Definitive arrow study-Yates/Litke

[fatlander]

I'm not questing this. I've done this plenty of times. The arrow sounds cool.

I'm questing a testing lab sensitive enough to distinguish the difference between AAE vanes and Flex Fletch vanes from an audio/sound/decibel standpoint. Reading the suppressor testing, it seems far fetched. But I'm not an audio testing guy. Maybe things that are quieter are easier to measure accurately?

It would be easy as any other sound scientific test, pun intended. Repeat the test under the same conditions, multiple times, and see what the results say.


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[dreamingWest]

It would be easy as any other sound scientific test, pun intended. Repeat the test under the same conditions, multiple times, and see what the results say.


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https://www.precisioncutarchery.com/research/arrow-study-2026/methods/components-acoustics

This sounds likes like a legit sound test!
Shame on my skepticism.

 

[fatlander]

https://www.precisioncutarchery.com/research/arrow-study-2026/methods/components-acoustics

This sounds likes like a legit sound test!
Shame on my skepticism.

Yes it’s a very well designed study, but if the results can’t be replicated, it doesn’t really matter. The only way to know if it’s replicable is to do it again, and again, and again . . . That’s how hypothesis move to theories.


I think that’s what we’ve seen with varying differences in outcomes you’ve noted in suppressor testing.


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[Tilzbow]

I would be curious to know how much weight the brain trust puts on the sound of the fletchings and broadheads. I have a hard time seeing the fletchings and broadheads making a huge difference since the sound of the bow is so much louder. Just standing down range I hear the bow and not the arrows. I think an animal is going to react to the initial shot noise of the bow. I have heard Bill Vanderheyden and others say similar things. Maybe a long shot, say 70 yards? Whitetails react as soon as the bow goes off. I have never had an opportunity to shoot a bow at anything else, but will be chasing elks again this fall hoping to change that.

I once shot at a jack rabbit at about 120 yards, witnessed by several other guys at a 3d league. Field point, Blazer vanes. Dang thing must’ve heard the arrow, looked up, then ran away just before the arrow hit. Probably an instinctive response to the sound to avoid a bird of prey.

I can’t remember ever shooting at a large animal that actually heard, saw and moved out of the way of the arrow like that rabbit appeared to.

 

[BBob]

I can’t remember ever shooting at a large animal that actually heard, saw and moved out of the way of the arrow like that rabbit appeared to.

Pronghorn are notorious for doing just that.

 

[Fire_9]

I once shot at a jack rabbit at about 120 yards, witnessed by several other guys at a 3d league. Field point, Blazer vanes. Dang thing must’ve heard the arrow, looked up, then ran away just before the arrow hit. Probably an instinctive response to the sound to avoid a bird of prey.

I can’t remember ever shooting at a large animal that actually heard, saw and moved out of the way of the arrow like that rabbit appeared to.

I've had it happen once on a raghorn bull. Head down feeding and completely ducked the arrow at 40 yards. Elk are not known for doing that and I chalked it up to pulling the shot even though it felt really good. A couple years later I started paying attention to arrow noise and the head that I was shooting at that bull was extremely loud. Incredibly noticeable once I started paying attention to it. It was a vented 2 blade ashby head and I've pretty well sworn off vented heads because of it. May not be a huge issue but it sure as hell can't hurt to have a quiet arrow

 

[Tilzbow]

Down the rabbit hole I went!

After reading the study I checked the FOC on my current arrow build. It’s the first time I’ve checked FOC in years and it came in at just over 11%. I’m shooting older Spartan shafts with the stainless steel nock inserts, using wraps and Easton nocks. After finding out Black Eagle now makes a push in nock that removes the need for the nock insert, I ordered some of those. I cut the back 1” off my arrow to get rid of the nock insert, stripped the wrap, reflecthed without a wrap and used the lighter push in nock. All of this lowered the weight on the back end of the arrow by 23 grains. So I bought some stainless steel 8/32” set screws that are 7/8” long and weigh 23 grains. I screwed these into the back of the insert to keep the overall arrow weight the same as before at 500 grains. My FOC moved up to 16%.

Okay now to shoot the rebuilt arrows. I like to shoot bare shafts at longer distances to check my form and bow tune. Before with 11% FOC I struggled to get bare shafts to hit with fletched past 30 yards. After increasing FOC to 16% I’m able to easily shoot bare shafts with fletched to 40 yards and the past couple of days I’ve been shooting bare shafts with fletched to 50 yards with good results and have really been able to fine tune my RX10 using the new tuning system.

I’ve also shot broad heads to 60 yards and I’m able to shoot Slick Trick standards, VPA 3 blade vented and Iron Will standard and Iron Will wides right with field points. With the lower FOC I’d struggle with tightly grouping the VPA and especially the Iron Will wides starting around 50 yards.

In summary, take it for what it’s worth based on small sample size, but I’ve seen positive results with more stable bare shafts flight and more accurate and forgiving broad heads by increasing FOC.

As a result I’m now in process of rebuilding all my arrows to the new higher FOC and it’s only costing me time, fletching and new nocks.

 

[dtrkyman]

I still remember the first time I heard a Blazer vane going past me! Those vanes are stupid loud, long range quiet conditions it must be an issue!

Bow goes off, animal snaps its head that direction, then hears a loud hiss heading its way, yeah I think it can make a difference!


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