. The only real difference I've seen is that out of a dozen I might get 8 "good" (spine wise) arrows as compared to 6 in the .006 arrows. I've never lost an elk or deer due to arrow failure (how would you REALLY ever know?)....


I would venture a guess that a dozen spine "grouped" .006 arrrows would out-shoot "stock" .002 arrows. Anyone agree?

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

One thing I noticed the guy shooting walmart arrows was shooting aluminum(gamegetters).IMO aluminum is much closer in spine and straightness tolerances because of the way it is manufactured.Carbon arrows are wrapped around, I'm assuming, around some sort of mandrel.You have glue to hold the layers together.This process leaves much in the room for error.ACC's have a inner aluminum core.They also are a good compromise between light weight and good quality if you don't want to shoot aluminum.

My ole granpappy said you get what you pay for.I've found this mostly to be true.
Of course I know guys that use rivercane to make arrows,talk about a challenge!


CB

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

CG
I think you got what we all have been missing.Every one of us shootr all our arrows and deside what ones shoot best. I know I end up only getting 7 to 9 good arrows out of 1 dz. If you do this with all typs of arrows I beleave you have called out the bad ones.So in trun all most people will shoot is the best.The bad arrows I have are shoot at grouse and yotes NOT elk or deer.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

Give us some fricken credit here! This thread is about hunting , this is a hunting board , the common denominator seems to be...hunting situations.
When I talk about accuracy between the two arrows for hunting situations I'm darn well talking about shooting broadheads!

Another thing I'll add , when tuning my setups I usually find a few arrows out of a dozen that wont impact the same as the rest of the arrows but I have no problem filling my quiver with true flying arrows of the .006 quality. I will also add that I've had just as many bad flyers with the more expensive .002 arrows when weeding thru a new dozen.

Shoot whatever makes you confident!

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

I don't know how else to put this. The question was regarding .001 vs .006 for hunting purposes.

Please don't try to tell me that all .006 arrows are junk or crap. All of the big name arrow manufactures make .004-.006 arrows and some of you are trying to convince me they are crap? They would not be in business if that were the case.

For some reason some of you can't or won't believe that a good arrow company can make a good WELL built arrow at .006 straighness and pass it on the the consumer for less than the .001 arrows. Those arrows still carry the name Easton or Beman or Carbon Express on them and they reflect on the company.

Some of you will have us believe that those arrows are junk and won't fly straight, penetrate or stay intact in hunting situations. The fact is they perform just as they are advertised and if they didn't then those arrows wouldn't sell and the companies would suffer.

The only difference is a slight and I mean slight difference in the tolerances between the two arrows. I will say it again, there is NO WAY an average hunter/archer will ever be able to tell the difference between the two. And that goes for most of the people on this board that are saying they are junk.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

what i'm really wondering is if the .006's and 003's are made on different machines, or with different materials, or glue, or what. i'm guessing they get separated after they are made, as in 1/2 this pole goes in the .003 pile and 1/2 goes in the .006 pile because it didn't come out quite as perfect. i'm speaking between the hunter and the xt or any other companies similar lines.
like i mentioned, i get a few bad arrows each time no matter which i order - much better results when arrows are cut from both ends, and then when i switch to broadheads i pick the best 4-6, the ones that fly perfect. i have room to shoot 6 broadheads at my homemade broadhead target and i don't need any more than that anyway.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

If you shoot fixed blades, put them on and then spin them on end on a piece of glass to see which ones are the straightest number your arrows so when you shoot them you will see which ones are the straightest, they will be the ones that group the best. I bought 6 gold tip hunters they shoot great with field tips but when I put my g5s on the ones that don't spin the straightest are the arrows that hit off. How much money did I save when I had to buy more arrows??? I buy the XT only now and still check them with broadheads to be sure.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

So what I'm gathering is this: buy the .001's and the .006's at least once in your life to see if there is any difference. if one can honestly shoot the .001's better and notice a difference in their accuracy than go with the .001's. if a person can't tell a bit of difference, cheaper is better. There are so many different opinions in here that I don't think somebody can truely know the differece until they shoot the different arrows for themselves. I'm going to buy the .006 Hunters and shoot them a bit. When I buy my next dozen arrows after that I will try a set of the .001" Pro Hunters. That way I should be able to tell the difference between the two for my shooting style and make future decisions based my finds.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

Not sure about the others, but I haven't tried to convince you or anyone else of that. I tried to give my experience and say that I can tell the difference when shooting fixed blade broadheads and that I don't mind spending a couple more bucks for what I consider the most important part of a hunting setup. When the origanl poster asked "Is the Price difference really worth it for straighter shafts for ranges out to 40 yards?? ", I thought that all opinions would be wanted, not just one side. I will not try to convince you that .006 arrows are junk and you should not try to convince others that all are the same. ;) I don't think it's that difficult to justify the price difference - my opinion.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

If the question here is "if" the .001 are worth it ............I say yes based on my experience !

I know you can pick through cheap arrows and get some to fly perfect with fixed blades..............but how many out of a dozen ! IME.....I've been lucky to get 8-9 out of a dozen with cheap arrows and 6 is not out of the norm (Axis') ! [:'(]

So yes........to get 11 or 12 out of a dozen that spin true and shoot fixed blade broadheads dead on.........you bet your arse I'll pay the extra $20 a dozen !

Who is really getting the better yield ???? ;)

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

gibblet, I guarantee you if you bought Easton ACC's you would not get "a few bad arrows" each time. Yes they are more expensive but as others have said, with arrows you do get what you pay for. I have bought several dozen ACC's over the years across a couple different spine sizes and have never had any fliers that don't group with the rest.

The original post was asking about the difference between .001 and .006 all carbon arrows but I wouldn't shoot either over my .003" ACC's even though the GT's are cheaper.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

Straightarrow,

I have never said that the two arrows are the same.

Please take the time and re-read my posts, quite the opposite. I know there is a difference in the two arrows. What I am saying is 99% of the people will never be able to tell the difference between the two. The original question was regarding hunting situations.

CMB SC

Please show me where I said to go and buy "cheap" arrows? Sometimes I think nobody is reading what i'm writing. I never said to buy "cheap" arrows. There are plenty of GOOD arrows made by all of the big name manufactures that are .006. Are you one of the people that believe all arrows that are not .001 are "cheap" and "junk" no matter who makes them?

I bet Easton and Beman would love to hear that:eek:

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

Saying that 99% of the people will never tell the difference, is not "quite the opposite". In fact, it's a very similar statement. The opposite would be to say that everyone would be able to easily tell the difference. I believe that all but the worst of shooters, or the luckiest of arrow builders will be able to tell the difference on groups with broadheads attached. Of course any single arrow or few arrows can fly perfect, but can you get a group of twelve to fly the same way? I believe the odds are much greater in the higher-end arrows and the difference is detectable by most shooters. Once again, this is only my opinion and I believe the original poster is entiltled to it.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

BigJ12...........I wasn't directing any of my comments to you ! I haven't read evrry comment on this thread and I had to go back and look at your post to even see what your talking about..............DON'T TAKE THINGS SO PERSONAL !! ;)

I was refering to cheap arrows as cheap $$$ arrows ! You know as well as I do that .006 are the cheaper arrows any manufacturer sells ! Nobody.......I mean nobody sells .006 for the same or close to the same price as their .001..........so they are "cheap" comparitively !

Now I have no problem saying that Axis arrows at .005 are not worth the $ 89 a doz I paid !! My GT Pro hunter's for $79 are so much better of a deal for the money it's not even funny................so I guess I like "cheaper" arrows !! [:o]

Good Luck and shooting !! -Brent

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

Straightarrow

Just because there is a difference between the two arrows dosen't mean people can tell by shooting them.

What i'm saying is that the difference (about the thickness of a human hair) would not be noticed by 99% of the people on this board. I understand there is a difference in the two arrows so don't put words in my mouth. I am not trying to convince the others that they are the same, I'm trying to convince them that most of them will never be able to tell the difference in a hunting situation. Including myself.

That was the original question right, How important is shaft straightness for hunting? Maybe I should have asked him what his definition of hunting was. I figured he was talking about north american game ie deer, elk, moose, bear, etc... If that is the case (and I think it is) then you are talking about 40yd shots and in. I still contend that the difference in the arrow flight between two quality arrows from quality manufactures of different straightness .001 to .006 would not be noticed by 99% of hunters on this board.

I told him that his extra money would be better spent at the range practicing.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

Not that I could find anywhere. In my last post, I quoted the question. He wanted to know if the price difference was worth it. We have a difference of opinion, which is fine by me. I disagree with you. You seem to be having a problem with it. You are welcome to continue to believe whatever you like. I don't care. I simply wanted to give my opposing opinion to the question.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

For what it's worth I just went and checked out a good majority of "high end" arrows ranging in price from $59.99-$231.99 and what I found was that the average for the straightness tolerance for all of these arrows is +-.003" with .001" being the best and .005" being the worst. So, there is definitely more than just straightness that goes into an arrow being higher priced. Being that the other factor is spine consistency I think it would be worthwhile to look beyond the .00x" difference in straightness and be sure to get arrows that will have consistent spine.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

I'll say this one more time in another way and hope that most understand it. When you buy the ".006" arrows, you're buying a 'specification' which is at the end of the spectrum; and, you're ASSUMING that they're all ".006". NOT!! - based on my professional findings.

This leads to the "yield" factor which I discussed earlier. A few might be .006, and then a few might be .008, and then a few might be .015, etc. Heck, I've even seen a few .004 arrows in a .006 batch. But, they are more random when compared to the usual .001 batch - with exceptions.

Back of the book segment;): The Rep looked at those .001 arrows that I was rejecting the other day and immediately called the factory. He felt that they were misprinted. We both concluded that they were "horrible". They're taking them back without a question.

The bottom line is, what if we hadn't had the incoming QC process in place? How many of these might have gotten to the customer before anyone noticed it?

To summarize, it's just a shame that so many deal with arrows as a 2nd or 3rd level item. It is a very important part of the 'system'.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

Straightarrow,

I do not have a problem with you or any others on this board, I am just giving my opinion. The problem is, some of the posts I'm reading it seems like some people are not fully understanding just what my opinion is (that is not directed at you) or are only getting parts of what I'm trying to say.

It is very hard for me to pay more for an arrow that out performs my shooting ability. And what I mean by that is if I put all of my arrows in the bullseye consistantly at any distance from 0-40yds, why would I want to spend more?

Now if we start talking about longer distances and smaller targets then I will be the first to say get the straightest arrows you can afford. But if my .006 arrow is impacting 1/4 +/- inches off of where a .001 arrow would at 40yds and under, why would I spend more money?

You can spend more money and you will get better arrows but do you really NEED it in this situation? my opinion is no. Yes you are entitled to you opinion and I respect that.

John

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

I'm new to bowhunting as I just started last year & I also shoot aluminum so maybe I shouldnt say anything. However thats not my style. :D I know beyond a doubt that shooting a straighter arrow with a fixed blade broadhead shrinks my groups alot at 30 yards. I cant shoot groups with good arrows at 30 yards without cutting fletches or nocks but I can with cheap ones. I'm talking Gamegetters as good & fall stalkers as cheap.
Screw on a field point & they both fly exelent & group exellent.
The reason I keep shooting the Alluminums is I can buy the cheapo ones & theyre as straight as most carbons at .005 & when I want to hunt I can use the better ones that are straighter than most carbons & still way cheaper.
Its my opinion that the reason alot of guys need to shoot mechanicals is because they insist on shooting carbons but wont or cant spend 80 to 100 bucks for a dozen arrows.
I oughtta add that even the stalkers group good enuff for hunting out to 30 (furthest I can shoot in my yard) I can keep them in 4" at that distance so I guess that .005 carbons should suffice as well. Not as good as .001 tho.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

I think that if you can consistently hit your target at hunting distances with the arrow of your choice then that is good enough. I have worked in tool shops for 20+ years. Most of that time building plastic injection molds. So I know what a tolerance is. And I know that a lot of the time tolerances are not met. We are talking arrows here, even the most expensive arrow money could buy is still a very low cost item in the manufacturing world. You can bet your a$$ that out of 100 arrows made, probably less than 5 would ever get checked. That's not what a salesman would tell you, but thats what would happen. They are too busy boxing up truckloads to sell to everybody that buys into their BS that they can make something within .001 that is 30 inches long. They know most people don't have the equipment or the knowhow to check them. Next time I buy arrows I will accurately check them at work at post the true specs here.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

[quote]ORIGINAL: dws

I think that if you can consistently hit your target at hunting distances with the arrow of your choice then that is good enough.


dws, although I agree with most of what you posted above I do have to rebutt this part. One of the biggest differences between average and better to top-notch shooters is that "nothing is ever good enough". There is always the quest for perfection, or at least to exceed past performance. It's not always about equipment either, but attitude, too. And then there are really people that honestly don't know where the differences lie so need educated. That's where these discussions come in handy.

But to be honest about it, I have never cared for statements that mean "close enough for hunting". To me it shows a lack of respect for critters. This is blood and guts and the animals deserve our respect and the best we can give them.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

BGfisher,

I agree with everything you just said but I just have to ask you this. If I can put my .001 arrow through the heart of a whitetail say at 35yds and I can also put my .006 arrow through the same heart at the same distance. How am I doing that critter disjustice?

That is a perfect example of that arrow being "close enough for hunting"

It's the same reason why I use off the shelf winchester failsafes instead of "match grade" rounds in my rifle. Are the match grade rounds better than the off the shelf rounds with better tolerances? yep....do I need to spend the extra money if those off the shelf winchesters are going exactly where I want them to? nope. Am I doing the animal I'm hunting a disservice by not using the more expensive and better rounds...certainley not.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

Exactly! I would also suggest (from my experiences with ICS carbons) to pay particular attention to spine. I've had more troubles grouping broadheads due to spine problems over anything else. In my opinion the spine ratings on ICS carbon arrows are too generalized. For example GoldTip 5575's , most archers would assume that if their shooting a poundage anywhere in between 50 - 75lbs that the GT 5575 would be the arrow of choice. I've been shooting between 62lbs - 67lbs for the last seven years with five different bows and the 5575's have been too weak in the spine with all five setups.
Same with the Beman ICS hunters , I've had no troubles with the 340's , but if I went by the charts (which I did to begin with) they tell me to use the 400's.

Just something to keep in mind.

Just wanted to add that I also cut my arrows from both ends and I make sure both ends are perfectly smooth and level , which I consider probably the most important steps in building an arrow.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

bowfanatic, i agree completely about spine. it has been more important in my tuning experience than the difference between .003 and .006. i used to shoot gt 55/75's and could never get tuned out of my 70 lb patriot, never. all a certain shop owner here sells to all his shooters is 55/75's. i ordered some 75/95's and my tuning issues disappeared.

blodg, i have never owned any acc's. i'm a loyal gt shooter. i have read and been very interested by much of your technical info, and i will take you up on your advice to try them out. couple ?'s, if they have carbon and aluminum, which blade do you cut them with? and i shoot a 70 lb 29" draw patriot sc with 452x strings and cables, i know nothing about ordering the correct ones, which one do you reccomend for proper spine for my setup? i'd rather be a little stiff on spine than just at the edge of what an arrow is listed for a particular setup, at least that's what i've learned from shooting gold tips. any help in letting me know which acc's would be proper for me would be greatly appreciated.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

Bowfanatic, I have to agree with this statement. Ever since I've built my spine tester, I've been a bit amazed at the variation in spine among a dozen carbons. Most dozens will show at least a .030 difference between the stiffest and weakest arrow in a group (that's a lot). I've measured some dozens where the vaiation was .065. That's incredibly huge variation, that can't possibly result in a consistant shooting dozen. If you're shooting borderline spined arrows, you are not likely to get the same point of impact from such variation, when shooting broadheads. I have found certain brands to be less consistent than others and have found the lower tolerance for-straightness arrrows to be less consistant than the higher end ones in most cases. This makes sense that a straighter arrow is also likely to test more consistant with spine. Aluminums shoot so good, because they are not only very straight, they are very consistant with spine. Seldom can I measure more than a .005 difference in a dozen.

I have managed to get great broadhead flight from my arrow building. My procedure to build an arrow is the following: Select a shaft that is slightly too stiff for the cam and poundage I'm shooting. I then cut from both ends at 90 degrees. I spine test, marking the stiffest side with a marker. I cull any arrows falling below a particular spine (too weak). I then align the cock feather with my mark. This way, each arrow has the stiffest side flexing the same way. Then, I attach feathers with a strong helical to get the arrows spinning and attach a broadhead heavy enough that I get an F.O.C. of at leat 10%. With this method I've gotten great flight from even cheap arrows. The difference is the number of arrows I keep out of a dozen. I've increased my percentage of "keepers" from all dozens, but the more expensive arrows (at least from some brands), have yeilded higher numbers of "keepers". This is the reason I have found them to be worth the price to me.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

My thoughts exactly !! ;)

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

making your arrows is the way to go.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

yea, i think we have beat this topic up enough.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

Straightarrow,
It would be very helpful and informative to know just what the measured difference in point of impact was that you have found with these variations in spine deflection. Also did you find a pattern in point of impact differences to spine difference (weaker spine high, low, left or right)?
Also one thing that I don't believe I have seen mentioned in this discussion that has been the biggest determining factor for me in broadhead grouping is alignment of insert to shaft. I have my own system of installing inserts that works for me and I hate to let anyone else install inserts on arrows for me to shoot. I have shot arrows with fixed broads only to have them fly all over the place, then remove the insert and install straight and have the same arrow fly perfectly. This has occured with some of the best and worst straightness tolerance and and highest and lowest priced arrows.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

Can you describe the way that you install your inserts? I would like to know how to get them perfectly square.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

Unfortunately, I wasn't detailing any of that. If I had a confirmed flyer, I culled it. I number my arrows as i build them, and note what the spine variation is, but I don't record the actual numbers, or where they hit. That would take more work then I really want to do. I have also planned on building a few dozen where I align the cock feather with identically spined sides (not necessarily the stiffest side), and see how they fly. I haven't done it yet, because what I'm doing is working so well, I don't want to have to refletch a dozen. I'll have to get overcome that laziness and give it a try. If I have a spine of .340 on a dozen and I find one that is .370 on the stiff side, I cull it without shooting it. Once they get to the weak side, they just don't fly the same with broadheads. I'll save them up for someone shooting 55-60 lbs and give it to them.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

This says it all. Great post SA. (I added the bold face). I think most folks would be appauled at the crap many manufacturers sell us under the guise of "quality" gear.

I'm curious how many people who are not worried about cheap carbons would tune your bow up for XX78 2314's, and then shoot a mix of 2314's, 2315s, 2413s, and 2219s out of it?

That's essentially what you are doing if you shoot a dozen carbons shafts which vary up to .065 in spine...

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

My personal limit is a difference of +/- .015 , though I think you could get away with a little more vairation than that. However, if your broadheads are large, FOC is small or you're using straight fletched vanes, I wouldn't.

RE: How important is shaft straighness for hunting??
 

I used to be a machinist years ago and some of the parts that we inspected we did a concentricity test on a metal shaft just 4" long.If the shaft was even .003"of an inch it was rejected.Now just think;three thousands of an inch of a four inch span compared to an arrow shaft that is at least 25"thats an awfull large error.Spin test any arrow with a broadhead at the end ,on a streight arrow with an "even" glue line, and you can even see some wobble wich could be from other factors other than the shaft .I would get the straightest arrows possible or that I could afford,You do get what you pay for most of the time.Hey and in archery or any target sport isn't accuracy paramount?Hunting too!