Arrow Weight - Need Guidance

[Thare1774]

Hello all, just picked up my 66" Abbott Longbow, 40# @28, bamboo limbs but I actually pull 31 inches. I'm building some goldtip carbon wood arrows and would like some advice on what my arrow weight should be. I'm fletching em up with 5" shield cut feathers. I'm used to making light arrows for my compound, so I don't want to go too light for this bow. I'm not planning on hunting until I'm proficient, 3d and outdoor spots only for now. Any advice? Any guidelines for how heavy trad arrows should be?

[JimB]

Everyone likes something different so there will be many opinions.Below 8 grains per pound of bow weight is generally thought to be stressful on the bow so probably not less that 8GPP.A common hunting weight would be app. 10GPP.So I would say between 8GPP-10GPP for now.Once you go through the tuning process,you may find that the bow arrow combination makes the decision for you on what works best.Good luck.

[Shedrock]

I like around 10 GPP for my set-ups.

[dragonheart]

Originally posted by Shedrock:
I like around 10 GPP for my set-ups.

DITTO!

[Stump73]

My setup is 10gpp

[rolltidehunter]

10 gpi

[meathead]

10 gpp here too.

[BowHunterGA]

Another vote for 10gpp

[AWPForester]

I am shooting a 59 pound Maddog Longbow with a 480 grain arrow.  A 35/55 with a 200 grain tip, 5 shield fletches, and a 8 inch wrap.  Works out to be 8 gpp.  It is a Rocket ship and it hits real hard.

I am shooting a 60 pound Kmag with a 560 grain Doug fir arrow.  Almost 10 gpp.  It too shoots like a rogket ship and hits real hard.

I am shooting a 58 pound Kodiak Hunter with a 500 grain 5575.  Absolute rocket ship.

I have a few more bows but I am not going to go any further because the point I am making is that the bow will decide what is best and I am certain that unless you want to tinker and spend lots of money, you are going to fall in that 8-10 gpp considered the "norm".

BTW, bow noise is not dictated by arrow weights in this range.  Get it braced right and an arrow weighing 8 gpp will be just as quite as one that weighs 10 gpp.  This is nothing but a myth to me.  Because an 1/8th of an inch of brace reduction dictates alot of transferred string noise, I think the common trend is too blame bow noise on arrow weight.  But, when properly braced it will not, at least in my expierence.  BTW, all my bows are whisper quiet or I won't have them.

SO shoot what the bow likes and don't get all involved in the "accepted" arrow weight.  Your bow is probably coming in around 47-48 pounds.  If you set that 3555 up to tune you will be in that accepted 8-10 gpp range that bowyers likes with any weight tips.  Then you just have to establish which head weight will tune it.

With that power stroke it ought to be humping it too.  Remember, it wasn't that long ago that a 450 to 500 grain arrow  wasn't light and plenty of dead animals would love to testify otherwise.  Good luck and God Bless

[sawtoothscream]

for my hunting arrows 450-500gr for my set ups. so around 9 or 10 GPI.

[m midd]

I shoot 10 GPP out of all my bows

[Richie]

At least 10 gpp .  

[TxAg]

I shoot 45@29 and am shooting 12 gpp

[Thare1774]

Thanks everyone for the info, especially you Forested, lots of good tips. At least now I have a starting point. Thanks a lot fellas

[Glunt]

GT trads are only 30" unless you go to 5575 or 7595 which are 32".

With a 31" draw @ around 49# that would mean probably using the 5575 with a heavy point and/or heavy insert so ending up too light won't be an issue.

[Thare1774]

Thanks for the heads up, ill look into it. Didn't even think about it. What do you think about Easton XX75's. Been lookin at the black ones

[Flying Dutchman]

looking at arrow eight, you will have to ask yourself the question if you are a 3D shooter or a hunter.

For Hunting arrows you would like a higher weight and a higher FOC.

For 3D arrows you would like a lower weight and a lower FOC.


For 3D I use a 9% FOC and an arrow eight of 8,5 to 9 GPP.

As already told here, you don't want to go under the 8 GPP. For your setup this means the following:

You shoot 40 lbs at 28" but you draw 31 inch. The poundage of your bow at 31 inch will be around the 46 lbs (5% per 1 inch drawlenght more)
So this means that your minimum weight should be: 46 times 8 = 368 grains.

The ideal arrow weight also depends of your bow: some bows can be shot with low-weight arrows, but some other bows really like heavier arrows.
When an arrow is to low in weight, you can feel this, because the bow will be less quiet, give more handshock and/or vibrations and will be less foriven.

Just for finding out what weight your bow prefers, I suggest you shooth carbons with some different weights. Easily done by different points and/or weight adaptors. Try to make some different weight setups, such as 9 GPP, 10 GPP and 11 GPP. Feel how your bow reacts by different weights. In this way you can detect the limits of your bow fast and with what weight your bow shoots really nice.  Then the tuning begins ofcourse...  

[Thare1774]

Thx for pointing that out glunt, I hadn't thought about that. Replaced with some Black Gamegetters today.

[Thare1774]

Dutchman, thank you, great info