New to archery.. picking arrows and broad heads!

Joined
Dec 2, 2022
Messages
383
Location
Southest Michigan
Hey all,

I picked up a bow from the classifieds here and have been picking up other components for it while I wait for it to arrive. A local store has some supplies so I was looking at arrows and broad heads.

The bow:

Prime Logic CT5 with 65lb limbs, 29” draw. (I’m just a hair under 6’2, so 29-29.5 would be my draw length)

I will probably be adjusting the draw weight down to 55 or 60 to start and work my way up.

For now, would a .350 spine arrow be the way to go? I was looking at a pack of carbon express 30” arrows, and G5 Montec 100 or 125gr broadheads.

They also had an Easton 6.5 340 pack of arrows.

I’ve been reading through many different posts here and across the internet and it’s only made me more confused lol.

Will this combo work for me? Which weight Broadhead? I’ll be targeting MI whitetail only for now.


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Last edited:

Mcnasty

FNG
Joined
Aug 10, 2021
Messages
84
Location
Colorado
I am sure there will be lots of opinions abound on this one :) as what you want is something that will tune at the lower weight and then also be able to tune to the Highter weight when you get there. If you get the right spine in a full length you may be able to tune it by cutting and or adding weight down the road. You may just be suck getting new arrows once you get to you end state draw weight given your draw length. I would call RockyMountionSpecialty gear in Denver CO and ask them what they recommend given you parameters they have always been very helpful to me in weighing the pros and cons. good luck
 

big44a4

WKR
Joined
Jul 4, 2017
Messages
643
I’d get some 300 spine given your DL and possibility for moving up to 70# down the line. I have some new victory 300 spine arrows if you want to go that route just shoot me a PM.
 

Rob5589

WKR
Joined
Sep 6, 2014
Messages
6,299
Location
N CA
.340/.350 will work currently but may get under spined if you move up to 65lbs. I'd also lean toward a .300. Opinions vary but, I think the Montec are garbage based on what I saw with a buddy. I like and use the Magnus Black Hornet Ser-razor and the VPA 3 blades. Don't overlook a mechanical like the Sevr. I would think a state like Michigan would have a solid bowhunting contingent. I'd look around for some local archery groups and a quality pro shop to help get you started. Good luck!
 

Nockdown

FNG
Joined
Feb 2, 2014
Messages
50
Location
MT
CT5’s do fine if your arrows lean on the weak side according to calculators and charts. 340/350’s should be fine. Pick what you like but I’ve never been a carbon express fan. Victory vap’s or the Easton 6.5’s they have is where I would go.


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Zac

WKR
Joined
Dec 1, 2018
Messages
2,526
Location
UT
Are you sure your not locked into a certain draw length with that bow?
 
OP
allstajacket
Joined
Dec 2, 2022
Messages
383
Location
Southest Michigan
Are you sure your not locked into a certain draw length with that bow?

The bow is 29”. So my understanding is if I want it a bit longer I can adjust the d loop, etc. but 29 1/4” is all I’d think I’d need. Even then, I’m pretty sure 29 is my draw length.


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Joined
Feb 7, 2017
Messages
1,128
Location
NC
The Easton bowhunter 6.5s are good economical arrows. I’d avoid Montecs (I shot them years ago, they don’t get that sharp and have minimal blood trails). Magnus BlackHornets or Exodus heads are much better. Go with 125gr

Have fun!!
 

Beendare

WKR
Joined
May 6, 2014
Messages
9,100
Location
Corripe cervisiam
Op, you never want to be under spined….a modern compound shoots an over spined arrow just fine. IME, stick with 9gpior better yet 10gpi shafts…they make a more durable hunt arrow.

Arrow assembly is critical…no wobble with BHs….as is BH tuning And working on maintaining good alignment and perfect form In hunt conditions.

BH; match it to your Bow/arrow. High energy- you can shoot literally anything….low energy works best with an efficient BH ( ie- a tapered fixed head with leading edge blade)

Most bowhunters are best served with an arrow in the 420-480g range for the best balance of efficiency and trajectory. If you use an inefficient BH ( like a forward opening mech head) those benefit from more arrow weight behind them. You will hear horror stories with those because in most cases they were on an overly light fast arrow.
Just as KE squares speed…so does the impact resistance.

Mostly its the Indian…..tiny form flaws or bad habits are what gets you….learn how to shoot correctly either with a coaching session or by videoing and self analyzing with internet help from guys like Levi, nok on, or just watching pros shoot.
.
 
Joined
Jul 6, 2022
Messages
571
340 works fine up to 65 lbs at that draw with 100 gn head. broadhead choice is not overly important for whitetail. as a new bowhunter you should save your money and focus on learning and shooting, once you become comfortable and proficient then you can look at different gear.
whitetails are very easy to kill when you know where to aim, no amount of expensive gear is going to help you and no deer will ever care what you used to kill it.
my recommendation would be to buy the cheapest name brand arrows that are spined correctly and pick up a pack of schwackers and go hunt. you will likely lose arrows and make less than perfect shots as a new guy so this is the best choice in my opinion.
 

fatlander

WKR
Joined
Feb 11, 2016
Messages
2,160
6.5s are fantastic shafts for the money. They’re tough as nails, match grade 6.5 shafts are cheaper than .003 5mm shafts, and there’s endless component options that don’t break the bank.

With you just getting started, you need something that you can shoot a lot. And something that’s not going to be a big deal when you lose them.

Find someone in your area that’s a proficient archer that’s been through and beat target panic. They’ll put you leaps and bounds ahead of the learning curve. And you’ll learn the proper way to shoot so as to avoid the misery that is target panic.


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Jim813

FNG
Joined
Mar 7, 2023
Messages
13
What is the wind like where you hunt? I live/hunt in an area with frequent high winds. One thing I've found with different diameter arrows, is that the smaller arrow diameter is much less sensitive to cross wind. For example, my 5mm shaft arrows would move 4-5" with a strong cross wind at 50 yds, where the 4mm shaft arrow would move 1-2".
 
Joined
Feb 18, 2013
Messages
1,292
Location
Texas
Fixed blade single bevel is my recommendation for a broadhead
Why? He's hunting whitetail, which are thin skinned, small animals. Trad guys shoot through them with big 3 blades and 50lb recurves!

OP, when it comes to broadheads, just get a multiblade head with decent steel, and an ability to sharpen them yourself. Get some extra blood on the ground.
 

Jon_G

WKR
Joined
Jan 25, 2023
Messages
921
Hey all,

I picked up a bow from the classifieds here and have been picking up other components for it while I wait for it to arrive. A local store has some supplies so I was looking at arrows and broad heads.

The bow:

Prime Logic CT5 with 65lb limbs, 29” draw. (I’m just a hair under 6’2, so 29-29.5 would be my draw length)

I will probably be adjusting the draw weight down to 55 or 60 to start and work my way up.

For now, would a .350 spine arrow be the way to go? I was looking at a pack of carbon express 30” arrows, and G5 Montec 100 or 125gr broadheads.

They also had an Easton 6.5 340 pack of arrows.

I’ve been reading through many different posts here and across the internet and it’s only made me more confused lol.

Will this combo work for me? Which weight Broadhead? I’ll be targeting MI whitetail only for now.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
You just opened a whole world of headaches that you should have stayed away from lol...

But seriously welcome to the archery world. I'm a fairly new Archer too but I've spent months doing research and shooting and adjusting and all that good stuff. Keep in mind that if you're going to go in lbs any time soon, you may need new arrows. That isn't always the case it all depends on how long your arrows are to begin with when you started at 55lbs for example. I started with 55lbs and I was spot on target at like 40 yards. I quickly switched to 65 lbs and my arrows felt off even after I adjusted my gear properly. I lost money when I had to sell those and buy a stiffer spine.

The grim reaper white tail special broadheads are absolutely amazing for deer. I have friends that use them and the amount of blood that the animal leaves behind is crazy. As far as weight, I've personally seen people take down an elk with 460 grain arrows. But many will tell you to shoot over 500 but I wouldn't go that high personally. For deer, my arrows are at about 415 grains. Here's a picture of my arrows but I switched the field points for Iron will field points. The iron wills are the easiest to pull out compared to any other by a freaking mile. These Easton match grades look sick but I had to pull with both hands. With the IWs I hardly ever pull hard and they come right out.
 

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OP
allstajacket
Joined
Dec 2, 2022
Messages
383
Location
Southest Michigan
You just opened a whole world of headaches that you should have stayed away from lol...

But seriously welcome to the archery world. I'm a fairly new Archer too but I've spent months doing research and shooting and adjusting and all that good stuff. Keep in mind that if you're going to go in lbs any time soon, you may need new arrows. That isn't always the case it all depends on how long your arrows are to begin with when you started at 55lbs for example. I started with 55lbs and I was spot on target at like 40 yards. I quickly switched to 65 lbs and my arrows felt off even after I adjusted my gear properly. I lost money when I had to sell those and buy a stiffer spine.

The grim reaper white tail special broadheads are absolutely amazing for deer. I have friends that use them and the amount of blood that the animal leaves behind is crazy. As far as weight, I've personally seen people take down an elk with 460 grain arrows. But many will tell you to shoot over 500 but I wouldn't go that high personally. For deer, my arrows are at about 415 grains. Here's a picture of my arrows but I switched the field points for Iron will field points. The iron wills are the easiest to pull out compared to any other by a freaking mile. These Easton match grades look sick but I had to pull with both hands. With the IWs I hardly ever pull hard and they come right out.

Good info!

I took the bow to a local(ish) shop today and they adjusted the weight down to 55 for me, and adjusted the peep, I got the Easton 6.5 340’s and some standard field tips that was at the local sporting goods store. They definitely were a bit tough to pull out of the target. Shot two arrows to sight in, then made a quick adjustment for my top pin, and then shot these 3. Not bad!

The shop did advise me after seeing me draw that my draw length should be an inch longer. (30”) So idk if I try to change this bow (new cams?) or just use it as is for a while.


ba654474debe94a00396c7c1ad187d4f.jpg



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Jon_G

WKR
Joined
Jan 25, 2023
Messages
921
Good info!

I took the bow to a local(ish) shop today and they adjusted the weight down to 55 for me, and adjusted the peep, I got the Easton 6.5 340’s and some standard field tips that was at the local sporting goods store. They definitely were a bit tough to pull out of the target. Shot two arrows to sight in, then made a quick adjustment for my top pin, and then shot these 3. Not bad!

The shop did advise me after seeing me draw that my draw length should be an inch longer. (30”) So idk if I try to change this bow (new cams?) or just use it as is for a while.


ba654474debe94a00396c7c1ad187d4f.jpg



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All of the pros will tell you it's better to be shorter than longer. It can also depend on what release you shoot. Keep in mind that any change in arrow weight will throw off your entire setup. You'll have to sight in your bow all over again. It's a pain in the ass but that's the way the archery game works lol.

In the beginning it took me about 2 months to be shooting perfectly at 60 yards. When I switched arrows I had to start all over, but by then I had a tad bit more experience. Then I sent my scope to axcel to change the bottom pin to a .10 instead of the standard .19
At 50 yards and beyond the large .19 pin blocks the target. So that's another thing to keep in mind. Anyway when I received it back I had to adjust my pins again. It's a never ending process to try to become the best shooter you can be lol.
 

cwpepper

Lil-Rokslider
Joined
Sep 15, 2020
Messages
177
Location
Bend, Oregon
29” 300 spine
175 total grains of metal upfront
15% FOC
481 total grains

It’s important you work on your mechanics at a lower draw weight, but you’ll quickly be at 65lbs or 70lbs and want the 300 spine. I personally shoot Easton Axis 5mm shafts, Day Six Evo w/ 1/2” bleeder broadheads, 25gr Iron Will Insert h25, 25gr Iron Will Collar c25-B, and blazer vanes on a 70lb bow at 335fps ibo - after deductions I get about 280fps and 15% FOC on my arrow.

My opinion is an arrow at 15% FOC is a sweet spot (if you don’t know what FOC is yet you should research it). To oversimplify, high FOC is a good thing… but the tradeoff is lost velocity. Lower velocity results in less forgiveness with improper rangefinding. This is not a big deal if you are always working with known distances, such as out of a blind or tree stand, but for spot and stalk western hunting that forgiveness is very important as large mammals (I.e. Elk) can change distances with a mere stride. All things considered for western hunting a 15% FOC is a good target to shoot for, imo.
 
Last edited:

Valkyrie

Lil-Rokslider
Joined
Dec 12, 2018
Messages
166
Lots of good advice here. 340 spine might work but as you step up in poundage you become underspined.

I would also add, good, razor sharp, cut on contact broadheads.
 
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