arrow selection

[Don Stangeland]

I am shooting a 61"  Holm Made  longbow at 45  pounds with a 27 " draw.  What  arrow length and size or brand  does any one   reccommend .?  carbon or  wood?   Also broadheads and weight?   Thank u for the help

[Wapiti Bowman]

DS,

You're going to find as many answers to your arrow spine and point wt Q as there are members on this forum. Ultimately, you're going to have to decide, as what works for others may not work for you, not only because of your bow, but because of your shooting style and release, as well.

That goes for wood vs carbon also. Some "traditionalists" believe that wood is the only way to go,in keeping with "Tradition", while others believe if you're going to shoot "stick" bows made with modern materials and means, go with modern material arrows, i.e., carbon or aluminum.

I've tried both, and while I've found it easier to get woodies to fly right, they're neither as consistent, nor as durable as carbon shafts.  Unfortunately, getting carbons to fly right can take a lot of time, patience, tinkering and $$$.

Here's my "Shot" at it for you    :D   With a 27" draw length and 45# draw wt, you're probably going to have to try a .600 or .500 spined shaft.
As I'm not a hunter, I can only repeat what a hunting friend of mine told me: The more wt up front, the better, as in 200 gn or more. And I've found that even for target shooting the carbons with a high FOC group and fly better than carbons with a low FOC. When I say High FOC, I mean 20+ percent. With that in mind, I'd probably start with the .500 spined carbon shafts. I'm shooting bows in the 40-45# range with a 28"BOP arrow, and I can shoot both spines with equal flight characteristics. I'm using 200 gns up front.

As for brand, we all have our favorites: I like Gold Tips because they have a "faux" wood grained shaft that helps me see the shaft better under poor light conditions. Of course they're $15/doz more expensive than the 'plain jane' black shafts. Another friend shoots the Beman Expedition Hunters, one of the lesser expensive shafts on the market.

You might start with what fits your pocket book in the spines I've mentioned, and try bare shafting with several different pt wts, starting with 145, up through 225. You may have to add wts using some of the wt systems available.

One guide line I strictly adhere to is a "rule of Thumb", minimum total arrow wt of 10 gns/ pound of draw wt!

Good Luck! Keep your sense of humor; and, above all, Have Fun!    

[Fletcher]

Don, either wood or carbon will work very well.  Both have their compromise points and that part you have to decide on.  I'm strictly a wood arrow shooter so will answer on those.  Generally, a regular longbow will shoot a 28" arrow with a 125 gr point that is spined at the draw weight.  Assuming these to be potential hunting arrows, for your 27" draw you will probably shoot a 28" arrow.  How deep the shelf is cut makes a big difference in needed spine, along with point weight.  The Holm looks to be cut pretty close to center, so you will add 10 lb spine.  A 160 gr point will want another 5 lb.  I like to keep my hunting arrows at least 500 gr total, and the heavier point will help with that and overall arrow performance.  That puts you right about 60 lbs for spine.  Some test arrows will tell you just where you need to be.

[Tucson-John]

I very much agree with Wapiti Bowman.
The very essence is that the bow is a launching platform and the arrow is essentially a venue of ballistic co-efficiency.
There is one effect with a lighter, faster "bullet" another with a heavier slower "bullet". Both will have differing terminal velocity and energy but there is the variable of what the projectile is being used for!

Archeological studies of archery have found that in certain scenarios a heavy thick spined arrow achieved one effect that was substantially different from a lighter one depending on game, distance, crosswind, & arrowhead design.
Within reason there is room for variation depending upon the objective of the archer.