BobCo19-65

My new Grizzly's are just under 700 grain and about 21% FOC. They are super quiet out of my Schulz longbow (65#'s at 29.5 inches).

bringing it

I shoot a compressed and tapered cedar at full length (32") and tip them with 160 gr. grizzlies. If I'm not mistaken they are about 650+grains.

Shooting light carbon arrows in a tradtional bow can potentially cause structural damage to your bow. There may not be enough weight to "absorb" the stored energy. You could be potentially dry firing your bow. Your arrow seems very light. This gains you nothing.
Compound engineering designs for a limb length/arrow weight to maximize arrow speed.This really doesn't serve when analytically thinkingor applying traditional archery.

blackwidowbowman

My arrows are typically9 grains per pound of draw weight. That formula is one I use for myself and my girlfriend. Her bow is 40 pounds at her draw weight. She is shooting a360 grain arrow, more important than grain weight is FOC, forward of center balancing point, compound shooters can get away with it not being right in the ball park, we cannot.

My bows run from 61 to 70 pounds, my arrows are on average 540 grains, when tuned properly gives super efficiency. Remember that longbows and recurves that don't have as much center shot may require an arrow that is not spined as stiff. Don't think that arrows spined lighter have to equate to lighter physical weight. This is where oldtimers like the 2016, 2018, 2020, and 2117 are worth their weight in gold.

I always bare shaft test my arrows too! One very wise traditional bowhunter(right hander)says she tunes her bows using bare shaft testing. She says she shoots them in until they hit just to theleft of the spot. She states that when she puts feathers on the shafts, it stiffens them and they hit right in the middle. I find no fault with her theory....

LBR

I'd have to disagree, at least to a point. The reason being I see guys shooting carbons with 100 grain inserts and 160-200 grain points with no problems. They need the weight to get the over-all weight up and the spine down. Couldn't say if it would work as well with wood or aluminum, but it does work with carbon.

I have no idea what my FOC is, but I get great flight. I shoot a 125 grain point with full length POC (31.5" approx.) that usually weigh 600-650 grains (finished arrow).

Chad

shortrecurve1

A good rule of thumb when shooting a recurve or longbow is appx. 10 grains per pound of pull plus or minus 2 grains. So if you are shooting 50 lbs. somewhere between 475-525 grains( including field point or broadhead) should do the trick. If your arrows are too light you may end up damaging your limb tips. Your arrow speed won't increase much with a lighter arrow anyway because of the physics of shooting a stick and string. When you shoot a lighter arrow, more of the string's energy is transferred to the limb tips and limbs. A heavier arrow absorbs more of the strings energy, and less goes to the limbs thereby reducing the chances of damaging your bow.
Also you will have to shoot feathers rather than plastic vanes.

SteveBNy

If a bow needs 10gr/lb to keep from damaging it, its a poor design and I would not touch it.

I have shot my DAS with 7 grs/lb for 3d 1000's of shots with no damage.

Use 8 to 9 for hunting.

Steve

calebwill

try to add feathers instead of vanes, if you are shooting off the shelf.

blackwidowbowman

Chad,

It will work withaluminum too, I have added weight to them when I was at the cross roads in the spine area. While not using FOC to get your arrows in the ball park is not a requirement, I like the confidence I feel when I shoot my bare shafts twenty and thrity yards and they fly with the nock directly behind the point. I love the fact that I can screw off the broadhead put on a field point and nothingchanges. Since I have been doing it I have found my stickbows take accuracy to a new level. Some guys have commented that they never thought a stickbow could be so accurate. Even some of us believe that crap about stickbows being less accurate than compounds. If that is true, why is it when placed in a shooting machine there is no difference beyond speed?

You can have too much weight up front and still get fair flight. I just like to control all of the elements that I can control. The rest I will leave in the hands of the Creator.

I don't like to shoot too light an arrow in any bow, I don't think an arrow too heavy is a lot better. As I age, I find that shooting the 70 and 80 pound bows no longer hold theinterest that they once did. MyfavoriteBlackwidow and Saxon are 60 and 61 pounds respectively. I find that 500 - 540 grains about covers it for me. I shootWensel Woodsman, and chase whitetail deer, and Nasty Wildboar. I get pass throughs where the arrow is on the ground on the otherside in about 90 percent of my kills. I getgood arrow speed, and low noise. I guess I could go heavier, or lighter. Like the man said, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it".

Tuffcity

So that would make your arrows about 5800 grains- I think that this is plenty heavy enough.

RC

charlie brown

I am shooting a 45 lb recurve. 2114 XX75 arrows, 4" feathers, and 100 grain Muzzy's. Comes to right at 430 grains. Plan to only hunt pronghorn, and maybe deer with this set-up. Will go heavier for elk.

Later,

Marcial