It amazes me the seemingly blind disregard for those of the heavy arrow crowd by some here. Yes a lighter arrow is gonna fly flatter....... Now this is simply my opinion obviously but here's why I disregard speed entirely and not worry about it. In my opinion there are a few things that can go wrong causing a no harvest: -Yardage mistake- This is a common one amongst hunters, while yes you could hit high or low still and have a chance to kill but more commonly is a clean miss entirely. The best kind of thing to occur when something goes wrong is the deer be unscathed. A lighter arrow can compensate for miss-guessing at yardage and in this "wrong" item a lighter arrow would be a positive strictly taking into consideration trajectory only. -Impacting Bone- This happens a lot more than most of us would care to admit most likely...quartering shots are notorious for opposite shoulder impacts or leg impacts. Not to mention the infamous shoulder impact we all dread can and will occur at some point in our bowhunting if it hasn't already. Impacting bone lessons blood trail often times, creates a wounded deer, higher casualty (but not always recovered) likelihood, and will sometimes stops arrow penetration to the point of no recovery/blood trail is even possible. This is where a heavier arrow wins out over a lighter one. Think of it this way...if someone threw a spear made out of balsa wood at a door and then a spear made out of solid oak....which would have the greater likelihood of blowing through the regular wood door? The heavier one obviously...all goes back to KE each spear holds. A heavy arrow can overcome a bone hit and still be lethal, and at times very quickly. -Lack of Penetration- This is not a knock to anyone, but just watch some of the videos out there on the web. Very well known or online shows with a following you see multiple times (at times more often than not) deer shot and the arrow never makes it through the deer....EVEN ON 10 RING HITS. Now I get it that expandable broadheads by design are going to spend a lot more energy opening and some have more drag through the cavity...but it is disturbing how very few pass through shots you see these days. I know not all but I would be personally a lot of that has to do with guys chasing speed with lighter arrows that even spindly ribs slow down. The problem with this is getting only one side penetration can really hamper a blood trail in a big way...especially if from an elevated position; entrance hole is high and deer will fill up internally...where if you have an exit hole lower acts as a drain. Obviously a heavier arrow wins here as well...simply because like when impacting bone the arrow holds a higher penetration potential and unless you attempt to pile drive the shoulders your arrow will more than likely end up passing completely through...upping your odds of a recovery immensely. -Duck The Shot- I will openly admit...modern bows basically eliminate in my opinion a deer's ability to jump a string....that said a quieter bow when shot eliminates this even more so. A heavier arrow=a quieter bow. -Wind- Now this isn't a factor in short yardage but ask anyone hunting the plains or wide open spaces about whether wind plays a factor on shot accuracy and you'll learn quickly it does. Heavier arrow will fight the wind and stay true to path much more than a lighter arrow. --- It is the increased penetration potential that makes myself choose a heavier set up as opposed to a lighter one. To me the thing gained by a lighter set up, a flatter trajectory, simply doesn't out weigh the things gained by a heavier arrow set up. Doesn't mean I think people are stupid or wrong for choosing a lighter arrow...just not my choice personally for the reasons described. I will say those that state the yardage mistake as their concern in my opinion should learn to be a better gauge of distance. Honestly, if you can't know your yardage whether by practice, write down each stand yardages or the use of a range finder I think there is a much bigger issue than arrow selection. Blessings y'all! The season is bout upon us...whether light or heavy put it in the 10 ring and watch em fall!
This sums it up....^^^ One thing we have to remember when discussing things like this on forums is that the scope of the participants are probably more narrow then it seems. They have limited experiences and experience they do have are most likely mostly with one type of game...and lots of times in one place.
404grains is a good arrow weight. Anything over 400 grains in my opinion is perfect for most game in this country
Ty has def summed it all up very well! I hear what your saying completely, but also just prefer to have a heavier arrow set up and will sacrifices the flatter trajectory any day of the week just to have the benefits of a heavier arrow. Im not telling anyone to shoot a heavier arrow if they like a lighter set up, but what I am saying is that don't disregard all the info and facts that support a heavier arrow is the optimal choice for a hunting set up. And it has nothing to do with hunters out east or not, it just my preference in my particular arrow setup and there just so happens to be data that support it also...Just look at Ty's post. But there are absolutely benefits to both sides of the spectrum for hunters, I just happen to feel the benefits of heavier arrows far out weigh the lighter...no pun intended. I have taken deer well past 30 yards through out my bow hunting career, heck even double that distance...I will continue to do so when the opportunity presents itself and conditions are ideal also. Have I misjudge distance before and put one under the animal yes sir, but hey it happens this is bowhunting not gun hunting. Like i said in my previous post, to each is own... it's all preference and bowhunters are all different in their own ways, especially with their gear and their setups.
Definitely bowhunters are more particular than any other I have come to realize....like if someone disagrees they seemed offended by that.
