Can I shoot wood arrows?

[Chain2]

There has been a lot of talk on here about wood arrows. I currently shoot carbon. My set-up is 68" Shelton, 62 @ 30", I've been shooting 400 spine GT w/300 gr up front. My draw has went from 31" (Sasquatch LB) to the present 30" or so with the Hill style bow I'm shooting now. I have an Echo ordered from Chuck at Two Tracks and I was thinking of starting out with wood.
1) can I get them long enough?
2) Do you practice with them ? They look to nice to stump shoot with
3) What kind of weight can I expect if I can shoot wood ? Thank you

[SC Bowhunter]

1) Yes they will be long enough.
I shoot surewood shafts and they are 32.5" full length.
2) I practice with them all the time. If you stump shoot you may look into making your own (which is a whole other kind of enjoyment).
3) I order the shafts 420-430 grain (65-70#) and shoot 125 grain points at full length for a total of around 550 grains with my draw weight of 53#.

Longbows like wood, but I am curious, what is the wing span of someone with a 30 plus inch draw?  I gave a 70" Bear to a tall drink of water, he is skinny and strong.  When the weather warms and my yard dries up, we are going to work out some arrows for him and give some light bow shooting lessons.  I want to make sure that I have some arrows on hand for him to shoot.

[Yooper-traveler]

1.Yes you can get them long enough.  Mine are 32".
2.Yes you can practice with them.  Yes you will break them.
3.I just made some. Mine are (I think) 585 grains including the 160 grain head.

[newhouse114]

My Surewoods are full length, spined 75-80 with a 300 gr tip. Total weight of 834.

[Captain*Kirk]

Switching to woodies was almost as much fun as switching to trad.

[Chain2]

I like the idea of having a 30" rather than a 31" draw. I kind of evolved into it when I started shooting the Shelton. Wood seems to be the only proper thing to shoot thru a Hill style bow. Carbon is like hunting grouse with anything but a double barrel. My dog probably wouldn't leave the porch if I tried.

[FlintNSteel]

30" draw is no problem for getting long enough wood shafts.  Even for longer draws, one can get footed wood shafts if needed.

I have a 30" draw and depending on your broadhead weight, you're going to probably be in the low 600's to 700 grs.  My 70-75# spine full-lengh Surewoods with a 135 gr BH are 620 grs finished.

Surewood will actually work with you to get the shaft weight you want to end up with the finished weight you want.  If you go on the extreme ends of the range for a particular spine, they do warn they may not always have those in stock though.

[hitman]

If you shoot traditional how can you not shoot wood arrows? Nothing against carbon,shoot them a little myself but there is something mystical about beautifully crested wood arrows.

[Chain2]

Thanks Guys.  What about tuning? Obviously I won't have the up front weight like I do with carbons but is the tuning of wood tough to accomplish? Thanks again.

[Sam McMichael]

I have been shooting wood for a very long time. Arrow length availability has never been an issue, because I have arms shorter than a T-Rex. I hunt, stump, and shoot 3D with them. Yes, some of them break, but that is just part of archery. Usually, I stump with the remnants of a previous set of arrows that are nearly used up. I have had about three dozen sets that now have four or five left, and these go into the quiver to do "rough" practice. Wood arrows are not really as fragile as many think. I have some sets of wood arrows that still have 8 or 10 left that I bought more than 10 years ago, all POC. For me, they are easier to tune than other choices. I don't feel that EFOC is needed, or even important, for the hunting that I do. All my arrows have either 125 or 145 grain points, except for 190 grain points on one set. This is just my personal prejudice, but I think well done wooden arrows are simply more  attractive than their aluminum or carbon counterparts. Now, if I can just get a handle on cane arrows...

1) Yes
2) Yes
3) 500-600gr, easily

Bisch

[Pine]

You might consider getting a test kit from Surewood .
Tell them about where you think you should be and they will send a kit that is a little under to a little over the spine you want .
That way you can play with point weight and different spine weight and get it tuned in exactly .

[Chain2]

Thanks Guys. I appreciate the help.

[Captain*Kirk]

Originally posted by Chain2:
Thanks Guys.  What about tuning? Obviously I won't have the up front weight like I do with carbons but is the tuning of wood tough to accomplish? Thanks again.

Tuning woodies (to me) is easier than carbon as it's pretty straightforward with no worries about inserts, etc. Hardest part is pre-weighing and sorting your shafts by spine and weight to get the closest match. I try to lump them in threes as my bow quiver only holds three at a time.
You can still alter up-front weight using Woody Weights if you wish.