Might experiment with a new (to me) carbon shaft ............

[LookMomNoSights]

I have been shooting Easton Carbon Legacy's for a bit now ...... they are just fine ........ but .........  I am interested in trying a smaller diameter shafting,  specifically the Easton Axis Match Grade 5mm shafts.  The GPI is very close to what the legacy's are.  The claimed straightness is far better ( .001 axis compared to .006 legacy).  Smaller diameter penetration benefits. 
Does anybody here shoot these and if so,  how do ya like them?  The Axis is literally about twice the price of the Legacy,  but 1 I enjoy tinkering with arrows and 2 if I start shooting them and really notice any positive difference,  I'll most likely convince myself the additional cost is justified    If you shoot these shafts,  let me know your thoughts please!

[BigJim]

I have shot smaller diameter shafts and can't see any benefit. Penetration is difficult to measure in the real world.. hard to simulate blood and tissue using gel or foam.
You likely will need to increase spine as it will move you closer to center.

You .. as most of us, probably won't be satisfied until you try for yourself. If you want to increase penetration, shoot them back and inch more.. or even two. When we crowd the shoulder, the vitals ...depending on the game animal, generally get smaller and are more surrounded by heavier bone and muscle. I'm very guilty of crowding the shoulder and rarely get complete pass through even though I shoot heavier equipment than most.
I mean, I always have two holes in  them, but they generally twitch at the hit and break my shaft as it is coming out of their off side shoulder.
BigJim

[LookMomNoSights]

Great info as always Jim,  Thank You!

[Terry Green]

Eric, what bhead do you plan on shooting?

[LookMomNoSights]

I’ve really been liking the VPA 3 blades.  On carbons,  thats become really the only one I  shoot.   175 gr
Fantastic heads!

[Terry Green]

Eric, I would not worry about arrow pinch with a three or four blade head.

What's the shaft going to drag on ..... 

[LookMomNoSights]

You make a good point Terry……. Big ole holes like that,  a lot less pass through resistance on the remaining shaft behind the head …….. I can see it. Especially with a well tuned straight flying arrow……

[Mike Walker]

I agree with BigJim and Terry---hard to test and probably not needed, but I do feel it's a benefit to shoot the smaller diameter shafts from traditional bows because they give a more desirable position in relation to centershot.

I've been shooting some version of Easton 5MM .204 shafts since 2009..........FMJ's--Axis Match Grade--Axis--Axis Sports--Axis Traditional's and Beman MFX Classics.........the straightness of these ranged from .001 to .005.......I've never been able to shoot the difference, so settled on the .003 regular Axis and/or regular FMJ's which are .002 straightness because they seemed like the best deal.

So, I wouldn't spend the extra for Match Grade shafts for a traditional bow----IMO spine consistency is way more important.

Good luck and Good Hunting!

 

[M60gunner]

Big Jim makes another point about the smaller diameter shafts I like. Being able to “spine up” especially if your setup is on the border line with spine sizes like I was. I was able to use a heavier broad head which gave me more FOC which I wanted at the time.