Arrow weight and speed question

[Gonz406]

I've been into archery for about 2- 3 years now. Been shooting at 27 DL 60 DW with a 390 gr arrow (400 spine) . I recently tested the waters with a heavy arrow at about 500 gr (300 spine) 4 vanes.

I love the way these arrows fly and how forgiving they can be. My worry is.... are they to slow? I can tell the difference immediately, just wondering how they would preform hunting.

Open to any pointers or advice

 

[Pigdog]

Depends what you mean by “too slow”. Certainly not too slow to get the job done. With slower arrows you just need get better at judging distance.
I hunt with fairly heavy arrows, but with the density of the woods/brush I very rarely have opportunities past 40yds. If I were looking to shoot out to 70 in hunting situations I’d probably have more confidence if I used faster arrows.

 

[Spiral Horn]

A 500gr/300 arrow may be a bit too stiff for a 60lb draw. As far as speed is concerned I’ve always been of the mind of flinging a fairly stout 450ish gr arrow at 285fps or more gives me a good balance of reasonable drop over distance yet smacking the game with good ke, and not so fast that I start getting significant planing from broadheads.

For 3D shooters arrow speed is vital, but I’ve noticed that a good balance of speed/ke is better for hunting situations. Experiment to find what’s best for you. Just recommend to avoid the fast/heavy extremes.

my 2 cents

 

[Gonz406]

Depends what you mean by “too slow”. Certainly not too slow to get the job done. With slower arrows you just need get better at judging distance.
I hunt with fairly heavy arrows, but with the density of the woods/brush I very rarely have opportunities past 40yds. If I were looking to shoot out to 70 in hunting situations I’d probably have more confidence if I used faster arrows.

249 fps with current set up

283 fps with old set up

And I completely agree with the longer distance shot

 

[Rob5589]

249 isn't too slow for a 500 gr arrow at 60lbs with a 27" dl, IMO.

 

[MattB]

There isn-t really too slow within reason. You could potentially have limitations with distance depending on the sight you run (e.g. I can't set all 7 of my pins in 10 yard increments on my slow bow), but unless you tend to find yourself in situations where you aren't able to range game before shooting it is just a series of (probably net favorable) tradeoffs.

 

[Ian Ketterman]

Trad guys shoot 550-700g arrows at 190fps. You're realistically not going to be ''too slow''. My first Hoyt was an alphamax shooting 398g or so and I couldn't kill a pig with it. I had 3 pass throughs with my Hyperforce shooting 500g. Now I am running an older bow shooting 605g around 230fps.

 

[Gonz406]

Trad guys shoot 550-700g arrows at 190fps. You're realistically not going to be ''too slow''. My first Hoyt was an alphamax shooting 398g or so and I couldn't kill a pig with it. I had 3 pass throughs with my Hyperforce shooting 500g. Now I am running an older bow shooting 605g around 230fps.

I guess my biggest fear is not being able hit my target hard enough at 50yrds

 

[dkime]

249 fps with current set up

283 fps with old set up

And I completely agree with the longer distance shot

My girlfriend shoots 468gr at 53#/27" @240fps and I would not want to be standing in front of her within 80yds. Shoot your bow, enjoy your blood trails.

 

[Ian Ketterman]

I guess my biggest fear is not being able hit my target hard enough at 50yrds

The heavier the arrow the more momentum it will carry with it. Think of throwing a wiffle ball 125mph and throwing a baseball 95mph. That baseball is going to cause way more damage and fly way further.

 

[Gonz406]

Thanks everyone!

 

[5MilesBack]

I guess my biggest fear is not being able hit my target hard enough at 50yrds

Then hit it at less than 50 yards.

And actually, your bow will have more KE and momentum with the heavier arrows even though they are going slower. But there are trade-offs in archery......heavy slow arrow means wider pin gaps and less room for distance errors. Range all your shots and make sure your sight is set up perfectly.

 

[journeyman713]

I'm in the faster is better camp.
Faster arrows shoot flatter and improve accuracy.
Accuracy to me, is more important to me that knock down power.

Years ago I tried the slower but heavier. Not as happy overall.
The trajectory made judging exact distance more critical and contributed to lost deer.

One of my final heavy arrow hunts was a 50yd shot at a coyote. The broadside animal was able to spot the arrow coming, jump up, arch it's back enough to watch the arrow pass just under it's belly.

 

[dkime]

The speed thing is all relative, a 400gr arrow moving at 298fps has a time of flight to 50yds of .5111seconds

A 534gr arrow at 266fps has a time of flight to 50yds of .5726 seconds.

I will take the latter

 

[Beendare]

Weight v speed is all tradeoffs....and purpose built.

The 3D guys prefer the speed for flatter shooting. Experienced hunters want an arrow on the heavier side for better performance on game.

For most guys there is a sweet spot somewhere in the middle.

______

 

[nphunter]

Lots of variables in the equation, heavy arrows have more penetration which is a good thing to a certain point. A light arrow with a good sharp COC head will still out penetrate a heavy arrow with a large surface area or mechanical head. It really just depends on you, your mentality as well as what and where you will be hunting.

I have shot and killed elk with super light arrows and pretty heavy arrows. I'm currently shooting a 500gr arrow with a large cut expandable head. I have a ton of confidence in the arrow combo, it flys like an absolute Lazer and is devastating when it hits. I'm also shooting that arrow 285fps ish.

Your setup will kill any animal just fine and if you really don't feel confident or good shooting the heavy arrow then switch back to the 400gr or maybe split the difference. Bruce commented that about 3D archers wanting the lighter arrow to keep their scores up, I can tell you that when I shoot a 400gr arrow my 3D scores are way better than when shooting 500gr. 3D is just foam but you are shooting unknown distances at animal sized targets, you hit where you are aiming less with the heavy arrow unless you know the exact yardage. If you feel like you will be able to only take shots that you range then it doesn't matter what you shoot. If you feel like you will feel pressured to make the shot and don't have the self-control to possibly miss out on the buck of a lifetime because you didn't get a good range on it so you had to pass then maybe you would benefit from the better trajectory.

If you hunt in super heavy cover where shots are not likely past 40 yards then it doesn't matter and you might as well shoot the heavier arrow that will have more momentum, quiets down your bow and is more forgiving to fixed heads. If you hunt open country, you feel like you will be taking longer shots and may not have time to range and feel like you need more speed to make up for your misjudgment of yardage then stick with the lighter arrow. Either will kill an animal if you put them behind the shoulder.

I like ending up in the 280-290ish range for speed, if I get much lower I am unhappy with the trajectory when I'm up over 300fps I have a harder time getting fixed broadheads to fly well at longer distances.

There is no such thing as too slow or too fast, figure out what you like the best and shoot that, there are always trade-offs in archery. Confidence Kills!

 

[MattB]

I guess my biggest fear is not being able hit my target hard enough at 50yrds

That is not a real concern. Heavy arrows maintain energy better over distance than light arrows, all else equal.

 

[Red7006]

I agree heavier arrows carry more KE. The only thing your really losing with the heavier arrow, is you"ll have a bigger pin gap. Won't lose much in penetration. You will however have a quieter bow with the heavier arrow setup

 

[MattB]

I agree heavier arrows carry more KE. The only thing your really losing with the heavier arrow, is you"ll have a bigger pin gap. Won't lose much in penetration. You will however have a quieter bow with the heavier arrow setup

He would almost assuredly gain penetration, not lose it.