Originally posted by stuckum:
Thanks Guys. What spine should I shoot if I go with carbons? I draw a 51 lbs. on a recurve. Going to need a 28" arrow. Also I will be shooting 150grn. Woodsman broadheads.
stuckum,
Unlike my woodies, I don't immediately cut my carbons to the "length I need". I know what you mean though. I shoot a certain length woody, always the same spine, and they are dead-on what I need. However, carbons don't come in sizes like woodies do. Most wood arrows can be ordered in a 5lb spine range. You just won't see that in a carbon. Carbons cover a wide range of spines within 3 to 4 sizes of a particular brand. I always start with a full length shaft, with the manufacturers recommendation for my bow weight. I put the size head (with a field point instead of the broadhead) I'm going to shoot with on a bare shaft, and start tuning. I shoot a few times to determine whether they are under or over spined. Most of the time, being full length, they are under. If they are way under, I start cutting an inch off at a time. If they are close to center, but just slightly under, I may start cutting a half inch off at a time. I shoot several times after each cut to ensure the results are accurate, until my bare shafts are flying perfectly.
I've got different length shafts for several different manufacturers. As an example, my Gold Tip Traditional 3555's are full length with a bit of weight added up front to further weaken the spine for my 44lb longbow. That same arrow, used in my 47lb recurve is doing something entirely different. I've cut it down considerably, all the way to the minimum length that I'm comfortable with, removed all the extra weight, and I'm still showing slightly weak spine with my recurve. The difference is more than the weight of the bow, as the center-shot of each bow is different. My longbow isn't cut to center. My recurve is. It makes a difference in what spine you end up using for the bow. Even adding a slightly thicker side-plate can throw off the spine required for the bow, albeit not as bad as adding tip weight most of the time.
Different brands will end up with different numbers too. What may work in Gold Tips spine chart may not work in Carbon Express. The best thing to do is ask people who shoot the brand you want to use, as there are several. In Gold Tip, although I'd like to say 3555, and that is what most people probably would lean to (and Gold Tips chart calls for) I'm leaning more towards telling you to go to 5575's and adding a bit of weight up front, leaving them full length to start with. You will end up with a heavier arrow that way, which is my preference too - although a lot of traditional bow companies recommend 8 to 9 grains per pound of bow weight, I like to try to get 10 grains per pound of bow weight for a finished arrow - in your case, I'd be looking for somewhere between 9 and 10 grains per pound, equating to a 459 - 510 grain finished arrow. If you are undecided, you can always order a test kit from 3Rivers archery - Gold Tip has two 3555's, two 5575's, and two 7595's, and there are a few others offered, like Carbon Express' kit.
All the best,
Glenn
Topic: Y carbon?? (Read 666 times)
